Women Who Podcast Magazine - Spring 2023 Anniversary Issue Nine by Women Who Podcast Magazine

SPRING ISSUE 2023

APRIL 2023

The Team KATHY BARRON Founder, Editor-in-Chief

TINA JARAMILLO Writer, Editor

Contributing Writers Tera Barnes, Natalie Boero, Priscilla Conaway, Becca Rae Eagle Elikqitie, Anna Gunn, Chelsea Pegues, Hilary Salzman, Jane Schneider Graphic Design (Cover & Mic Drop/Dropped Mic)

Uile Media LLC Logo design Leah Walukones

Advertising For advertising and special project opportunities, please email: info@womenwhopodcastmag.com www.womenwhopodcastmag.com @womenwhopodcastmagazine ©2023 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or part without written permission from the publisher. The views expressed in Women Who Podcast magazine are those of the respective condtributors and are not necessarily shared by Women Who Podcast Media Group and its staff.

Welcome After a long, wet, and cold California winter, I’m welcoming the newness of Spring. Although, my allergies are off the charts, the warmer temperatures are a nice respite and a great motivator to get outside more often. It’s also an invitation to throw open the windows and let the fresh air move out the stale, stagnant, winter blahs. For Women Who Podcast magazine, it’s also a time for celebration. What an honor it has been to be a reliable resource for podcasters and showcase their shows for the last two years! Our very talented writers never miss the mark and are very gracious with the knowledge and expertise they share. In this anniversary issue, 22 podcasters share their inspirational journeys of how they got started and where they are headed. Many talk about unexpected transformations, chance meetings, and interviewing someone they never thought was reachable. One common theme with all 22 women is that regardless of the challenges they have faced, they are grateful podcasting has created a sense of community for them. Whether it’s the guests on their show, meeting other podcasters, or hearing from listeners, they love that they have created friendships with and through their podcast. This time of year is also one of new beginnings so if you’re even slightly considering starting a podcast, the articles in this issue will guide you so that the path is a clear and supportive one. If you’ve been podcasting for a while, we talk about spring cleaning your podcast so it stays fresh and new to you. Whether you’ve been podcasting six years or six episodes, Women Who Podcast magazine is here to be a guiding light. We are so proud of you for having the courage to take that first step, and the next step, and the next. You are making a difference in the podcast community and in the world. Thank you for all that you do!

Kathy Barron Editor-in-Chief

Contributing Writers Tera Barnes an Anthropologist, Moon lover, Witch, spiritual practitioner, and perpetual student, living her life one magical day at a time. @theoptimysticoracle

Natalie Boero is a sociologist, professor, author, and mom of twins. In her spare time she enjoys reading, exercise, baseball, doom-scrolling, and traveling. @natalieboero

Priscilla Conaway is the former host of Confessions of a Mama Brain podcast, mother of 3 boys, currently working on her first book that’s inspired by her former podcast. Priscilla is an insane lover of true crime, snuggles with her boys, alongside her M&M’s peanuts.

Becca Rae Eagle, M.S.ED. is a wife, Mom to a college age son, and avid hiker. She lives in the New York State Adirondack Mountains where she serves as a writing doula, ghostwriter, and journaling visionary. Becca is a published author and podcast host of The Joyful Journaling podcast. @yourwritingdoula2day

Elikqitie is a passionate content creator, podcast producer, author, speaker, and serial entrepreneur who understands the importance of creating original copy in your voice and having consistent branding across your digital marketing platforms. @travelglutenfreepodcast

Anna Gunn has a background in theatre, film, and sound. She strongly believes in the power of the female story, the right to be heard, and in making sure everybody is listened to in the best way possible. Anna also has a very inspirational cat - the Bob, who would also like to have his own podcast. @mcgunnmedia

Chelsea Pegues is a highly-caffeinated writer and podcaster. She loves horror movies, vintage cars, blues and punk rock. When she’s not working, she is usually exploring the outdoors with her husband and young son. @lets_try_this_again_pod

Hilary Salzman, founder of 22 Stories and host of The Everyday Storyteller podcast, firmly believes in storytelling and its power to connect us to the things and people that make a difference. She is dedicated to helping those who struggle using their voices to get their stories out and grow their business. @22storiesandme

Jane Schneider fuels her insatiable curiosity about people and their stories by hosting the Glistening Particles podcast. When not dreaming up new stories, she’s biking on the rail trails winding through the Midwest. glisteningparticles.com

Tina Jaramillo is the co-host of The Muck Podcast. When she’s not blowing the whistle on historical hi-jinx, she is corralling her family, advocating for others through her volunteer work, or crafting tales and blankets. @themuckpodcast

Become a Contributing Writer! Contact us at info@womenwhopodcastmag.com

Ask the Podcaster How has podcasting changed you as a person? Podcasting has absolutely changed me as a person! I knew I believed in the power of connection and shared experience, but podcasting has blown the roof off in the best way. It’s like I can see the world from ten thousand feet, and just how big it is, while at the same time seeing how the human experience connects us more than we know. I think it’s helped me be a lot more appreciative of what I have, what I’m working for, and for the little things in life.

Name one interviewing tip you’d share with podcasters. Talk less, hold space. I have this nervous habit of wanting to fill every second with talk - god forbid there is a moment to breath and reflect. I find by nodding and smiling more, and using “yeah, yes, totally” filler words less, it holds space for people to share their story in a more fluid, open way (and requires less editing in post-production). It’s ok to pause before talking, and it’s ok to pause and let your guest reflect and take a breath.

What challenges have you faced as a podcaster? How did you overcome them? The challenge of where to start in podcasting and finding ways to grow was a huge challenge. If you’re not blessed with a whole team to help kickstart your podcast, it can feel impossible to get started. Learning to ask questions, make connections, and trust the process was the key to overcoming. Getting over the fear of messing up, and just starting!

What’s one thing you can’t live without (for your podcast)?

My calendar! Keeping everything organized in my calendar is critical in keeping things consistent. Between booking interviews, scheduling episodes, planning - I check my calendar at least three times a day!

Carling is a Canadian, Queer Identifying, 30 something year old who is providing a platform for everyday people to share their stories. No topic is off limits. When she’s not podcasting, she enjoys spending time with her partner, two step kids, and five dogs. She is the host of I Did Not Sign Up for This podcast. @ididnotsignupforthis.podcast

Seven Tips on How to Run a Business When You Have Disabilities by Elikqitie

In the grand scheme of life, we would love every aspect of our life to fall perfectly in place at the right time, the exact moment that we feel our hopes, dreams, and visions will come to fruition. Unfortunately, however, life has a different plan for us, especially for those who live and work with disabilities. So, What is a Disability? “The ADA defines a person with a disability as a person who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity. This definition includes people who have a record of such an impairment, even if they do not currently have a disability. It also includes individuals who do not have a disability but are regarded as having a disability. The ADA also makes it unlawful to discriminate against a person based on that person’s association with a person with a disability.” Medical conditions that fall under the ADA are: 5 Cancer 5 Mental health illnesses 5 Auto-immune diseases 5 Other chronic illnesses cause chronic pain and limit your daily activity regularly The Disabilities I Must Workaround Daily I hit the jackpot when it came to having disabilities, with a total of nine disabilities altogether. Hearing loss, Celiac Disease, chronic joint and muscle pain, depression, anxiety, PTSD, SAD (seasonal affective disorder), insomnia, and a dissociative disorder. The biggest challenge with my dissociation is remembering what people tell me daily, losing time, and completely losing some memories that are only remembered through pictures. With Celiac Disease, I can be sick for up to three weeks, which throws a wrench in any activity. Suppose I get glutened badly (accidentally get gluten in my food at a restaurant). In that case, it’s eight hours of vomiting , followed by one to three weeks of stomach cramps, bloating, muscle, and joint pain, among other symptoms. This experience is why I created my podcast Travel Gluten Free, to help those with Celiac Disease and other medical conditions in which you can’t eat gluten. Traveling takes a bunch of planning and having an auto-immune disease that can flare up without warning and take you out adds an extra level of complication to your travels. The reason I’m telling you about my disabilities isn’t for you to feel sorry or bad for me - it’s definitely a challenge to be me, especially since many of my disabilities play off of one another and can spiral quickly into a day in which I’m not able to work. Even though you have one or 9

more disabilities, you can still lead a productive and purposeful life - and even run your own business - but you need to know the workarounds to make working in your own business fall into place. How to Work Around Your Disability and Work in Your Business Tip #1: Give yourself Grace First, you want to know, especially if you’re newly diagnosed or have recently started to have symptoms you suspect are part of a disability - that you need to give yourself grace. I didn’t know what that meant until one day when I was in horrible pain; I decided to take extra time in the morning to soak in a hot bath to help relieve my pain because I knew I couldn’t be creative with that much pain. A small amount of pain I can push through, but this day it wasn’t going to happen. When you have a disability, it will usually be a lifelong struggle, so give yourself space to take a break and feel better. Pushing yourself too hard when you have a disability will make you feel worse. It could possibly put you in the hospital. So be nice to yourself and take time even if it’s an extra hour of your day - to ensure you’re feeling OK. Tip #2: Find a Medical Professional for Support Secondly, find a counselor or psychologist that can support you because having a disability in and of itself is enough to push you into a second disability - depression. Even though I have a very supportive partner, I don’t want to overwhelm him with all my daily pains, thoughts, and challenges. Having a person to support me and help me heal and grow through my challenges is an aspect I’ll have to incorporate for the rest of my life. It’s scary to think about that, but it’s simply a reality, which comes to my next piece of advice - embracing your reality. Tip #3: Embrace Your Reality Now I know that sounds like it sucks, especially if you’re in chronic pain, but let me be clear: I’m not saying you should enjoy having a disability; that’s not the case. I’d prefer to live my life with fewer or even zero disabilities. However, that’s not my reality. If I try to pretend that my life is “normal,” I will disappoint myself daily, which is frustrating and eats up a ton of my energy. Also, with several disabilities, I have to be realistic about what I can do in one day, depending on how I feel when I wake up. So although I have a plan for that day, it sometimes needs to change. Tip #4: Be Flexible with Your Schedule Some mornings I wake up and feel good and continue to feel good the entire day. For me and my disabilities, this means being in a low level of pain and that my mental health conditions don’t have a hold on me so that I can go through the day and be productive, including working out for a half hour and getting outside. However, these days are rare and only happen a few days out of the month. Most days, I have more than one challenge, usually chronic pain and some form of anxiety, where I have to work around one or more appointment times or change them altogether. Look at your schedule. Are you overbooking yourself? If you are, figure out the most important meetings in your day and start weeding out events and meetings that aren’t moving the needle forward in your business. For example, I realized that one of my networking groups involved too much time for the money I was receiving from the group, so I stopped going to that networking group. You’ll need to prioritize your time for the most essential meetings and either completely bow out of other organizations or reduce your time in them exponentially. When you have a disability, you need to use your time very effectively so you can leave time for those days when you can’t work at all or can only work part of a day. One of the ways I deal with the inability to work is that I will switch out a weekday for a weekend day to work. I’ll take off on a 10

