Probably because I’m a Broadcast instructor I see a lot of startups and huge letdowns. Yeah I’m the guy that proudly stands up front looking at all those rows of hardcore dreamers and says, “If you’re here to chase radio get started in the smallest town in your state. The big boys are already full with three million people are sitting impatiently on the waiting list. Or… You can start podcasting and declare yourself hired. Because you’re the president and CEO of Me Inc.”
The problem with opening that door is that everybody thinks it instantly comes with fame and fortune. Yeahhhhh guess what? When those numbers don’t show up the thought of doing more episodes sits in the cellar until you’re in the mood to pop open the microphone again or you’re taken over by jealousy. Everybody else looks like they’re having fun so it ignites a new fire in your drive forward.
Not to be a buzz kill but podcasting demands a lot of attention. You’ve got to be willing to work hard and be committed. Even if you’re doing it as a hobby or you’re a business that’s been convinced that it’s a new way to reach customers, you can’t envision a certain number of expected episodes then quit. You’d never unpeel a banana then set it on the counter and walk away. You’d have fruit flies in less than 60 minutes.
From the first start know in your heart podcasting is always moving forward. They say the human being can read the same sentence seven different ways. Take the subject of your episode. It too can be delivered in multiple ways. You’re never the same person on each episode. It’s completely natural to always bring different ideas and experiences.
Look at the way Chelsea Handler continues to cover mental illness. Same subject. Several different episodes with brilliant content and hardcore attention grabbing inflection and storytelling. The other day I was instantly drawn to Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert because he reposted a conversation with the late Peter Fonda. Famous person with a crap life. We’ve all heard them but not in the way that Peter brought his story forward.
The reason why I bring this up is because so many podcasters get caught in the hiccup. It’s that one moment when your creative juices don’t show up. Oh I’ve been there. This is my fortieth year in broadcasting. You get to get to this part of the journey unless you’ve learned how to move through those pain in the ass dry spells.
As to why so many pull their podcast ship off the water? It’s the same old stories, “I wasn’t feeling it. I’ve run out of ideas. The social networking part of the process is too time consuming. I’m not making money and that’s not in my plans.” Yeah yeah yeah.
Subliminally speaking. Hitting that blank spot in the wall can easily affect you. The listener in you is tuning out. Is your show moving in forward motion? Is it more about you and less about the physical listener? If it is… The listener in you is in the front row of your show! It’s read to punch the next button.
No seriously! It doesn’t matter who’s hosting the show, the inner core of every person involved is affected by their way of how they listen. The listener in you has a completely different personality then the performer. Which is why you can’t stop podcasting after thirteen strikeouts at the numbers game.
If the ambition and addiction to podcasting has left you cooled off. Grab some space and head out to the streets or busy office. Time to listen to the episodes in the very places your fans and followers are hooking up to the vibe. Put yourself at their level. Adlibbing and improving are a skill. If you’re dropping tracks with no scripts those ears of yours know when the subject at hand is either off coarse or out of tune.
I do get a little bothered when talent tell me, “Not every podcast can be a homerun. I crack the mic open and we’re off!” Which basically tells me (the listener) that quality doesn’t matter. Edit edit edit! You make a mistake, keep moving! Get the thought out! Then return to the crime scene to patch up the disturbance.
Hitting the blank spot in the wall is a symptom that requires a solution. I totally grasp the free spirit slash organic approach to breaking bread on the microphone but man you can’t wing a bowling ball a hundred miles an hour at the pens and expect to get a strike unless you follow through.
Oh hell yeah. I’m repairing your desire to podcast with my personal experiences as a bowler with the AJBC. It was in the late 1970’s but the analogy of following through is the first step toward a new beginning.
If you’re getting burned out then create a shorter podcast. If you’re tired of waiting for people to show up, do the episodes yourself. If the podcast subjects are all over the place… follow through with well disciplined focus. One thought per break. The food talk goes on the cooking channel not the main vein. The book talk goes to an author podcast not the hot spot. Break up your subjects by giving them their own stage.
If your final decision is to put a nail in the coffin be ok with it. This isn’t terrestrial radio where there’s only so many stations in each town. You didn’t terminate yourself from the podcast. Something needed to grow in a different direction and a sliver of your life looked at that blank spot in the wall and chose the easier route. I’m gonna walk away for a while.
Hmmm you’d gain more experience if you hung in there. Teaching yourself how to quit is a bad habit with no doctors in the market to fix the broken spokes. It’s ok to lose a couple of teeth in this hockey game. It’s not supposed to be easy. There’s always joy in podcasting! The joy of exercising your right to speak.
So what’s the moral of the story? It’s perfectly fine to soak your big toe in podcasting without taking it as serious most. Dabbling around with it part of the growth. Do yourself a favor though. When you do reach that blank spot in the wall try not to advertise it to your family, friends and followers. During that break from the action repost your past performances. Gaining new listeners every day is a fun part of the practice. If your episodes are stacked they aren’t going through ten pages of stuff to find your best work.
If they haven’t heard it before. Then it’s a brand new show. If you haven’t heard it in a long time. It can feel like a brand new show. You might be inspired to crank up the creative engine and give yourself a shot of juice.