Boogie Woogie India

Being Innovative bring high and satisfactory results. Boogie Woogie is a reality shows and reality shows do well when they bring innovative ideas week after week as they supply the required spice to its audience. And so with the same concept on mind, we bring you an article on how to be innovative. The seven great habits that we bring you today with due courtesy is the result of www.thinksimplenow.com. We hope you too will find it useful and will adopt these habits for your own life.

Have you ever looked at super creative or innovative people, and felt they are special beings blessed with gifts? Have you felt that you are not as fortunate? I used to feel this way. I have since learned that creativity is more about psychology than intellect, and there are no secrets to being creative. Actually, there is no such thing as “being more creative”, you are already a creative being.

I’m sure we can all relate to moments when we felt stuck trying to tap into our own creativity. Did you know that this block is merely your mind at work? Your mind is creating all sorts of assumptions, self-imposed constraints and self-limiting inhibitions. I have found that we can remove these assumptions just by being in the moment; start doing, and stop thinking.

Here are seven habits found in highly innovative and creative people that I’ve organized and summarized from Scott Berkun’s “the myths of innovation“.

1. Persistence - Innovation involves more than just great ideas. We need faith, hard work and a laser sharp focus for the end result to keep persisting for our vision in the face of roadblocks. We tend to see the end result of a creative idea in awe, but what we don’t see are the actions, hard work and persistence behind the scene to make the vision a reality.

“Invention is 1% inspiration, 99% perspiration“ - Thomas A. Edison

2. Remove Self-Limiting Inhibitions - Under the spell of inhibition, we feel limited and stuck. We need to free ourselves from these mind-created constraints by removing assumptions and restrictions. This is what we refer to when we say “think outside the box”. Encourage ourselves to be open to new ideas and solutions without setting limiting beliefs. Remember, innovation is more about psychology than intellect.

3. Take Risks, Make Mistakes - I believe that part of the reason why we create self-imposed inhibition is due to our fear of failure. Expect that some ideas will fail in the process of learning. Build prototypes often, test them out on people, gather feedback, and make incremental changes. Rather than treating the mistakes as failures, think of them as experiments. “Experiment is the expected failure to deliberately learn something.” (Scott Berkun). Instead of punishing yourself for the failures, accept them, then take your newfound knowledge and put it towards finding the best solution. Live up to your goal of producing the best result, but understand you might hit roadblocks along the way.

“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.“ –Thomas A. Edison

4. Escape - Our environment can and does effect how we feel. The more relaxed and calm we are internally, the more receptive we are to tap into our flowing creativity. This is why ideas sometimes come to us in the shower or while we’re alone. Each of us have different triggers to access our creative energy. I get into the ‘creative zone’ from sitting at my dining table, with a warm cup of chai, and my noise-canceling headphones. Many great thinkers go on long walks to help them solve problems. Experiment and find what works for you.

5. Writing Things Down - Many innovators and creative people keep a journal to jot down ideas and thoughts. Some keep a sketch book, scrap book, post-it notes, loose paper. They all have a method to capture their thoughts, to think on paper, to drop their inhibitions and start the creative process. Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous notebook was purchased by Bill Gates for $30.8 Million dollars.

6. Find Patterns & Create Combinations - Ideas come from other ideas. Did you know that Edison wasn’t the first one who came up with the invention of the light bulb? He was the first to build a workable carbon filament inside a glass bulb, that made light bulbs last longer. You can increase your exposure to new ideas, look for patterns and see how you can combine ideas to improve upon existing solutions.

7. Curiosity - Many innovators are just curious people who are inquisitive, and like to solve problems. Practice seeing things differently. For example, When seeing the solution to a problem, ask yourself, “What are some alternative ways to doing this?”. Ask a lot of questions and challenge the norms or existing methods.

Have a great day folks!!

Whether you are ready to give auditions or are all set to perform on the stage for the first time or innumerate time, it is must that you enjoy what you do. Many times people do for the sake of something else like for instance popularity or money. To appear on national Television is a dream for many not for anything else but to gain instant popularity and even with a hope to make big to earn big bucks. There is nothing wrong in either of the concepts provided you do it the right way. It is a proven fact that when you perform and have enjoyed performing what you did, the result works out that people too have enjoyed what they saw. But a lot of times people get monotonous and just do things half heartedly and that is where they step towards failure. 

