1 00:00:01,380 --> 00:00:05,670 Morgan Franklin: Podcast burnout is a special kind of burnout as 2 00:00:05,670 --> 00:00:09,330 someone that's produced and published anywhere from one to 3 00:00:09,330 --> 00:00:13,740 six episodes a week for the past five years, there has been more 4 00:00:13,740 --> 00:00:17,940 than a few times that I wanted to change my name, move to a 5 00:00:17,940 --> 00:00:22,500 remote island and never hear the word podcast ever again. 6 00:00:22,950 --> 00:00:26,490 Podcasting is exhausting. Whether you are doing it on your 7 00:00:26,490 --> 00:00:32,370 own or you have a team. It's time consuming. It's draining, 8 00:00:32,580 --> 00:00:36,990 and sometimes it doesn't feel like it's worth the effort. In 9 00:00:36,990 --> 00:00:40,680 this episode, we're gonna talk about how podcast burnout costs 10 00:00:40,680 --> 00:00:45,420 you money, what to do when you want to quit everything, and how 11 00:00:45,420 --> 00:00:49,020 to manage the feelings of overwhelm when you feel like 12 00:00:49,020 --> 00:00:53,220 you're caught in the revolving door of podcasting. Hello and 13 00:00:53,220 --> 00:00:56,370 welcome to podcast for profit. My name is Morgan Franklin. I'm 14 00:00:56,370 --> 00:01:00,750 a Podcast Producer, strategist and educator. This podcast will 15 00:01:00,750 --> 00:01:04,680 help you create and grow a podcast that cuts through the 16 00:01:04,680 --> 00:01:08,310 noise of social media and speaks directly to your target 17 00:01:08,310 --> 00:01:12,360 audience. If you're ready to create a podcast that will align 18 00:01:12,360 --> 00:01:15,750 you with the experts in your industry, position yourself as a 19 00:01:15,750 --> 00:01:19,470 trusted leader and create another source of revenue for 20 00:01:19,470 --> 00:01:23,700 your business, you're in the right place. One of the most 21 00:01:23,700 --> 00:01:28,050 daunting parts of podcasting is that it never ends. Literally, 22 00:01:28,050 --> 00:01:32,370 it is never ending, or it can feel never ending. There's 23 00:01:32,400 --> 00:01:36,300 always an episode to write or a guest to research, or I need to 24 00:01:36,300 --> 00:01:39,540 schedule a recording time or edit the end of this episode, or 25 00:01:39,540 --> 00:01:42,330 figure out what song to go on this ad or follow up with this 26 00:01:42,330 --> 00:01:46,290 guest that didn't respond, and all of that week after week 27 00:01:46,290 --> 00:01:51,570 after week is intimidating. It's stressful, and when you finally 28 00:01:51,570 --> 00:01:54,420 feel like you're caught up, it's only about four days before 29 00:01:54,420 --> 00:01:58,140 you're right back where you started. Stress and burnout are 30 00:01:58,140 --> 00:02:03,120 completely debilitating for your creativity and your motivation 31 00:02:03,120 --> 00:02:07,290 to create content, the times that I have felt the most burnt 32 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:10,350 out from podcasting and creating. I didn't want to get 33 00:02:10,350 --> 00:02:14,580 out of bed, much less record a podcast. You know what? For most 34 00:02:14,580 --> 00:02:18,060 of us, we work through the pain, right? No matter how depressed 35 00:02:18,060 --> 00:02:23,190 we feel or tired we are, we know a podcast has to come out. We 36 00:02:23,190 --> 00:02:26,820 have to record two interviews tomorrow, and we've got to suck 37 00:02:26,820 --> 00:02:30,660 it up and move past that feeling. So let's start right 38 00:02:30,660 --> 00:02:34,830 there. Let's start when you're tired, you're burnt out, and 39 00:02:34,830 --> 00:02:37,950 this is the last thing you want to do, but you know you have to 40 00:02:37,950 --> 00:02:41,910 do it. That's not a good feeling. It's not a good place 41 00:02:41,910 --> 00:02:45,450 to work from, and it's impossible to do your best work 42 00:02:45,450 --> 00:02:50,190 from a place of exhaustion and overwhelm. Whenever I'm feeling 43 00:02:50,190 --> 00:02:54,180 this way, I make a list of everything that absolutely has 44 00:02:54,180 --> 00:02:57,480 to be done for