Thursday, especially if I’m not feeling well, and work a day on the weekend. However, this doesn’t mean that I work all weekend - make sure you take your days off to rest and recharge your organic batteries. I simply switch out working on a weekday for working on a weekend. I’ve started to prefer working on weekends as I don’t get calls, unsolicited emails, or other distractions. It gives me a good, clean, and unadulterated work block. Tip #5: Create Work Blocks I have several calendars on Calendly in which people can book consultations, discovery calls, and collaboration times. However, none of my meeting times are on Mondays. Why? Because I found out that if I have one day with no meetings, I can get a large chunk of my work done for the week on Monday because I don’t have to stop for a meeting, then pick my work back up again. I also don’t schedule meetings on Fridays until after lunchtime to give me time to network. In addition, I don’t schedule meetings after 5pm because that runs into dinnertime. I want to protect my time with my family because it brings me joy. And I ensure that activities that keep my head feeling good are at the top of my priority list, as this keeps me going during the week. This rule has some exceptions, but they are few and far between. Examples include clients who need help with content running up against a deadline or a lead needing a discovery call sooner than later. However, I do my best to keep my time within my boundaries so I don’t add unneeded stress to my daily life. I also designate one day a month as my marketing day to get most of my marketing content and materials finished. This is a helpful and efficient way to get my content done. Tip #6: Ask for Help from Your Family If you are the head female in your household, it doesn’t mean you have to do everything yourself - even if you don’t have disabilities. However, if you have disabilities, you must delegate work to your kids, husband, or whoever lives with you. There is a good reason to delegate the housework or other chores that need to be done. First, it teaches your kids compassion for others who can’t do for themselves. Secondly, it gives them pride that they are contributing to the household. Third, they are helping someone they love - and that’s a good lesson to make the world a better place. Tip #7: Hire a VA A VA - or virtual assistant - is a great way to get extra weekly help. I have found that assigning tasks such as posting and scheduling blogs, emailing clients, and creating images on Canva takes enough work off my plate so that I can have more time for marketing my business. While I still do all (or most) of the content writing for my clients, I can rely on my VA to get those little items that take time but don’t move me forward to build my business. This is especially helpful on those days when I cannot work, as I know and trust that I’m getting done with any of the tasks assigned to my VA. If you’re looking for a reliable VA, I can recommend several. I hope these workarounds have given you a new way to look at your workday without feeling like a failure with your disability, especially when you look “normal” from the outside; a hidden disability can be even harder to live with. I found that if I give myself grace and use the workarounds listed here, along with a few others I’ve incorporated, to help me live my best life, then life works as best you can under the challenges of the reality you live in. Advertise With Us! Contact us at info@womenwhopodcastmag.com

Asking For A Friend by Kathy Barron

For some of us, losing a job can be a major setback. It messes with our psyche and can, at times, knock us down for the count. Having to look for a job in any circumstances is a challenge but in midlife during a global pandemic is beyond difficult. This is what Michele Folan was up against six weeks before the country shut down for two years. Not having a job to go to was something she wasn’t used to; she never not worked before. “That came with, you know, that had carried with it a whole lot of emotional baggage. I had worked long enough to be prepared financially for that day in my life, but emotionally, it was a little crazy time,” Michele explains. During her job search, she realized that she was interviewing at companies in the industries she was comfortable being part of, and she wasn’t excited about any of the prospects. Eventually, she stopped obsessing about the job title and decided to focus on what job would really make her happy. It was during this time that Michele started walking (because the gym was closed due to the pandemic), and on her walks she picked up listening to podcasts for the first time in her life. One podcast in particular caught her eye (and ears); Sarah Brown of Failing Forward. Sarah talks with people who have been in a situation where they have failed and how they came out on the other side of that failure. Michele was inspired, “there was one thing that just kept coming from each of these people… they just kept saying, be true to yourself. And I’m like I need to be true to myself and not fall into this mold that I think people think I need to be in.” It was also during this time that Michele realized she wanted a creative outlet. Up until then, she had been doing what everyone expected her to be: a mom, a wife, a career woman. She hadn’t really done a lot for herself and was in a phase of her life that she wasn’t sure what to do. That is when the idea of starting her own podcast came up. Although imposter syndrome entered her mind and played with her confidence a bit, the more Michele listened to other podcasts, the more she knew it was what she wanted to do. “I had no idea what I was getting myself into. It’s a lot and you know I’m in my fifties for God’s sake. It’s a full-time job and I’m barely on Facebook and Instagram. But you know what, you just start doing some homework, I’m a Google super user, and I’m thinking all right what do I want this to be.” Michele has been in the health industry for 26 years and wanted to focus on health and wellness issues that impacted midlife women. One thing that amazes and fascinates Michele the most is that so many midlife women are just discovering who they really are; they are writing books, becoming coaches, and having major life pivots. She wants to debunk myths by asking questions her 13

friends won’t necessarily ask. And so Asking for a Friend podcast was created; which Michele calls her “expensive hobby.” During guest interviews, Michele realized that the topic wasn’t the only interesting thing they were discussing. She quickly learned that their personal stories were fascinating and needed to be explored. Michele isn’t afraid to revisit topics that she’s already talked about because she believes everyone can bring a different and fresh perspective to the show. Since starting the podcast, two episodes in particular have impacted her greatly. The first episode was with Holly Bridgers (S1EP18 “An LGBTQ+ Journey of Love and Acceptance”) and the journey of her daughters identifying as LGBTQ+. “Listening to her heartfelt story and how sometimes life doesn’t always play out the way you think it is. But how she (Holly) has come to love and absolutely embraced their lives and the LGBT community, that was just very powerful to me,” Michele says. Another episode that has been an inspiration for her is the conversation she had with Susan Guidi (S3EP45 “It’s Never Too Late”). Susan grew up with an American father and a Cuban mother. After getting married to a doctor and having children, her husband came out as gay. Initially, Susan stayed out of guilt but eventually, after many years, left the marriage. With her newfound freedom, Susan started her own business, started doing stand-up comedy, and decided to live a healthier lifestyle. Now 66, she has competed and won awards in bodybuilding. “And now she is the picture of great health, energy, vitality, and the message there is it’s never too late and we are never too old to try something new. To be that person we know we could be or we knew we could be,” Michele says. Talking with Susan really resonated with Michele and made her ask why we let people and/or things hold us back from what we want in life. The most rewarding and inspirational aspect of hosting Asking for a Friend is meeting amazing people and hearing from listeners. Michele has heard “you’re doing some really great things here by highlighting other women in midlife and giving them a voice to talk about their stories” and “I look forward to every Monday when I know that a new episode is there.” These positive comments keep her motivated to continue the work she is doing on the show and make sure that information and resources for midlife women are accessible. For the future of women in podcasting, Michele wants to see more women dig into their creative side and be patient with the process because there are so many stories out there that still need to be told. And even though it may be the same topic or same genre, everyone has their own version and own personality to contribute to the podcasting community. Learning all of the nuances of podcasting; hosting sites, how to record, and who’s going to edit the episodes is like “crawling through mud.” Michele talked with other podcasters like Sarah Brown who helped her get started. “I was able to get enough of a foundation to be able to say okay, I have the confidence enough. Or maybe it’s not the confidence but I think maybe the courage,” Michele says. Recording the first episode of Asking for a Friend was terrifying for Michele because it was just her talking and she didn’t have it written out. 14

“I had it outlined so at least I kind of knew and I think you forget like, oh I can edit this,” she adds. Michele made the decision to publish a few episodes that had low audio quality (her editor couldn’t fix it) because she wanted to be as authentic as possible and show that everything doesn’t need to be perfect. Asking for a Friend has evolved over the years in that Michele originally wanted to interview experts, but as time went on she became more intrigued in their personal stories. Since recording her first episode, Michele has also learned that it doesn’t have to be perfect. “If you wait til it’s perfect or the timing is right, you’ll never do it. And that goes for life in general.” She encourages women who are thinking of starting their own podcast to talk with other podcasters and learn from their experiences. When Michele was looking to start Asking for a Friend, she wrote up a business plan. It wasn’t to present to anyone, it was just for her to have as a foundation. She outlined the mission statement for the show, possible themes and topics, and a list of 20-30 guests she wanted to interview. And let social media be your friend. “Having other people on your podcast that have podcasts is never a bad idea. We can draw from each other’s audiences. You know that old saying all boats rise in high tides. I just try to be helpful to other people,” Michele says. She wants women to be true to themselves, do what makes them happy, and not conform to what people expect from them. If podcasting is what they want to do, then grab some courage and make it happen. All podcasters, no matter who they are, start from square one and don’t know what they are doing when they start. Instead of comparing ourselves to other podcasters, get ideas from them and make it your own. In the meantime, tune in to Asking for a Friend and discover the wisdom and support that this podcast has to offer. With its diverse range of voices and perspectives, it’s a must-listen for anyone looking to learn, grow, and connect with others. So don’t hesitate – subscribe today and join the community of listeners who are asking for a friend and finding the answers they need.

Instagram: @askingforafriend_pod Facebook: askforafriendpod Listen Here Country: United States 15

History Detective by Chelsea Pegues

Ironically, Australian podcast host Kelly Chase didn’t always have a love of history. When asked how her interest in the past blossomed, she says with an easy chuckle, “I hated history in school. I went to school in the late eighties, early nineties, and classrooms were a chalkboard and a black-and-white textbook, and occasionally they’d roll in a TV for you, if you were lucky… so it was really, really, boring and I didn’t even like it.” Today, she not only teaches the subject, but also hosts and produces the History Detective podcast, a show for “teachers, students and lovers of history. It delves into stories from the past that don’t always get told in the textbooks.” It wasn’t until her early thirties, while traveling to Japan and across the U.K., that Kelly’s passion began to form. Taking in these foreign cultures and seeing ancient locations was an enlightening experience for her; in her trademark musical laugh, she exclaims, “Then I was like, ‘Whoa, history is really interesting!’” She explains that on her way home, she began reading a book by popular travel author Bill Bryson, which piqued her interest further. He had written about Australia specifically, and in learning more about the First Nations People of her homeland, Kelly was hooked. “I read parts of that book, and I’m like, ‘Oh my God;’ I didn’t learn this history in high school, and, probably because it was a bit secretive back then and a lot has happened politically for us to be able to reveal this history since then, and I just started getting into it.” When Kelly resumed her own education in order to become a high school teacher herself, she chose history as her major so that she could empower future generations with the stories she was fortunate enough to discover in her formative years. At the height of the Coronavirus pandemic, when the world shut down and teachers were forced to adapt to holding classes virtually, Kelly knew she could no longer procrastinate- here was the ideal moment to bring her passion to life in an unexpected way- thus, the History Detective podcast was born. Especially palatable is the length of the episodes, with the majority ranging (on average) from six to thirty-five minutes. “It was a very, very pointed decision, I did it on purpose. A, partly because of my attention span and, B…because I’m creating this resource for…specifically I want schoolteachers and history students in classes to be able to use it. [There are] tons and tons of history podcasts- some of them go over two-and-a-half hours, and [that’s] very, very in- depth. I mean, I listen to those to get background knowledge on lots of different issues but that is not viable for any student who has a TikTok attention span.” Indeed, for a teacher to be able to use a podcast as a learning resource, says Kelly, “It needs to be short and snappy- it needs to be ten, fifteen minutes tops, so you can deliver a little bit of content and then do some activities around it, and talk and chat and analyze sources…most history podcasts are way too long for any classroom usability at all.” Another valuable point Kelly considered when organizing the construct of her show is that not all pupils have what she refers to as a “pre-understanding” of historical context and they (especially younger students) 17