People working for biggest companies or earning millions are not the happiest always. Someone working for a local company with much lesser salary can be happier. The excitement of going to work could be seen bubbling out initially but as the time passes, things change. The same that we did excitedly in beginning becomes an obligation.

But here are some tips that will help us in big way in not becoming monotonous but creating a career graph that only sees an upward direction:

Be Realistic:  We often have a habit of setting unrealistic goals for ourselves. We expect more than what we are capable of and when we are not able to meet our goals, depression seeps in and the work becomes a source of unhappiness rather than joy.
See, if you also aimed to touch skies overnight. If yes, set S.M.A.R.T goals for yourself. SMART here means: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely.

Turn to work with the right mindset: When you appear in reality shows, you have to work to show case your talent differently each time you appear. The studio that you go for shoot is your work. Enter your work with a positive mindset and have the same for your co participants, your employer, recruiter, judges. Bearing negative thoughts about your workplace will not only hamper your performance but will not let you like do well.

Maintain a good rapport with everyone: This is something said ad-nauseam times but not practiced very often. The best way to do is to maintain an open communication with people you are surrounded with. Practice small things like helping people wherever you can, pass a gentle smile and you will see that you will always have someone to help or advice you when need.

Try to fix problems rather then complaining: When there are more then one mind, there is bound to be difference of opinion and difference of opinion leads to problems. Most of us have a habit of sitting and criticizing things. Rather then just discussing the problems around it will be a better idea to find a solution to them. This will not only create a healthy atmosphere but also give us a sense of achievement.

Focus on your KPAs: Many of us feel that we are working hard but it is not being recognized. This leads to depression and also miscommunication. The best way to handle such a situation is to focus on our Key Performance Areas. If we do everything but our actual job that we came for, our performance will never be appreciated. We must see that we are doing the things the right way.

Maintain Transparency: One time win is not an end. With Boogie Woogie, if you are good then you will get many opportunities to perform. Keeping your communication clear and well informed makes the work easier and will reduce any worries if they are any. Moreover, it will also prove to bring people who will stand by you in your hour of need.

Celebrate success with everyone: Keep patting for the next batting. Celebrating with everyone is a great idea. If people are happy they will be motivated and if they are motivated then half of your worries evaporate themselves. Also such gatherings bring people closer and also increase the compatibility quotient.

Accept new challenges and risks: A common feature of most of the happy professionals around! Accepting new challenges and risks not only give us the joy of recognition but also a feeling of satisfaction. Identify new challenges and volunteer to handle them.

Have a wonderful day till next time!!

Boogie Woogie India Blog wishes all the mothers a Very Happy Mother’s Day!!

You must be thinking your web site is a little late in wishing aren’t you? Well sorry for the belated wishes but as they say, its better to be late then never plus we had a reason to be late. You see we didn’t want to wish you mother’s day without a gift. And so we bring you a gift in form of an interview with a very well known, accomplished and beautiful dancer/teacher – Nisha Punjabi.

When first time I saw Nisha, she was dancing and I was totally awe in praise and mesmerized by her grace. She is not only talented but possesses an awesome personality. She is very spiritual, soft spoken, very well mannered, and treats you like her own. She also has an equally inspiring and loving family. The relationship between her mother in law and her makes you feel like this world is the best place in this universe. The chemistry and sense of humor between her and her husband is fabulous and when you look at the loving couple, you feel that “Yes – marriage is a beautiful thing” as they create beautiful example.

Nisha Punjabi is one person for whom, how many good words I use will be very few. She possesses a personality that takes you by spell and leaves you inspired. She is a very graceful dancer and also runs an accomplished dancing school in Delaware. She also organizes many dancing events and her students have been successful in fetching many awards at state and national level. Being a mother herself, she also has been encouraging and teaching dance to other mothers along with providing them moral support and encouragement. Her students range from ages 3 to age 82. She hails from Mumbai, India and visits Mumbai very often at least couple of times in a year but is well settled in Delaware, USA.

