A Tip from Dave Ryan’s Aunt Doris

I was having dinner with my 81-year old Aunt Doris a few weeks ago. I hardly ever get to see her and thought it would be interesting to ask her about our family history. I remember three very specific things she told me.

One, our first ancestor here from Europe was Moses Wheeler. One day, Moses felt sick and decided he was going to die. So he dug his own grave, (couldn’t have felt THAT sick, right?) and he laid down in it, waiting to die. Well, he didn’t die, thank God, and went on to have three children. Something just tells me this guy woulda made a GREAT morning jock!

Two, somehow, we are related to Fightin’ Joe Wheeler, a Confederate General during the Civil War. I guess he was kind of a big deal. He was shot three times during the war and had 16 horses shot out from under him. And you thought working for Clear Channel was rough! (I keeed! I keeeed!)
 
The third story isn’t nearly as fun or cool, but there’s something you and I can learn from it. I asked Aunt Doris to tell me more about her dad. She said, “Well, he didn’t pay much attention to me. The first compliment he ever gave me was when I was Salutorian at high school graduation. He told me, ‘Nice speech.'”
 
And ya know something?  I could tell that 63 years later, it still bothered Aunt Doris that she didn’t get a lot of compliments from her dad. It’s not really surprising though because we all LOVE compliments. We thrive on someone noticing something we did well or praising us for going the extra mile. I read somewhere that while yes, salary is important, being appreciated is what really makes us feel happy about our job.
 
Let’s face it, right now our industry isn’t exactly in “Appreciation Mode.”  Lots of managers are asking for more and more from radio talent and hinting that we’re all pretty lucky to just be employed. Getting a little praise out of management is harder than pushing a Kardashian’s legs together.
 
BUT, it’s important. And it’s something you and I need to keep in mind while we manage our talent. If you’re a morning show host, remember, those other people in the studio thrive on praise and appreciation. Maybe they’re getting it from management, maybe not. But make sure they get it from you.
 
Because if they don’t, they’ll remember. Ask Aunt Doris.

-written by Dave Ryan, KDWB/Minneapolis and RLC Talent Coach

Photo credit and disclaimer: Photo from Stock.XCHNG, and not really Dave’s Aunt Doris.