simply aren’t equipped with that yet. She found that quite a lot of existing shows almost expected this of their audience, and so “their vocabulary was pitched a bit high,” as she puts it. “I like to make mine, just a [nice] bite-sized, here’s the basics, this is what it is, and this is just- a really interesting person to learn about.” This format makes for a wonderful educational springboard of sorts. History Detective lays the groundwork, providing the perfect amount of research and context to pique one’s interest-it is up to the listener or student to continue the journey from there. In fact, one of the show’s partners is Amped Up Learning, where Kelly is able to provide teaching resources which accompany each episode. Recent shows include “Case #34, Joan of Arc: Go Down Fighting.” This episode focuses on the fifteenth-century teenage girl who became revered as patron Saint of France for her fierce defense of the nation and insistence on the coronation of Charles VII during the Hundred Years’ War. Once a mainstay in popular culture references across books, film, and music in the twentieth century, the magnitude of Joan’s legend and her significant mark on the course of world history has become almost completely lost to the newer generations. “It’s interesting that she’s fallen out of the cultural zeitgeist a little bit with the younger generation, because when I was growing up there were all those songs and movies, and you know, all that kind of stuff in reference to Joan of Arc. I was at the hairdresser’s the other day and we were chatting and I said ‘Oh, I’m doing an episode about Joan of Arc’ and she’s like, ‘Oh, who’s that?’” Kelly laughs knowingly at this. Though it may be inconceivable to history buffs and educators alike, this is exactly why we need more podcasts like History Detective. There is a need to bring these important historical figures and events back into the spotlight in an engaging way. As philosopher George Santayana once said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” History Detective is unique for many reasons, but one exceptional feature of the show is the original songs Kelly writes for each episode. While she is not a professionally trained singer, her natural vocal talent is strong, and she has also played guitar since her teenage years. Because of the copyright laws surrounding existing music, Kelly decided to put her abilities to use and start composing her own for every show topic. “Some of the songs are better than others, but it’s fun to get it out there,” she says with a chuckle. “I usually always write a song before I write an episode…when I write my episode, that means I can kind of do little allusions to lyrics in the song, so when you listen to the song at the end you can make connections through the episode.” Kelly will comb through primary sources and articles on her subjects to gather quotes and bits of information to aid her in making the songs not only factual, but very catchy. She tries to imagine how the person she is focusing on would want to write a song about themselves- what would they want to share? As she says this, Kelly also raises an interesting point- imagine how these historical women would be able to propel themselves even further if they had had access to the social media platforms and media tools we utilize today? It’s a captivating thought, indeed. When asked what advice she would give to other women looking to start a podcast, Kelly keeps it straightforward: planning, planning, planning! “It depends what kind of podcast it is, really. If it’s a conversational podcast, where you’re interviewing people, it’s probably not as important that you’re doing the pre-planning, but obviously research on the person you’re interviewing. I think just organization and lists is a big thing for me, and just planning out [which day] I’m going to drop the episode, what I’ve got to do exactly for each 18

episode.” Of course, a history podcast is very researchheavy, so it is important to decide the subject matter your show will focus on, and what type of format you are most comfortable in so that you can clearly decipher the amount of research and writing you will need to do before sitting down to record. Kelly also likes to stay two months ahead of schedule with her episodes to give herself some time to properly edit and not feel too pressed for content (and time, of course). As far as equipment, she reiterates that sound quality and editing are her most important concerns. She is lucky enough to have a dedicated recording space in her home (with proper sound insulation, no less), but is quick to encourage anyone who wants to start to just jump in- as long as you have a drive and a decent microphone, there’s really nothing holding you back! Kelly’s fantasy podcast guest would be a First Nations woman called Tarenorerer, “Because often we don’t get sources from the perspective of First Nations people…to get someone whose voice has never been [heard].” While there’s really not a historical topic she would shy away from covering, she tends to avoid male-driven stories “Because there’s already so much out there.” Long-term, continuing to put out high-quality, easily consumable content is Kelly’s main focus, although she is also very excited about the April 2023 release of her first book, History, Her Story, Our Story: Inspirational Women Who Shaped Our World. “It’s basically [a condensed] version of content from the podcast, but how to be more inclusive of female stories in the classroom. [In the textbooks you’ll find] one-hundred-and-fifty depictions of male Vikings, and three women doing the washing, and women were there, and they did more than the washing. This is a seven-hundredyear period of history, so I just wanted to even out the stakes, and create a resource where females could be included.” It is so important to Kelly as an educator that the girls in any classroom know that their voices, past and present, always matter, and that they are well-represented throughout major historical events. Recently, a teacher contacted Kelly to tell her that a vision-impaired student of hers was able to use the podcast to connect with historical events in a way that other kinds of resources can’t provide. “That was really heartwarming and touching, that I was creating something that was diverse, for people with vision impairments to be able to enjoy.” It’s that kind of emotional payoff that can be such incredible motivation for any podcaster. And Kelly Chase certainly deserves all the praise. Overall, her sharp wit, remarkable passion for education, and intense creativity give her (and her show) a kind of sparkle. To talk to her for five minutes is like a sip of that perfect cup of morning coffee: warm, comforting, and makes you feel like you, too, can do anything. And as women, that is certainly what we need more of! “I absolutely love learning, so I am happy to never stop…and that’s a good thing about creating content, is every time I write an episode, I learn so much!”

Instagram: @historydetective9 Facebook: historydetectivepodcast Listen Here Country: Australia 19

StutterConversation by Kathy Barron

Being a teen is all about finding out who you are, what you want to be, and managing school classes. Then when you add a stutter on top of that, life gets even more stressful. For Priya Isaacs, an Australian teen who stutters, starting a podcast was a way for her to advocate for the stuttering community and meet other teens that stutter. Priya found out at a young age that she had a stutter. There’s a history of stuttering in her family, so her parents were aware of how important it was for her to get the help she needed. Someone who stutters has difficulty producing sounds and words fluently. It’s estimated that 1% of the world’s population stutters, though about 5% of children go through a period of stuttering. She had just started her stuttering page when she was asked by an American podcaster to be a guest on their show. What peaked her interest was when the podcaster mentioned to her that there wasn’t a podcast about stuttering for teenagers. Priya thought that it would be a cool idea to create a platform to talk with teenagers and others in the stuttering community, so they could share their stories and bring more awareness to the condition. Her goal for StutterConversation is to create a space where she can educate others in order to address the stigma around stuttering. Priya also struggles with imposter syndrome because she gets in her head a lot. Especially when people have asked why she started a stuttering podcast when she doesn’t sound like she has a stutter at times.“Stuttering looks different for everyone and there’s a different gradient of it. You may have weeks where you won’t stutter or you may have a day where you can’t say a whole phrase or a whole word itself. So that’s kind of the biggest issue for me is just trying to get out of my head,” she explains. It’s been difficult for Priya to meet other teenagers that stutter to guest on her show because everyone is on their own acceptance journey. “Having a stutter is very difficult. Covert stuttering… is that some people may not be able to hear that they have a stutter, so they most likely avoid restaurants, asking for bills, and things like that. And I think when you get older it becomes more difficult; when you’re a child it’s easy,” she explains. From Priya’s experience, it’s very difficult in high school because everyone’s already self conscious and having a stutter adds another layer. She adds, “I would always make sure that people didn’t know I have a stutter. But I think having the podcast is kind of when I accepted it because I started finding so many more (Instagram) accounts and then I was like, okay, it’s actually okay.” Priya thinks that once you accept that you have a stutter, it’s a bit easier because you know you can get through it which in turn makes you more confident to do the things you actually 21

want to do. “We kind of accept that we do have a stutter and it does affect how we speak and we will get people looking at us weirdly and asking questions. But I think the more we educate, the more it becomes less of a scary thing…that’s why acceptance is pretty important.” Priya’s sister, Chiara who is a speech pathologist (aka Speechies), was a guest on the show. She talked about her occupation and what it’s like being a sister of someone who stutters (EP3). Priya feels it’s hard for Speechies to talk to a parent about stuttering because there’s isn’t a definitive cause and sometimes it can just show up. “Especially for a parent who just found out that their child has a stutter. Not being able to tell them why it happens, if it will every go away,” she explains. One of Priya’s favorite episodes of her podcast is with, Kya, a fellow teenager who stutters (EP9). Priya felt she could relate to Kya, and they sharedtheir different experiences. “I think that it was a really inspiring episode to talk to her. She’s got a really big following on TikTok and she’s gotten a lot of hate and negative comments because she stutters,” she explains. Kya has been talking with speech pathologists to speak at her school assemblies and getting more awareness at her school. Having another teen to talk about their life is exactly the goal of StutterConversation, and it gave Priya the inspiration and motivation to find other teens that stutter. For instance, Edward from The Winner’s Mindset podcast (EP8). Edward is a 15 year old podcaster from London who also has a stutter. He talks about having a positive mindset and his guests largely consist of athletes; some of them have a stutter. Although Priya thinks it’s cool to see people who stutter (PWS) in podcasting, she’d like to see more of them represented in mainstream media. She thinks it’s especially important for the younger generation “because you don’t really get to see a lot of people that stutter on TV. And so it’s hard for younger generations to watch and not have someone that sounds like them. And if you do, it’s always seen as a negative thing, or they’re like dumb, or they’re shy, and things like that.” Priya feels that the more people talk about stuttering in a positive way, the more society will accept it. Having a stutter can be isolating but with the help of Zoom, Priya has been able to talk with other people that stutter from around the world like Nigeria, Ireland, and the UK. She has learned that although they are from different parts of the world, their experiences are very similar. A guest that Priya would love to have on StutterConversation is Emily Blunt because she has a stutter and is a huge advocate for the stuttering community. For teenagers, knowing that a celebrity also has a stutter goes a long way. One of the big stigmas around stuttering is that you’re less intelligent. Priya had an experience with one of her high school 22

teachers where they treated her as if she couldn’t handle the course load and even suggested she not take an advanced class because of the amount of speaking in class that was required. “I would tell my teacher that I didn’t want to do that because it was very scary and some people do stutter when they read. And so when you’re having to do this big monologue, you know, so many words, it’s hard to say that especially when so many people are looking at you as well. I mean, all in the circle,” she explains. Priya ended up switching to being home schooled and is in her last year of high school. She recommends that teachers meet with the student and their parents about how the student would like to be supported. Teachers and peers can support students who have a stutter by being patient and not interrupting when they are speaking. She would also like to see teachers create a more inclusive environment in their classes by openly discussing the different communication styles students experience. In Australia, stuttering is not completely accepted and Priya would love if the Australian government created a National Stuttering Awareness Week. They currently have an International Stuttering Awareness Day but it’s not really recognized and most people don’t even know it exists. She’s been teaming up with Say: Australia - The Stuttering Association for the Young and has contacted members of the Parliament in hopes of getting a petition submitted to the government so there is more awareness about stuttering in Australia. StutterConversation continues to bring awareness to stuttering showing the world that having a speech impediment doesn’t hinder communication—and Priya’s show proves that. Be sure to tune in to StutterConversation to be inspired and gain new insights and perspectives of folks who don’t let their stutter hold them back. You won’t be disappointed.