You can contact her at:

Nisha A. Punjabi
Nritya Jhankaar
5 Yorktown Ct
Newark, DE 19702
nisha@comcast.net
www.nishapunjabi.com
Tel: (302) 898-8698

On this mother’s day and with Mummy’s Championships about to start, we bring you an exclusive interview with Nisha that should surely help in clearing many of your doubts and also teach you some valuable tips. This is the first time ever that Boogie Woogie India Blog is trying something different than usual in form of exclusive videos for the site and we sure do hope to get better technically with time. Your feedback is important so please feel free to let us know how we are doing and what other improvement you would like to see on site.

We thank Nisha whole heartedly for taking time out from her VERY busy schedule and agreeing to do this interview. We appreciate a great lot. We also are very thankful to Preety Chawla for arranging this interview with Nisha. Thank You and God Bless You both!!

Part 1

Part 2

Some came home really happy and some came sad. Sometimes things happen and sometimes we expect one thing and it turns out to be something else. Its life, it happens, do not worry - its time to move on to plan B. I keep repeating one story time and again and that should inspire you too. It is my favorite story. Thomas Alva Edison who failed to make bulb 100 times and succeeded afterwards was asked how does it feel to fail a hundred times. To this he answered, "why do you look at it that way? I now know a hundred ways of how NOT to make a bulb." So friends the glass is never half empty, look at it as half full. What happened has happened, we cannot do anything about it but one thing is there and that is very much in our hands and that is to plan better for next time. Plus experiences teach us better then just any theory. And tell me one good reason to get upset and why? It is Boogie Woogie!! With Boogie Woogie, doors are never closed. We keep hearing so many participants the number of times they have been appearing or the number of times they tried before they got a chance so stay positive. If today is not your day then tomorrow it surely will be! Doors for Boogie Woogie will never close on you - at least me being a die hard fan, that is my confidence on them!

So let us see what we can do for next time.

First and foremost - take some time out and put your best effort in preparing your best package.

Watch boogie woogie and observe what they are saying. A lot of times judges, they give out clues on what they look out in a participant. Make notes while watching the show. A well prepared dancer is anytime better then the one that goes to participate with just assumptions.

You need to keep the key points on mind and groom yourself exactly the way they want to see you. You need to adopt their requirement and let it grasp in all of you. A lot of times, things are not said clearly for whatever reasons so you need to read in between lines. Try visiting web sites and get tips that can help you perform better. Think about the past winners and the comments that judges gave them and what impressed them and based on those points, prepare a different number, just don’t copy that but prepare something different that hasn’t been shown before. Do not choose the same number that has been performed like a hundred times on the show but if you like to dance on the same number then do something entirely different with it. Make sure your output turns out to be different and look original and for this it doesn’t matter if you are going to copy and paste the steps from 10 different shows but mixing of your steps and the final output results should be applaudable. Use your creativity to the maximum after all participating in Boogie Woogie is not a joke. They always bring out the best of best performers and you need to fit in that best of best lot so think on those terms but don’t stress yourself out. There is plenty of help available everywhere free of cost plus we are right here for you. We can always guide you, give you tips and help you prepare better. We are Boogie Woogie Die Hard Fans and this is least we can do for other fans.

Anyway, lets look at the best practices for auditions. Often dancers are turned down not because they are bad performers but because they failed to supply a package that is not appealing enough. Remember it is all a competitive world. The one that comes with something different and does that different stuff flawlessly and in a appealing format always has a chance. A package needs to be such that can be viewed quickly and that presents exactly what was asked for in the beginning.

Honestly, we have been very fortunate that Firdaus visited us and also told us what are their expectations and how much time they take in scanning a talent. Friends, the time that all you have to impress them is the first 45 seconds. 45 seconds should be your golden rule. Whatever are your best moves, steps you need to portray, put it in the first 45 seconds but also make sure the remaining 1 minute and 15 seconds is not boring as well as she said if they like what they see then the remainder of the video is watched. Anytime Firdaus visits this blog and leaves us a message, I want all the dance aspirants to put their entire energies on her message and stare at her words till her each and every word is byhearted and absorbed in their performance! Please pay attention friends, good advice comes in only once in a while! Prepare Better!!