the rest of the week. I'm just talking about the 45 00:02:57,480 --> 00:03:01,110 rest of the week. And this isn't getting ahead. It's not asking 46 00:03:01,110 --> 00:03:05,790 yourself what you could get done. It's what do I absolutely 47 00:03:05,790 --> 00:03:11,220 have to get done by the end of this week? Break those down into 48 00:03:11,220 --> 00:03:15,780 tasks with manageable sections. Usually, I'll do a main task and 49 00:03:15,780 --> 00:03:20,730 break it down to even the tiniest thing. For example, I'll 50 00:03:20,730 --> 00:03:25,860 say, if I'm finishing editing an episode, edit episode, proof 51 00:03:25,890 --> 00:03:32,190 episode, export episode, upload episode, name, Episode, write 52 00:03:32,220 --> 00:03:36,510 episode, description and schedule episode. That's how 53 00:03:36,510 --> 00:03:41,580 much I break it down, and that's what I want you to do, no matter 54 00:03:41,580 --> 00:03:44,430 what day of the week it is, it could be Monday and you're just 55 00:03:44,430 --> 00:03:49,590 falling apart. Make a clear list, an exact list of 56 00:03:49,590 --> 00:03:53,370 everything that you need to finish before next Monday for 57 00:03:53,370 --> 00:03:58,500 your podcast, and start going down that list as effectively 58 00:03:58,530 --> 00:04:02,730 and efficiently as possible and as quickly as you can get your 59 00:04:02,730 --> 00:04:08,160 podcast work done, and when you finish the list, put it away. 60 00:04:08,550 --> 00:04:12,960 Put your podcast away. Do not think about your podcast. That's 61 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:15,570 why I want you to make a list of everything that you absolutely 62 00:04:15,570 --> 00:04:19,740 have to get done this week. Get it done and do not think about 63 00:04:19,740 --> 00:04:24,240 this podcast until next week. We all need a break. We all need 64 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:28,860 time to let our brain have a moment of peace. And if you are 65 00:04:28,860 --> 00:04:34,410 constantly thinking and worrying and panicking, you can't give 66 00:04:34,410 --> 00:04:39,510 your brain the space it needs to provide the inspiration and 67 00:04:39,510 --> 00:04:44,430 motivation you need to make anything work. The title of this 68 00:04:44,430 --> 00:04:48,540 episode is podcast. Burnout is costing you money because it is. 69 00:04:48,750 --> 00:04:53,010 You're getting too burnt out on creating this podcast that you 70 00:04:53,010 --> 00:04:57,480 can't make it over the threshold to actually effectively market 71 00:04:57,600 --> 00:05:02,910 or find a big enough audience to. Monetize the podcast. If you 72 00:05:02,910 --> 00:05:07,710 can't build a community around your podcast, you can't bring 73 00:05:07,710 --> 00:05:12,300 money into your podcast. In every aspect of life, we 74 00:05:12,300 --> 00:05:17,370 underestimate how much people can feel what we're thinking or 75 00:05:17,370 --> 00:05:21,450 what we're going through, or what we're actually feeling and 76 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:24,900 when you're thinking, This podcast is such a waste of time, 77 00:05:25,230 --> 00:05:27,960 I'm never going to be a successful podcaster. No one 78 00:05:27,990 --> 00:05:32,040 even listens to my show. Whether you're saying this out loud to 79 00:05:32,040 --> 00:05:38,010 people or not, your listener can sense it, and it manifests 80 00:05:38,010 --> 00:05:42,900 itself into your life. The other day, I was on threads, and I 81 00:05:42,900 --> 00:05:46,440 said, it's crazy how the more you talk about your podcast, the 82 00:05:46,440 --> 00:05:49,740 more people listen to your podcast. And I was genuinely 83 00:05:49,740 --> 00:05:53,160 surprised by the dozens of people in the comments saying, 84 00:05:53,340 --> 00:05:56,760 well, it's so cringe to talk about my podcast, and trust me, 85 00:05:56,760 --> 00:06:00,690 trust me, I get it. Self promotion is awkward, and it can 86 00:06:00,690 --> 00:06:05,310 feel kind of like a used car salesman, but I really want you 87 