40 YEAR-OLD AUSSIE ROOKIE QUESTION: I am nearly 40 and will be commencing a six-month full-time course soon. I know I am very late getting into the industry, and I really would like your thoughts on becoming an announcer/personality at this stage. I am not totally ignorant, having done some part-time on-air stuff in the '80s. I would also like your thoughts about this Australian DJ-wannabe working in the US or Canada, (if I am good enough of course). Can you recommend any trade mags or papers that I should look at or put an ad in? DAN REPLIES: Very seriously, if you have have a reliable source of outside extra income, it could be a great choice for you. If you are not yet financially secure, however, you'll want to give a lot of thought to where you hope (and can reasonably expect) to be in five or ten years. This business requires a lot of resilience - a quality that generally decreases as one gets older. It's a lot easier to deal with low pay, non-existent job security, and long working hours when you're 20 than when you're 40. But if you know that radio is what you want to do, then go for it. You are very unlikely to find work in America by placing or answering an ad in a trade publication. The Australian jocks who have found work in the U.S. virtually always do so by first relocating here and then looking for a job. If you're good, you eventually should be able to find something. Please do NOT waste your money on any "agents" or "placement firms." Please keep me posted on your new career!