Anyway I don’t think any rejection should discourage you, it should as a matter of fact, make you much more stronger and prepare you with better enthusiasm. Just be positive and prepare harder - don’t give up till you get the results that make you happy! I am confident that you will make it one day, do you have confidence on my confidence?? Smile - be Happy - You did a great JOB!! And I am very proud of you!

Courtesy: tech.faq.com

Boogie Woogie accepts VCD’s and DVD’s to view the audition videos of participants. Many times aspirants have their video clipping but wonder who to burn that video on a CD or DVD. So if you are looking to burning a video on a DVD, one of the easiest and most affordable forms of media, you can choose to burn is called a VCD (Video Compact Disc). While DVD’s is a great way to store large files, especially video and sound, VCD’s, while smaller in size can easily store video as well.

A VCD stands for Video Compact Disc and while it is the same media as a compact disc, the only difference is that it includes both video and audio files. Most CD’s only include audio files. VCD’s offer the same amount of storage space as CD’s, usually about 650 to 700 MB’s of space. Depending on the storage space, a VCD can store up to 74 minutes (650 MB) or 80 minutes (700 MB).

Advantages of VCD’s

VCD’s usually use the format of MPEG-1 to record video and audio to a compact disk. One of the advantages is that practically all computers are able to view VCD’s using their CD player and in addition, all DVD players are also compatible with VCD disks. DVD on the other hand are sometimes not always compatible with one another. For instance, there are DVD+R and DVD-R media. There is also DVD RAM. Certain DVD players only play one type of DVD media, making the other types incompatible. Another great advantage is that CD’s are usually always less expensive than DVD media. You can usually find CD’s for less than $.25 and many are around the $.10 mark.

Disadvantages of VCD

While VCD’s are on the whole more compatible than DVD and cost less, the trade off is that VCD picture and sound quality are usually inferior to that of DVD. The reason that video and sound quality are in most cases inferior is due to the amount of storage space. If you are looking to record a video file that is larger than 650 -700 MB’s, you must first compress it. Compressing it reduces the resolution of the video, usually from a DVD’s normal resolution of 720 X 480 to a VCD resolution of 352 X 240. It should be noted that in most cases audio files will play normally and will not experience any loss of quality, except in the cases of specialized sound formats such as surround sound. You should be able to enjoy full stereo sound at normal CD quality bit rates on a VCD.

Burning a VCD

It is extremely easy to create a VCD; you just need a CD burner/player, CD burning software and the ability to encode your video or multimedia file into a VCD compliant format which is MPEG-1. MPEG-1 is the format of choice for VCD’s. It is a great format to view video at extremely low bit rates. Since it is non-propriety it is very similar to MP3 files. It should be noted that normal DVD files are recorded using MPEG-2 and while this format offers excellent video and audio quality, the size of the files are extremely large and usually require much more powerful encoders, decoders and processing power.

Encode Your Video File

In order to burn your VCD, you first must have a video file that it is already encoded in MPEG-1 format. Let’s say you took your digital camcorder to your son’s baseball game and wanted to record the highlights onto a VCD, first transfer the video media to your hard drive. Once the video is accessible via your computer, you can now encode it into the MPEG-1 format.

Usually, you will need an encoding program. The good news is that there are many free and low cost products that make encoding a video file into MPEG-1 complete with high quality stereo sound. Usually, you will first open up this encoding software, follow the prompts and select which format, you would like (many encoding software can encode not only in MPEG-1, but also MPEG-2, DIVX, AVI, etc.). From this point, the encoding software will quickly and efficiently encode the original video file into a ready to burn MPEG-1 file.

Burn Your VCD

Now that you have your MPEG-1 file, you can easily use your normal CD burning software to burn your VCD. Just pop in a blank, recordable CD into your CD Recordable drive, open up your CD burning application and follow the prompts. From start to finish, changing a normal video file into a completed VCD usually take only a few minutes.

