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Dear Eric: I am a 16-year-old junior in high school who has an ambition to be a sports broadcaster.

I have started my own sports podcast. From the very start of my podcasting, I have tried to reach out to important sports people in the business.

I've reached out to MLB radio people, sports talk hosts, NFL pregame hosts and other podcasters. Each one of those people has gotten back to me in a relatively quick amount of time (15 minutes for the MLB broadcaster), and one day or so for the others.

I get back to them within a day and then I wait weeks. They have never replied. I reach out to some through Instagram, and I see that they are reading my message and seeing that I did respond to them. One actually said, "I'll reach out tonight." It's been four weeks since that message was sent.

Are people ghosting me because I'm young? What message can I send them saying "just tell me whether you want to help or not. Either option is fine, but I was really hoping that you would come on my podcast and have delayed putting out an episode because you said you would come on tonight?”

– Am I Too Young

Dear Young: I admire your ambition and the expansive way that you’re thinking. I’m sorry you’re experiencing these roadblocks. It’s possible that these folks have automatic reply bots to manage their communication. Or they could simply be flaky. Either way, I’d suggest letting no response be a response and pivoting to a slightly different model.

Though big names will help raise the profile of a podcast sometimes, the real value of your podcast is you and your perspective. So, you might switch to sending finished episodes to people mentioned or people whose opinions you admire. Ask them to share or give you feedback.

Many of these professionals may be working with booking agents, so social media wouldn’t be the most expedient way to get to them. If there’s someone whom you feel will add something of substance to your podcast, try planning further out so you have time to track down their representatives and establish contact that way.

Lastly, behind-the-booth connections matter just as much, if not more, than on-mic talent. So, look into the National Sports Media Association (nationalsportsmedia.org) or your local broadcasters association. They may have mentorship opportunities that will pay dividends throughout your career.

Dear Eric: Do you ever advise someone to tell the other person, "I've heard enough of

this. Just shut up!"

I'm thinking of my sister. She's intelligent, knowledgeable, but opinionated as hell. When she has an opinion about something, she's “always right.” Attempts to discuss it with her in a rational manner are futile. The only way I've found to get her to shut up on the matter is the above or some variation of it. Our relationship has survived in spite of this.

You might have to know more than is conveyed in a letter or email but wonder if you have ever had one where that seemed like the best/only solution?

– Heard Enough

Dear Heard Enough: Well, I haven’t had an opportunity to advise those words specifically and I probably wouldn’t, but I’ve certainly come up with creative ways of saying the same thing. Any time I offer a script, I would hope that the letter writer or anyone else who adopts it puts it into words that feel most comfortable for them. Often that script needs to be responsive to the two people communicating. So, in your case, “shut up” is effective because it’s understood to mean something like “hey, remember the boundary I have, well, we’ve reached it.”

While in other contexts this would come across as rude or be counterproductive to a communicative relationship, I’m glad you’ve found something that works for the two of you.

Dear Eric: I have a different slant on the twin brother who wants to propose at his twin’s destination wedding (“Already Saved the Date").

I'm sure twins have to share a lot, but why not share the fun? It sounds like there is no objection to the intended new fiancée. Believe me, in 25 or 50 years it will be a great memory. Many family members/friends and even those from the other family may delight in another reason to celebrate.

Life is short, enjoy the moments you can! I would be delighted to have a double family joyful weekend as it is hard to get all our loved ones together in one place.

-- Party Nana

Dear Nana: A few letters came in that shared a similar sentiment. A fair perspective. What’s important is that the siblings communicate clearly so there’s no hard feelings and the happy moments can be happy for everyone.

(Send questions to R. Eric Thomas at eric@askingeric.com or P.O. Box 22474, Philadelphia, PA 19110. Follow him on Instagram and sign up for his weekly newsletter at rericthomas.com.)

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