1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,460 Morgan Franklin: You know, something I think about all the 2 00:00:02,460 --> 00:00:05,970 time is that we don't know what we don't know. And I know that 3 00:00:05,970 --> 00:00:10,470 sounds kinda goofy, right, but I try to remind myself this every 4 00:00:10,470 --> 00:00:13,470 single day, and it's not to reward ignorance, but it's to 5 00:00:13,470 --> 00:00:17,010 give some grace to myself and the people that are around me, 6 00:00:17,070 --> 00:00:21,270 because sometimes we just simply don't know what we don't know, 7 00:00:21,660 --> 00:00:26,100 and that's why learning and curiosity and working towards 8 00:00:26,130 --> 00:00:32,130 that best version of ourselves is so important. This episode is 9 00:00:32,130 --> 00:00:35,280 gonna be a little bit different, and I'm gonna talk to you about 10 00:00:35,310 --> 00:00:40,080 what I wish I had known when I started podcasting back in 2021 11 00:00:40,230 --> 00:00:43,440 and launching my first show, but also what I wish that I had 12 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:47,310 known two years later, launching my fifth original show, and what 13 00:00:47,310 --> 00:00:50,760 it was like for me, after four years of producing other 14 00:00:50,760 --> 00:00:55,320 people's podcasts, to finally start my own show. And of 15 00:00:55,320 --> 00:00:59,190 course, what I wish I had known, hello and welcome to podcast for 16 00:00:59,190 --> 00:01:01,980 profit. My name is Morgan Franklin. I'm a Podcast 17 00:01:01,980 --> 00:01:05,970 Producer, strategist and educator. This podcast will help 18 00:01:05,970 --> 00:01:10,110 you create and grow a podcast that cuts through the noise of 19 00:01:10,110 --> 00:01:14,580 social media and speaks directly to your target audience. If 20 00:01:14,580 --> 00:01:17,760 you're ready to create a podcast that will align you with the 21 00:01:17,790 --> 00:01:21,210 experts in your industry, position yourself as a trusted 22 00:01:21,210 --> 00:01:25,320 leader and create another source of revenue for your business. 23 00:01:25,350 --> 00:01:30,690 You're in the right place. Like so many people in 2020, my life 24 00:01:30,690 --> 00:01:34,170 turned completely upside down. I've never talked about this on 25 00:01:34,170 --> 00:01:37,980 the podcast before, because it's very personal to me, but I 26 00:01:37,980 --> 00:01:42,090 basically started over my entire life. Five years ago, I was a 27 00:01:42,090 --> 00:01:46,410 wedding photographer, and it was my passion. It was my life. I 28 00:01:46,440 --> 00:01:49,500 have been creating content and taking pictures since I was 13 29 00:01:49,500 --> 00:01:53,100 years old. I later went on to work in digital marketing and 30 00:01:53,100 --> 00:01:58,260 photography full time in 2016 by 2020 I was doing mostly luxury 31 00:01:58,260 --> 00:02:02,850 weddings in Nashville and across the southeast. And, you know, I 32 00:02:02,850 --> 00:02:06,060 really felt like everything was falling into place. You know 33 00:02:06,060 --> 00:02:09,450 what I'm saying? Like I looked around and I thought, this is 34 00:02:09,450 --> 00:02:12,600 exactly where I'm supposed to be. I was getting published in 35 00:02:12,600 --> 00:02:16,350 magazines and websites and getting brand partnerships, and 36 00:02:16,380 --> 00:02:21,060 genuinely, I could not imagine myself anywhere else. You know, 37 00:02:21,060 --> 00:02:24,690 it's funny how you remember very specific things, but I think 38 00:02:24,690 --> 00:02:29,130 about this brand trip that I took in February of 2020. I was 39 00:02:29,130 --> 00:02:35,340 going to take photos of a wedding workshop, and I took a 40 00:02:35,340 --> 00:02:38,850 trip to New York City, and I just I knew something wasn't 41 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:43,290 right, something in my life was really off, and I couldn't 42 00:02:43,290 --> 00:02:46,380 really put my finger on what it was. I remember the last morning 43 00:02:46,380 --> 00:02:49,680 of my trip, I woke up and I found out that my hometown had 44 00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:54,420 experienced