Viewing YOUR VCD

Your VCD is viewable in practically all computer drives, as well as the vast majority of DVD drives. Please note that from time to time some DVD players are finicky with VCD’s, just as they are with recordable DVD’s. Sometimes it might take a few tries to play on a specific DVD player, or you might want to try different brand of media.

As we come across any information that we think it might be useful to our members, we try to bring it for you. Now we are no where related to any of the sites or groups and are running only in appreciation for our dear mentors/judges with an intention to have a place for all their fans where they can call it a “home”.

We have been getting you MP3’s from various sources and many of our members have shown keen interest in remixed music. Though we do not have a DJ in house yet but we surely trying to get one so that he or she can fulfill your remixed music request but till the time we find one reliable DJ, here is some information that might be useful or of interest to you.

While browsing and searching for some sites, we came across plenty of good reviews for one particular site that allows you to remix your own music. It has a flash player installed and allows you to upload your music, remix it and give special effects and produce a DJ kind of a piece. Many also say it is user friendly. You only need to be little creative that’s all. The best thing we found of this site is; it’s free of cost. Now that’s what I like.. “NO MONEY”!! I have not tried remixing any music yet but only browsed through the site. I really liked some of the worked that is out there but if any of my information is incomplete, please do let me know or correct me.

The site that I am talking about is http://www.jamglue.com

Maybe many of your must be aware of it but it says you can make your first remix in about 2 minutes. There are also many contests where you can submit your remix version to win prizes. The other interesting part that I found was, you can upload your tracks and can let others remix it. So if you are confused how to remix your tracks, you can easily upload which of your tracks you want to get remixes done and wait for others to do the job. Now many of you are dancers and want to dance on particular track or remixes so go ahead and check it out – so far it sounds great. But do not put any money anywhere! Very Important – Don’t put your personal information everywhere. Be safe and avoid unnecessary situations. If you need any advice, please do feel free to comment or write an email here. This is your place so feel at home!

Last before week on Boogie Woogie, Ravi pointed out a very valuable tip that should be saved and sealed for all audition aspirants.

One group in Himmat ki Kheemat had sent in their VCD and were selected based on that audition video but it seemed that they changed their dancers and song when they came in to perform on the Boogie Woogie stage. That backfired on the group and maybe it resulted in fetching the group with negative points. Why? Please read below.

Ravi Behl talked about how Boogie Woogie selects their candidates for the show. He said; when they view the VCD and like a particular performance, they send out the invite. They then expect the participant or group of participants to perform on the same song that got them selected. Any change in song or dancers may result in disqualification or getting them negative points.

In simple words, when you send out your VCD to Boogie Woogie, note down your song selection because that is the same song you will need to perform if you are invited for the show. And in case it’s a group performance then make sure not to change or replace any dancers from your group. Once the VCD goes in, you selection of song and dancers stays sealed.

With so many millions of dancers wanting to perform on Boogie Woogie show, if you get a call from them, please be careful and not do any mistake that will ruin the chances of performing on the prestigious stage. If there is really a genuine and huge problem, do discuss with them with enough time on hand. I am sure they will be willing to hear you out and cooperate but it’s always better to be safe then sorry friends. So please avoid any last minute changes.

Have a Wonderful Day!!

Honestly the credit to this topic should go to "Haresh Karkar" who made me think and write on the topic. Yesterday he mentioned about dancing in front of the mirror which inspired me to do research and think about it more in detail. Let’s have a look at the advantages but before that I must say something – “Thank you Haresh!”

We must have heard the phrase a million times that goes “practice makes a man perfect”. Very true, there is absolutely no doubt about it. But what is Practice? It is repeating any act or lesson over and over again to master it or to learn it good. But why is it that we need to repeat things to be able to master it? Well, 1) when we learn something new, it sounds or makes us feel foreign to it. 2) By just looking at it once, there is a very good chance that we might forget especially at the time of performance 3) even if we remember; we bound to mess it up either by including our own version or forgetting half way through and making the act look bad. And so, we must practice not only in the beginning but also when we are fluent so that it can flow easy, flawless, without any interruptions and also look professional.