Instagram: @stutterconversation Twitter: @stutterconverse Listen Here Country: Australia 23

Grief and Happiness by Becca Rae Eagle

It’s not every day that one is greeted with the warmth of family, yet Emily Thiroux Threatt, host of The Grief and Happiness podcast recently welcomed me into a conversation with “Aloha,” and discussions of “Ohana” (extended family) that made me feel cozy in her Hawaiian home across the screen of a Zoom meeting. Emily’s Society and Culture category podcast began as a way to reach more in her mission and purpose-helping humans grieve glad–I was honored and glad to meet her. On an evening just a few short days after she had surgery, when I was still battling the flu, Emily and I shared a conversation as resilient sisters, touching on the triumphs and trials of podcasting as women. At times on her remote island Emily feels like she’s “doing it out here by myself.” She lives on Maui and the windstorms and rainstorms are “really big, messing up our internet-it just goes out and is really hard because who knows, it might be out overnight,” Emily lamented. It surely makes podcasting a bit more challenging some days. Thankfully, Emily’s work is no match for the weather as it circles the globe, aiding those who are deeply grieving. She mentioned that the free grief and happiness meetings she hosts span across the United States into Canada, England, Ireland, Australia, and other parts of the world. Participants, though grieving, are seeking happiness too-what she offers uniquely in title and in practice. When Emily is not interviewing guests for her podcast or authoring her books, she still serves as a remote English instructor for California State University Bakersfield and hosts her free weekly Grief and Happiness Alliance sessions. Emily holds a Master’s Degree in English with Concentration in Writing. Besides her own titles, Emily has contributed to three writing textbooks released by Prentice Hall and Pearson Education. Emily’s personal work includes: multi award-winning Loving and Living Your Way Through Grief: A Comprehensive Guide to Reclaiming, Cultivating Joy Carrying on in the Face of Loss, and International bestseller Ignite Forgiveness: A Journey in Forgiveness, Peace, and Inner Harmony. When I asked Emily how she came into podcasting she shared that when her book, Loving and Living Your Way Through Grief (Mango Publishers), had just come out in 2021she was “in the process of doing a pilot program for the Grief and Happiness Alliance that I created, a nonprofit association that goes with it so that people don’t have to pay to come to the groups. And I was trying to think of a good way to get the word out about grief and happiness. I thought, well, everybody’s listening to podcasts now, and as soon as I started thinking about it, I got a notice for a wonderful company that taught me how to do podcasts.” Emily attributes her initial podcasting success to an eightweek Podcaster Accelerator program with Ginni Sarawati and Michelle Sorro where you begin with a concept and complete the program with a podcast launch. She enjoyed the interesting people she met and serving grieving people who she had previously led as a writing teacher in a course designed to process and deal with grief in a healthy way. Emily lost two husbands in her life, Jacques Thiroux and Ron Threatt. Respectfully, she keeps a non-hyphenated last name to honor them both. Emily’s personal grief journey, writing instruction, and now podcasting, all compliment the way she holds space for hurting humans, many of her offerings free of charge. 25

As Emily lovingly looked back upon the initial start to her podcasting journey, she shared how exciting it was for her to “get ready for everything” and that she “loved the whole process.” She mentioned that she was particularly inspired by choosing appropriate into and outro music to compliment her podcast’s purpose “and what I really wanted my mission to be, my vision with it, and I really enjoyed it (the process). These days Emily continues to enjoy this process even more as she shared with me that some big podcasters, some really interesting people, now approach her to be on the show. One of Emily’s favorite aspects of podcasting today is the people she’s grown to know from all over the world, places like Spain and Sweden recently, “people that I never would have even known to search for.” Emily reaches out to anyone who she truly wants to have on her show. One of her favorite guests was Marcy Shimoff, who has paired up with the likes of Jack Canfield, author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Marcy is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Transformational Leader and Certified Happy for No Reason Leader. Emily shared that she “really respect(s) her” and had her on the podcast about nine months ago. Another favorite guest was Rickie Byers, “a singer, very well known in the New Thought community. And she’s phenomenal,” according to Emily, for “she does so much with her music and the power of her music.” Continuing her quest for phenomenal guests, Emily hopes to have author Amy Bloom on one day. Bloom is an author, and “wrote a really beautiful book on love and her experience with her husband when he transitioned,” Emily shared. She’s excited about pursuing authors Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant of Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy. Megan Divine is also a sought after guest; she wrote It’s OK that You’re Not OK. Emily states, “I’ve heard more people recommend that book or talk about reading that book than any other grief book” around. Sheryl and her husband were away in a foreign country. They were preparing to go out to dinner that night. She was getting dressed. Her husband was finishing up a workout at the gym. When he didn’t return in a timely manner, she went to look for him-he was dead in the gym. Emily relayed that “I would love to have her on because of her whole perspective on sudden, unanticipated death. I think she’d be really wonderful. If Sheryl were a guest, she would talk to her about losing her husband while she had small children, was a top executive, and had to keep going. A question Emily would ask Sheryl is: “So what advice would you give to people, particularly women, who have to support themselves after a death that they don’t anticipate?” Another guest Emily is drawn to inviting is Jay Shetty. He just wrote a book called Eight Rules of Love: How to Find It, Keep It, and Let It Go. One day, Emily would love to ha ve a local neighbor, Oprah Winfrey, on the podcast as well. In the meantime, Emily welcomes grief experts as well as ordinary people in the public dealing with grief on her show. She understands that “They’re looking for something to pull them up out of the depths that you can get into. You don’t get over grief. You have grief as long as you love a person. And I know this with my husbands and my parents and all my relatives, all the people I know who died.” When I asked Emily what advice she would give to women who want to begin a podcast she replied, with how rewarding it is “To listen to the podcast with the kind of people that I interview and the conversations that we have. There are more and more podcasts all the time, so there’s 26

more and more listeners all the time. It’s really growing exponentially. So if you want to do a podcast, just do it! Get some help so that you don’t go in blindly because there’s a lot to learn, but you can learn it in a relatively short period. So, just set your intention for what you want, what kind of thing you want, and go for it.” Emily is not intimidated serving as a female podcaster either. She relayed to me that “I’m not bothered by my role as a woman in any of the jobs that I’ve had. I’m a feminine perspective-I don’t judge anybody else and I don’t assume that anybody else judges me.” She hopes all women podcasters “take care of themselves in a way that their podcasts can thrive and be listened to” as we are the “real deal,” and there are some “really good ones out there,” Emily emphasized. In terms of things she wishes she knew before starting her podcast journey, Emily iterated that she wishes she knew “how expensive it was to do it right. I’m doing it anyway, but I’d love to know how to monetize it. And I haven’t figured that out yet, but I love it. It’s an expensive passion project for me.” Emily relayed that she even hired a production team. She credits that trade off she made: “I have somebody else do it, and they do such a beautiful job that it looks really professional, and I like very much what they do.” It’s apparent listeners appreciate all Emily does for them too. Reinforcement from her listeners makes all the difference-the most rewarding reason she continues the podcast: “The most rewarding is when I hear from my listeners that it actually made a difference in their lives because that’s really why I’m doing it. I help people be able to find happiness when they’re grieving and they actually tell me how grateful they are.” Emily’s goal for powerful episodes are ones that “people can take home and put into effect immediately, smile and have it really work for them,” when dealing with their grief. In the future, the podcast, her books, the Grief and Happiness Alliance and its nonprofit organization will all work in tandem with each other. According to Emily, “That’s what I want the future to be, where each one supports the other one. If one buys my book, they want to hear my podcast, or if they hear my podcast, they want to go to my group, or if they go to my group, they want to buy my book. That’s sort of a real reciprocal thing. Listeners, readers, and participants become almost like a family (Ohana).” Ohana it is, Emily, as in your presence, listening to your heart, one knows they are welcome, valued, and held. Each week she shares her service, her podcast, and her passion in weekly podcast episodes, sometimes shared once a week and sometimes with a mini-episode in between. Listeners can count on Emily’s dedication to those longing to grieve in informed, caring, and positive ways.

Website: lovingandlivingyourwaythroughgrief.com Instagram: @emily_thiroux_threatt Facebook: Loving and Living Your Way Through Grief Listen Here Country: United States 27

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Build a Community with Storytelling by Hilary Salzman

Imagine it’s a sunny day, and you’re taking a stroll down by the sea. A young girl devours an ice cream cone, and her massive grin, dripping with strawberry sauce, shows how much she enjoys it. You smile to yourself, thinking back to your childhood. You feel good. Suddenly, a greedy seagull torpedoes down. Snatching the girl’s ice cream from her hand; she sobs big snotty tears. You might be thinking, “hang on a minute, what has this got to do with podcasting?” You might also be wondering whether you need to read this article - you’re not hosting a fiction podcast, so does storytelling even matter? The answers (in reverse order) are Yes. And, everything. As a podcaster, storytelling is one of the most powerful tools you have to engage and grow your audience. No matter what your subject matter is. Stories have an incredible potency to bring your ideas, beliefs, and experiences to life. They inspire and empower others, uniting them around a common interest or cause. Let’s go back to our devastating scene at the beach. Initially, I used my words to create a mental picture that makes us feel good. But you weren’t exactly on the edge of your seat, were you? As far as we knew, the girl would finish her snack, head home, and live happily ever after. Or not. Likely, we wouldn’t stick around long enough to find out. But introduce the villain seagull, and suddenly chaos replaces happiness. What’s going to happen to the girl, we wonder? Will her parents criticize her for her lack of attention? Could this be the start of a big adventure to banish all pesky birds from the land? Or will she just get another ice cream? Whatever happens next, we want to stick around to find out. And this is the same for your podcast audience. Without drama, emotion, intrigue, or a compelling question they’re seeking to get answered, there is little incentive for listeners to give you their ear, let alone come back episode after episode. But when you throw storytelling into the mix, especially your own story, the magic starts to happen. Stories are a great hook. When told right, they make your show more relatable and memorable, keeping you on top of your listener’s minds so they keep coming back and recommending you to others. 31

But why are stories so powerful? And how specifically can you use them to build a thriving podcast community? Sharing your stories helps others understand what’s possible. For women, this is especially important, changing the narrative around success and showing the world what we’re all capable of. When Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman in the United States Congress, she made a homemade video telling her story about growing up in her community. Over 300k people watched it on day one, and she went on to win, defeating a man who had held the seat for a decade. Now that’s progress. Just imagine the power your own story could have. Stories help your listeners feel part of something that matters. Nobody wants to feel alone. We actively seek people who share our views and seek solace in knowing we’re not the only ones going through something. Essentially we want to feel seen and heard. Storytelling is an opportunity to connect with your audience on a deeper, more emotional level that speaks to their inner fears and gives them a sense of belonging. Being vulnerable in your stories sparks conversation and encourages others to do the same. You don’t have to air all your dirty laundry, but maybe share a time when you failed at something and what you learned from it, or when you experienced loss; whatever is relevant to the topic of your show and most importantly, to the needs of your listeners. Stories spark action. Hell yeah, they do. I love a quote by Michael Margolis: “leaders lead by telling stories that give others permission to lead, not follow.” If you’ve got thoughts on a topic, are championing a cause (even if that is getting more people into true crime!), or simply sharing life experiences through your podcast, you are a leader. And that gives you power. So use it. When you start telling your story, others will follow. Especially when you tap into the stories they already know.

Here are my top tips for using storytelling to engage and grow your podcast audience. Tip 1: Find your story; identify your podcast’s key message and purpose. Think about what your listeners care about (not just what you think is interesting). Look at what problems they’re looking to solve. And use this to create an engaging and compelling story that resonates with them. Tip 2: Spend the time to figure out your hook - you’ve only got a couple of seconds to make an impact. Drama and emotion are good for this (remember the seagull?). Why not share a time something went epically wrong to create intrigue and a desire to listen on? It’s also a great way to tee up sharing what you’ve learned as a result, how this has impacted your personal story, and what that could mean to your listeners. E.g., maybe through messing something up royally, you had the idea to start your podcast or saw a gap in the market to help people with similar experiences to you. Tip 3: Use anecdotes and examples to bring your story to life. Avoid listing facts and figures and use real-life examples to show listeners what you mean and how this can help them. That’s not to say don’t include data in your podcast if it’s relevant (cleverly placed data can boost credibility,) but tell it in a story that will pique the interest of your average listener. Tip 4: Collaborate with other storytellers Work with other podcasters and storytellers to expand your audience, reach new listeners, and connect with like-minded people who share similar stories and experiences. Tip 5: Be yourself Sharing stories is a chance to let your listeners get to know the real you. Talk how you usually talk. Be genuine, honest, and authentic. A little bit of humor doesn’t go amiss (audience-appropriate, of course!) Remember, storytelling is key to building a loyal podcast audience. Use these tips to create compelling stories that capture the attention and imagination of your listeners, and keep them coming back for more.

