Writing for Mobile Beat has been a great experience. Sometimes to get a great story I travel for an interview. This past weekend I headed to NYC with my wife and daughter to do an interview with the guys from The Funktion House in Brooklyn (look for the article in a few months). I thought it would be great to bring my wife and take her out to dinner in Manhattan and let her and my daughter do some shopping. The trip went well except for the hotel. I like to use Booking.com and most of the time I get some really good deals. Not this time. We stayed at the hotel Pennsylvania. This absolutely, hands down,... [read more]

Recently a post on a DJ page caught my attention. A younger DJ was looking for music ideas for a Portuguese wedding he had coming up. The bride and groom were of Portuguese heritage, but not really familiar with the traditional types of music. So the DJ figured he would reach out for some input. What he got was a ton of misinformation. Many of the replies suggested playing Latin or Brazilian music. Others suggested Reggaeton or Caribbean music. All wrong. It was obvious that none of the people posting suggestions knew anything about the Portuguese culture. This is where we fail. If you are going to do ethnic or culturally diverse weddings, you... [read more]

It's the day after the Super Bowl and Facebook is full of victory memes, trash talk and "what if" quarterbacking. Many folks in New England are playing the blame game; poor defense, the refs, etc. I saw a few Pat's fans actually congratulating the Eagles on a game well played. Yes, I'm a Pats fan since 1985. Back when we went against the Bears and I say good for the Eagles. Why? They earned it. Both teams played hard and in the end the Eagles fought harder. What does this have to do with our profession? A lot. When you're at a large banquet venue with several events happening do you go around and introduce yourself (like a champ)? Do you extend your... [read more]

The most successful DJ's are the ones that prepare, practice and plan for each event. Sometimes, though, things don't always go as planned or unforeseen circumstances throw you a curve ball. Mistakes are made and lessons are learned, often the hard way. The fact is you can't prepare for things you didn't know could happen. What if a veteran DJ, with years of wedding experience wrote a book that could help you rock harder, party better and save you from some rookie mistakes and lots of embarrassment? Would you run out and buy it? You should. Enter Mike Wieder, a big guy with an even bigger sense of humor and ... [read more]

I've made it one of my goals for 2018 to really invest in some diverse training and learning. This past Saturday I took some time to attend a seminar hosted by the NSA (not the spying one) in Boston. The National Speakers Association is for persons who have a career in public speaking. Most of it's members tour nationally, are keynote speakers at conventions and are authors. The seminar I attended focused on developing your message, getting published and growing your speaking business. The keynote speaker (Mark Lindquist) had taken his business from $10K per year to $250K per year in just three years. Many of the concepts, strategies and ideas... [read more]

The first week of 2018 is done. Have you already broken your New Year's Resolutions? Did you even make any? Don't feel bad if you didn't. Most people find them useless and counterproductive. What you do need is a plan of action with measurable goals and markers. Much of where you go in 2018 depends on how you ended 2017. Have you analyzed your sales data from 2017? Did you hit your business and personal goals? Now is the time to decide which new goals you want to set and the direction you want your life and business to move in. I like the acronym "F.A.S.T." which can be used a few different ways. F- Family and focu... [read more]

As 2017 winds down to a close, now is a great time to look back at 2017 and really measure your successes and failures. It's time to reconcile your books and total up the 2017 goals you exceeded and those you didn't quite make. One question you should be asking yourself is what role will you play in your company in 2018. Figuring that out requires an honest look back at all the events you did in 2017 and fairly deciding which type you liked best and which type you hated. How many events do you personally want to do in 2018? Do you want to DJ, Emcee or increase your photo booth and lighting gigs? Do you want to step back, be more of a manager and ... [read more]

Imagine it's 330am and you are sound asleep in your hotel room. Suddenly your phone starts going crazy. You jump out of bed thinking something bad happened back home and your spouse is on the other end yelling "are you OK, are you OK?" over and over. You reassure them that you're fine and notice the million messages on your phone from friends and family. Your spouse informs you that there has been a horrible shooting and you should turn on the news. The scene was utter chaos. The strip was shut down from Mandalay Bay to MGM for several days. This situation happened to myself and the thousands of other wedding professionals attending the Weddi... [read more]