Surviving The Communications Tsunami

Working in the entertainment industry is bad for your health.

Moderator Maria Brunner of Insight Management told the group that after learning she was going to be talking on the panel, she contacted some health insurance companies and did some research.

She found that professionals in the entertainment industry have 19 percent more health-related illnesses, 22 percent more deaths and 32 percent increase in long-term disability compared with the general population.

These facts went hand-in-hand with an article from the Washington Post that was passed out to the group, called “Stress Just Might Be The Death Of Us.”

One thing you can do to lessen stress, which can cause illness, disability and eventually death, is learn how to manage the daily communications tsunami.

“Communication Tsunami, which, for lack of a better term, is what we’ll call cell phones, regular phone, texting, email, instant messaging, etc.,” Brunner said. “That’s what our tsunami is. All of those are part of that wave that’s cresting out there, rolling in, about to sweep you out to sea.”

Ryan Chisholm of Bill Silva Entertainment, who said that “deleting an email is the most satisfactory thing I could possibly do in my day,” said he gets about 400 emails per day. Others on the panel and in the audience said they averaged between 150 and 600 emails a day.

A major topic was just what should be done with all of those emails, as well as the pros and cons of using the phone versus email.

“The number of emails is important but it’s also the amount of work that goes into responding to each particular email,” Brad Locker of Live Nation said. “There are very few emails that come with yes/no answers. I see the phone as a very yes/no machine and email as a chance to expand on record for that reason. I’ve often taken an email and responded to it with a phone call because it’s a simpler, more streamlined use of my time.”

Locker said he’ll also try to accommodate and adapt to his audience when it comes to communicating and the method of communication that the other person prefers.

On the flip side, an audience member shared that he manages his time better by deciding who works best on the phone and who works best on email. He explained that he can’t have less than a two-hour conversation with one of the artists he manages, so he’ll either text or email.

Another person in the audience explained that he responds to only about 50 percent of the emails he receives – and that he doesn’t feel guilty about this at all. If he doesn’t feel like it, he just doesn’t respond. He said that removing guilt was the first thing he had to do to alleviate stress, adding that being a Buddhist for 32 years has helped. Then again, he also has three assistants.

Brunner asked the panelists to discuss their thoughts on taking work-related calls and emails after work hours and how they find the balance between their work and home lives.

Greg Terlizzi of Live Nation explained that when he gets home from work he spends the next several hours with his 4-year-old and 2-year-old.

“I try to give the wife a break … and give [the kids] as much quality time as I can. They go to bed around 8 or 9 p.m. and then I jump back in and try to get back to the people that are waiting on answers from me.”

Jim McCue of SMG pointed out that sometimes you just need to put your cell phone down.

“Especially when I’m talking to my wife, that’s a really good practice. Driving is another one. Just put it down.”

After Brunner asked the audience how many people take the weekend off, Chisholm noted, “It’s almost like a competition. That’s not cool. We shouldn’t be bragging about 400 emails or working 60 hours plus. If you get out of the states, whether it’s the UK or France, they have a whole different viewpoint on all of this. I feel it’s not how long you work, it’s how smart you work.”

Locker stressed the importance of taking a break.

“I feel like you need some off time to do something besides concerts to give you some depth and some appreciation for the work that you do. We work really hard so people can have fun. If we’re not having fun then we’re not going to be able to provide that service to people. We’re going to get burned out and go into real estate like everybody else.”
Brunner wrapped up the panel by sharing a simple tip for combating stress.

“The study that was done by the health insurance companies found that the single best thing that anybody could do in our business, or any other business, is to get physical activity.”

Asked to share any additional advice with the audience, Locker said, “Play dodge ball with me on Monday nights.”

Daily Pulse