an f4 tornado that just tore through our city. It 45 00:02:54,420 --> 00:02:58,230 impacted hundreds of people, and by the time that I made it home 46 00:02:58,290 --> 00:03:03,840 and turned around, we were in a full lockdown for covid. At the 47 00:03:03,840 --> 00:03:06,480 time, I was living with a roommate that was an essential 48 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:09,420 worker. And if anybody else was living with an essential worker 49 00:03:09,420 --> 00:03:13,620 at this time, you know that it was critical to not be exposed 50 00:03:13,620 --> 00:03:16,500 to anybody else, to not have anybody coming around. And of 51 00:03:16,500 --> 00:03:19,290 course, no one was getting married. I mean, I wasn't 52 00:03:19,290 --> 00:03:23,760 working, I wasn't going anywhere, and also my first long 53 00:03:23,760 --> 00:03:27,750 term relationship was falling apart. I'd been dating someone 54 00:03:27,750 --> 00:03:31,110 for about three years, but as I was kind of scrambling to put 55 00:03:31,110 --> 00:03:34,860 all the pieces of my life back together that I could that was 56 00:03:34,860 --> 00:03:38,790 also falling apart. I felt like I had nothing, like things had 57 00:03:38,790 --> 00:03:42,150 changed so quickly, I didn't know when I was going to be able 58 00:03:42,150 --> 00:03:46,590 to work again. I had lost the longest romantic relationship of 59 00:03:46,590 --> 00:03:52,680 my life, and I genuinely felt very overwhelmed, and, you know, 60 00:03:52,830 --> 00:03:57,480 at a lot of times hopeless. Turns out, being newly single 61 00:03:57,930 --> 00:04:01,410 and careerless in a global pandemic is kind of a lot to 62 00:04:01,410 --> 00:04:06,090 handle. It was New Year's of 2021, and my dad was calling me 63 00:04:06,090 --> 00:04:09,060 from a party to tell me Happy New Years. And it's so funny 64 00:04:09,060 --> 00:04:12,030 because I remember that I was talking to him next to a trash 65 00:04:12,030 --> 00:04:14,730 can. And I don't know why that memory still sticks with me, but 66 00:04:14,730 --> 00:04:18,870 it does. He told me one of his friends wanted to run for office 67 00:04:18,870 --> 00:04:23,430 and needed someone to help with campaigning and social media, 68 00:04:23,430 --> 00:04:28,260 and asked if he could give him my number. All I can remember is 69 00:04:28,260 --> 00:04:31,530 like I said, Yes, but I didn't really mean it. You know what I 70 00:04:31,530 --> 00:04:36,540 mean? Like, I was not ready to move on from weddings, I was not 71 00:04:36,540 --> 00:04:41,310 ready to do something else. But also, deep down, I think that I 72 00:04:41,310 --> 00:04:45,210 knew and I accepted that the wedding industry was never going 73 00:04:45,210 --> 00:04:49,650 to be the same. And when I dug a little bit deeper, I also 74 00:04:49,650 --> 00:04:55,260 realized Neither was I. I was not the same person that had 75 00:04:55,260 --> 00:04:59,310 gone into this almost a year ago. And here's the thing about 76 00:04:59,310 --> 00:05:01,350 the wedding industry. And I think something that a lot of 77 00:05:01,350 --> 00:05:05,550 people, even today do not want to come to terms with. You only 78 00:05:05,550 --> 00:05:09,570 have so many weekends in the year. And you know, there's only 79 00:05:09,570 --> 00:05:14,070 four weekends in October. While I had successfully created a six 80 00:05:14,070 --> 00:05:17,700 figure business in weddings, there really wasn't anywhere 81 00:05:17,730 --> 00:05:22,230 else for me to go where I was. I couldn't be any more booked than 82 00:05:22,230 --> 00:05:26,220 I already was without sacrificing the quality or going 83 00:05:26,220 --> 00:05:30,120 into like ultra luxury weddings. And at the time, I was not 84 00:05:30,120 --> 00:05:34,080 prepared for either. I just I wasn't ready. I had scaled this 85 00:05:34,080 --> 00:05:37,770 fast, and I had worked so hard, but when I really thought about 86 00:05:37,770 --> 00:05:41,940 it, I just, I did not think that is the thing that I wanted to 87 00:05:41,940 --> 00:05:45,960 do. So I remember my dad's friend calls, and he schedules a 88 00:05:45,960 --> 00:05:48,450 lunch meeting, and then he immediately