Because I Can… the random thoughts of Marc Scott

I do the Afternoon Drive shift at FM92.1 in Brantford.  I’ve been in the time slot for a while now.  I started in radio back in 1995, and since then I’ve covered most dayparts.  I’ve done mornings, evenings, afternoons, weekends, holidays, you name it.  I think the only time slot I’ve never done is overnight.

The Afternoon Drive show works pretty well for me.  I’m definitely not a big fan of mornings, in fact, I’d be perfectly content to just skip them all together.  I just don’t believe it’s necessary to start the day before 10A.  I’m not lazy mind you.  I just don’t like to wake up.  In bed at 2A, and up at 10A.  This works quite well for me.  So doing the drive shift from 3p – 7p fits right in there.

I like my small town life.  I’m content where I’m at.  I get to be a Volunteer Firefighter. I get to sleep at night with mostly peace and quiet.  I’m not particularly worried about things like crime, traffic jams and smog.  I can breath fresh air, I can cross the street with ease, I don’t need to stress when I leave my place for a bit and forget to lock the door.

I fit here.  Where I’m at.  It doesn’t make sense to a lot of people, considering what I do for a living.  For most people, the goal in radio is to get to the big market and make the big money.  If you’re in Canada, you want to wind up in a market like Vancouver or Toronto.  That’s the goal.  The dream.  That is where you find your fame and fortune.

An opening came up for the Afternoon Drive shift at a Toronto radio station this week.  My boss asked me if I had applied.  When I told him no, he looked stunned.  He couldn’t believe it.  When he asked me why, I simply said, “I’m not a Toronto kind of guy.”

I must say, I was quite taken back by the encouragement I received from my boss.  Personally, I don’t consider myself to be an announcer the caliber of which you’d find in Toronto.  He felt quite differently.  He told me that I stood a very good chance and he still felt like I should apply.  He told me about the salary I’d make, and the exposure I’d get, and the windows of opportunity that could open for me.  It really did sound rather inviting.

Money isn’t everything.  Fame passes.  This is especially true in the cutthroat industry of radio!  One bad ratings book, one bad show, even one bad break, and you can be out the door before you even know what happened.  Then what?  Who will remember you when you haven’t been on the air for a week?  You’ll have long since been forgotten and all those people who adored you will now be adoring the new guy that took your time slot!

Would I like to make the money they are making in Toronto?  Sure I would.  In some stations it’s triple what I make now.  Of course, on the flip side of that, rent is probably triple what I’m paying too!  But, as cliche as it is, money isn’t everything and it certainly can’t buy you happiness!  It could buy me a new truck, but not happiness.

I know me well enough to know where I’d fit and where I wouldn’t.  A lot of people are questioning my decision to not even apply for the gig in Toronto.  I know that a fat salary and the facade of fame would only make me miserable.  So for now, I’ll stay put.  Sometimes incredible opportunities simply aren’t the best opportunities.