10 Questions with ... A.P. Harreld

BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:

Upon exiting radio in 2008, I thought the captivating industry was done with me. But after losing weight and adjusting my attitude, I returned with laser focus in June 2013. Since then, I've worked for stations in three states, broadcasted a season of minor league baseball, become a thoroughbred horse track announcer, started a production company, penned two ebooks, earned my SAG-AFTRA card and currently work weekends as a national anchor for NBC News Radio out of Long Beach, CA.

1) What do you do to maintain a positive mental attitude and stay motivated?

Daily exercise is absolutely key. Without it, not only does my waistline suffer, but my energy wanes and outlook on life is less than ideal. I live right on the water in eclectic Long Beach, CA, so there are myriad opportunities for this biped to explore the idyllic SoCal climes. My best ideas come to me whilst moving my corpus so the benefits extend beyond caloric burn.

2) What's the best way to get your foot in the door?

Take genuine interest in other people and get to know them as individuals. See what you can do to help people. Write handwritten thank-you notes to everyone you meet, which will both separate you from the pack and brighten days. Always have business cards. Ask for advice, not a job. And, of course, stay relentlessly positive. If you're not a natural optimist, just be thankful to have the opportunity to live and work in America.

3) What has been your best resource for finding out about job openings?

For conventional radio, AllAccess.com is a heavyweight nonpareil. You guys do a tremendous job. For the sports broadcasting niche, one absolutely needs to be a member of Jon Chelesnik's Sportscasters Talent Agency of America. But beyond posted jobs, personal proactivity is paramount. Ascertain the jobs, markets, companies and people that most interest you...and then be in touch! Introduce yourself. Figure out a low-key way to get in front of decision makers. Follow up with polite, disciplined persistence. Finding your next job is a job, and unless you are where you always want to be, you should dedicate time each week to your search.

4) What is the next job you'd like to obtain?

A morning show lead or cast member spot where I can add value with my skills in talk, news, sports and entertainment. My drug - we all have one - is making people laugh and smile. Recreating a larger version of "Wake Up Wyoming" would be wonderful. During my all-too-brief stay in the hardworking Cowboy State city of Gillette, my terrific bosses, Don Clonch and Terry Michael, gave me creative control on KIML AM-FM mornings. We fashioned a show featuring news, sports, zany bits and interviews that brought eardrums to the KIML dial, smiles to listeners' faces and reinvigorated my passion for variety radio. We interviewed big names like NFL referee Ed Hochuli and groundbreaking entertainer Ted Giannoulas. And since Wyoming is such a small state, we had live sit-downs with Sen. Mike Enzi and then-candidate (now House member) Liz Cheney. But beyond the VIPs, we connected on a personal level with the community by fusing information and entertainment. I continue to look for an opportunity to take the bones of this show to a larger audience.

5) With consolidation there are definitely fewer jobs. How do you separate yourself from the pack?

It all starts with attitude. Nobody owes me a job. It is up to me to add value to an employer. Some of the traits I bring to the table: Undying positivity, relentless energy, a passion for helping others, a razor sharp wit, and belief in - and defense of - the oft-maligned but amazing American free market.

6) What has been your biggest career accomplishment?

The ability to deliver as talent in a broad array of disciplines: national news, horse track announcing, standup comedy, minor league baseball play-by-play, talk radio, etc.

7) What do you miss most about music/radio? The least?

I love people and most miss being a part of a team. Since NBC News Radio is based in Phoenix and I'm in SoCal, it's challenging to deliver 49 different newscasts over a 7-hour shift with no colleagues on site. The least? I don't know if anyone ever really misses waking up for morning radio, but I'd gladly do it again for the right opportunity.

8) What have you learned about yourself, others, or life in general in your downtime?

That everybody has something to add and a story to tell. That we all have pain, frustration and regret. That we all like to laugh and smile. That despite our innumerable differences, we are all so much alike. That if you get to know people as individuals and treat them as such, that you can develop non-trivial relationships with most anyone you encounter.

9) If you were offered a similar position to what you were doing for considerably less money, would you seriously consider taking the job just to stay in the biz?

Absolutely, especially if there were an equity stake in sales and/or profits. As employees, we need to understand the business side of the equation. Employers buy talent just like they buy paper, copiers and other office supplies: as inexpensively as possible. But if you can produce more revenue for them, you become more valuable. Especially in the creative fields, this is often forgotten outside the halls of ownership and management.

10) Having been through all you have dealt with in this biz, what advice would you give people trying to break in?

I'll answer this by summarizing a real-life example. During my time in Salt Lake City, I hired a verbally brilliant, feisty, opinionated Bronx native as my business manager. Jessica Aponte is a 4'9" fireball with a personality so intense that in comparison I might as well be a sedated bureaucrat. She's also a jaw-dropping knockout with a lockdown handle on all things Pop Culture. So when I told her that she would excel in Top 40 morning radio, Jessica took the ball and ran. She developed demos in creative, self-starting ways: by serving as my translator when I interviewed Spanish-speaking minor league baseball players and by hosting her own show on a local community college station. She developed a brand and worked on her website. She took the initiative to attend a radio job fair at the University of Utah, which scored her a meeting with a local program director, who was impressed enough to say she'd make a great third mic in the SLC market. Jessica applied for every job - 95% of which came via AllAccess -- I'd feed her. And to make a long story short, in October she began work as the afternoon drive deejay in Joshua Tree, CA. My advice? Want it as bad as Jessica and make it happen!

Your favorite new diversion is ...

Countering my admittedly addictive attachment to high-end, flashy men's dress shoes with a much healthier passion for commerce: I am in the early stages of developing a line of exotic-skinned footwear. A chance meeting with an immigrant textiles entrepreneur on a train from Manhattan to New Jersey reinvigorated this idea. My seatmate gave me much practical insight into the many detailed steps I'd need to take to move the concept from dream to actual product. Action step: within three years, get digital mockups made and then visit Southeast Asia to interview potential manufacturers.