June 27, 2022
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome to get to the other side during your career?
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Elise, WPLW: Working on the morning show in Richmond for nine months. Getting up at 4:30 a.m. every day was very challenging. But getting through that period launched my own on-air career. Orlando Davis, WLLD: Biggest hurdle was (and is) balancing being on the team and the coach OF the team. Many can’t take the balance but their talent makes you more patient, for the desired return. Challenging though. Valentine, WBHT: The big one for me was learning that you need to let go of things that are out of your control. Focus on the present and the things that are within your control. When I started to realize that the fun kicked in a little bit more.
Jana Sutter, WXXL: It’s more of a feeling of really loving what I’m doing and not having to chase anything down anymore. I continually get asked to do the things I love and I’m so okay with that. Fish, WKRZ: When I learned to be more open-minded, listen more, and not challenge everything, and learn to accept things and walk away. Jonathan Shuford, WRVW: When I started listening to other people.
Guy Zapoleon, Zapoleon Consulting: I got my first major market job at WBZZ Pittsburgh in 1984 with no research at all, only my programming instincts. I focused on the music first and installed my music tempo system and completely contemporized the library, retooled the station formatics, and fine-tuned the great staff who were there because of two great PDs Dan Vallie and Steve Kingston. But the GM thought I wasn’t major market material as he told me (and nearly fired me) after we only went up from a 6.0 to a 6.4. I looked him in the eye and told him he was wrong, and I’d show him. We went top 3 the next book! |
Randi West, WRMF: Fear of the unknown. By the way…fear is a great motivator!
R Dub, Z90/Magic 92.5: My own ego. Mike O’Donnell, WKRZ: It was ratings performance. I’ve always been very competitive, and I don’t necessarily equate ratings with success, but when you finally take your station #1 and it stays there, I really feel that’s a personal accomplishment and a milestone. Every programmer’s dream is to take their station #1and when you do that it’s a satisfying feeling you always remember.
Josh Wolff, WAEB: It’s so important to have strong mentors who can pour their knowledge into you to help you get to the other side, which for me is an ongoing process. Talent helps, but mentorship and networking are more valuable. Jon Zellner, iHeartMedia: Fresno.
Jeff Hurley iHeartMedia: Was downsized from a PD position about 15 years ago. The GM (Ron Roy, RIP) allowed me to stay on-air with a nearby station “…until I found another gig.” After some interviews with other companies, an opportunity presented itself at the station. So, I worked my way all the way back up the ladder to my current role. Heather Deluca, WSJO: Straight up: Being a woman. Matt Johnson, WPLW: When I learned how to properly behave from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. |
Lee Abrams, mediavisions: Staying current with music, social, technology and culture. It’s too easy to get locked in a box stuck in an era and miss the ride. Don’t have to like what you observe, but in the business of entertainment, it’s critical to have an understanding and grasp to be in sync with the era. Big Rob, KKPL/KMAX: My biggest hurdle was that I was always looked at as a young kid. I worked for the same group of people since I was 18 and was treated as such. I had to start over to remove that thought process from my current team. I’m a “vet” now LOL
Kobe, WURV: When I left WAPE to move back to Pittsburgh to get out of radio and focus on social media, it was much harder than I thought. Finding a “regular job” was tough, but we made ends meet with me doing a collection of odd jobs. Eventually I got bit by the bug again and here we are. I always remember this line whenever times are tough. “It all works out in the end, if it’s not working out, it’s not the end.” Jason Squires, KFRR: Seeing as radio is kind of a family business, getting past that and establishing myself on my own. Kevin Kash, WWEG: The biggest challenge is getting back over to the other side again after life deals you wrong.
Toby Knapp, WASH: Myself. My own insecurities, my own self-esteem, my own feelings of not being good enough and my own feeling of needing I could do anything without saying no, with some questionable life sorts of things in the way… But I’ll be damned if it hasn’t been a hell of a ride. |
Brian Mack, iHeartMedia: I’m only now getting to the place in my maturity where I recognize I can take some credit for achievements. Up until a year ago, I thought I was riding the longest wave of luck.
Chris Michaels, FM100: I would say at the start of the pandemic. Things were so crazy and we were moving very fast to get everyone set up to broadcast remotely, and then trying to make it work with morning show co-hosts in different locations. Then, doing promotions and staying engaged with listeners all virtually was wild at first. We learned a lot, and it really made us a lot better in the long run.
Rick Vaughn, KENZ: The biggest challenge I had to overcome was being defensive and combative in the “new” corporate ownership environment. I had some difficulty with Clear Channel as the company was figuring itself out. There’s a difference between holding your ground on something you believe is best for your brand, versus losing your cool and acting immature. We work for companies we do not own. If they want to eff something up, who am I to get in the way? See? There’s a difference.
Dom Theodore, Radio Animal Media Strategies: There have been many, but one of the biggest was making the decision to go out on my own after years as a corporate radio executive. We’re all taught to play it safe, but it’s one of the most rewarding decisions I ever made.
Rich Davis, KDWB: When I gained the mindset of not thinking that you always know what the answer is, and just because someone else is doing it differently, they are not necessarily wrong. A lot of what I learn every week comes from calls I have with other programmers, who many time do things differently than me. Although their methods may differ than mine, I’ve learned to take in all of that information and try to come up with the best solution for the issue at hand.
Next Week’s Question Of The Week:
What images does the July 4th holiday instantly evoke in your mind?
e-Mail your responses to: jodorisio@deanemediasolutions.com or bburke@deanemediasolutions.com
