What Susan Boyle Can Teach a Radio Producer

A good radio producer needs to know how to conduct emotion like an orchestra.

Have you seen the Susan Boyle viral video that's making the rounds? The unlikely star brings the house down on "Britain's Got Talent". The video has topped the 100 million-viewer mark and may become YouTube's most viewed ever.

Boyle, 47, of West Lothian, Scotland, sang as she auditioned before awestruck judges and audience members. Since then, the entire world has been watching, and re-watching, the woman with the big voice. What makes this video so endearing? Emotion is key here. Let's go back to the beginning and unravel this extraordinary video for perspective.

Stay with me here. Imagine you are a producer. What would it be like if you were given just an etch-a sketch with the assignment to create a lot of attention with whatever you can put on that simple screen. That's precisely the challenge radio and TV producers are faced with every day. You're given a screen or a set of speakers and you've got to make something special happen. So what do you do? What direction do you take? Draw a few lines or speak a few words and hope it works? That won't cut it.

To get real attention you've got to touch hearts. Emotion touches hearts. So let's use the Susan Boyle Video as an example. This is a masterpiece of attention getting. It looks so natural and feels so good to watch. Plus, it is nicely embedded in real life for believability. But don't be naive. This didn't just happen. A talented producer was behind this.

The Hero's Journey, a template of storytelling, is used extensively in this video.  In typical Hero's Journey fashion, Susan Boyle is a regular person just doing her thing. She accepts a challenge against pretty big odds. The challenge is visible in multiple ways : her look, the actual singing competition, the doubting audience, a panel of unforgiving judges. All elements that contribute to the dark night of the soul, or belly of the whale experience, that marks every Hero's Journey.

Susan even has helpers, friends, if you will. The sidestage guys who are like a couple of pals cheering her on. Their presence adds power to the strong feelings that emerge in this mini story. These two guys represent 'us'. We are also represented by audience members who are visibly taken by the transformation right before their eyes. They express our unspoken sentiments. Note: I am not suggesting the video was contrived. It was simply well crafted and presented in a way that contains these elements of the Hero's Journey and that makes a great story.

When Susan sings she is pulling the proverbial sword from the stone. And we, the metaphorical townspeople, love it. We all cry out in unison, "Bravo, well done!" Perfect ending. Knowing all this as I watched, I still felt it deeply. That's why the Hero's Journey works. It is already coded in our psyche. You can tell who the hero is in any story by a little known trick. Find the one who transforms. Our hero here is Susan Boyle and of course, you and me. We find kinship in her courage, faith and heart. 

Being a good radio producer means learning from all great art, including excellent TV.

The Hero's Journey is just one of many insider tips that can make a big difference in any production or marketing campaign. To learn more visit http://KyleWhitford.com My award winning radio concepts have produced a recent CMA nomination and contributed to the winning 2008 ACM Radio Station of the Year, Major Market. http://KyleWhitford.com

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Brytyjski Mam Talent 2009 - Piosenkarz Shaheen Jafargholi !!

w 2 tydzien rywalizacji Shaheen Jafarghol porwał swoim głosem publiczność i jurorów. Susan Boyle, gwiazda brytyjskiego Mam Talent, powinna czuć się zagrożona - pojawił się naprawdę groźny rywal. Nawet słynący z surowych ocen Simon Cowell zgotował mu owację na stojąco, a Demi Moore pochwaliła występ na Twitterze. A początek był nieciekawy. Jafarghol wybrał piosenkę "Valerie" grupy "The Zutons", nagranej później przez Amy Winehouse. Zaczął śpiewać, zadowolona publiczność klaskała, ale... Cowell stwierdził, że to nie jest piosenka odpowiednia dla jego głosu. I przerwał występ. Nie tak to miało wyglądać... Wtedy Jafarghol zdecydował się zaśpiewać "Who's Loving You", nagrane przez młodego Michael Jackson. I to był strzał w dziesiątkę! Publiczność aż piszczała z zachwytu, a jury (łącznie z Simonem Cowellem!) zgotowało chłopcu owację na stojąco. - Tak jedna piosenka może zmienić twoje życie. To może być początek czegoś wyjątkowego, młody człowieku - powiedział Cowell. - Kiedy Simon zmusił go do zaśpiewania piosenki właściwej dla jego głosu, był fantastyczny. Jak młody Stevie Wonder - stwierdził drugi z jurorów, Piers Morgan.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rvzb_MYs7c&hl=en

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Twitter - New Rules For Follow Friday (A Philosophy For Social Media)

I will be the absolute first to admit that I don't like rules. In fact, I hate them. I've always felt that they were unnecessary if people would exercise even the slightest degree of common sense. But, we all know how UN-common common sense it, and it is for that exact reason, that we (unfortunately) NEED to have rules.