gets covid and 89 00:05:48,450 --> 00:05:52,230 cancels. And that's probably the most like 2021, story that I 90 00:05:52,230 --> 00:05:55,110 could ever tell. He texts me and he says that he's gonna set up a 91 00:05:55,110 --> 00:05:58,830 time, and I forget to text him back. And here's here's just 92 00:05:58,830 --> 00:06:01,080 something about me. I'm not gonna text you back. I'm so 93 00:06:01,080 --> 00:06:04,020 sorry. It's not personal. I just forget and then it never 94 00:06:04,020 --> 00:06:08,370 happens. So a few weeks later, he texts me again. We finally 95 00:06:08,370 --> 00:06:12,270 meet up, and you know, I'm still not 100% sold on working with 96 00:06:12,270 --> 00:06:16,260 this guy. It's so funny looking back on this now, because I 97 00:06:16,260 --> 00:06:19,680 could have very easily passed up on the opportunity that would 98 00:06:19,680 --> 00:06:23,730 literally change my life forever. But I think that that 99 00:06:23,730 --> 00:06:27,300 should be a reminder to us. It should be a reminder to you what 100 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:32,700 is meant for you. Will never pass you by. You cannot mess up 101 00:06:32,850 --> 00:06:36,060 an opportunity that is meant for you, even if the meeting gets 102 00:06:36,060 --> 00:06:39,120 canceled and you forget to text back and all these other things 103 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:43,050 happen. I truly believe, and I hope that you do too. If 104 00:06:43,050 --> 00:06:47,580 something is meant for you, it is going to happen. You are not 105 00:06:47,580 --> 00:06:51,870 going to mess it up. If I remember correctly, it was 106 00:06:51,870 --> 00:06:54,750 probably the third meeting, and I did agree to work on his 107 00:06:54,750 --> 00:06:58,710 campaign, and I was really excited. I of course, had no 108 00:06:58,710 --> 00:07:01,620 idea what I was doing. I'd worked in digital marketing and 109 00:07:01,620 --> 00:07:04,830 content creation and photography up until this point, but I was 110 00:07:04,830 --> 00:07:09,630 determined to figure it out. We had so many ideas and did so 111 00:07:09,630 --> 00:07:13,470 much brainstorming about what we wanted this campaign and brand 112 00:07:13,470 --> 00:07:16,080 to look like, and I won't bore you with all that, because by 113 00:07:16,080 --> 00:07:18,450 this point you're probably wondering and listening to this 114 00:07:18,450 --> 00:07:21,900 and thinking, what does this have to do with podcasting, and 115 00:07:22,170 --> 00:07:26,070 what you've learned about podcasting, and here's the 116 00:07:26,070 --> 00:07:30,480 truth, if I've learned anything about podcasting, it's that 117 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:36,570 being able to tell a story and knowing yourself are two of the 118 00:07:36,570 --> 00:07:41,550 most important qualities that any podcaster can have the 119 00:07:41,550 --> 00:07:45,180 podcast that I created for that campaign. My first podcast is 120 00:07:45,180 --> 00:07:48,630 still going today, and is one of the greatest accomplishments 121 00:07:48,810 --> 00:07:52,470 that I have had thus far in my career. But just to clarify, it 122 00:07:52,470 --> 00:07:56,160 was not all sunshines and rainbows to get there, and there 123 00:07:56,160 --> 00:07:59,250 are several more particular things that I wish I'd known, 124 00:07:59,700 --> 00:08:03,990 and I'm gonna share them with you now. The first one is, know 125 00:08:04,020 --> 00:08:08,670 what success looks like before you start. Starting a podcast is 126 00:08:08,670 --> 00:08:12,240 hard, keeping it going is even harder. And when you're thinking 127 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:15,690 about your podcast and what you want to accomplish and what you 128 00:08:15,690 --> 00:08:21,570 want this to be, what does success look like? How can you 129 00:08:21,570 --> 00:08:25,590 measure that success? And when you're feeling overwhelmed and 130 00:08:25,590 --> 00:08:29,940 tired and like you want to quit, because you will, what's going 131 00:08:29,940 --> 00:08:35,400 to keep you going towards that goal, you have to know what you 132 