A VO's Journey Ep. 272: Commit to Excellence – Mastering Planning and Focus Tips for Voice Actors

Podcast: A VO's Journey: Voiceover and more voice over

Host: Anthony Pica

Date: May 21, 2024

Overview

In this episode, Anthony Pica addresses the critical importance of practical planning, focus, and goal-setting for voice actors seeking to elevate their businesses and reach higher levels of productivity and satisfaction. He distinguishes between buzzwords like "excellence" and "planning" and their real-world actionable applications. Drawing from his personal experience transitioning to full-time VO work, Anthony walks listeners through how to set meaningful goals, reverse-engineer pathways to achieve them, and make tough yet rewarding decisions along the way.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Beyond Motivational Buzzwords: Making Excellence Practical

• Motivational words like "excellence," "commitment," and "planning" are everywhere, but Anthony notes they lose impact through overuse.
• He stresses the need to translate these into tangible actions: “We need a practical approach… things you could put on, like A, B, C, D that you can actually do.” (02:00)

2. Specific, Intentional Goal Setting

• Many aspiring voice actors either lack a clear goal or default to “just enough” financial targets.
• Anthony cautions against vague or minimum goals, explaining:

  “When you approach your goal that way, it just sets you up for…not actually something that excites you.” (05:22)

• He advocates for Kennedy-style, specific goals with a clear outcome and deadline:
  • Who, what, when, by how much
  • E.g., “I want to average $3,000 a month by the end of 2026, and I’ll measure that by having six months of $3,000.” (10:43)

3. Burning the Boats—Removing the ‘Way Out’

• Anthony references the military strategy:

  “We all know that burning the boats…means we can’t go back. We’ve got to go forwards.” (07:42)

• He explains that giving oneself an escape clause undermines commitment to goals.

4. Reverse Engineering the Plan: Calculating Real Steps

• After setting a concrete goal, work backwards to define the actions needed.
• Example calculation:
  • If each voiceover job is $100 and the goal is $3,000/month, that’s 30 jobs.
  • If 100 auditions yield 3 jobs, you need 1,000 auditions for 30 jobs.
  • Calculate auditions per day/week and adjust based on practical limits.
• “Now you’ve started to figure out right off the bat how many voiceovers you need…We’re starting to actually start to put into motion the realization of your goal, not a dream.” (22:18)

5. Real Life Application: Anthony’s VO Career Pivot

• Anthony shares how he had to stop doing audiobooks—80% of his revenue—because he had no physical capacity for more work and needed to earn more.
• The risk paid off:

  “I made that decision…ended up losing at the time, for the first time, three to six months, I lost about 50 to 60% of my revenue…however, my revenue started to pick back up. Then it doubled…then it tripled…” (20:13)

• Highlights the power of tough, numbers-driven decisions anchored by specific goals.

6. Measurement, Tracking, and Logical Adjustments

• Use math and data to drive decisions:
  • Adjust the type or amount of work, marketing focus, or skill improvement (e.g., via coaching) to improve conversion rates.
  • “All of this comes from you having a very specific goal and a time frame between which you reach the goal, and then reverse engineering that goal to logically figure out what it takes.” (29:59)
• Practical takeaway: Most people never get past vague goals; success requires thinking and detailed planning.

7. Embracing Desire—Honesty About What You Want

• Many are afraid to vocalize big goals (financial or otherwise) due to fear of judgment or self-doubt.

• “Every time you’re honest, you burn another ship because you can’t lie to yourself anymore.” (31:30)

• Encourages listeners to state their real ambitions without shame.

8. Simon Sinek's 'Start with Why'

• Anthony references Sinek’s TED Talk and book, reiterating the importance of starting with “why” rather than “what” or “how.”

• “The heart of all of this is really the true reason why we fail or succeed—because we have to be open and honest…” (33:30)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On overused buzzwords:
  “They all sound really great…but when you use something so much… it begins to lose its importance.” (01:19)

• On minimum goals:
  “When you approach your goal that way, it just sets you up for…well, if I just get that, everything will be fine.” (05:17)

• On burning the boats:
  “I’m not saying quit your jobs or something… metaphorically, we need to burn the boats of leaving ourselves a way out.” (07:42)

• Personal pivot:
  “I could not make more money… I realized at that time that I could not make more money…So I decided…the only thing I could do was literally to stop doing audiobooks.” (17:51)

• Reverse engineering:
  “So you see how all of a sudden, because we’ve identified the goal…and what we’re trying to accomplish, now it actually physically tells you what you need to do.” (28:35)

• On honesty and big goals:
  “Once you know exactly what you want, getting it is only a matter of time… the majority of us struggle because we really have yet to define what we really want.” (33:30)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• (00:00 – 02:00): Framing the episode; the gap between buzzwords and action
• (03:47 – 07:42): Why goal specificity trumps vague ambitions; the “burn the boats” mindset
• (10:43 – 17:51): Pitfalls of measuring by income only; considering taxes and real numbers
• (17:51 – 20:13): Anthony’s personal story of transition and the hard choices for business growth
• (21:12 – 30:00): The step-by-step math and logic of achieving income goals in VO
• (30:01 – 33:30): Facing hard decisions, embracing what you want, and societal/societal limitations
• (33:30 – 38:03): Simon Sinek’s "Start with Why," honesty, and experimental persistence in VO

Actionable Takeaways for Voice Actors

• Set ultra-specific, outcome-driven goals (what, how much, by when).
• Remove ‘escape routes’—commit fully, at least mentally, to your objective.
• Reverse engineer the steps: Use concrete numbers to define the daily/weekly actions required.
• Track results and be willing to pivot—even if it means losing safe revenue in the short term.
• Be honest about your ambitions and avoid downsizing your dreams for fear of judgment.
• Start with your ‘why’ for greater motivation and clarity.
• Join a community or seek mentorship, but always keep ownership of your goals and progress.
• Experiment, measure, and adjust using a scientific mindset.

Final Note

Anthony’s episode is a blend of motivation and hard-nosed business practicality for any voice actor ready to move from dreaming to doing. Success is not an accident—it’s the result of specificity, strategy, honest ambition, and adaptability. As Anthony says:

“Once you know exactly what you want, getting it is only a matter of time.”