Have you seen this “First Seven Jobs” thing floating around on the interwebz? It started with celebrities being asked what their first seven jobs were, so all us non-famous folk can say to ourselves “Whaaaaa? Famous people are normal people who had normal jobs?! Now they seem so relatable, and I feel good about my life now. Move over [insert job here]!! I’mma make it big one day! BIGGG!”

I bet Colbert was the best lunch lady ever!!!!

Lol. Anyways, my voiceover success story stems from a Job Journey fueled with fear of hating what I do forever and learning lots about myself. I mean, my whole spiel is that I escaped the jobs I couldn’t stand and fled to Freelance Land, a magical place where I am my own boss and LOVE what I do. That being said, the First Seven Jobs thingy is so relevant to my life that I felt it warranted a blog post.

1. Hollywood Video – Remember the olden days when you rented movies from a place and not the internet or a box at the grocery store? Well, I worked at one. I went there every day after school for weeks asking for a job, and finally they caved and hired me. I remember my very first day, when some mean lady got mad and threw a DVD in my face. Oh the memories! Actually now that I think about it, I had things thrown at me at most of these jobs. Huh.
2. AMC Theatres – You’d think I’m some big movie buff, since my first two jobs are about movies, but I’m not really. I worked at the movie theater all through college and after when I couldn’t find an entry level job. It was like, 6 years! I started as an usher and eventually fell into a management position. I made so many long lasting friends while at AMC. The company may not have been a great fit for me, but I wouldn’t take it back. Amazingly enough, I still LOVE popcorn.
3. Henry’s Louisiana Grill – I had this issue where I wasn’t getting promoted at AMC, and I felt like my hard work didn’t pay off at the time. So, I decided to have two jobs, one where in theory, my work would directly affect my pay. I was head hostess at Henry’s for a long time, and I eventually waited tables there. My love of spicy food started here, and as far as serving jobs go, this was a good one. I met my maid of honor there, and Mr. Prentice proposed to me at the hostess stand (Now that is a hilarious story).
4. Red Bull Gal – This was my very first promo girl job. I was one of those Red Bull girls who drives the Mini Cooper and gives away free drinks. The interview process was interesting. We had a group interview at a nightclub and had to play a ton of improv games. Luckily, I rock at those. Nailed it! I honestly don’t know if I could have made a career of being a brand ambassador/sales model without this first impressive piece on the resume.
5. Sales Model – Once I was done with Red Bull, I got work doing promotions for a marketing company! I got to rep a lot of big liquor brands and cosmetic lines. I technically still am on the roster for them, but they don’t do as much in Atlanta as they used to. Some of my all time favorite promos were with this company. I got to visit some rad places and meet all kinds of people…mostly in bars and clubs. It was a fun way to make money in my early 20s.
6. Receptionist – I left my management job at AMC (Yes, I had multiple jobs while working at AMC) to take a receptionist job for a cosmetics company. It was honestly the worst job I ever had. Those who followed this blog before it became my VO website
   

   This is Franklin. He was by office buddy, and I used to feed him plant food in secret to convince the office I was some kind of wizard. He and the CEO’s orchid would network on weekends.  I miss him. Wonder how he’s doing?

   know, because I used to blog about the insane, The Office-esque drama. I started training to do voiceovers as a creative outlet and hopeful escape route. Let me just say though…I despised this job, but I was really good at it. My best acting performance ever was working here for over two years. #OscarWinningPerformance

7. Acting Studio Assistant – Once the receptionist job came to an end, my voiceover coach, the amazing Deborah Richards, got me a job as a studio assistant at the place where I was training. I loved getting an inside look at producing audio, coaching, acting, casting, and all the other awesome industry stuff that came through there. It made me really understand the ins and outs of showbiz. I also met so many people who I still work with today!

About five years after Job 7, I became a full time voiceover talent. I’m not famous…….yet…..but I think this goes to show that finding a fulfilling career is possible. I sometimes wish I had found VO sooner, but you know what? As not fun as it is, learning what you absolutely DON’T want to do is just as important as figuring out what will make you happy. If nothing else, it builds character, right?

RIGHT?!?!?