We are all under pressure in our lives. We have personal lives, financial concerns, work worries as it relates to our radio jobs, and safety concerns. This is a lot of stuff, and some people seem to handle it better than others. But I have seen people who seem like they have it all together, and then the wheels come off.
Are you taking time for yourself?
I know — I used to roll my eyes when someone said the term “self-care.”
Even in the happiest and most functional of romantic relationships, there can be some conflict. Obviously, we all know couples who always seem to be fighting like cats and dogs.
I have dear friends of mine who fought like hell while they were dating, engaged, and married. Eventually, they divorced but co-parented two amazing kids. Because I am in radio and have moved a few times, I see these people rarely, but when I visit, I see them. Even though both have remarried, they still have great love and respect for each other and, yes, still snipe at each other over everything.
That works for some people. These are great professionals. Especially when trying to host a show, most hosts want to be focused like a laser beam on the task at hand. When I was hosting a daily show, an argument with my lady friend would be a huge distraction. Perhaps you can handle that better than I. A kid has gotten into trouble or is sick — how do you handle these things? Your mom fell and broke her hip. Your wayward sibling was arrested.
How do you keep the show first? I will answer that for you.
What are your financial concerns? Are you ready for your kids’ never-ending college careers? What about retirement? Do you have enough money to cushion the blow if you are a victim of a RIF? You also may have more personal debt than is manageable. Are you financially supporting elderly parents? Have you priced out doggy daycare? Nothing is cheap, and raises at radio stations are as rare as the black-footed ferret.
Most radio people are creative types, and that doesn’t necessarily mean that we are careful planners. We must focus on a holistic look at our lives. Are you maximizing the 401k program at your office? Are you saving outside of the company program? You are likely not receiving that precious company match to your 401k program.
How do you adjust? There are two ways, of course: gamble a lot and hope for the best, or carefully monitor your spending, debt, and savings. How can you get out of debt quicker? Are you spending an insane amount on car payments? I know people who spend a couple of grand a month on eating out. It is not that tough to spend a couple of hundred dollars on dinner and drinks. How much are you door-dashing? I know that I personally need to watch how much I eat out each week.
What’s going on at the office? A few companies recently laid off employees. If this happened at your workplace, it is stressful and can impact your show. Office stress can affect your enthusiasm, motivation, coworkers’ moods, and teamwork. This can be detrimental to your show. A buddy of mine recently lost his longtime producer to a RIF. He is lost — that producer kept him organized and guaranteed a strong show. These circumstances beyond our control can create stress, challenges, and are just not fun.
Following the assassination of Charlie Kirk, there is a big concern for safety. Most radio people are not experts in personal security. We want to live our lives without having safety as job one. Well, it is. It is not just your safety that you are worried about. You can’t help but think of coworkers, family members, and, of course, yourself. Doxxing people is shockingly easy to do. All a crazy person has to do is spend $10 to know where you live. This is stressful as hell. I know that you put this to the back of your mind, but it is there and can affect your mood, show, and more. Do you have a safety plan?
Here are my thoughts on self-care. I hate that term as well, but here we are. You must be able to handle all of these pressures and more. We have all been in situations that seem like a dead end. I personally have benefited from spending time alone to reflect on things. It allows me to make an action plan for what is next.
I was at a job early in my career for too long. I was very comfortable and really enjoyed what I was doing. And I then realized that I could have done more. I was being held back by not moving on to the next position. I was very happy in that city — great friends, fantastic employer, good work experience — but staying would hold me back from achieving what I felt I could do.
My self-reflection was the first step for me to move on to my next job.
Are you taking time for yourself? Are you ignoring issues because you are too busy? If your life is filled with commitments and activities, you may just be hiding from the problems in your life. There is nothing wrong with seeing a religious leader, a counselor, or a trusted confidant and sharing your concerns.
Don’t ignore the issues in your life. Lying to the person in the mirror is so damaging. There are no guarantees in your life. You will be facing huge challenges. We don’t get unlimited time to fix what is wrong. Waiting until next year or for some other benchmark won’t fix what needs to be addressed.
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Peter Thiele is a weekly news/talk radio columnist for Barrett Media, and an experienced news/talk radio programmer. He currently serves as News/Talk Format Captain for Zimmer Communications. Prior to joining Zimmer, Peter held programming positions in New York City, San Francisco, Des Moines, Little Rock, Greenville, Hunstville, and Joplin. Peter has also worked as a host, account executive and producer in Minneapolis, and San Antonio. He can be found on Twitter at @PeterThiele.