Before I just lay down the law and explain the rules, though, I think it's only fair that we give everyone a chance to see exactly why this is just common sense. :)

There Is A Law...

An apple falls from a tree because of the Law of Gravity... there are also laws that govern social media. It's a simple matter of cause & effect: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. "Follow Friday" is an instance where can see Law #7 in action: People just want to be loved.

The Right Way...

Follow Friday is an opportunity to share with our friends the people that we value. We are saying "this is someone that I get value from, and I want you to enjoy what they have to offer as well". It's about sharing, giving and providing value to others.

...and the Wrong Way

Follow Friday is NOT about getting more followers. Some people (either ignorant of the law, or possessing a lack mentality) will recommend as many people as they can for #followfriday in hopes that some of them will feel obligated to reciprocate that gesture. By accomplishing this, they hope that they will attract new followers. Sadly, they just don't get it...

It's about relationships, NOT numbers

100 followers who love & respect you are far more valuable than 10,000 who are not emotionally engaged. Think about it... we all see billboards and magazine ads every day without taking much note, but when a friend recommends a new restaurant or movie, we stop and listen.

This isn't just some hippie-make-love-not-profits idea we're talking about, it's also solid marketing. Every marketer dreams of having their campaign go viral. When people are genuinely interested it automatically grows, even without your help.

Case in point - Did you know that Susan Boyle, of Britain's Got Talent, almost instantly became one of the most popular videos on Youtube... And she had never even heard of youtube!  She wasn't trying to get a lot of views, she was just doing what she was passionate about. If you do the same, you'll see similar results... maybe not 1 million followers, but you'll get the ones that see value in what you offer.

Showing Love To Others

Okay, so now that we understand that it's about what we give instead than what we get, let's do it with an A+ effort. What would make you feel more loved:

• #ff @yourname @stranger1 @stranger2 @stranger3 @stranger3 @stranger4 @stranger5 @stranger6


• Friends, check out @yourname an amazing friend of mine who's tweets make me smile every day. #followfriday

Yeah, pretty obvious, huh? Of course you would prefer the 2nd one better. (If not, i've got an #blockparty you can join)

But how do I fit all my friends in?

You don't. That's the point... People feel special when you give them recognition. Nobody wants to be a statistic, they want to be recognized as a valuable individual.

Lumping my name in with 100 people with no explanation of why you recommend me doesn't make me feel special. In fact, it just ticks me off. Can you imagine @SharonHayes' inbox? If all of her 30k+ followers did the #ff spam method, she wouldn't get anything done.

Besides, even if your bulk recommendations are genuine, most people on twitter can't follow that many new tweeps in a day anyway.

Some EXCELLENT examples

These are actual examples that are dead-on the money:

• 
  @TomBeasley #followfriday @AndyGoudling. He is a local radio DJ with a witty sense of humour and an intriguing take on everyday life.


• 
  @TamaraSchilling I Recommend that you #FollowFriday @4thQtrCoach... this man is always upbeat, positive & willing to help you connect & grow! #professional
  
  
  

Go Forth & Multiply (but do it responsibly) That's it... go for it, show love and help make twitter a better place.

If you have a great #followfriday you want to share, feel free to reply to me and I'd love to pass it along! :)

About Joseph Ranseth
Joseph Ranseth is the author of The Seven Laws of Social Media, a renowned speaker as well as an innovative entrepreneur. His latest project, the Social Media Adventure, can be followed at http://www.SocialMediaAdventure.com

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Britains Got Talent 2009 EP 1 - Susan Boyle EXTENDED VISIONHQ

Britains Got Talent 2009 EP 1 - Susan Boyle



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKPOW88qFtY&hl=en

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John Mayer - Dreaming with a Broken Heart - slide show

John Mayer Dreaming with a Broken Heart Continuum When you're dreaming with a broken heart The waking up is the hardest part You roll outta bed and down on your knees And for the moment you can hardly breathe Wondering was she really here? Is she standing in my room? No she's...



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NZZ6tXCuO8&hl=en

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The Result - Semi Final 1: Sunday - Britains Got Talent 2009 (HQ)

Following the result of your votes, Susan Boyle is already through (and has thanked Piers for it!), but it's now up to the judges who will join her in Saturday's final. It's between Diversity and Natalie Okri. Who will they chose?



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5sn8c6ZPwc&hl=en

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It's Time to End Our Current Tax System

As a country we have reached the end of the line. The revenue generated by our current tax system, according to most experts, is no longer sufficient to meet the voracious need of politicians who spend our hard earned money. If we do nothing, the U.S. will fail financially. Some pessimistic financial experts put that end sometime around 2020, about the time Medicare is expected to fail. Others put it at around 2040, about the time Social Security is expected to fail. Realistically, none of the financial pundits really knows when the U.S. will fail. But my point is this; they all agree the U.S. is going to fail financially at some point. They use euphemistic-speak for our ultimate doom by saying the U.S. "cannot sustain the present course". When you hear "cannot sustain the present course" talk just remember they are really saying the U.S. will go bankrupt.