00:08:35,400 --> 00:08:38,430 want to get out of this. And it can be anything. Maybe it's 133 00:08:38,430 --> 00:08:42,540 money, maybe it's exposure to a certain community. Maybe it's 134 00:08:42,540 --> 00:08:46,770 growing a follower base, whatever it is, spend time to 135 00:08:46,770 --> 00:08:51,810 figure out what you want to accomplish and be as specific as 136 00:08:51,810 --> 00:08:56,550 possible, always. The second thing is, who is actually, 137 00:08:56,670 --> 00:08:59,430 literally every week, going to be listening to the show? And 138 00:08:59,430 --> 00:09:02,580 I'm not gonna lie to you guys, I did not answer this question 139 00:09:02,580 --> 00:09:05,190 when I started my first podcast, and that is so embarrassing. I 140 00:09:05,190 --> 00:09:09,930 know I had a loose idea I remember of who I wanted to 141 00:09:09,930 --> 00:09:13,800 listen, but I felt way too much pressure to make it for 142 00:09:13,800 --> 00:09:17,340 everyone. I thought the more things that I could throw in 143 00:09:17,340 --> 00:09:22,230 here, the more people would want to listen. But it's just not 144 00:09:22,230 --> 00:09:27,060 true. If no one can identify and see themselves in your podcast 145 00:09:27,060 --> 00:09:30,090 or what you're talking about on your podcast, they're not going 146 00:09:30,090 --> 00:09:34,380 to listen. So in my opinion, the more specific and the more you 147 00:09:34,380 --> 00:09:38,940 can just drill down into the exact person you want to listen 148 00:09:38,940 --> 00:09:43,440 to this podcast, the better. Stop worrying about people not 149 00:09:43,440 --> 00:09:47,910 being interested. That's a good thing. Stop trying to make it 150 00:09:47,910 --> 00:09:53,010 for everyone. Nothing is for everyone. And if you can't talk 151 00:09:53,010 --> 00:09:57,060 to one specific person with your podcast, you are not talking to 152 00:09:57,060 --> 00:09:59,880 anyone. If you get anything out of this episode, please let it 153 00:09:59,880 --> 00:10:03,900 be. That if you are not talking to one person with your podcast, 154 00:10:03,960 --> 00:10:08,520 you are not talking to anyone. Another thing that I wish I'd 155 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:11,880 known when I started podcasting was how much time that it 156 00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:14,040 actually takes. And I know so many people are listening to 157 00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:17,370 this right now. They're like, yes, yes, if you're listening to 158 00:10:17,370 --> 00:10:21,450 this episode, I know you know podcasting is time consuming, 159 00:10:21,690 --> 00:10:24,570 and the more that you try to improve it, and the more layers 160 00:10:24,570 --> 00:10:28,590 that you add on, the harder and more time consuming it gets. It 161 00:10:28,590 --> 00:10:33,240 takes me probably roughly 10 to 20 hours per episode per podcast 162 00:10:33,270 --> 00:10:38,220 every week. This is a time consuming media. If I could go 163 00:10:38,220 --> 00:10:42,120 back and tell myself anything, it would be to create systems to 164 00:10:42,120 --> 00:10:46,170 try to batch writing and recording and editing and post 165 00:10:46,170 --> 00:10:50,220 production, to streamline whatever I could with repeatable 166 00:10:50,220 --> 00:10:54,030 systems. Because not only do you need those repeatable systems 167 00:10:54,030 --> 00:10:56,910 for yourself, for the recording, for the creating of this 168 00:10:56,910 --> 00:11:00,810 podcast, you need it to be able to repeat the same kind of 169 00:11:00,810 --> 00:11:05,310 content for your listener every time your listener needs to know 170 00:11:05,310 --> 00:11:09,270 what to expect, and the more streamlined you can make those 171 00:11:09,270 --> 00:11:13,230 episodes, the better experience you can bring to your listeners. 172 00:11:14,280 --> 00:11:18,030 All right, so let's fast forward a little bit to fall of 2023. 