Barb Lyon
Voice Artist

I’m working on a bunch of new demos right now. It’s exciting… and honestly, a little stressful. Exciting because of the potential. Stressful because of the pressure. What kinds of spots should I feature in my quest to deliver authentic voice over? Can I reuse a spot from my main commercial demo on something more authoritative? How do I create enough variety without sounding forced?

We’ve all heard the line “fake it till you make it.” I prefer the way Simon Sinek phrases it: “Act as if.” When you think of your situation, is your first thought I can't, because… It'll never work, because… I’ll never…? All those thoughts stop you cold. You don’t because “you can’t”. It’ll never work so you don’t even try. You’ll “never get there” so you just don't even think about it. But what if you made decisions as if things were going to work out exactly as you im

Ever feel like everyone else is just so lucky? I mean if we watch their feeds, everyone else’s life is full of rainbows and unicorns. Booked over here. Incredible travel over there. Won a bunch of money playing scratchers and now they’re driving a new car. Well, OK, maybe not that one. No matter how we feel, or how it appears...none of that happened overnight and they're not simply lucky.

Is it just me, or does it feel like advertising has slowed in recent weeks? Auditions aren’t gone…they’ve just gotten a bit…light. At first I did what we all do. I made it about me.Maybe I bumped my mic settings and they sound off. Did I forget how to do this? I probably suck. And then I zoomed out a bit. We’re in a moment where people are talking about nuclear threats again. Supply chains are still a mess. Long-standing alliances are shifting in ways that’ve sounded far-

I write about motivation a lot. And honestly, that’s because we need it. You might think that it’s because I’m surrounded by these amazing sources of it. And, I mean, I guess I am…if you look close enough. But the truth is that keeping yourself going every day is just tough.If you worked in an office you’d at least have teammates to celebrate wins with…or the flip side, those Debbie Downers that drag us all into the pit of despair. So maybe that’s not worth the risk.

So I recently redid my website. I’m relatively happy with the result… but I never fully trust myself. It does look good. And I have gotten some real (not spam) leads from it, which is always encouraging. Still, with the way people search changing, it feels smart to take one more pass. Afterall SEO has totally changed the way we search!

This freelance voice over feast or famine cycle is something no one really prepares you for.One week, you’re buried in work. Emails, files, deadlines, pickups—you’re moving fast, feeling good, maybe even thinking, “Okay… this is it. This is the new normal.” And then… Nothing. No emails.No audition feedback.No messages “just checking your availability”. Just a whole lot of quiet. And then your brain is flooded with answers.

How many times have you made a decision to do something…and how many of those somethings have you actually accomplished? (oh, no.) If you’ve ever struggled with overcoming procrastination, you know exactly how this goes. And, yeah, I’m guilty of it too. “I’m going to clean out the basement so I could exercise down there.” (The actual exercising, is a whole other ball of wax.)

If you haven’t had a chance yet, it’s a great time to check out NAVA’s State of Voiceover in 2026 Survey. I know that many of us filled it out. But, if you didn’t, it’s worth it to go through and answer the questions now and see where you fit in the industry. Some revelations I think we knew in our hearts. In a traditional job, more hours tends to correlate (at least loosely) with more pay. In voiceover…not so much.

As voice over pros, life can be a bit solitary at times. You need to do it all. From recording, editing, and engineering, to accounting… and voice over marketing. It can be tough to keep your chin up through all that. You barely have time to breathe because there’s always another item on the to-do list, but you’re supposed to keep a smile on your face and look forward to another bright, shining day… even when you’d rather cocoon on the couch and binge your favorite show.

It’s National Grammar Day! Which may not sound exciting… unless you work in audio. Then it’s basically job security. Here’s something most people don’t think about: Grammar isn’t just about correctness. It’s about interpretation. Take this sentence: “Employees who complete training quickly advance.” Great motivation. Now imagine that line read flat. No inflection. No awareness of structure. No human deciding what matters. That’s where things get… unintentionally awkw

So the last few weeks were…a lot. Like a lot, a lot. And it taught me things about myself. But let me set the stage a bit. See, last fall, I talked with an immersive audiobook company. I’ve done plenty of narration work before, but immersive audiobook narration is a different animal. It sounded interesting, so I went ahead and cut sample audio which they accepted. And then it got quiet. I figured I may never hear from them. Oh well. Easy come easy go. And then it happened.

Executive producers are often successful precisely because they make complexity look effortless. There’s a lot of invisible labor—especially surrounding the constant compromise that goes into any video production project. Everything starts off hunky-dory. Then the changes start. Legal wants safety. Brand wants consistency. Stakeholders want speed… like yesterday. Budget wants restraint aaaannnnddd the work still has to feel like something.

I get it. The days can be a real slog. You wake, work out, eat, shower, coffee (more coffee) and then begin auditioning. Maybe you get booked. Good for you! It’s your lucky day! And the next morning? Yeah, it starts all over again. That one booking didn’t change your life, did it. And before you know it, you’re living Groundhog Day. But you keep on trying, because that’s what you’re supposed to do. And maybe you’re content…or complacent.

I got a callback on an audio drama! Now, if you’ve never listened to one you are totally missing out! They started in the 1920’s, and really grew in popularity in the 30’s and 40’s. They reached an apex in the 1950’s and then were taken over by TV. My all time favorite is “Johnny Dollar” who is billed as “America’s fabulous freelance insurance investigator.” There’s tension, gunplay, fight scenes, romance and plenty of humor.

Voice over is about communication, right? The story you’re telling. Or the message you’re sharing. And how you tell it matters. We’ve all seen the comparison: “Let’s eat, Grandma” v. “Let’s eat Grandma.” Okay, it makes you chuckle. But that simple example proves an important point. Every comma, every period, every declaration prompts the listener to do something—or feel something more. Punctuation changes meaning. Intention changes experience. And voice over lives right there

Some days I think it might be fun to be a casting director.Matching a client with the perfect voice for their brand. Having a front-row seat to the magic when it clicks. Watching the final spot air and thinking, Yeah… I had a hand in that. But I’m guessing it’s not all that rosy. Auditions can go off the rails in a bunch of different ways, and as a CD, you have to sort through hundreds of them!

Wouldn’t it be nice if achievement showed up wrapped in confidence? For me, it usually shows up stamped with a question mark. Where will the next winning audition come from? Could this turn into a regular client? That thing that’s been tugging at you and you finally decided to try…will it work? We’re taught to wait until we feel ready. Until we feel confident. Until the fear goes away. But experience, and science tell us something different: fear doesn't disappear first.

This is for my friends who procrastinate, or just enjoy life on a wire. You've waited as long as you possibly can. It's time to get off your duff and make those 2026 plans! Every January, there’s pressure to reinvent everything. New goals. New systems. New promises to “do more.” But if you’ve been in this business any length of time, you know the truth: what actually works is consistency, clarity, and a plan you can live with.

Most of us came up with heroes. The voices that made us stop what we were doing. The reads we rewound just to hear again. Maybe it was Don LaFontaine and that unmistakable authority. Maybe it was Will Arnett’s effortless confidence and wink-to-the-audience delivery. Maybe it was someone else entirely, like Mel Blanc (Elmer Fudd anyone?) but chances are, there was a voice that made you think, I want to do that.