At Long Last!

Posted by Linda Dockery

I’ve been struggling with…money…forced retirement (sort of) and personal things like having a Mom who needs more and more of my time. She’s my best friend and so it’s tough to see her dwindling. Anyhoo…what I wanted to say was, I feel like I’m finally bouncing back to me. I’ve made peace with the fact that for a while, I couldn’t convince ANYONE that I still had some worth, truth be told,  it was probably me that needed convincing. And I am…(convinced that is).

I have some clients and I have some jobs that I work on everyday and some that just need pushed along as needed. Everyday is new and different. And that’s pretty cool!  I’m getting SS (it’s not much, but it’s more than some people get!). I’m surviving and finding that it’s kind of fun to be able to drop everything and take Mom to lunch or go to Grandparents Day. I just finished a pretty big project and have had a couple of nibbles from people looking for project work, (which, I believe is the wave of the future, mark my words.) So if you’re down and worried and you need a (wait a minute that’s a James Taylor song!) Anyway, if I can do this…find my way to a good place in these dark woods called semi-retirement, then you can too. Have faith, work hard and be grateful for EVERYTHING!!

Is That a Light I See?

Posted by Linda Dockery

Hello and welcome! We are finally moving on from Linda Needs a Job to Linda Got a Job. Well, Linda got a project! Yes, a real live writing project. It’s for a huge company’s website migration. They also have an AV project for me that’s going to take a very long time to complete. Guess who’s really really happy? It would be me… or I …or…whatev’s! In anticipation of the AV portion of the job, I bought a camera! I’m still shaking in my flip flops over THAT decision, but if I’m going to do AV work, I need one. I bought a Canon Rebel T3i, DSLR. Shoots good looking hi quality HD plus.. it’s affordable. And maybe,  good luck too, because the day after I bought the camera I got another project! Hmmm…. there might be something to that positive thinking thing. Anyway, YAY all over me!!!  I actually might be able to survive this “No Real Job” thing.  Just maybe.

A Quarter to 3…

Posted by Linda Dockery

…a quarter to three, no one in the place except you and me….yeah, that’s sorta how it feels. All by myself in this, and I guess that’s just how it is. I’m looking for work, everyday. Even doing a little here and there. But the feeling that I’m all alone in this, is the thing that’s so hard to deal with.
I have friends. I have family. All encouraging of course. I have two little kitty cats that hang out and try to keep me company. I putter and tinker. I have projects. But overall, I’d have to say that I’m a complete failure at being unemployed. YIKES!!! So… hurry up and give me a job! Because it’s a quarter to three and there’s no one in the place… except me and some bartender named…Joe?

The Dog, the Bell and the…Drool?

Posted by Linda Dockery

I didn’t graduate from college, but I took a couple of semesters. (I tell everyone that I graduated from H.K.U.)  That being…Hard Knocks University. (where else?) But I did take a Psychology course. If any of you did, then you may have heard about the dog, the bell and the drool…yes? OK, they had a dog and right before they fed the dog, they would ring a bell. They did this everyday over a long period of time, so eventually when they rang the bell the dog would start to salivate, knowing food was coming and he was gonna get to eat! In this scenario….I’m the dog. I’ve worked for 40-some years. I’m conditioned to feel good when I work. I’m productive, earning my way…responsible, smart, yada yada yada.  Now I’m not working. I’m looking for work. I’m cleaning my house, baking, trying to keep the old chins up. But I still feel like the biggest screw-off alive. That’s what years of training will do!

The Morning After…

Posted by Linda Dockery

The morning after you are let go from a job that you loved and held for 9 years feels pretty rough. I mean, I’ve got NO experience in losing jobs because I’ve NEVER been fired before. ( I guess I wasn’t actually fired from this one…just “Let go” ) Anyway, as far as really being fired, I was…twice when I was a kid, but never as an adult and not from a dream job which was what I had at MillerWhite. BTW…If you need a great marketing firm take your biz there. Just don’t expect to see me…(she wrote as tears streamed down face. LOL!)

Well Well, Linda Really Does Needs a Job!

Posted by Linda Dockery

Well well, it’s here! That cold day in hell…you know the one they always talk about? Just lost my job at MillerWhite. Been there 9 years. Got the word about a half hour ago from one of the owners. Don’t want to say more than they are a good company and I wish them the best.
I have only been unemployed a few times in the last 31 years. I started this website last year when they had to cut my hours.  I looked for work everyday and with all my experience and work history AND being quite good at my job…the best I could do was a PT job at Dollar General.
This website, (which I built BTW…) has demos and some samples of my work. Of course I realize that AV Production is a little limited, but I can do lots of stuff! Office admin, any kind of radio station work, traffic, billing, web design, pet sitting…washing your car LOL…anyways, just when you think all is well, something comes up and bites your booby!
Keep an “eye out for me” as the old pirate’s joke goes and say a prayer.

The Key to Great Radio Spots

Posted by Linda Dockery

Producing a great radio spot starts with the writing. I can’t stress enough how important good grammar, fabulous vocabulary, a good grasp of  terminology AND a wicked sense of humor is. Don’t use tired old phrases. Writing fresh copy can’t help but sound fresh! A new idea, perspective, direction. Different music, voice or voices, sound effects. Whatevs.
Try this little exercise. Pick a sfx and write a script around it. One time I did this with uh…the sound of a Sperm Whale. Really. That was a tough one. It really helps shake up your imagination. You’ll see.

Producing this bad boy was a whole other story!

Love What You Do!

Posted by Linda Dockery

I’ve told people for years that even though I’ve been writing, shooting, voicing and editing commercials, videos, and gosh knows what else, for 31 years I still love it! LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!
Not just love in the ho hum “I sorta love this nonsense”… sense. Oh no! I mean I’m passionate about it, on fire, crazy about it! And who wouldn’t love to feel that way about their job after 31 years. That’s the joy of loving what you do and knowing you’re darn good at it. Then taking all that passion and push and dogged determination, hard core push come-to-shoving, to continue learning and improving and polishing your craft.

It’s what Evan (my AV-IM Pard) calls “The new normal” You gotta do it these days, if you’re going to survive in this media jungle. Learning, morphing challenging all the old silly rules of how we do our business and write our “spots” and edit and color correct and build sites…well…just how we think about reaching our Nirvana. You know…our Heaven, our Sanctuary. I’m talking about our Target Audience. Please hush for the harps and angles…………

OK, I’ll admit I got a little long winded, but I just want to say that in this crazy business you need to be all in. Got it? Man I hope so. LOL! I’m worn out!