173 00:11:18,210 --> 00:11:21,240 I'm launching my fifth podcast, and you know, I think I know 174 00:11:21,240 --> 00:11:24,540 what I'm doing right, right? I've been around the block a few 175 00:11:24,540 --> 00:11:29,010 times. I know what I'm doing. And you might not have multiple 176 00:11:29,010 --> 00:11:32,280 podcasts, or you might not have multiple podcasts yet, but I'm 177 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:35,970 sure you have a lot of other things going on. And I think 178 00:11:35,970 --> 00:11:39,300 about two years into podcasting full time is when I really 179 00:11:39,300 --> 00:11:43,770 started to get burnt out. Video podcasts were coming up 180 00:11:43,770 --> 00:11:46,020 everywhere, and they were getting more and more exposure, 181 00:11:46,440 --> 00:11:51,330 and I finally agreed to make a video podcast. This is the 182 00:11:51,330 --> 00:11:54,210 advice that I give every podcaster, and honestly, it's 183 00:11:54,210 --> 00:11:59,370 because I wish that someone had given it to me. It is okay to go 184 00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:02,760 one step at a time, and that's all you can do. That's all you 185 00:12:02,760 --> 00:12:05,880 can do anyway. So stop pressuring yourself into 186 00:12:05,880 --> 00:12:09,630 figuring out every single little thing today, if you still 187 00:12:09,630 --> 00:12:13,980 haven't mastered your podcast audio, don't add a video 188 00:12:13,980 --> 00:12:17,730 component before you figured out the audio. Not only is this a 189 00:12:17,730 --> 00:12:20,640 huge learning curve for every part of podcasting and the 190 00:12:20,640 --> 00:12:23,610 equipment that you need, and how to set it up and how to actually 191 00:12:23,610 --> 00:12:30,210 use it. It is very expensive, so again, take it one step at a 192 00:12:30,210 --> 00:12:33,000 time. This is one of the most asked questions that I see on 193 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:35,610 forums. And you know, when I'm trying to reply to different 194 00:12:35,610 --> 00:12:38,220 questions that people have on Facebook groups, when should I 195 00:12:38,220 --> 00:12:41,430 have video? When should I start video? Let me just say video 196 00:12:41,430 --> 00:12:43,440 almost stressed me out to the point where I was like, I don't 197 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:47,580 know if I can do this anymore. Take it one step at a time, 198 00:12:47,790 --> 00:12:52,800 master your craft and then continue on. Start with audio. 199 00:12:52,800 --> 00:12:56,400 If you do not know audio and video, start with audio, learn 200 00:12:56,430 --> 00:13:01,860 audio, Master Audio. Then go to video. But going back to my 201 00:13:01,860 --> 00:13:06,120 first round of suggestions, knowing your goals and knowing 202 00:13:06,120 --> 00:13:10,620 how to measure the success of this podcast, you have to hold 203 00:13:10,620 --> 00:13:13,470 yourself accountable to the growth of this podcast and 204 00:13:13,470 --> 00:13:16,710 actually take the time every month to sit down and say, Okay, 205 00:13:16,950 --> 00:13:21,300 did we do better this month than we did last month? If not, why? 206 00:13:21,570 --> 00:13:25,230 If not, what can we do this month to do better than we did 207 00:13:25,230 --> 00:13:28,290 last month? Because nobody is going to be checking on these 208 00:13:28,290 --> 00:13:30,690 numbers for you. I'm not going to be sending you a message 209 00:13:30,690 --> 00:13:33,930 saying, Hey, did you get more downloads or something you did 210 00:13:33,930 --> 00:13:37,920 last month? You are the one that has to look at this. No one is 211 00:13:37,920 --> 00:13:41,550 going to be saying, Okay, we need to make sure that we have a 212 00:13:41,550 --> 00:13:44,130 10% growth this month, because we didn't last month. And what 213 00:13:44,130 --> 00:13:48,930 do we need to do? You have to be that person for yourself every 214 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:53,220 month. And you need to be this is so important if you do not 215 00:13:53,220 --> 00:13:56,610 have your eye on how are we growing? How are we improving 216 00:13:56,610 --> 00:14:01,020 this podcast? There is really no reason to be creating it at all. 217 00:14:02,040 --> 00:14:04,710 And the last thing that I wish that I had known in this part of 218 00:14:04,710 --> 