All posts by Tommy Kramer

Tommy has spent over 35 years as an air talent, programmer, operations manager and talent coach - working with over 300 stations in all formats. He publishes the Coaching Tip

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #620: Trying Too Hard

Trying too hard is something that every good air talent goes through. Getting past it takes a bit of self-realization.

Looking at it in acting terms (because we are all voice actors to a degree), “reaching out” to the camera (the viewer) is the wrong perspective.

Let the camera (or in our case, the Listener) reach out to you. Overperforming is a drag. When you “reach”, it’s exaggerated.

Just settle down. Simply be there and be what you are, and let the Listener reach out to you.

– – – – – – –
Tommy Kramer
Talent Coach
214-632-3090 (mobile)
e-mail: coachtommykramer@gmail.com
Member, Texas Radio Hall of Fame
© 2025 by Tommy Kramer. All rights reserved.

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #616: The Death of Asking Questions

It seems like I’ve had to explain countless times over the years why questions – especially little rhetorical questions, like “Right?” – are ineffective today.

There was a time – about 25 or 30 years ago – when Questions were in vogue. (The “Where’s the meat?” campaign is a good example. You can look up the ads on YouTube.) It was thought then that Questions produced interest in the product.

But in today’s ten-second-attention-span world, they don’t hold water anymore.

Continue reading

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #614: Inside-out Show Prep

In a recent coaching session, a very good air talent I work with had chosen to do a stunningly uninteresting story about sleeping better with something called “cognitive shuffling.” I’d tell you more, but the story itself was a better cure for insomnia.

This happens a lot nowadays. A posting that you think is “interesting,” or that you can think up a funny line for, makes it through your filters and gets on the air. Continue reading

Tommy Kramer Coaching Tip #611: A Different Way to View Social Media’s Place in Content

The biggest challenge for anyone who’s on the air is the search for Content each day. Often in coaching sessions, I get asked about social media, and what its place is in show prep.

Social media is what it is. There’s an entire generation of people who’ve apparently grown up caring about what complete strangers have to say about them.

Continue reading