Everyone talks about the dreaded income tax system, but not the payroll tax system. The average American does not seem to understand that the payroll tax punishes the poor and middle class the most. The payroll tax represents the Social Security and Medicare tax withholding that all Americans must have taken out of their gross pay. Each paycheck we lose 7.65% in payroll taxes to Uncle Sam. The payroll tax generates more tax revenue than the oft-dreaded income tax.

Politicians have prostituted the income tax system, a system that started out as a flat tax, so much so that it now encompasses 57,917 pages encapsulated in our Internal Revenue Code and accompanying regulations. Not to mention thousands of rules set forth in precedents established by numerous tax court cases (and other non-tax court cases). The evolution of this mess began the first day a lobbyist walked into a politician's office and sought some tax benefit. Once the word got around that these lobbyists were sending other politicians on very nice, expensive trips, the rest of the politicians jumped on the lobbyist bandwagon and bent over to accommodate the lobbyists tax demands. Congress and spending are a contradictory relationship. On the one hand Congress has a fiduciary duty to carefully spend our tax dollars. They actually have a fiduciary responsibility not to spend more than the government takes in. On the other hand, they are measured by their constituents (the voters in their districts) by how much money they are able to get from the government for use in their districts. So there's a contradiction inherent in their desire to control government spending and in their desire to get elected. So guess which desire gets pushed to the side. You got it. The control spending one. Thus our deficit.

Our deficit has gotten so big and out of control that, China, the largest borrowing of U.S. government obligations, is now expressing serious concern over the U.S.'s ability to actually make good on all this debt. In other words, China believes the U.S. might go bankrupt and leave them with trillions in worthless U.S. debt obligations.

We owe it to our children to no longer permit our politicians to continue kicking the can down the road to the next generation, in an effort to get elected. So what do we do? We need to end our current income tax system and payroll tax system. There is a proposed House bill (H.R. 25) and a proposed Senate bill (S. 1025) which offer a solution. What's embodied in these two bills is an alternate system of taxation, known as the Fair Tax. No matter what you may have heard that is bad about the Fair Tax, understand this: the opponents to this are primarily politicians and big lobby groups. The Fair Tax represents the largest transfer of power from a federal government to its citizens, the likes of which has not been seen since the American Revolution. The politicians and the lobby groups are frightened for their lives. The Fair Tax threatens the power base these two groups have fought so hard to enjoy. Let's go over some of the key points on the Fair Tax.

Fair Tax Overview:
1. Eliminates the current income tax, payroll tax, estate tax and gift tax systems. This means no more withholdings from gross pay, no more IRS, no more IRS audits, no more IRS inquiries, no more income tax lobby groups, no more tax returns to be filed, no more tax return preparer fees to be paid, no more tax loopholes for favored taxpayers, no more estate tax, no more capital gains tax, no more self-employment tax, no more corporate tax, no more gift tax and no more alternative minimum tax.

2. Replaces our current system of taxation with a national sales tax with a rate of 23%. You pay tax only on what you spend. Thus you become a truly voluntary taxpayer. Something called a rebate (aka "prebate") will be paid by the federal government. This rebate represents the 23% Fair Tax amount paid on all household spend up to a certain level of spend (up to poverty level). Everyone who currently receives a paycheck will receive 100% of their paycheck, not the current 65%. You may think the 23% is very high, but keep in mind that in every product or service you buy, is an embedded income/payroll tax of 22%.

Imagine for a moment if you could bank 100% of your paycheck. Think about that for a moment. How would that improve your life? Imagine for a moment if you had total control over how much tax you pay. Sounds a lot like freedom to me. Freedom is an American ideal. We like freedom. Fair Tax provides us with more freedom over our lives, less intrusion by the federal government and more money to save for a house, college and retirement.

If you want to learn more about the Fair Tax go on to their web site fairtaxdotorg. Don't buy in to the objections that are out there. Politicians and lobby groups are doing their best to make the Fair Tax proposal sound flawed. Their objections are unfounded and each one is easily dismissed by the Fair Tax experts. Remember the author of this blog is a CPA. I make money preparing tax returns and consulting on tax matters. I have nothing to gain in pushing the Fair Tax initiative.

Tom is a Certified Public Accountant, a Certified Financial Planner, CLTC (Certified Long-Term Care) and President of Cerefice & Company, the largest CPA firm in Rahway, New Jersey. Tom works with clients helping them manage their money, retirement planning, college savings, life insurance needs, IRAs and qualified plan rollovers with an eye towards maximizing tax benefits and minimizing taxes. Tom is founder of the Rich Habits Institute and author of "Rich Habits".

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