David A Conatser
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Summary
David A. Conatser describes what he does as being part of “making a good story happen.” David is a voice-over actor who narrates audiobooks, including my book The Entrepreneur Ethos. I was struck, in particular, by how David brought the right emotional tone and depth to my book. You’ll hear what I mean when you listen to the audiobook, which you can get everywhere audiobooks are sold. Links are also in the show notes.
Making Stories Come to Life
David always loved acting and making funny voices, but it wasn’t until later in life that he decided to pursue being a voice-over actor. He started out contributing to a local radio station, then pursued training in his hometown of Nashville. He’s now narrated a number of audiobooks and continues to grow his company, Storyline Voice Over, after being advised that cultivating a career in the arts means also building your own business.
In this episode, David and I chat about what it means to be both an entrepreneur and an artist and how both involve taking risks and maybe being just a little “awkward.” We also talk about how being an entrepreneur doesn’t have to be “all or nothing” since not all entrepreneurs can quit their jobs and dive right in.
I also wanted to say special thanks to Joanna Penn who told me about Findaway Voices, which is where I connected with David and created the audio version of The Entrpenreuer Ethos. It was pretty painless and I really like how the audiobook came out. You can hear a sample of it at the end of this episode.
Now, Let’s get better together.
Actions to Try or Advice to Take
- Ask if you’re being authentic and do what you need to do to get there. Conatser shares a lesson he learned from a voice-over actor who does a lot of villains that it’s important to take time to ground yourself and disconnect from the role you’re acting in. To some extent, we all play roles in our lives and it’s important to take some downtime to just be ourselves.
- Jump in and commit: Conatser talks about how narrating audiobooks requires vulnerability and courage to take on the role of narrator of someone else’s story and the best way to do this is to simply “jump in and commit.”
- You don’t have to “risk it all” to achieve your dreams: make a commitment to do what you can while fulfilling responsibilities. Like other entrepreneurs, Conatser is building his business while working a 9-5, recognizing that he also has to learn the tools of his trade as well as marketing and business.
- Have a Side Hustle: Expanding on what David said, having a side hustle is a great way to dip your toe into the entrepreneurial pond. As you build and grow your side hustle, you’ll know when it’s time to jump. How is that? When you have so much work that your side hustle is creeping into your main hustle.
Links to Explore Further
- https://www.storylinevoiceover.com/
- https://www.facebook.com/StorylineVoiceOver
- @StoryLinewith
- David Conatser on LinkedIn
- Findaway Voices