00:14:08,730 my podcasting journey was just how to let go. You know, that's 219 00:14:08,730 --> 00:14:12,240 always something that I've kind of struggled with, but letting 220 00:14:12,240 --> 00:14:16,410 go, letting this podcast become what it's going to be. And I 221 00:14:16,410 --> 00:14:20,070 know that sounds really contrary to everything else that I said 222 00:14:20,070 --> 00:14:23,820 in this episode, but it's something that we all have to 223 00:14:23,820 --> 00:14:28,950 know and that we have to truly understand. People will tell us 224 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:32,670 the kind of content and episodes that they want to see from us, 225 00:14:33,090 --> 00:14:37,830 and we have to use our strategy as a roadmap while they drive 226 00:14:37,830 --> 00:14:41,550 the car, because we didn't make this podcast for us to listen to 227 00:14:41,580 --> 00:14:47,430 for ourselves. We made it for them. But without a doubt, the 228 00:14:47,430 --> 00:14:49,920 biggest lessons that I've learned in podcasting, most 229 00:14:49,920 --> 00:14:54,990 recently have been over the past six months of having my own solo 230 00:14:54,990 --> 00:14:59,340 show, this podcast, podcast for profit, and like I said, I was 231 00:14:59,340 --> 00:15:02,190 producing. A podcast for four years before I had my own 232 00:15:02,190 --> 00:15:05,070 podcast. And that's kind of strange in the podcasting world, 233 00:15:05,250 --> 00:15:08,370 usually someone starts a podcast or is working for an established 234 00:15:08,370 --> 00:15:12,000 podcast, and they're learning, and then they become a producer. 235 00:15:12,090 --> 00:15:15,750 So let me just say it was a major wake up call the first 236 00:15:15,750 --> 00:15:18,960 time I had to go behind this microphone. So let's just start 237 00:15:18,960 --> 00:15:21,630 there, recording my first episode, and what I wish that I 238 00:15:21,630 --> 00:15:23,940 had known before getting behind the mic for the first time, 239 00:15:24,480 --> 00:15:28,800 talking on a solo podcast is hard. It's especially hard if 240 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:32,370 you actually want to be good, and I'll go down 400 rabbit 241 00:15:32,370 --> 00:15:36,240 holes and successfully teach or entertain or generally give your 242 00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:39,420 audience something of value, which I think most of us do, and 243 00:15:39,420 --> 00:15:42,990 I was so sure of myself too, which is so embarrassing. I sat 244 00:15:42,990 --> 00:15:47,250 down with a very thrown together outline of maybe four different 245 00:15:47,250 --> 00:15:51,270 points and the topic of the episode, and I hit record. And 246 00:15:51,300 --> 00:15:55,800 it was not fun. It was not good, and it was not fun. I didn't 247 00:15:55,800 --> 00:15:59,670 know what to say. I was tripping all over myself. I didn't like 248 00:15:59,670 --> 00:16:03,000 it. I was thinking maybe that this had all been a big mistake. 249 00:16:03,360 --> 00:16:06,270 Solo podcasting is difficult, because when you think about 250 00:16:06,270 --> 00:16:09,300 what this skill looks like in the real world, when was the 251 00:16:09,300 --> 00:16:13,440 last time that you just did a monolog style talk to yourself 252 00:16:13,440 --> 00:16:17,580 for like, an hour straight? Exactly, that's a skill in 253 00:16:17,580 --> 00:16:21,870 itself, and I think practicing improvisation or even how to 254 00:16:21,870 --> 00:16:25,380 talk about stuff on the fly is just very, very important for 255 00:16:25,380 --> 00:16:29,430 podcasters, especially solo podcasters, an exercise that I 256 00:16:29,430 --> 00:16:33,540 like to do with chat GPT. It's so easy. I'll just ask chat GPT 257 00:16:33,540 --> 00:16:37,890 to give me 10 random subjects, and I'll record myself talking 258 00:16:37,890 --> 00:16:41,280 about those random subjects for five minutes each. And another 259 00:16:41,280 --> 00:16:45,390 level of this could be that you ask chatgpt for the 10 topics, 260 00:16:45,570 --> 00:16:49,110 and then you record yourself into chatgpt, that's a new 261 00:16:49,110 --> 00:16:51,750 function