Burnout Is Real
Today, I am going to take some time and talk about something that is real about the broadcast industry or any industry. It is called burnout.
According to Urban Dictionary, Burnout is A state of emotional and physical exhaustion caused by a prolonged period of stress and frustration; an inevitable corporate condition characterized by frequent displays of unprofessional behavior, a blithe refusal to do any work, and most important, a distinct aura of not giving a shit.
There are various reasons for burnout. One is no leadership. When I was in Vincennes as a fill-in personality, I had my boss across the shade path from the studio. He could always pick up a phone or walk over and tell me things if he needed to. I appreciated the interaction on that level. When I transitioned to full-time afternoons on 101.7 WTYE, I will say that I could get away with practically anything. For me, I need to know things so I can perform my job better like ratings. Another thing that lead to my on-air burnout was a lack of boundaries. It was such at the time that I could get away with murder and still have a job. For the record, never tried that, but I’m just saying that I had no true boundaries that were set.
Between burnout and some things going on at home with my mom at the time, I turned in my notice and walked away from full time radio. Its hard to believe, that it has been almost 4 years since that decision was made. I had the privilege of doing some fill in stuff, but I will tell you I lost my fire for on air broadcast for a while. I did some fill in shifts and what not, but I wasn’t completely me on the air. I will tell you, it took a podcast idea that was mine and a person who had a fire for radio to change my tune and call me out.
I will tell you, that person and I have been through some great times and some sour times, but at the end of the day, I as a person have to say they were right on things. One thing is this person is not afraid to call me out when I screw up. We initially tried a 1 hour daily podcast on video together, but because of some technology glitches and just me not having the correct attitude, I put that on an indefinite hold. During that time, I did buy some new equipment to make it work in the future and I picked up on some other projects. Ultimately, that podcast is still on hold.
In November of 2021, I am working on some stress relief things with my stress therapist. Let me tell you, she wasn’t wrong on the idea of using a podcast to air out. The first person I talked to about doing this new Pod was a partner of mine that I have collaborated with before over the years and he was starting to get where he was dealing with similar issues that I have been dealing with. 11/11/21, Matthew Poe and Myself released new material for the first time in 6 years.
I credit 2 people for bringing back my fire for doing some things. I credit Matt because we have worked together so much over the years. We were roommates at one time and are brothers from another mother. While Matt is important, I have to thank Liv Calloway as well. I don’t know what there is to say. She has been a rock for me. She knows almost everything about me. I know a lot about her. For some reason, neither one of us have completely ran for the hills. I love and appreciate both of these people more than they will ever know.
In the most recent release of the Podcast, all of us along with Tyson Radcliffe were talking about single parent life. All of us had to live it. We all saw our parents struggle. We all had some various viewpoints, but I will speak to mine. It takes a village is one thing I have always said. Between my church family growing up to Ron Alexander at the Vincennes YMCA, to great teachers, and what not, I was taken care of. Another thing I mentioned was your group of people that you surround yourself with are the people that basically determine who you are. Liv, Matt, and I have gone to school together. I have some great memories with both. Both have also been there for me when I need them. The words I Love You to both of them do not do any justice for who they are. Neither does the term the most amazing person in the world.
Someone had to ask about why we do a segment in Urban Dictionary. This is because of something I accidentally did at a girls basketball game. I mentioned I had popcorn, tube steak, and a drink. A hot dog is a tube steak if you Google it. If you go through UD, I’m get classified as a pervert. I posted to Insta and FB on this and I’m thankful I had the photo of the hot dog, otherwise I may not have a job.
Thank God for great friends and fellow collaborators.