00:06:05,310 --> 00:06:08,850 to think about this. If you aren't promoting your podcast, 88 00:06:09,000 --> 00:06:13,500 who will if you aren't excited about your own podcast, who 89 00:06:13,500 --> 00:06:18,060 cares if you're feeling burnt out and tired and like you want 90 00:06:18,060 --> 00:06:22,500 to give up? How much do you think that is coming through in 91 00:06:22,500 --> 00:06:27,480 your podcast, we all have bad days. This is not a message of 92 00:06:27,510 --> 00:06:31,200 toxic positivity, that you have to be happy and that you have to 93 00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:34,650 be having the best day of your life every single day or every 94 00:06:34,650 --> 00:06:38,970 time you record, because that is not realistic, and things are 95 00:06:38,970 --> 00:06:43,770 going to happen, but when you're starting to feel like you're in 96 00:06:43,770 --> 00:06:47,490 that slump where it's not just my cat died and now I have to 97 00:06:47,490 --> 00:06:51,840 record this podcast episode when we're like a constant dread of 98 00:06:51,840 --> 00:06:55,920 having to deal with your podcast, that's when you have to 99 00:06:55,920 --> 00:07:00,480 make a change. I've worked in some variation of service or 100 00:07:00,480 --> 00:07:05,190 consulting for my entire career. I grew up in a hair salon, and 101 00:07:05,190 --> 00:07:09,120 I've been around professionals that are customer facing since I 102 00:07:09,120 --> 00:07:12,990 can remember, one thing I've always been very aware of and 103 00:07:12,990 --> 00:07:16,740 thought about at length when I went to college, was, what kind 104 00:07:16,740 --> 00:07:21,330 of career can I have that isn't going to make me absolutely 105 00:07:21,330 --> 00:07:26,460 miserable in five or 10 years. And I know this is slightly 106 00:07:26,460 --> 00:07:30,780 different than podcasting, but is it? Your Podcast is a really 107 00:07:30,780 --> 00:07:34,260 big commitment, and I think so many times like that, little 108 00:07:34,260 --> 00:07:37,440 innocent, 18 year old going into college, picking a major and 109 00:07:37,440 --> 00:07:40,560 just diving straight into the deep end, we're not really 110 00:07:40,560 --> 00:07:44,280 thinking about the future when we start a podcast and when 111 00:07:44,280 --> 00:07:48,030 times start to get tough, or it's not that shiny new thing 112 00:07:48,030 --> 00:07:53,430 anymore, it gets really hard to keep going. So what can we do? 113 00:07:53,790 --> 00:07:56,190 You know, we've talked about a lot of problems and a lot of 114 00:07:56,190 --> 00:08:01,770 feelings, but what can you actually do to avoid burnout and 115 00:08:01,770 --> 00:08:06,210 get out of the stress spiral if you're going into it. The first 116 00:08:06,210 --> 00:08:09,450 thing is, and this is what you need to conquer. Any long term 117 00:08:09,450 --> 00:08:15,360 goal, you have to know why you're doing it. Why do you have 118 00:08:15,390 --> 00:08:20,820 this podcast? What is the deeper meaning behind this show? And 119 00:08:20,820 --> 00:08:24,810 when you look at what you want to accomplish, what does that 120 00:08:24,810 --> 00:08:29,100 really look like if it's money related, or part of it is money 121 00:08:29,100 --> 00:08:32,670 related? Do you know how you're going to start making inroads to 122 00:08:32,670 --> 00:08:35,640 getting those partners or networking with the right 123 00:08:35,640 --> 00:08:40,200 people, or even, do you know how much you want to make you can't 124 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:44,880 hit a moving target, or a target that doesn't exist, and trying 125 00:08:44,880 --> 00:08:47,640 to rationalize why you're investing all this time and 126 00:08:47,640 --> 00:08:50,280 energy and money into this podcast when you're already 127 00:08:50,280 --> 00:08:54,480 feeling stressed and overwhelmed is really hard. Is basically 128 00:08:54,480 --> 00:08:58,770 impossible, because there will come a time for every podcaster 129 00:08:58,770 --> 00:09:02,100 that does not have a clear why, and even some of the podcasters 130 00:09:02,100 --> 00:09:06,540 that do have a clear why, when you will think, why am I doing 131 00:09:06,540 --> 00:09:11,760 this? What's the point? And it can be really hard to overcome 132 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:16,710 that feeling. The next is having a dedicated schedule and true 133 00:09:16,740 --> 00:09:21,510 accountability to this podcast. About three weeks ago, I was 134 00:09:21,510 --> 00:09:25,140 moving into a new house. I'm still renovating the house. 