that you can use with your phone, and I think on 262 00:16:51,780 --> 00:16:55,620 computers as well, you talking about it, and then ask it to 263 00:16:55,620 --> 00:16:59,700 rate you on those topics and how good of a job that you did 264 00:16:59,700 --> 00:17:03,000 talking about it and see what it says, because I'm sure it will 265 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:05,190 have feedback for you, and I think that that could just be 266 00:17:05,190 --> 00:17:10,020 another level of practicing talking about something in a 267 00:17:10,020 --> 00:17:15,300 solo dialog. Another thing is talk to people. Take the 268 00:17:15,300 --> 00:17:18,690 opportunity to strike up a conversation with someone when 269 00:17:18,690 --> 00:17:22,260 they say, Hey, how are you? Don't just say Good. Say, oh my 270 00:17:22,260 --> 00:17:25,050 gosh, isn't this crazy weather we're having? Wow. I can't 271 00:17:25,050 --> 00:17:27,990 believe we're doing this thing. I don't know what situation 272 00:17:27,990 --> 00:17:31,200 you're in, but don't just say Good. Don't just give people one 273 00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:35,280 word answers. Take that opportunity to speak with 274 00:17:35,280 --> 00:17:37,350 another human being. This is going to help your 275 00:17:37,350 --> 00:17:40,680 conversational skills, and also, you're probably gonna make a new 276 00:17:40,680 --> 00:17:43,950 friend along the way. Loose connections will change your 277 00:17:43,950 --> 00:17:48,060 life, and that is how it happens. The second big lesson 278 00:17:48,060 --> 00:17:51,870 that I've learned while doing this podcast, and that I'm still 279 00:17:51,870 --> 00:17:55,260 trying to manage, is procrastination and saying, Oh, 280 00:17:55,260 --> 00:17:58,950 I'll do that later, or I'll record that tomorrow. This will 281 00:17:58,950 --> 00:18:02,700 kill your motivation, and ultimately, your podcast 282 00:18:02,910 --> 00:18:07,620 planning, intentionality, being clear with yourself over and 283 00:18:07,620 --> 00:18:11,190 over and over on what you're doing and what you want to 284 00:18:11,190 --> 00:18:16,050 accomplish is everything. So try to create a schedule, a schedule 285 00:18:16,050 --> 00:18:19,350 that you can live by and say, Okay, I'm going to have my 286 00:18:19,350 --> 00:18:22,170 script or outline written by this day, I'll have my 287 00:18:22,170 --> 00:18:25,200 recordings done by this day, I'll have my editing done by 288 00:18:25,200 --> 00:18:28,890 this day, I'll have everything ready to schedule and post so 289 00:18:28,890 --> 00:18:32,010 that I can start working on my promotion on this day. And this 290 00:18:32,010 --> 00:18:34,620 is going to help you stay organized and, more importantly, 291 00:18:34,620 --> 00:18:38,190 stay accountable to yourself and not be constantly stressing that 292 00:18:38,190 --> 00:18:42,360 you have a podcast episode that you need to record. The last 293 00:18:42,360 --> 00:18:46,350 thing that I wish that I had known before I started 294 00:18:46,350 --> 00:18:50,070 podcasting, and specifically before I started this podcast 295 00:18:50,070 --> 00:18:54,870 that you're listening to right now, is that you're going to get 296 00:18:54,870 --> 00:18:58,530 this feeling when you actually do the thing that you set out to 297 00:18:58,530 --> 00:19:03,060 do. And yes, podcasting is hard and it's time consuming, and 298 00:19:03,060 --> 00:19:08,430 it's 100 other things, but when someone says, Hey, I loved this 299 00:19:08,430 --> 00:19:13,920 episode, or this helped me, or I love listening to your podcast, 300 00:19:14,370 --> 00:19:19,770 and you can feel the pride and recognition and satisfaction of 301 00:19:19,770 --> 00:19:23,700 creating something that someone else thought was worth 302 00:19:23,700 --> 00:19:29,250 consuming, that is going to make everything worth it. And you 303 00:19:29,250 --> 00:19:32,880 know, it might take some time, it really might, and it's okay, 304 00:19:32,880 --> 00:19:36,840 if it does, it might be a year before someone organically is 305 00:19:36,840 --> 00:19:41,250 talking to you and just says, Hey, I love