The Mindset to Change Your Life’s Direction, w/ John Brontsema

My whole life was dedicated to baseball from an early time. People say, “Don’t put your identity,” or “You’re not a baseball player. That’s not your identity.” It really is though. While it’s not, it feels like it, because every decision I made, everything I was passionate about was baseball and achieving the next level.

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Why Your Podcast is Going to Fail

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I have personally recorded over 200 podcasts and my agency has helped to produce hundreds more over the last 3 years. 

I’ve seen it all.

You can do everything necessary to put your podcast in a position to succeed, but still fail because there is simply no guarantee of success.

However, in my experience, the following list will guarantee that your podcast fails.

Choosing the Wrong Equipment

Right Equipment = Anything you already know how to use
Wrong Equipment = Something you have to learn how to use 

You want your podcast to be as seamless as possible. Using the equipment you already have, rather than buying the next best thing, will allow you to keep your focus on creating better quality content rather than getting distracted by the production. 

New equipment means learning how to use it, and not just the basics. If you are interviewing guests while also responsible for recording quality, are you certain your audio levels are where they need to be? Will you or your guest get distracted if you keep looking away to check something? When you buy more equipment, you are going to have to learn how to operate the equipment in addition to any other new software or add-ons to go along with it. It may sound or look better but newer and nicer materials means more time and new problems. Keep in mind: high quality production cannot save poor quality content. 

Using what you already know how to use, like an iPhone app or simple audio recorder, does not mean you will avoid all possible technical issues, but it minimizes your downside risk. Increase your chances of succeeding by removing as many obstacles as possible. You can always add them later 

 

Doing too much on your own

Podcasting can be very overwhelming when you do it all on your own. Organizing interviews, filming the podcast while making sure there are no technical errors, editing, and sharing is a lot for one person to do. When there is that much to do, it is more likely that you will not start the next episode of your podcast. 

It is okay to ask for help. This does not mean you need to hire an agency to do the work for you. Do you have a friend or someone else in your community that you trust to ask for help? Work together, and it will make it easy to keep going with your show! 

 

Unclear or unrealistic expectations

What are your reasons for having a podcast? Are you doing it because you love it or because you are trying to monetize? If you want to become famous and make money from your podcast, then you are doing it for the wrong reasons.

Ads and sponsorships are now crowded with the growing of podcasts. You need to create your podcast because you love it and are passionate about the topic – any other reason makes you less likely for success.

 

You are a perfectionist 

Wanting your project to be perfect is natural, but do not let that set you back from putting out any content. Your first podcast will be your worst, so get over the fear of not being perfect and put it out into the world.      

Every individual has a different skillset that allows for different editing speeds. Learn as you go and do not try to be perfect right off the bat. You will learn from your mistakes. Just post it! 

 

You are inconsistent 

For example, if you are four podcast episodes in and you feel like you want to give up for whatever reason, just keep at it! Being consistent, whatever that means to you, is the best way to see growth. Committing to one episode a month if that is all you can do is okay. Just like anything, podcasting needs that level of stability to really take off. 

 

Focusing too much on the numbers

Growth comes with good content. If you focus too much on the numbers, then you will never be happy. Sometimes, your first episode will be your best because people in the community are excited for you, then you will see a decline. That does not mean your content is bad, it just means it will take a while to build a following.

You can get better when no one is listening, and you will reach the right people. The growth you are hoping for will ultimately come with good content. 

 

Conclusion

  • Less is more = remove as many obstacles as you can at the star
  • Don’t take on too much, 
  • Have realistic expectations in both quality and reach
  • Get started THEN get better, THEN don’t stop
  • Your content isn’t going to be for everyone, so focus on improving your content rather than trying to reach everyone

I wish you all the luck and success possible.