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10 Questions with ... Joe Polek
October 10, 2022
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1. Share a moment in your career that you'll always remember.
CMB Momentum 2014. WMHK/Columbia, SC was announced the winner of Medium Market Station of the Year. We all went up on the stage to accept the award and were ecstatic, as it was a much-deserved award. But what we could not say, or show was that we all knew something no one else in the room did. We had been told a month prior that we were all being laid off due to a sale of the radio station. So, it was a last hurrah for us as a team before going our separate ways. You can't forget something like that.
2. If you weren't working in radio what else do you think you'd do?
I guess some would say, "selling chicken", because for the last 7-years my full-time job was Marketing Manager for Bojangles Restaurants. But a month ago, that all changed when I accepted a job at HIS Radio. God allowed me to learn so much while I was working at Bojangles (and voicetracking on the side), but my passion was and always has been Christian Radio. Thankfully, He allowed me to return to my passion in a way I could never have imagined.
But, back to the question… I would probably be coaching. I love coaching. It's my second passion. I've coached basketball, soccer, and softball and would love to do it more.
I guess you could say I just like sharing my life with people, whether it's on-air or on the sidelines.
3. Some great advice you've received is…
"Joe! That guy right there! Be that guy!" – Tim Collins
I guess I used to have "a DJ voice". When I turned the mic on, my voice would change, and not necessarily for the better. My old co-worker and former boss, Tim Collins, would catch me talking on the phone in my office and come running in and would say "Joe! That guy right there! Be that guy!" He would say the "normal voice" Joe who is talking to his friend, or his wife is the Joe that I needed to be on the air every day.
4. How do you continue learning and growing?
Ask questions. I ask a lot of them. I always thought people at my former job got tired of my questions, but I think they learned that I like to know the "why" behind things. I understand how we do things, but what is the thought process behind it? So I tend to ask a lot of questions.
5. What's one thing you wish you'd known about radio when you first started?
I'm not sure I have one thing. Since I ask a lot of questions, I think I asked everything I needed to know. I knew it was hard work. I knew it was long hours. I knew it was "living your life on the air". I knew you'd probably have to move all over the place to stay in it. That's all true.
6. Tell us about someone who you really respect and why?
Oh my word, I am going to say this, but it's not for the cliché, even though I know it is for this Q&A… Mike Couchman. Mike was a remote Voicetracker for my station in Bangor, Maine and so I got to know him over my time there. I remember one year at CMB Momentum, Mike and I went back to a room, sat on the outside balcony, and talked for hours… almost entirely about radio. I got to pick his brain and learn from him. And I learned so much. He has always been so great to me, helping me with anything I need. I really appreciate him.
But I can't just name one. A second person HAS to be mentioned. Tim Collins from WHCF & WHMX/Bangor, ME. Tim has devoted his entire life to serving the people (and moose) in Maine. While he could have left for "bigger" jobs, Tim has sacrificed for his family and stayed "home" for them. That's just one small thing I respect about Tim. Tim has been a radio mentor to me. As a co-worker, and then a boss, I can truly say that I learned almost everything I know about radio from him. He is such a huge wealth of knowledge. The Christian Radio Industry needs to take notice of Tim Collins. He has been around for over 25 years and has done some AMAZING work, but most of the time it goes unnoticed by the masses, since it's in Bangor, Maine. But that doesn't make it any less incredible. Kudos to you, Tim! I love you like a brother.
7. What's something about you that would surprise most people?
Ha! I'm not sure there is something. I'm an open book. People who know me know that I say what I'm thinking, and I wear my emotions on my sleeve. If I love something, you know it. If I don't like something, you know it.
8. What's your favorite room at home and why?
A month ago, I would have said that it's my loft. It has a recliner in it, and I love laying back, with my dog on my lap, watching the ball game or a movie.
But with my new job came something else new… my office! I cleaned up and cleaned out my old office. Put sound foam on the walls. Got a standing corner desk, a new Mic/studio set up, new lighting, and new chair. It really is true that you need to love where you work, and since I work from my home office, I truly love it now!
9. Finish this sentence: My day doesn't start properly until I...
Tweet. Ha! That's what my wife would say.
Shower! I have to start my day with a shower. No matter what.
10. What do you to unwind and chill?
I'm a sports nut. You will find me either in my loft watching the game, or in my bed, watching the game on my phone. That's how I love to relax. Put on the Gamecocks, Ravens, or Orioles and I will be totally content. (and my wife would say, "watching while tweeting about it.")
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