135 00:09:25,290 --> 00:09:29,580 Nothing was packed, nothing was finished, nothing was ready, and 136 00:09:29,580 --> 00:09:34,530 I was very stressed out. The day I moved was a Sunday. I still 137 00:09:34,530 --> 00:09:37,140 hadn't finished my outline for my episode. Monday. The next 138 00:09:37,140 --> 00:09:40,560 day, I didn't know where my microphone was, and I had 139 00:09:40,560 --> 00:09:43,500 nowhere to record. The air conditioning wasn't working. I 140 00:09:43,500 --> 00:09:46,770 had to record the episode under a comforter sweating from places 141 00:09:46,800 --> 00:09:50,760 I didn't even know I could sweat from at 10pm on the night before 142 00:09:50,760 --> 00:09:54,570 that episode came out. This is what I mean about dedication and 143 00:09:54,570 --> 00:09:59,220 accountability. Have you made an agreement with yourself that no 144 00:09:59,220 --> 00:10:03,750 matter what. And this podcast is coming out because there's such 145 00:10:03,780 --> 00:10:08,880 a different energy around I'm doing this, and I might do this, 146 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:12,990 or I'll do it when I get around to it, and that can be so much 147 00:10:13,020 --> 00:10:16,620 more stressful and consuming than just having the 148 00:10:16,620 --> 00:10:20,490 accountability and dedication of knowing this is going to get 149 00:10:20,490 --> 00:10:24,240 done one way or the other. Sponsors don't want to work with 150 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:28,500 podcasts that post episodes inconsistently. No one wants to 151 00:10:28,500 --> 00:10:32,250 partner with a podcast when they can't rely on it to come out on 152 00:10:32,250 --> 00:10:36,120 time. Listeners don't want to invest in a show they can't 153 00:10:36,120 --> 00:10:39,450 trust is going to be published. I know we talked about this 154 00:10:39,450 --> 00:10:44,160 earlier in the episode, but make a schedule, make a plan, and 155 00:10:44,160 --> 00:10:48,330 know what you're doing. I might not be able to outline my 156 00:10:48,360 --> 00:10:51,870 episodes until the day I record them, and that might be the day 157 00:10:51,870 --> 00:10:55,770 before it comes out, but I know what episode is coming out in 158 00:10:55,770 --> 00:10:59,790 five weeks from now, and what I need to do and when I'm going to 159 00:10:59,790 --> 00:11:04,320 do it, and there is a lot of comfort in that. Lastly, when 160 00:11:04,320 --> 00:11:09,300 you get to the place where you can hire someone do it, hire an 161 00:11:09,300 --> 00:11:13,620 editor, hire an audio engineer, hire someone to do your social 162 00:11:13,620 --> 00:11:16,260 media or schedule your guest interviews or research your 163 00:11:16,260 --> 00:11:20,670 guests for you, whatever is causing you the most stress and 164 00:11:20,670 --> 00:11:26,430 is the hardest for you to do. Outsource that first. We all 165 00:11:26,460 --> 00:11:30,870 need to take a break sometimes, and you should plan on taking a 166 00:11:30,870 --> 00:11:35,100 break from your podcast. This has to be something that you do, 167 00:11:35,280 --> 00:11:39,270 and whether you take that break from getting ahead, which is 168 00:11:39,270 --> 00:11:42,780 what I choose to do just because I don't want to miss a week of 169 00:11:42,780 --> 00:11:48,060 publishing, or you decide to do seasons, know when you're taking 170 00:11:48,060 --> 00:11:51,450 a break if you do have seasons. And I'm only bringing this up 171 00:11:51,450 --> 00:11:55,980 because