Become a Contributing Writer! Contact us at info@womenwhopodcastmag.com

Best Book Ever by Tina Jaramillo

Women Who Podcast magazine caught up with Julie Strauss to learn more about Best Book Ever podcast and the challenges she has faced as a podcaster. As an author Julie has always been interested in connecting with people who loved books, even if their genres were different from hers. But in recent years, Julie has expanded her creative endeavors to include podcasting. Her journey from being a writer to a podcaster allows her to connect with her readers in a different way, to bring them into the world of books and share her passion for literature. With her unique perspective and storytelling skills, Best Book Ever has provided her a new way to connect with her audience through the power of podcasting. Essentially, the podcast explores the books that have had the most significant impact on people’s lives. Each episode features a guest who shares their favorite book, discussing the reasons behind their choice, and why it holds a special place in their heart. From childhood classics to lesser known novels, Best Book Ever celebrates the power of literature and the personal connections we make with the stories we read. The idea for the podcast came to Julie when she attended her first author signing event. She was nervous about selling her books and didn’t know how to approach potential readers. During the event, a woman picked up one of Julie’s books, an interracial romance, and after glancing at the cover, flung it back on the table saying, “I don’t read interracial.” This incident left Julie shaken, but it also made her realize that she didn’t want to sell books to people who weren’t interested in them. “I’m interested in talking to book lovers. That is the sweet spot for me is talking to people who love books, even if they are books I dislike. I just want to hear what [they] like about them. That’s interesting. That’s a genuine connection point,” Julie adds. Her approach allows the listener to delve into the pages of her guest’s favorite books, exploring the themes, characters, and lessons that have touched their lives and left a lasting impression. When Covid hit and everyone was forced to stay in their homes, Julie realized that starting a podcast was something she could do. She had been thinking about the idea for a while, and now she had the time and the opportunity to make it happen. When asked about the title of the show, Julie explained, “I just wanted to sort of capture that feeling that people have when they tell you this was the best book [they’ve] read, and ‘you’ve got to read this. You’re not even going to believe it.’ That conversation is so much fun, and I wanted to capture that in the title of the podcast.” And that’s exactly what the show is about. It’s a podcast for book lovers where Julie and her guests talk about all things books. She interviews authors about their books and readers about their favorites. But Julie is quick to note that 35

“I want to know what everybody reads, not just not just people who are obsessed with books 24/7, the way I am I.” She adds, “I had a man on the podcast, who has read one book, his entire adult life that he picked up by accident, that he thought he was reading Homer’s Odyssey, and it turned out it was a book about a cat.” It turned out that while her guest wasn’t a book nerd in any way, the book he accidentally picked up became his favorite. The magic is what resulted: an interesting, unexpected conversation. And it’s those conversations that Julie wants to tap into. Julie’s interviews present an opportunity to develop a deeper appreciation for books and reading where listeners can discover new authors and new genres, along with Julie. She’s creating a space not only for book lovers but a space where books are for everyone. When conducting interviews, she has a set of questions, but the real story often emerges in the editing process. She tries to find an overarching story and theme, and learn something about the person being interviewed. Her tagline for the show is, “We get to know interesting people by asking them about their favorite books.” By exploring the books that have made an impact on her guests’ lives, Julie aims to provide a deeper understanding of her guests’ personalities, values, and perspectives. In essence, the podcast uses books as a way to connect with people on a more personal level and learn about their unique experiences and insights. Furthermore, Julie believes that it’s essential to have diverse guests on her podcast. For Julie, books are a unifier and a way to connect with people from different backgrounds. “Even if you and I are born in different places and have a different skin color, we can talk about a book together and say you got that out of this. That’s not what I got. Here’s what I got. Isn’t that interesting that we read it so differently, and tell me why you interpreted it that way?” says Julie. So how does Julie find her amazing guests? She turns to social media. She explained that she chooses her guests by using Instagram and following bookstagrammers. She wants to learn about different backgrounds and lifestyles, which makes the show more diverse and interesting. It is important for her to honor the stories that her guests share with her, especially since they are often strangers to her. Julie believes that talking about books is a brave and candid thing to do, as books “knit themselves into our lives in a specific way.” Overall, Julie wants to create a space where people can share their stories and their love for books. She believes that books are an important part of people’s lives and that talking about them can be a way to connect with others. Her podcast is a testament to the power of books and the stories that they hold. But while she’s open to all genres and writing, she stresses that she won’t cover certain books. “I will veto anything that’s racist or homophobic,” she notes.

When asked about the key skills or traits that are important for someone to be successful in podcasting, Julie emphasizes the importance of persistence and commitment to the topic. “It’s a very expensive hobby for most of us, as you know, and so I think commitment to whatever topic you’re doing is the key,” says Julie. She is acutely aware that success in podcasting is a long game, and not everyone is going to get a multi-million dollar deal like some of the big names in the industry. However, she believes that if you’re passionate about your topic and are committed to producing quality content, success will come in due time. “I think a genuine passion for the subject is the key, because you’re going to be working many late nights and many weekends, and most likely for a very long time before it becomes financially successful, and you have to love it anyway,” she says. For folks starting off in podcasting, Julie offers this first piece of advice: “Do it. It’s easy enough to start, and every time you do it, you get a little bit better.” But what about feedback? “Be willing to ask people what they liked and what they disliked,” Julie suggests. “ Don’t listen to anyone who says they love you or hate you on the internet. Listen to people you trust.” And that’s exactly what Julie did when she received some early feedback from a family member. “Very early on, someone in my family said, ‘You giggle a lot in your early episodes,’” Julie recalled. “And I got so angry, and then I listened and I went, ‘I really do giggle a lot.’” Julie’s husband also offered some advice. “He once told me that if I say ‘I love this so much’ 50 times in an episode, it loses its impact,” she shared. “And when that kind of advice comes from people you trust and you’re willing to hear those critiques, it’s only going to make you better at what you do.” The lesson here is that it’s easy to get caught up in our own ideas and perspectives, and sometimes we need that outside perspective to point out things we may have missed or could do better. Overall, listening to feedback from those we respect and care about can be a powerful tool for growth. Julie’s final piece of advice? “Be willing to pivot while staying within your vision,” she said. “And you’re going to get better every single time.” It’s clear that Julie’s love of books and passion for connecting with folks has translated into an incredible podcast. So tune in and maybe you’ll be inspired to read a new book or to share your best book ever with Julie.

Instagram: @bestbookeverpodcast Substack: bestbookeverpodcast.substack.com Listen Here Country: United States 37

mindFLOWERS. by Kathy Barron

Evolution is part of the human experience. We are not the same person today that we were five, ten, or fifteen years ago; physically, mentally, emotionally. For Ashlynd, host of mindFLOWERS podcast, evolving is a daily occurrence. Before becoming a podcaster, she helped women as a personal stylist, but it wasn’t the outfits that impacted her the most, it was the conversations she had with the women. Ashlynd became their confidant, someone they could trust with their deepest thoughts and personal stories of trauma. She felt good after each session because of the connection she made with her clients, and she wanted to help women reach their full potential. She initially named the show, How to be a Baddie but as Ashlynd grew and explored other ideas, it evolved into mindFLOWERS. Her episode topics have gotten a bit deeper and are more about what type of relationship you are having with yourself, the seven stages of transformation, and amplifying your aura. Her daily experiences, things that make her sit up and reflect, and how she can communicate that lesson to others generates ideas for the podcast. “I had to get a job to support myself financially after taking a swing at having the podcast provide the income and feeling like I’m a business failure. It’s just realizing like I can pick up my experiences of going back to the workforce, take the lesson, and then share the things that I’ve learned,” Ashlynd explains. During this business venture, she tried many avenues of monetizing the podcast, got more clarity on what she enjoyed doing and decided she didn’t want to control her creativity by an expectation of performance. “I found I was losing myself. Trying to, oh, let me make sure I’m getting content out, an episode every five days, doing the marketing. I don’t want it to be a diluted experience just because I’m trying to reach some goal. So it’s like, I love that seven plus two is nine, but so is six plus three and five plus four.” She finds herself sharing information that genuinely lifts her up and hopes it lifts up others as well. After her experience of reevaluating her podcast and doing her best to monetize it, Ashlynd recommends that women know what their intention is before starting a podcast. She would like women to take the chance and follow their own path with courage and boldness. Knowing their why will carry them through the difficult times of pod fade or not having the numbers they were expecting. Going back to basics is the best way to realign with why the podcast was created in the first place. Ask yourself questions like is this podcast for your growth, is it purely a project to have fun with, or do you want to serve others. Being yourself is vital to being relatable to listeners. She thinks “that when we compare ourselves and get into that hamster wheel, we feel like 50 (likes or downloads) is nothing. But if I filled up a room of 50 people in real life, I 39

would be like, oh my gosh, I have to speak in front of 50 people.” Not letting data distract you from your mission statement is key in longevity. Ashlynd believes that’s why it’s so important for women to seek other women podcasters because they are wired to emotionally connect. It’s important that women podcasters feel welcome, safe, and seen within the podcast community. The most rewarding aspect of mindFLOWERS for Ashlynd is being able to look back at the episodes to see how she has grown and using that as fuel to continue moving forward. As a certified Neurolinguistic Practitioner (NLP), “which is really just subconscious architecture,” Ashlynd believes that when the subconscious and conscious mind link up through words and intentions, that’s when the “mental flowers” are produced. Our minds are always creating and blooming hence mindFLOWERS. She has many episodes that provide meditations and self-hypnosis; it’s all about giving ourselves the opportunity to integrate and then implement these practices into our daily lives. In her episodes, Ashlynd doesn’t mince words. She dishes up some radical honesty in 5-12 minutes; just enough time for your brain to absorb the information. She’s “here to inspire you out of your cycle and into your potential.” For example, in the episode, “Spiritual Hibernation: Rest into Yourself” (Dec 12 2022), Ashlynd talks about how solitude is alchemy and takes the listener through a meditation to help them “rest into the most sacred place of all: your heart.” In a most recent episode, “Power UP! [Part Two]: Amplify Ya Aura” (April 4 2023), she teaches us that we are made up of energy and our aura (or energy field) is the first point of contact with people. Ashlynd explains that our aura reflects our state of being and health and is connected to a vital source called chakras. Because we are beings of energy, she advises the listener to limit their time around electronics because the “frequencies mess with our natural biorhythms and cycles.” A favorite episode of Ashlynd’s is “Magician that $h!t” (Nov 1 2021) because she loved doing the research and nerding out. It’s also the longest episode at 27 minutes. The episode “is a rollercoaster through the cosmic ethos.” The science of magic like how words and thoughts are energy. An episode that Ashlynd is very proud of is “Bloom” (Feb 12 2022). It was her first guided experience and gave her the opportunity to really explore her creativity and play around with sound production. One episode that received many messages from listeners was “What to do When You’re Losing Faith” (Oct 5 2022). Ashlynd was going through a very painful time in her life, and she wanted to share the details of why she lost faith and how she came out of that experience. Her story resonated with many listeners and helped them get a different perspective. “I feel like it’s more important to hold those close than whatever criticisms, whether they’re self criticisms or outside criticisms, like that doesn’t matter. What matters is those moments when you help someone.” Ashlynd’s message is one of transformation, spiritual thought, and inspiration. 40

Aslynd recognizes that mindFLOWERS is a part of who she is, her personality, and it’s her stamp on the world. The challenging part is not putting expectations on herself and the podcast to perform a certain way. “The mental challenge of outdoing myself in my last episode and also the mental challenge of not getting down on myself. It’s appreciating the journey and being gentle with myself as I’m on the journey. So it’s like navigating that, you know, knowing that my podcast still matters regardless how many people listen to it,” she says. Ashlynd wants to keep mindFLOWERS in audio format in reference to the song “Video Killed the Radio Star.” She doesn’t have the desire to be on video every week and feels that as a society “everything wants to be like everything else.” All the platforms are becoming each other, and they are all blending into one another. “But I think when you’re not going after what everybody else is doing, that is what creates an uphill battle.” Having mindFLOWERS as a narrative podcast has been a different sort of battle for Ashlynd. Wanting to grow and improve ourselves is a natural desire. As Ashlynd says “because we are dynamic beings and we naturally want to explore new avenues. The more you do something, the more episodes you publish, you naturally wanna get better.” She didn’t come into podcasting wanting a specific number of downloads or features. Ashlynd thought it was fun and it felt good to her. One thing that she definitely wants to continue doing is share her deep, personal, and spiritual experiences with the world. “The flowering or the fruits of my experiences and how I’ve processed them mentally and then giving that to other people,” she says. And that’s what she calls mindflow. Ashlynd understands that when she chooses to go her own way (and not follow the masses) it can be a harder path, but she feels it fortifies her more. So if you’re into meditation, crystals, and spiritual science, be sure to tune into mindFLOWERS for a tranformative experience.