your podcast, and 306 00:19:41,250 --> 00:19:46,170 that's okay. You have to build the listeners. You have to get 307 00:19:46,170 --> 00:19:50,520 good enough that people will actually listen and find value 308 00:19:50,520 --> 00:19:55,080 in it. Nothing happens overnight, but if you keep 309 00:19:55,080 --> 00:19:59,910 going, I promise it will be worth it. I know that we've. 310 00:19:59,910 --> 00:20:03,450 Covered so much in this episode, and maybe you're thinking, wow, 311 00:20:03,450 --> 00:20:05,580 I really need to work on these, or I'm still working on these, 312 00:20:05,580 --> 00:20:09,390 or I haven't even got to this part, and that is totally okay. 313 00:20:09,390 --> 00:20:13,140 I just want to let you know I am also working on all these things 314 00:20:13,290 --> 00:20:17,160 like you never just have it all figured out. That is not the way 315 00:20:17,160 --> 00:20:21,390 podcasting works. It is an ever evolving quest to make an 316 00:20:21,390 --> 00:20:25,620 amazing podcast. So I want to comfort you in knowing that we 317 00:20:25,620 --> 00:20:28,170 are all just working on this, and that is why, when I was 318 00:20:28,170 --> 00:20:31,080 trying to think about what could really help you after you've 319 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:33,450 listened to this episode, I went through and I looked at all of 320 00:20:33,450 --> 00:20:36,510 my resources that I have, and what I'm going to link in the 321 00:20:36,540 --> 00:20:40,470 episode description and in my show notes is my podcast Audit 322 00:20:40,470 --> 00:20:43,410 Checklist. It also has a video accompanying it where I go 323 00:20:43,410 --> 00:20:45,690 through every single question. I kind of talk to you about what 324 00:20:45,690 --> 00:20:49,260 it means, what it means for your podcast. And I think that this 325 00:20:49,260 --> 00:20:54,270 is a really helpful tool, just because this is kind of what I 326 00:20:54,270 --> 00:20:58,050 use to gage where each one of my paid clients are at. So if you 327 00:20:58,050 --> 00:21:00,930 were to book an hour with me, or book a year of coaching calls 328 00:21:00,930 --> 00:21:04,080 with me. These are some of the questions that I would send you 329 00:21:04,290 --> 00:21:07,680 to see where you're at. And I think that more than anything, 330 00:21:07,710 --> 00:21:11,820 most of the time, we just need to see, okay, this is where 331 00:21:11,820 --> 00:21:15,000 we're at, and this is what we need to work on. So that's why I 332 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:17,820 thought that this would be really helpful. If you've 333 00:21:17,820 --> 00:21:20,010 listened to this and you're thinking, Okay, what do I do 334 00:21:20,010 --> 00:21:23,550 now? This is an amazing download for you, like I said, it will be 335 00:21:23,550 --> 00:21:27,690 in the episode description. It is what I send to try to kind of 336 00:21:27,690 --> 00:21:32,460 gage where a podcaster is at. I actually just did this audit for 337 00:21:32,460 --> 00:21:36,090 two of the podcasts that I produce, and I just went through 338 00:21:36,090 --> 00:21:38,640 and I answered all the questions, and it was so helpful 339 00:21:38,640 --> 00:21:43,200 to me. So I hope that it's helpful to you, and as always, I 340 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:49,380 can't wait to listen to your podcast. Hey, thank you so much 341 00:21:49,380 --> 00:21:52,530 for joining me on this episode. If you enjoyed the podcast and 342 00:21:52,530 --> 00:21:55,080 you'd like to hear more episodes like this one, go ahead and 343 00:21:55,080 --> 00:21:58,080 subscribe to the show. New episodes air every Monday 344 00:21:58,080 --> 00:22:01,080 morning. And if you found this episode valuable and you want to 345 00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:03,960 help other business owners and podcasters, will you leave me a 346 00:22:03,960 --> 00:22:07,200 five star review. It helps the show rank higher in the charts, 347 00:22:07,230 --> 00:22:10,620 and brings more entrepreneurs the information they need to 348 00:22:10,620 --> 00:22:12,960 start making money on their podcast.