Now that we talked why we must practice, let’s talk how can we practice or what are the ways that one can practice their dance. Here is a scenario – When we go to school to learn a lesson either in person or online, we are given home work and our duty is to practice that lesson so that next time we are able to perform without any interruptions and just the way it was taught. Normally people end up doing one of the below to practice:

Practice on your own playing music

Practice in front of a friend or partner who can point out if there are any mistakes.

Practice in front of a mirror so that we can judge ourselves and rectify any mistakes.

Practicing on your own is good and requires a good amount of confidence. When a person practices, he or she will have their teacher, choreographer or mentor on mind. They try to use the same type of expressions and steps. Unconsciously they imagine themselves to look similar like their teacher in expressions and steps. Sometimes it works and sometimes it does not. There is a big chance that one might end up practicing the wrong steps thinking it to be right as there is no way to correct at that moment. Yes but if you have a dancing partner who attended your same class then while he or she perform you can judge and vice versa. That does help. But the best way that is normally followed by a majority of the dancers is dancing in front of a mirror. Why? Let’s have a look at it.

1. Dancing in front of mirror helps a person come out of his or her shyness. A lot of times we fear audience and go weak in our knees. The best way to overcome the shyness or fear is to role play. Dancing in front of a mirror looking into our own eyes and also watching our every step especially while giving expressions can help in big way. Unconsciously when we are in front of mirror we start to imagine there is audience on back of our mind. And the practice that is done in front of mirror helps us overcome our shortcomings of shyness and fear.
2. They say we are our biggest critic. Before we can hear what others are going to say about us, we start to judge ourselves with a hundred faults. And so when we dance in front of a mirror, we tend to practice it better as we can see ourselves and hence the chance of picking harshly on us becomes less.
3. Evaluation becomes easy when practicing in front of mirror. When we practice in front of a mirror, we will be able to evaluate our every move. We correct the wrong moves and practice it till the time we are satisfied. And as they say “if we are satisfied then there is a good chance of others feeling satisfied too.”
4. A mirror gives us instant and true feedback and we don’t have to wait to know how we did.

Whether you talk about dance or sports or playing music, practicing in front of mirror always helps a person. A mirror shows us if our hands were in the right position, if we were balanced and also if we were leaning too much forward or backward. When we start to practice in front of mirror initially we may realize that what we feel is not comforting. We may feel there is still a long way to go to reach our full potential as a dancer. As they say bad habits die hard so a mirror practice is must to keep a self check and to make sure we don’t stay comfortable with the bad habits.

Once there was a man who was a great artist and he made many wonderful portraits and one day he realized that he should make a self portrait and so he started to sketch himself. He was busy for days completing his sketch and when it was finished he was thoroughly satisfied. He placed his new portrait next to a mirror and stood in front of it only to realize that there was a world of difference. The man he drew was the man he was 50 years ago. He had aged and the real man that he had turned into had very little resemblance which according to me is not wrong. But the world would see it as a different man’s portrait. Plus his intention was to sketch the present him not the past him. But if you ask me, even though the sketch had nothing to do with the present reflection as it was a reflection from the past but I see it as a positive thing. It only signifies that he is young at heart. It also means he is alive and lively. They say the day we start to imagine ourselves old, we have very less interest in life which is not good as it signifies that we want to near our end. Anyway, the reason why I brought this story here is to say that sometimes we might practice thinking its perfect but what we actually practiced may turn out to be completely different from original so having a mirror check is must.

And last but not least, any method that can help you improve your performance can never be wrong especially if it’s a proven one. Go ahead and practice your skills – make your mirror your friend – he sure will be an honest friend!

As we always say this blog is a fan blog and any input from you help us improve this blog. It also runs with an intention to serve as a great tool in polishing skills of dance aspirants. They say knowledge when shared, travels far and helps in improving ourselves and as well as others. And if this advice comes from someone who is not only knowledgeable in his work but also masters his craft then all this site can do is to salute the person. Boogie Woogie India heard a very valuable piece of advice from "Dan Duce" who visited us early morning today.