Website: mndflwrs.me Twitter: @mindflowers888 Listen Here Country: United States 41

Moms Who Create by Natalie Boero

Few things are more life-changing than becoming a parent, and the proliferation of parenting podcasts is only further evidence that parents, particularly moms, are looking for advice, support, and community around the challenges of having and raising children. For Kelli Heil, creative, author, mother of two, artist, and creator and host of the Moms Who Create podcast, one of the areas of parenting that was overlooked in discussions of adjusting to motherhood was how, or even if, it was possible to maintain and grow one’s life as a creative in the midst of all the joy and chaos that comes with raising children. Describing her podcast as, “where creativity and motherhood collide”, Kelli sets out to help moms find balance and cast off the guilt that can come with “pursuing your dreams while also raising a family.” When she first became a mom, Kelli felt that it meant her creative life was over, or at least on hold for eighteen or so years. Kelli recalls nursing her oldest daughter in the middle of the night and longing to connect with her creativity, but simply being too exhausted to do much more than survive. After the steep learning curve of those early months, Kelli began to get back to some of her creative projects and, as she did, she felt herself wishing that during those difficult months some had been there to tell her, “I know it’s tough right now. It can be really tough, but you don’t have to just be, mom. You can still be who you were.” For Kelli, she needed to hear that, “You don’t have to be just one thing because you have a new, amazing, wonderful role of being, Mom, you need to find balance.” Having been a long-time podcast listener, she really wanted to reach out to new moms struggling to balance their creativity with motherhood. As Kelli put it, “I wanted to talk to moms who were me years ago to say, ‘it’s gonna get easier’ and, ‘make sure you don’t throw away your old self just because you’re covered in spit up.’” Kelli decided that a podcast would be the way she could best communicate to others what she wished she had heard as a new mom and thus in the fall of 2021, Moms Who Create was born. Kelli feels that as a medium, podcasting is especially suited to busy moms who aren’t especially tech-savvy and who also happen to be introverts. Once Kelli decided to start Moms Who Create, she simply googled, “how to start a podcast,” got a microphone, learned basic audio editing in GarageBand, contacted a few creative moms, and started releasing weekly episodes on topics like, digital art illustrating, finding a creative community, and self-publishing. While Kelli describes her first few episodes as “rough,”,she kept at it and now has 72 episodes under her belt and a long list of potential guests. 43

From the start Kelli knew she wanted the podcast to have an interview format because she wanted to showcase the experience of as many creative moms as she could. Kelli describes her initial interviewing style as “canned,” but over time she has learned how to ask questions in a way that really allows her guests to open up and share their experiences with listeners. Initially, Kelli would send guests an email of her questions before recording an episode, but she came to feel like that resulted in interviews that felt more like a “check list” and sounded “scripted.” Now, Kelli tries to “keep the conversation really natural and flowy.” So instead of emailing guests a list of questions in advance, Kelli just describes the recording process to her guests as a conversation. Kelli explains, “I just say, ‘so, basically, what’s gonna happen is I’m gonna talk ,and then I’m gonna have you introduce yourself and tell me about you. Tell me about your book, art, or whatever you do.’” Then Kelli follows her guest’s lead and asks follow up questions about how they balance being a creative with being a mom, what advice they might have for other moms, and what they have coming up next. Kelli feels these less structured interviews are, “easier to listen to, and feels more like talking to your friends.” For Kelli, it took a while to trust herself enough to let go of structured questions and let things flow, but now she feels like her episodes are more interesting and get more at what makes each guest unique. Early on Kelli reached out to her guests, most often through social media, but, as she has gone along people have started to find her, most often through the “contact” link on her website. Now Kelli rarely finds herself needing to go out and find a guest because she has interviewees booked months out and keeps a list of potential guests, something that saves her a lot of time. Kelli says that the effort she put into contacting potential guests early on really paid off, she explained, “I rarely have to actually contact people anymore and ask them to be on because I have a list of people. But that took like a year to do, because I used to contact so many people.” Kelli also “accidentally” discovered that social media groups can be a great way to find guests when she found herself looking for a last-minute guest in a Facebook group and, within minutes of posting, had several people contact her interested in being on the podcast. When people contact Kelli about being on the podcast, she directs them to a form on her website that helps her keep her growing list of potential guests organized. For Kelli, being a podcaster, especially one who does interviews, has also expanded her world and allowed her to connect with people she never would otherwise. A self-described introvert, Kelli feels like doing the podcast has really helped her “put herself out there.” As Kelli puts it, “I’m still a little bit introverted, but when I started [the podcast], I was very introverted, so in some ways, I couldn’t believe that I was actually doing a podcast.” Over time, Kelli’s husband noticed a change, too. Kelli recalls, “now I’ll just talk to anybody. He’s like, ‘Look at you just, talking to somebody on the street.’ So [podcasting] has really opened me up and helped me meet a lot of people. That’s the best thing about this, is it’s helped me meet people all over the world. Other moms that really inspire me.” Kelli has also learned a lot about how to make putting out a weekly podcast more manageable for moms who are already juggling kids, jobs, and other projects. For Kelli, prerecording a standard intro and outro really saves her a lot of time. Kelli also saves time by having potential guests fill out a form on her website and through sending each a media kit that she has created to cut down on sending out individual emails. Kelli also pre-plans her social media posts and

sends social media clips in a form that is easy for her guests to share on their own social media accounts. After editing the episode, Kelli will send her guest “a little clip, like a sound byte from the beginning of the episode, and I say, ‘feel free to use these, if not totally fine.’ But I want them to have something easy to share, and they usually share it.” The most important part of putting out a podcast for Kelli is to, “...know what you’re doing. It has a purpose and has a meaning, no matter what it is. I have to remind myself, and remind other moms what we’re doing has a meaning. It has a purpose. It is worth it.” Kelli mostly interacts with her listeners through social media or through her website. She loves getting feedback and when listeners send her new ideas. One thing she has discovered over time is that it is easier to connect with listeners, guests, and a larger podcast community when she “puts her face out there.” At the most recent Podfest conference, Kelli said she learned, “Don’t be afraid to show your face, even if you don’t love what you look like because people feel a better connection to you if they see you. So, I’m getting more comfortable with that, and I’ve noticed that people send me more messages or want to contact me more when they can put a face to the podcast.” It was also at Podfest that Kelli was able to connect with other woman and mom podcasters, something she definitely hopes to do more of in the future. Kelli would also like to see more visibility for women and mom podcasters as she feels like, “we’re growing in the whole podcast community even if so much of podcasting is still all these dudes talking about Bitcoin.” Kelli wants to see and promote more podcasts that have women in more diverse roles, at the end of the day, she “just wants to see women succeed and not see each other as competition.” Looking to the future, Kelli is excited to continue to grow Moms Who Create and connect with other mom podcasters. While it is important to Kelli that her podcast is available to anyone who wants to listen, she is also starting to dabble in monetizing her podcast through BuzzSprout ads and affiliate links, something she encourages other women podcasters to not feel “guilt about wanting to make money.” One thing is for sure, Kelli will continue to encourage moms to be creative and flourish as both creative people and moms.

Website: momswhocreate.com Instagram: @momswhocreatepodcast Facebook: Moms Who Create Podcast Listen Here Country: United States 45

How Podcasters Pr

Summer is just around the corner and most of us are ready to come out of hibernation and shed that cozy w Find your sign belo ARIES - As a fire sign, you are motivated by action, so it’s no surprise that the idea of a slower pace might make you cringe. The challenge for you will be to grab your towel, ear buds, a good book, a pool raft, and relax into the inaction. Yes, Aries. I said what I said! Relax into the inaction. Don’t worry. You know your mind will still be a busy little bee. But the opportunity for quality and aligned ideas will be more readily available for you. No pressure. No expectations. Just easy flow.

TAURUS - This is the time of the year when you want to be away from the mic, enjoying the fruits of your labor. Use your analytical skills to put a schedule together that sets you ahead. This way you are sipping Bellini’s in bikini’s and not waking yourself up in the middle of the night stressing about making deadlines.

GEMINI - Your carefree nature has you living your best summer life in a vintage VW bus, cruising down the California coast! There, you reconnect with the best parts of yourself and remember what sets your soul on fire. Don’t make things harder than they need to be. Set reasonable schedules for work. But make sure the work is meaningful and organic. A-ha moments are on the horizon.

CANCER - Ah, summer. With the warm sun and flowers in full bloom, this is where you find your energy is at its peak. Your momentum for clear and concise plans are followed through by making achievable timelines, but also scheduling in time for yourself and those you love. You are inspired by joyous occasions the feeling of groundedness. Maybe this can be the focus of a mini podcast series. Calm in the chaos. That’s where you excel.

LEO - With the sun high in the sky, it’s the best time to recharge your battery. While you are on the high-octane vibe most of the time, this is an invitation to see where you can find more stillness. Use this time to gather ideas, reflect on the journey thus far, and make plans for where you’d like to be in the coming months.

VIRGO - Your meticulous detail-oriented nature will have you looking at how you can evolve your passion projects even further. Perhaps a webinar or course will help you round out some areas you have been looking at enhancing for a while. Are the Tech Gods calling your name? Perhaps! 46

repare For Summer by Tera Barnes

winter coat. Do you want to know how you’ll prepare for summer as a podcaster based on your zodiac sign? ow to learn more! LIBRA - This time of the year invites you to tap into your creative talents and look at making your projects more cohesive. Have you been looking at new branding? Maybe even a website revamp? Here is your sign to go ahead and spruce things up a bit! Additionally, you may find yourself schmoozing with like-minded people who can help you rise to new levels. Sometimes it’s about who you know!

SCORPIO - What is that bright orb in the sky? *hiss* Summer is where you might find yourself being more of a hermit. No shame in that game! Take this opportunity to dive into the deeper aspects of what you love about what you are doing and the message you want to send. This is the ultimate energy of passion and drive for you. Put your plans together, work out the kinks, and you’ll be ready to rock n’ roll for fall.

SAGITTARIUS - As a sign who enjoys the easy mellow vibe of life, the energy of summer is the perfect time to look at your goals from a higher perspective. Is the nature of your passion project speaking to who you are? Is there more that you could be doing to align your goals? How can you dive deeper into subjects that are intriguing and thought provoking? Grab a pen and some paper, put on the Bridgerton official playlist and get inspired to reach new heights.

