Tonight on the Marc Guss Voiceover Club, Marc took audience questions about his new book, “Instincts of a Talent Agent: Entrepreneurial Takeaways from an Industry Insider.” This book club-style Q&A allowed the audience to share what resonated with them and to ask Marc questions about his stories and advice to those who have an entrepreneurial spirit.
Marc said that he wanted the book to be more than a memoir — he wanted it to be different — and he aimed to also include career events, stories, successes, and failures so readers could get the entrepreneurial takeaways from his experiences. To me, and others who spoke on stage tonight, Marc achieved that goal by providing those colorful and deeply interesting examples from his career — the good and the bad — as a way to illustrate the takeaways that lead each chapter. I also love the optimism and support that Marc brings from his own outlook and applies it to us, his readers, and our careers.
It can be difficult to admit when we’ve made mistakes, to ourselves and especially to others, and Marc’s candid sharing of his missteps shows us how we can learn from those mistakes and remember those lessons to guide us in the future. I especially liked his idea of building a “Resiliency IRA” fund to help when we’ve had a challenging experience by remembering the lessons learned so that we can do better next time.
And on the topic of challenging experiences, Marc touched on the importance of not taking things personally in this business, like if you don’t book a job, for example. He says to focus on your successes and keep at it. “I’m so exited for my clients on a daily basis,” he says, and that he loves to see people going for it every day.
Don’t get caught up in that kind of rejection and just stick with it, he says. He shared memories about joking around in the office with Will Arnett (how fun does that sound??) and how for several years Will would go out for pilot season without finding much success — until Arrested Development, of course.
Marc also said that he’s seen VO talent that don’t book for over a year, and then eventually go on to become household names. “You just have to stay with it,” he says. And Donovan Corneetz, the voice of the Today show and VO coach, joined the speaker area to share that it took him about 10 years to get to where he is as the voice of the Today show. From never doing promo work and coming in second in the SOVAS CBS Audition Spotlight, to networking and training, to getting a call to do a one-off for the Today show, which turned into several more, which turned into where he is today…at Today!
As Marc said, “You have to stay positive and can’t give up. There’s a uniqueness to you, and that’s yours to own.”
And speaking of uniqueness, we heard some of Marc’s stories about the late, great Gilbert Gottfried. Like the time Gilbert was invited to the Advertising Hall of Fame Parade and rode in a convertible with a huge stuffed Aflac duck, until his driver took a wrong turn and got lost halfway through the parade. Marc also said that any time Gilbert was on the Howard Stern show, just being his wildly inappropriate self, Marc’s eyes would be glued to his phone just waiting for Aflac to call him, upset about something Gilbert said. “He really stayed true to himself,” Marc said.
Huge thanks to Marc for taking time to talk about his book on Clubhouse tonight, and huge thanks also for writing it and sharing the perspectives, advice, and encouragement in its pages! Check out the Marc Guss Voiceover Club every Wednesday night on Clubhouse at 8:30 pm ET or catch the replay later.