We are really fortunate to read Dan’s comments. Thank You Dan - Please do visit us again and we do look forward to hearing more of tips and advices from you. We appreciate your advice and I am sure many Hip Hop dancers will surely take this advice seriously and give a flawless performance for their upcoming shows. Our reference articles on Hip Hop dance has been very popular and many sites and schools are linked for easy reference. I am sure your advice will help them more in learning and practicing.

It’s not a great idea to wear any loose neck jewelery as it’ll get caught and could be dangerous. Your footwear should fit and be comfortable - not huge. Tees and polo’s are good but less on the accessories as they will hinder your performance and get in the way. If your moves are dynamic i.e B-boy you’ll regret the loose fitting cap, sneakers and jewelery. Keep it cool looking, comfortable, fun and dynamic.

Dan Duce

www.dynastyrockers.com

His original message can be seen HERE

Thank You! 

- Admin

BoogieWoogieIndia.Com

Yesterday we talked about evaluation, goals and the other essentials needed to reach stardom. Today we will talk about the most important factor that is necessary – building fan base and Marketing Strategy. These two factors play an important role in a stars career. Both these factors are interrelated and interdependent.

Let’s say you participated in a reality show and became popular. You are a star now. The show just ended. What would you do next? How would you make sure to maintain your stardom? Most of the reality show participants think offers start flowing on their own just because they appeared on TV. No it does not happen that way. There are steps that need to be taken after a show is over and one has to work even much harder to establish themselves in their dream career. TV shows gets you the initial push or the first recognition required but you will have to make sure you utilize it to the best so that the recognition can stay with you for longer time instead of fading away. You have to use that recognition to the fullest to establish yourself. Have you heard the saying “Out of sight, out of mind?” Well it’s true! People normally remember as long as the participant is seen on TV and soon after the show is over and a new face comes in, they get busy watching the new face. Only loyal fans stick by you through thick or thin but loyal fans don’t just come like that. It takes time. We will talk about it later. First let’s build some good strategies.

We are in year 2009 and the way things have been changing faster then the speed of light is of no surprise. The way things were handled few years back are completely different from the way they are handled now. Gone are those days when one use to sit at home and read a magazine to know things about a star. Now everything is available on internet and over the finger tips. And hence my friend INTERNET is the key topic today!!!

Make yourself searchable over internet: When anyone watches a show and if they like a person then the first thing they do is search for that person over the internet. Google them, YouTube them, or use any search engine to find out more information about him or her. Fans search for your pictures, videos and any articles. Every picture you upload, you must save it with your name and that is how it comes out when anyone searches for it. Make sure there are plenty of them available over Internet. If you are searchable then its plus and you start to build your fan base and if you are not searchable then the spark that had just got started gets to disappear with someone else search results. Initially what fans do is all in impulse and later when they come to know you they fall in love with you. Your job is to make sure you are available on any search engines so that your fans can know you better or find ways to interact with you.

YouTube plays an important role these days. You may ask how? Well, as we spoke about search engines, the same way fans want to watch the different performances, listen to their idol or watch their favorite videos. And YouTube is the biggest site to hold zillions of videos and contributes to any show or artist’s success. One small example: Sa Re Ga Ma Pa show is considered to be the most popular TV show ever. It has created history on YouTube. If you go YouTubing then you will find plenty to million videos of this show. It is not just popular in India but in entire world. There are many countries where Indian channels are not available so for people of these countries, YouTube and Daily Motion comes to aid for them to be in touch with their home country. And people who are YouTube members always look out for new videos and if your video is available, you start to build your audience better.

Would you believe if I tell you, we have traffic on this website from 167 countries? Well it is true. I was surprised to see traffic from countries that I hadn’t heard of. Boogie Woogie is popular no doubt about it and that is why we see traffic from so many countries. Internet plays a very important role in bringing people together. And sometimes seeing is better then reading. So make sure you are available over YouTube and other video channels and are current with your videos.