CAPRICORN - Go, go, go, may be the name of your game Cap, but perhaps this is the time to take your foot off the gas and breathe. Yes, being in perpetual motion is a thing for you, but where can you delegate responsibility so that you can downshift for a bit. This would be a great opportunity for you to do more behind the scenes fine tuning, and less performing. Make a few lists based on areas that need some refreshing, like marketing, or your social media presence. AQUARIUS - Yes, Queen! You have been cranking out those spreadsheets all year, planning like a boss, making executive decisions left and right. Now, it’s time to slow your roll. Take a look at where what new topics would you like to cover? Maybe you want to liven things up a bit and touch on topics outside the norm? You know you love a good shock and awe factor every now and then! Remember, we aren’t recreating the wheel, just fine tuning. Out with old, in with the new! PISCES - You have been pushing every button and pulling every lever. The hard work is done. Now, you get to relax, recoup, and reflect. While you do, recognize the milestones you have made these past few months and maybe even years. Where have you grown? Where could you use a little more work? Where would you like to be this time next year? Soften onto the down time. We aren’t making solid plans right now. The goal is to allow inspiration to come in waves. No expectations. Just47 invite in opportunity…whatever that may look like.

Does Your Podcast Spark Joy? Maybe it’s time for some spring cleaning. by Anna Gunn

Borrowing the famous Marie Kondo expression, I’m sure you’ve all tried to spark joy in your podcast. But if you’re feeling that things got a bit stale as of late, and the spark of joy isn’t shining as bright, don’t worry: you’re not alone… Even Marie Kondo has “kind of given up.” You probably started your podcast to get your story out into the world, share your passion with others, and, to use another cliché, “join the conversation.” However, over time (and let’s be brutally honest with ourselves), you become fixated on numbers, constantly checking to see how many people are listening to your podcast, and feeling devastated when (inevitably…) the numbers don’t match your expectations. We all have done this, dopamine cravings are the worst. If that’s the case, at this point it would be good to remember that no podcaster got into podcasting to become a bean counter. Also, and to use yet another cliché, “it’s a marathon, not a sprint.” Here’s a massive truth that you won’t read in the sea of articles goading you on to start your very own podcast: very few podcasts out there consistently hit big numbers. There, I said it. Take a moment to let that sink in.

And that’s okay. You don’t need to be Joe Rogan. What you need to do is focus on the people who are listening to you and engaging with your content. Ask yourself if you know those 5-10 people who are tuning in to listen to you every week: do you know their names? I am sure your mom is one of them, but what about the other handful? Have you had a conversation with them? If you haven’t, you’re doing your podcast a disservice. If you’re not engaging with the audience you have, how do you expect to grow it into seven figures? 49

Can you keep a secret? Here’s one of my guilty pleasures: I like Taylor Swift (shh, please don’t tell anyone). She is one of those people who I admire as being a kick-ass business lady. Taylor Swift calls her closest fans “Swifties.” These are the people who have been with her from the beginning, and know her personally and professionally. They are her “word of mouth.” You need to find your Swifties – those who would pick up the phone if you called them in the middle of the night, and would come running with a spade to help bury the bodies for you. Engaged listeners are gold. They will spread the word for you with far more authority and trustworthiness than any viral post, and they will be there for you in the long run – long after the “shake it off” becomes, well, shaken off. Sorry (not sorry). So stop worrying about the numbers you don’t have, and focus on your Swifties. And to put more joy back into your podcasting, start by looking at the topics you’re covering: are they exciting you? Do they spark joy? If not, change them. Find something that will, and lo and behold, your audience will also find engagement with it. Here are some easy action points for you if you find yourself in the doldrums: Collaboration is Key Collaboration can bring out the best in you. Find someone who is charming, cool, and fun to be around. Interview them on your podcast, and have a good time doing the interview. Sounds obvious, right? But how many times do you forget this and try to go for someone with more reach and overlook that fun person with a great life story and an awesome perspective on life? (Sidenote: You need to watch this Instagram video for an amazing example of collaboration.) Reach out Talk to other podcasters, and gain a perspective outside your own. Building relationships and collaborating with them can have benefits far outside of promoting each other’s work. Having a supporting network around you is vital to keep yourself happy. Social Media Done Right If you’re going to do social media, don’t make it all about you. Ask your audience questions and find out who they are. If you have followers, go and follow them back. Engage with their posts and stories - and do it from a place of curiosity. Remember, this is not about you. As an example, find out three new things about as many of your followers as you can. Your podcast is a way for people to listen to you. However, people also like to give their opinions, good or otherwise, and social media is the place where you can keep that conversation going, and get free advertising for it. 50

Keep Learning Set yourself up with a “learning date” each month and learn a new skill related to podcasting. Enjoy the learning process and that proud feeling you get when you actually get to implement what you’ve just learnt. There are tons of resources for podcasters out there, from articles to workshops or other podcasts, and you can pick up useful tips and tricks that can make you enjoy the process again. Quality over Quantity To avoid burnout, it’s important to make sure that you have a schedule you are able to stick to without causing excessive stress or pressure. Those two can be killers and will take away from the joy of podcasting. Instead of focusing solely on quantity, prioritize creating content that you’re proud of and that resonates with your listeners. Podcasting should be fun, and if it isn’t, it’s time to reassess your priorities. Don’t forget that it’s okay to take a break or pivot to something different if you need to. Your mental health and enjoyment of the podcast should always come first. Remember: » focus on your Swifties » find collaboration » engage on social media » keep learning Podcasting should be an enjoyable experience that brings you satisfaction and fulfillment. Check-in with yourself to make sure that it still is.

Become a featured podcaster! Visit womenwhopodcastmag.com to sign up!

Stop Throwing Mud at the Wall!

Create a Simple, Strategic, and Successful Marketing Plan by Elikqitie

Are you frustrated with digital marketing? Does the overwhelming amount of information out there need to be clearer and easier to follow? Do you create marketing accounts, such as an email account, but never use them? Stop throwing mud against the wall when it comes to your marketing! Instead, learn how to create a simple and measurable marketing plan that will invite new clients to your doorstep and bring back previous clients to your business! Here is a stepby-step guide on effectively planning your marketing so you can measure your results (and you don’t have to be a data nerd or a marketing wizardess to make your marketing work!). Start by Creating a Marketing Calendar You’ll want to start your marketing plan by making a marketing calendar that is easy to use. I made my marketing calendar in Google docs by creating a document and making a calendar on a google document. If you don’t want to use Google docs, any paper calendar will work just fine. You’ll need a digital or paper calendar for your planning. What are Your Digital Assets? Once you have your template, you’ll want to start by noting which digital assets you have. Do you have a website? I’m not referring to a social media page as your website - I’m talking about a legitimate website domain you own and manage. A social media site is not an excellent choice as your primary platform, as the social media site can take down your page at any moment, and you may have no recourse. Are you posting on your blog? Do you have a blog tab on your website? If you don’t, no worries; you can always add one. However, a blog is a great idea for SEO and to bring people to your website to educate your clients and leads, bring value, and position you as an expert. In addition, you can build a marketing plan without a blog for now and add your blog later. Do you have an email client to send professional emails to? A mail client that I use for myself and my clients is Convertkit. The interface is easy to use, they have decent templates, and they have a free creator account for anyone with less than 1000 emails on their list - which is almost everyone I know! How about lead magnets? If you’re unsure what a lead magnet is, you can download my free ebook, which teaches you how to make a lead magnet. Which social media platforms do you have? While you don’t need all of them, you need to be on one platform, whichever one you can interact with the most that also makes sense for your vertical. For instance, if you’re in a niche that revolves around visuals such as interior design, 55

fashion, food, or travel, then Instagram is a great platform to be on. If you’re a b2b company, I’d recommend LinkedIn. Appealing to a younger crowd? TikTok would be your platform of choice. My favorite platform is YouTube. Creating Content Pillars Content pillars are topics that you cover in your business. For example, my company, Write For You, provides ghostwriting and content marketing services. My pillars are ghostwriting, email campaigns, creating a business website, and podcast production, as these, are all services I offer. These content pillars are categories in that I can educate my clients, leads, and anyone subscribing to my email list. I’ve created one content pillar per month, as seen in this photo. For April, I’ll focus all of my digital marketing, including my live streams, email marketing, podcast episodes, LinkedIn articles, social media (not listed on my calendar), and blog posts around my monthly content pillar. This way, whatever platform my client or prospective buyer is on can see the same topic, which I have different articles on depending on what digital marketing platform I’m using. How to Find Your Content Pillars One of the best, accessible, and easiest ways to figure out the best content pillars for your brand is to jump on the Google Trends website. When you get there, plug in different topics that you get questions about regularly and make sure the search is set for the past year. Then, Google Trends will show you the searches that are popular for that topic. In addition, (and this is the best feature), this platform will also show you the best time of the year to post about your topic, giving you the biggest bang for your buck regarding SEO! Instead of guessing what to post about and trying to figure out what your ideal client is searching for, you can use this tool to find content pillars. Along with content pillars, you can also look for searchable blog topics in the related searches box on the bottom right of Google Trends. Scheduling Your Digital Marketing Assets Around Your Content Pillars Your next step is to schedule your blog posts, LinkedIn articles, email marketing, podcast episodes, and videos around your content pillars. Start with a simple and easy schedule - you can always add more content later. On the other hand, if you put too much content on your calendar, you can easily get overwhelmed and drop the ball before you finish the first month of your new marketing plan. 56

A great place to start is writing one blog per month, two emails a month (a great way to schedule emails is for the first and third day of a month, such as the first and third Wednesday - never send emails from Friday to Sunday), and one video per month. Of course, what you’re scheduling depends on the assets you already have - start with what you’ve got, and if you need to clean up a platform such as your email list - then start by fixing what you need to have done before you start planning so you’ll be ready to go when the first month of your marketing arrives. Another piece of advice I give clients is to give yourself a month - at minimum two weeks - to plan out your new digital marketing plan. Don’t expect to start in a week, especially if you’re a new business or need to make podcast episodes or videos. Creating content takes time, and the best way to ensure you finish your content is to block out several hours in one or two days for your marketing content. This way, you can finish almost everything and be ready for the next month. Gathering Your Data to See What Works in Your Digital Marketing One of the ways you can find out what topics your followers like to see is by looking at your email open rates for your email marketing campaign. You’ll be able to find out what topics people are interested in by the open and click-through rate. The click-through rate is the percentage of people who click the links embedded in your emails. In addition, if you use a social media scheduler or have an Instagram business account, you can find data on what posts are doing better than others and what times your followers are engaging the most. Another source of data is your podcast episode downloads. Which topics are getting the most downloads? Your podcast show host - where you have your podcast for distribution - will have a paid plan showing you the number of downloads of each episode so you can figure out what topics your listeners like the most. This is the process that I use for my content marketing business as it’s the best way that I’ve found to research, track, and monitor the topics my prospects are looking for and find out which of those content pillars have the best outcome for targeting the topics people are looking for information. Suppose you’re confused, or this process seems overwhelming. In that case, I offer two programs to work with you on planning your content marketing. One is a month-by-month digital marketing planning session where we get together each month and plan your content for the next month. Another offering to help busy service-based business owners plan their marketing is my VIP Day, where we get your marketing planning done in a day! Find out how Write For You can work together with your business to successfully and strategically plan your digital marketing and use your time effectively so you can stop throwing mud up against the wall when planning your marketing! 57

