Some of us are lone wolves. It’s true, but it’s rare. Most of us thrive and do our best creative work collaboratively, in some sort of community. The world of voice-over is isolating enough these days, each of us in our individual booths across the world, speaking words into a microphone then emailing files to clients in different time zones at all hours of the night. Waking up in Texas to feedback from Israel, Moscow, and China. It’s easy to feel alone even when you’re part of a global community. Making a conscious effort to expand and engage your own team is one way to combat this isolation.
Since we often work project to project as voice-over artists, we see authors, directors, project managers, and all types of clients come and go week to week. But having a core team of your own that you work with consistently helps create a home base for your business and gives you a team of your own to celebrate wins and commiserate losses. 
Each business will have it’s own needs depending on your individual strengths and challenges, but for myself the people I sought out early on were those who could help me with social media, audio editing, quality control to find pickups in long narrations, copy editing for writing projects, and video editing when necessary.
These folks round out my team and I communicate with most of them weekly (or sometimes more often). We exchange text messages, phone calls, have shared Dropbox folders and files for our current projects. We send excited GIFs back and forth when we book new projects and have someone to gripe to when a client asks for yet another round of edits. On an obvious level, it makes business more enjoyable, sharing it with others. Practically, it also saves me time, allows me to pay others to do what they love, and gives me the flexibility to book more gigs, knowing my workflow is efficient.
Train your Team
When you do decide to build a team, make sure you prepare yourself to lead them well. As the business owner, you’ve got the final say and the buck stops with you when things go wrong. I recommend taking the time to train whoever you bring on. Take a few concentrated hours to explain your thought process, workflow, and their duties, as well as answer any questions. And yes, this should be a paid training. Their time is valuable and being a good boss means paying them for their time.
Communicate like a Boss
Another element to successful remote leadership (since it’s unlikely you’ll be working in the same room with your team) is excellent communication. Make sure you’re communicating with your team early and often on any projects, deadlines, or expectations. I have weekly half-hour check-in meetings on my calendar with my assistant and lots of texts back and forth with my editor. Be clear in your expectations, follow-up on everything, always ask for questions, and be open to feedback.
Show your Gratitude
Record birthdays and important holidays your team celebrates. Mark them on your calendar immediately and make sure you’ve got cards, gifts or cash bonuses headed their way. It’s nice to feel appreciated and it doesn’t cost much.
Be the boss you’d want to have. Create the team you want to be on. Because the magic of building a business on the internet means we can collaborate from anywhere and everywhere. No one should go at it alone.
Caroline Turner Cole is a storyteller from Dallas, TX. Find out more at www.carolinecolestories.com or follow her on social media @carolinecolestories on Instagram and @ccolestories on Twitter.
Looking for more? Read this blog article on Accountability Partners in VO