In present times one sees that fans are building via internet. Internet offers all the information to anyone just sitting at home at their finger tips. Having a website will help you develop your career. When fans or agents search for you, 90 times out of 100 they search your name.com or they type in your company name dot com. If the search results are not up to satisfactory then they Google you. But if you have a quality dedicated website and if the viewers like what they are reading, they visit you regularly. You aim should be to have a regular traffic with an increase as the time goes by. Now you may wonder that it may costs you to build a website. And it’s true that one may not have the finances at the beginning of their career to invest in websites. Both the facts are true and false. Well for a good website, it does require money but then there are places where you can host your own website free of cost. They may be limited to few pages but it is always better to have something then nothing. For example: blogger.com, blogspot.com etc. You can easily have a wonderful website without spending a penny out of your pocket. But having a dedicated person to run and maintain the blog is essential. If you kick start a website but cannot update it on regular basis or contribute to it daily then it does more damage then good. One needs to have a dedicated person who would really care for you and will not ruin your blog at any cost. You must have keywords set up in such a way that any search should lead people to your site and to your images. But having a dedicated person is not enough. YOUR CONTRIBUTION GETS ESSENTIAL. Work on it!

Talking about profile, it is another MUST these days. With current times the best places you can have your profile is on Orkut, Facebook, Myspace and many such communities. You will find fans especially all young ones flock to sites as above in search of their favorite. As these sites are very popular so it becomes easy for your fans to reach out to you.

Now one may wonder what time would be right to have a website or profile on the net. Well, technically one must have their profile and blog setup before their first performance is telecasted so that you are immediately searchable. This is how a human mind works, if I like someone and saw them on TV, the next thing I would do is search for that person on Internet to find more on him or her. Your planning should be in such a way that you don’t miss out on any hits. As they say, make hay while the sun shines so you should be ready at the first get go. In today’s world, one needs to be competitive, educated and knowledgeable of how everything works after all it’s your career which is at risk and you definitely don’t want to take any chances with it.

This brings us to our next topic – reaching out to fans and interacting with them. You got your profile, website, videos, audios everything setup. Your fans are viewing them and like them. They leave a message or compliment you. Your duty is to reciprocate back. That is how you will build your loyal fan base or friendship. Who says a fan can’t be a friend? I think a fan would be a lot more better friend then the fake friends you will find down the line who would be ready to stab you in your back. When you build your fan base and sometimes if your fans are not reaching out to you, feel free to reach out to them. Drop in a casual hello. It makes a world of difference. As I said before I also contribute to another blog and it so happened that the person in question there interacted with fans till the time he was in need of votes and as soon as he won, he didn’t bother to thank fans nor interact. A lot of new artists when they taste success they feel it’s below their dignity to interact with fans on their own. Don’t be like that. The truth is you need fans all the way through. So be courteous to them at least till the time you are in show business.

Reaching out to fans is not the only thing that one needs to do. One needs to reach out to all those who are in capacity to help. A lot of times we shy away from asking for help. We scare what if the answer is going to be “NO”. And in that fear half of the times we don’t approach to ask a person. But the truth is by not asking, we are not getting anywhere. It is still a NO. So why fear? Why not ask? there may be a chance of them saying yes. Unless we try, we won’t know. Don’t be shy or don’t fear. They say God help those who help themselves. Be courageous and reach out to people and it is okay to hear a “No”. Maybe you will hear 10 “No’s” and then there will be one big “yes”? Very much possible, go for it!

Okay let’s talk about “Consistency”. Fans expect that you will treat them in a consistent way and that you will do what you say you will each and every time. By acting in accordance with these wants, you provide your fans a sense of security and confidence in you personally and in your work. That builds loyalty. And loyalty in fans as I said before is greater then any achievement or award in ones life. So be consistent in your work.

Build your credibility right. Building credibility takes time it doesn’t develop just like that. But fans observe everything. And the things that they see in you and in your behavior, gets credited towards your credibility. Your good actions make your fans fall in love with you and your bad actions will take them away. What you speak, you should practice. You should be trustworthy. Your actions will play a vital role in developing your credibility not only with fans but also with your agents or producers/ directors, co workers etc. So keep a watch on what you speak and do. Be honest to yourself and with those who care about you.

Sharing knowledge has never harmed anyone; we encourage your inputs and your thoughts. Plus we love to hear from you. Do reach us out at sansuiboogiewoogie@gmail.com

Have a goodnight folks!!