This is not one of these episodes on how to grow your podcast audience and make lots of money from your podcast. You’ll find that “advice” (and I put that in air quotes) on that elsewhere.
Here are some ideas on how to develop a healthy and rewarding relationship with your podcast.
A few episodes ago I put together some ideas on how to avoid podfading.
This episode is for you if…
don’t want to get frustrated after a few months
you record and publish a podcast and it often feels like a burden
you’ve given up recording and publishing your podcast and need some motivation to start it up again.
Record and publish your podcast for yourself
Publish a podcast that provides value to you, even if nobody listens. Staying on a regular routine of recording and publishing a podcast is a powerful means for building habits. What’s your intrinsic motivation?
Pick a recording and publishing frequency that works for you
We tell our clients that in order to grow their podcast audience, they need to record and publish on a consistent frequency. And we encourage them to be honest with themselves from the start, to decide how the podcast will fit in their life. Decide on a frequency that makes sense and that you can make work over the next 12 months.
Ignore the analytics
One of the more peculiar things about publishing a podcast is this all podcasters want to see how many downloads each episode gets. Ignore the analytics. No matter how great your podcast, the numbers may not follow. Yet. You’ll be a happier podcaster if you don’t live and die by the numbers. Use them as a tool.
Take a break
Recording and publishing a podcast every week (or whatever frequency you’ve chosen for yourself) is tough. Life gets in the way. There’s value in sticking to the habit even in weeks when you don’t feel like it. But then again, take breaks when you need to. Just let your listeners know.
You’ll restart the podcast when you know you’ll get more joy than stress from doing it. Don’t make recording a podcast episode a chore. Because that’s what it will become. Returning to something you’ve missed feels wonderful.
Don’t compare yourself to other podcasters
Podcasts are everywhere, and growing in number every day. You’re probably listening to lots of them each week. There is always someone who talks more elegantly, someone who has the smarter takes on subjects, and someone who is getting more attention.
It’s hard not to compare yourself to others. I’m guilty of this myself. What I find that works is just be inspired by what you hear, not awestruck. Instead of envying them, learn from them. Let other podcasters do their thing, and be happy with yours. Chances are they may struggling as well. “Looks” can be deceiving.
Relax
If you follow the five pieces of advice above, you are on your way to be fairly relaxed about creating your podcast again. Of course, you’ll still find yourself stressed now and again, overthinking aspects of your podcast. Try to focus on your intrinsic reason (remember point 1) and forget about everything else.
Podcasting is a MARATHON, not a sprint. Be patient, take action and apply yourself.
Let’s talk about what podcasting can do for your business in the next 12-months. Whether you’re B2C or B2B, we can create a content marketing strategy that will work for you.
Connect with me if you would like to talk more about this. My calendar is available on my Circle270Media Podcast Consultants business website at circle270media.com
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