I see it happen so often. Let people know when 172 00:11:55,980 --> 00:11:59,310 you're going away and then when you'll be coming back. Don't 173 00:11:59,310 --> 00:12:03,480 leave people wondering where you are or if you'll ever be back. 174 00:12:03,990 --> 00:12:08,130 Make it very clear, this is the end of season four. We'll be 175 00:12:08,130 --> 00:12:12,750 back in a month. Maybe run some reruns or best of compilation 176 00:12:12,750 --> 00:12:17,100 episodes, but don't make your audience or future advertisers 177 00:12:17,340 --> 00:12:22,380 wonder if you'll ever be back, usually anytime in June, July, 178 00:12:22,410 --> 00:12:26,040 August or December. It's the best time of the year to take a 179 00:12:26,040 --> 00:12:29,220 break between seasons. This is when most people are off their 180 00:12:29,220 --> 00:12:32,430 schedule. They're celebrating holidays, or they're on summer 181 00:12:32,430 --> 00:12:35,700 break, or generally not listening to podcasts like they 182 00:12:35,700 --> 00:12:39,390 normally do. And you should use this to your advantage if you 183 00:12:39,390 --> 00:12:43,080 already know you want to take some time off do it during those 184 00:12:43,080 --> 00:12:45,870 months when people are also inconsistently listening to 185 00:12:45,870 --> 00:12:50,340 podcasts. You deserve to have a podcast you love and that you're 186 00:12:50,340 --> 00:12:53,910 excited to work on. Like I've said so many times in this 187 00:12:53,910 --> 00:12:58,380 episode, podcasting is not easy, and if you're making it even 188 00:12:58,380 --> 00:13:02,640 harder on yourself by treating it like a chore, making money 189 00:13:02,640 --> 00:13:07,350 from it will be that much harder. This week, I want you to 190 00:13:07,350 --> 00:13:10,980 work on creating a mission statement for your podcast that 191 00:13:10,980 --> 00:13:16,050 walks through exactly why and who you've created this podcast 192 00:13:16,050 --> 00:13:19,980 for what you want to accomplish with your show, and what 193 00:13:19,980 --> 00:13:24,840 successful monetization would look like for you. So what do 194 00:13:24,840 --> 00:13:28,170 you want to make from every episode? Do not skip over the 195 00:13:28,170 --> 00:13:32,970 details. Be as specific and detailed as possible. I want you 196 00:13:32,970 --> 00:13:37,830 to know who your listener is. Why are they listening? What 197 00:13:37,830 --> 00:13:41,910 will make them come back at the end of the day, what do you hope 198 00:13:41,910 --> 00:13:45,720 they are taking from every episode? How do you want the 199 00:13:45,720 --> 00:13:50,820 podcast to impact their life and your life, and last but not 200 00:13:50,820 --> 00:13:55,620 least, how much money do you want to make from this podcast? 201 00:13:56,190 --> 00:14:00,150 Break it down by episode. How much money do you want to make 202 00:14:00,150 --> 00:14:05,460 for every episode. Answer that question. You can do this. 203 00:14:06,090 --> 00:14:10,680 Podcasting is hard work, but you can do hard work. This is 204 00:14:10,680 --> 00:14:13,830 nothing new, and it's nothing you aren't completely capable of 205 00:14:13,830 --> 00:14:20,100 doing. Know your why, and the rest is on its way. And as 206 00:14:20,100 --> 00:14:26,190 always, I can't wait to listen to your podcast. Hey, thank you 207 00:14:26,190 --> 00:14:28,770 so much for joining me on this episode. If you enjoyed the 208 00:14:28,770 --> 00:14:31,890 podcast and you'd like to hear more episodes like this one, go 209 00:14:31,890 --> 00:14:35,220 ahead and subscribe to the show. New episodes air every Monday 210 00:14:35,220 --> 00:14:38,220 morning. And if you found this episode valuable and you want to 211 00:14:38,220 --> 00:14:41,100 help other business owners and podcasters, will you leave me a 212 00:14:41,100 --> 00:14:44,340 five star review? It helps the show rank higher in the charts 213 00:14:44,370 --> 00:14:47,760 and brings more entrepreneurs the information they need to 214 00:14:47,760 --> 00:14:50,100 start making money on their podcast.