VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

[Scott S.]

I was an unregistered lurker for a few months, and many of my questions have been asked and answered. But, one thing I'd like to know from the full time VO people is this: At what point did you decide that you were in a good enough position to quit whatever job you had and freelance full time?

Did you have a certain amount of money saved? Did you have a certain amount of regular work coming in? Were you simply convinced that you had what it takes and threw caution to the wind?

I guess this could be asked of any full time freelancer, but, obviously, I'm seeking the opinions of VO folks.

Thanks in advance!

[Frank F]

The day the radio station I was working for gave me the pink slip. There I was, the number listened to radio personality in the market with a 33% share of women 18-54 and 27% Men 18 to 54 in a quasi large market; and I was shown the door. The decision was easy from that point on, earn a living doing VO or starve.

Most often however the time to stop working for a living is the day when your income from VO is greater than the income from your day job. The choice to stop working may be tough as you may have a good income with the combined paychecks, but circumstances may dictate the move to being a full-time Voice Artist.

Choose your career wisely, you will feel the time to stop working and start your VO path when all things in the universe are ready.

Toodles

F2
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[Moe Egan]

Ditto what you said Double F.

I had been doing voice work for giggles and gas money since 1985, not on any regular basis, but always thought about it. I didn't want to move to a big city, so I never seriously pursued it. Then April 1st 2004 I got shown the door at the radio station I was working at. I figured it was the best time to see if I could do VO full time for real.

Something about being thrown in the deep end is very conducive to learning how to swim.
_________________
Moe Egan
i want to be the voice in your head.
~~~~~

[Mandy Nelson]

I've never examined this question before and I look forward to other vo answers.

For me it was over 6 years ago when we moved to this house and built a proper studio and booth (previously my home studio involved a corner and a towel but I went to studios more often). About 4 years before that I had tried but got so bored w/ the lack of consistent work that I took a two-day-a-week job as a nanny as I had done in college. Back then I made enough money off the vo to live b/c I was a newlywed and didn't have many bills and things were much simpler.

So here I am doing what I love. I'm not entirely full-time since I've got my two wee ones and everything else to take care of but I do work everyday voicing something and part of almost everyday securing the work.
_________________
006 member of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Mic. Bonded by sound.

Manfillappsoc: The Mandy and Philip mutual appreciation Society. Who's in your network?

Have you seen my mic closet? ~ me to my future husband

[Jeffrey Kafer]

I think it helps to define what you mean by a full-time VO.

1. There are some professional VOs who quit their day job and do it full time, but don't necessarily make enough to live on. Behind the scenes they have a spouse bringing in the lion's share of the salary and benefits.

2. Full-time VO who share the fiscal responsibility with someone else. This is the same as a 2-income household and the family budget relies on both incomes.

3. Full-time VOs who support their family financially with VO work. The significant other may work as well, but if that person lost their job, they would still remain financially stable.

Before taking any one person's advice, it might be good to know what perspective they're coming from.
_________________
Jeff
http://JeffreyKafer.com
Voice-overload Web comic: http://voice-overload.com

[Frank F]

Just to add to Kafers madness, I work full time as a VA with some other investments which were created by my VO income.

I support myself and my Lady, and up until recently my Mother. So, I believe this is what I am speaking about when talking about a full-time VA.

So, I am a three.

FF
_________________
Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[Dan-O]

Now that you are registered, you can read fantastic threads like this: http://www.vo-bb.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=5099&highlight=fulltime

[Scott S.]

[Mandy Nelson]

Jeff has a great point (as you'll learn he often does even when not banging sticks together). I'm a complicated version of #2.
_________________
006 member of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Mic. Bonded by sound.

Manfillappsoc: The Mandy and Philip mutual appreciation Society. Who's in your network?

Have you seen my mic closet? ~ me to my future husband

[Lee Gordon]

Add me to the long list of people who transitioned from part-time to full-time Voice Over Artist when Clear Channel or one of its predecessors consolidated half the radio stations in a market and decided they could operate with 1/3 the people. In my case, it was January, 1997.
_________________
Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

[flaspots]

I seriously started my independent work twenty years into my radio career. I did both jobs, full time, for about six more years. Once I doubled my radio salary, I held that level for two more years (to make sure it all wasn't a fluke), then left the station.

I'm a #3, but do more than just v/o work.

[Lizden]

I also got shown the door from my day job and dove in to VO full time.
I think I contributed to the thread Dan-O referenced
I'm pretty much #2 on Jeff's spectrum, as both my husband & I are self employed.

Liz
_________________
Liz de Nesnera O.A.V. ~ Livin' The VO Dream!
English/French Bilingual VO w/ ISDN
HireLiz.com / liz@hireliz.com

[LindZ]

I was working as a sales person and owners assistant at a party company up until the end of July of this year. When they told me that they were going to force me to be on call 24/7 with no increase in salary I high tailed it outa there.
About a week later I went on an audition for a small MTV thing, didn't get the part.
My very next audition, I landed the lead role in a multi-million dollar cartoon dub, that may very well going on for several years, and a free trip to China once the show starts airing!
Since then, I've been learning as much as I can, going on as many auditions as I can, and doing some video editing part time for someone who is very understanding in how flexible my hours have to be and lets me work from home.
I just got sent the ad for my very first television commercial and it was such an incredible feeling. It was for a cancer care center at Arroyo Grande Community Hospital.
So, I guess you could say I am doing this full time now. Next step is getting an agent.
_________________
Lindsay Sheppard
www.bubblegumvoice.com
I have a sketchbook, and I know how to use it!

[Rob Ellis]

I lost my day job(selling new homes) in May 2006, and then embarked on this dream, with 10 years of radio under my belt to draw on (and at the same time unlearn)

We couldn't make it on my VO income alone, but it's providing a nice little addition to the family budget, and will eventually be enough to support all of us, if necessary.

I guess in a way I'm a #3, but with the wife being a bit of a corporate star it's not like I was going to starve if there wasn't enough VO work. But at the same time I've never been one to just prop my feet up and take it easy.

The VO income increase has been steady, especially compared to the first year, but things often take longer than we expect or want them to.

[Claire Dodin]

I'm a number 3 (even though I haven't got a family yet, I could)
One week, I turned down 3 jobs because they wanted me at a studio day time and couldn't go because of the day job. The same week, everyday I'd wake up at 7am, go to file boring paperwork for $15 per hour until 5pm, go home and record at my home studio until 1 or 2 am, forget to eat and wake up next day for another one of those. At the end of the week I quit as I felt like I was going to die of exhaustion.
I had been getting busier and busier every week, this was the last bit of energy I had. I also realized that the $15 per hour made nearly no difference to my income, with the bookings I missed I would have made more money.
I've never looked back. Now I still get crazy days, but they are just filled with what I love instead of working in a horrible office. And I count my blessings everyday!
_________________
www.clairedodin.com