The Voice Coach by Kathy Barron

As podcasters, we don’t normally think to take care of our voice before getting behind the mic, and yet we wonder why our voice is crackling, why we have a frog in our throat, or why our lips are dry. According to Nic Redman, host of The Voice Coach podcast and author of On the Mic: Voice Training for Voiceover Artists, Podcasters, Speakers, and Presenters, all it takes is five minutes to warm up your voice before hitting the record button. In addition to the warm up, she also gives tips on staying hydrated, why posture is important when speaking, being aware of your breath, and how to reduce those filler words we all despise. Ten years ago, Nic and a new friend created a social event to meet other voiceover artists and decided to create an audio invitation for people to find out about the party. During the event, they would record short clips of people answering questions such as “what was your best job” or “what’s been your most embarrassing moment” as part of promoting their events. As time went on, the parties got bigger and the audio promotions got longer and eventually became a podcast. About six years ago, Nic started voiceover coaching and then created The Voice Coach podcast in 2021. Before Nic became a voiceover artist, she was trained as an actor doing musical theater around the West End in London. She was feeling okay with acting but it wasn’t as fulfilling as she expected it to be. Then one day, someone mentioned they needed an Irish woman for a voiceover job. “They’re like come here to the studio for an hour and we’ll give you 400 pounds. I basically get that for a week on the West End so I went along,” she added. For Nic it was an epiphany moment because while she was in the booth, she fell in love with doing voiceover. She explains, “it wasn’t about what I looked like or what I looked like matched how I sound, which was some, one of the issues I had in musical theater was my voice was great, but I didn’t look right.” After that experience, Nic did some research, created a demo, and spread the word that she was available as a voiceover artist. She occasionally gets to do a bit of voice acting for animations or games that feeds the part of her that sometimes longs for musical theater. Although Nic had a previous podcast prior to The Voice Coach, it took her a bit to warm up to the fact that it was just her voice that people would hear. “It was a bit of a journey in hindsight to find my new voice, my literal voice,” she says. Over the last year, she’s been able to relax a bit and not feel like she needs to prove that she has the credentials and experience to provide the information in her episodes. “I know my work speaks for itself now. If people want to drill me on the intrinsic muscles of the larynx, then I’ll give them the answer. But I really don’t need to offer that up as an opening,” she adds. Nic covers a wide range of topics regarding speaking and how it’s a whole body experience. In many of her first episodes, Nic talks about how to have good vocal health (EP2&3), why your posture is critical for reducing vocal fatigue (EP8), and explains plosives and fricatives (EP47). What exactly are fricatives? I guess you’ll have 59

to listen to the episode to find out. There’s plenty of information, exercises, and tips that would benefit every podcaster. Nic’s favorite episodes are the ones that dispel myths like not drinking coffee or eating cheese beforehand. She warns that there is quite a bit of outdated information out in the world. Making the episodes relatable is important, and she tends to be a bit silly around the holidays so the whole family can get involved. For instance, for one of her holiday episodes called “Three Fun Games to Help Fit Your Voice Training in Over Christmas” (EP52), Nic shared voice games such as “The Lip Trill Olympics,” “Three Festive-themed Tongue Twisters,” and “The Hydration Station.” So the whole family can warm up their voices before roaming the neighborhood singing Christmas carols. Nic also has an episode specifically for what to get the voiceover artist, podcaster, and speaker who has everything (EP82). If you’re a practical gift giver, then this episode is a must listen. Speaking of practical gifts, Nic’s first book On the Mic: Voice Training for Voiceover Artists, Podcasters, Speakers, and Presenters was published in March 2023 and was #1 in new releases. When asked about how she came about writing it Nic explains, “Every exercise I do, or every time I do a live, I’m always like oh when I read this book and this book is great and my audience started going, um when’s your book coming out? I was like ‘don’t be silly, I don’t need to write a book.’” Nic felt that all of the amazing books are already out there and there wasn’t anything she could add to the conversation. But after listening to people around her and thinking more about it, she realized that there wasn’t a book out there specific for the microphone. “And I was like, well, that’s my work. That’s what I do so that’s what I decided to focus on,” she adds. On the Mic is all about understanding your voice and knowing how it works on a basic level. It gives people the opportunity to discover their voices’ potential and become more confident in their voice when they hit the record button. When people are more confident behind the mic they can focus more on their message or their guest. According to Nic, the timing of the book was perfect. “The podcast in a way formed the skeleton structure for the book. I feel like writing the book came at the right time because until I’d made the podcast, I probably wouldn’t have known where to start with a book,” she says. Nic has a real passion for helping others and with the addition of On the Mic there are multiple ways that people can learn from her. For women who have been thinking about starting a podcast, Nic recommends not overthinking it and not getting caught up in the numbers game. When she and her friend created the audio clips for their voiceover events, they didn’t know it was technically a podcast. It just naturally evolved that way because they wanted to give people 60

information. “It wasn’t about everyone hearing how amazingly funny or talented we are; it was service ultimately. And that was always at the heart of it,” she explains. Nic reminds us that underneath all the data, the chart listings, and the awards it comes down to serving others. She adds, “You have to want to help or affect change in somebody in some way or to offer some kind of information. So understand your why and who you’re trying to reach.” Nic reiterates that the audio doesn’t have to be perfect, it just needs to be real. Sometimes that’s not easy to do with the stigma attached to the female voice. Some women podcasters are criticized for the way their voice sounds whether it’s too high pitched, too much vocal fry, or too bubbly. Even though women may feel confident in their voice, there’s still a small part of them that wonders if someone will be offended by how their voice sounds. “It’s always frustrating to know that male podcasts are listened to more than women podcasts and that the amount of hugely successful women-led podcasts is lower than men. So I think for women, potentially, there’s a why bother kind of approach, you know?,” Nic explains. However, most of the time, the rewards of podcasting outweigh the less than perfect moments. With The Voice Coach podcast, Nic is glad she can offer people something that doesn’t cost anything. She smiles and says, “I’m really proud that it’s out there for people and I do find it rewarding that some people find it. They’ll say to me I just wanna thank you because I can’t afford any coaching but I really needed some help and the podcast has really helped me.” That’s exactly what Nic wants and thinks it’s really beautiful that people are listening to the podcast and finding it useful. For other women podcasters, she would like to see a world where they didn’t feel like they needed to change their voice in order to be airworthy. “That it was a safe space for women to sound how they wanna sound without feeling they have to edit themselves all the time,” she adds. Nic would like a more even playing field for women podcasters because we all have amazing things to say. So, if you’re looking to improve your enunciation, eliminate mouth noises and clicks, or not hold your breath while interviewing a guest, Nic is ready to be your personal voice coach.

Website: nicolaredman.com Instagram: @nicredvoice TikTok: @thevoicecoachpodcast Listen Here Country: England 61

The Gutsy Truth by Kathy Barron

When you look up the definition of “gutsy” it means having a great deal of courage or nerve; robust, vigorous, or earthy; lusty. As a noun “guts” can also mean the belly, stomach, abdomen, or bowels. And one can also have a gut reaction (based on instincts or emotions). Why do I bring this up, you might ask? It was these varying definitions that were part of how Katelyn Brown and Abigail Noel came up with the name of their podcast, The Gutsy Truth. “It’s definitely being gutsy, following your gut, but then also like there’s so much out there in the world as far as food or just what we’ve normalized as a society,” Katelyn explains. The goal of the podcast is to create a platform where they can talk about how to advocate for yourself, fuel your body in a healthy way, and live in an environment with products that are nontoxic. The hosts have their own personal stories that they share in the first two episodes of the show so their listeners can understand why they decided to launch The Gutsy Truth. Katelyn and Abigail first met six years ago at their day jobs. They connected through spreadsheets, organizational skills, and quickly became great friends. As time went on, the two friends realized they worked so well together that they imagined starting a business together someday. They knew they wanted to make an impact in the world and wondered what that platform would look like or what the business idea would be. In the last few years, both Katelyn and Abigail experienced a difficult time in their lives having to do with their physical and mental health. After giving birth to her daughter in 2018, Abigail struggled with postpartum for many reasons. “You’re figuring out life as a mom and taking care of a tiny human. You are physically different after having a child but no one ever talked to me about hormone rebalancing or what that does to your mental health,” Abigail explains. When the pandemic hit in 2020, it triggered severe anxiety for her which was something she never had to deal with before. It was very hard on her and her marriage. The experience was a huge mental transformation for Abigail. Around the same time Abigail was seeking counseling for anxiety, Katelyn started her own journey of infertility which was very difficult for her to go through. Because of the overwhelming amount of information being thrown her way, Katelyn turned to Abigail for support and guidance. “So I found a functional medicine doctor who gave me a whole other spiel about what I could do and empowered me to learn more about health and wellness. And I was like okay, let’s try this whole eating dairy free and gluten free to get rid of inflammation,” Katelyn explains. Abigail was also going through her journey of self-discovery with anxiety and hormone imbalance, so they both decided to try the doctor’s recommendation together. She was willing to do whatever it took to become a mom. Katelyn adds, “We both kind of dove into this lifestyle of eating healthy and taking care of ourselves and just learning all this stuff that we were just like, how are women not taught these basic things about your hormones 63

and your cycle and all this stuff?” The two became very passionate about how their new way of living was contributing to their lives in a positive way and shared the information to their circle of friends. “It’s just been such a fun journey to see not only just us change as individuals, how that affects us as humans, as individuals, as friends, and then you know as partners, our marriages, as a mom, and our relationship with our family members,” Abigail declares. The hosts want to help people live the most optimal life possible by sharing their stories and talking with experts on The Gutsy Truth. Their mission statement is that they believe change is easier when you’re not alone. They believe that there is power in sharing your story. Katelyn knows that she couldn’t have gotten through her experience without the help of Abigail and wants to be a source of encouragement and hope for others. “It’s not just health and wellness but how to be a gutsier human being in your own life,” Abigail says. “We really had to learn how to advocate for ourselves in this, in the medical system.” The two had been gluten and dairy free for a year before launching the podcast. For Katelyn, starting The Gutsy Truth was a way for her to move through and heal from the trauma of infertility. So when it came to record her story for the first episode, it was a huge step for her because for so long she couldn’t talk about it. “And so like sitting down to record, it was like this is getting real. So in my typical Katelyn style of life, I show up that day and I’d bullet pointed out my story because I didn’t want to miss anything and I knew it was going to be tough for me,” Katelyn explains. She wanted to tell her story the way she wanted people to hear it and acknowledge that her story was different from someone else’s. Katelyn had difficulty getting past the first two sentences of the episode, and it took about a dozen takes before she was able to tell her story in entirety. However, once she got through the recording and posted the episode, a weight was lifted from her shoulders. Not only did they record Katelyn’s story that day, but Abigail also recorded her episode. Abigail chuckles and says, “It’s like Katelyn comes with her paper with all her bullet points and she rehearsed it with her husband and me and all of this stuff. I show up with a sticky note with like two words written on it. I’m like, I just wanna make sure I touch this and this.” After the two episodes were launched, the feedback they received was incredible and inspiring. Listeners were in awe of their stories and wanted to know more because they either physically felt the same way or knew of someone that was going through the same experience. Even Abigail’s middle aged uncle who she doesn’t talk to very often has listened to their podcast and tell’s his office about it. Because of the positive feedback they’ve gotten with The Gutsy Truth, Katelyn and Abigail encourage women to start their own podcast. “If you’re nervous about it or if it scares you, that’s a good sign. That means it’s gonna be a challenge in some way and that means you’re gonna grow,” Katelyn says. She goes on to say that “there is plenty of space for our stories to be shared as well as other people to start podcasts.” Everybody has their own story and their own voice. Katelyn and Abigail wanted a platform to not only talk about their personal experiences but to invite professionals in the field of health and wellness to share their wisdom. One of those episodes is with Chris Thompson, founder and owner of KLENR (EP16). Chris started 64

Abigail Noel

Katelyn Brown

KLENR, a company that makes natural soap, deodorant, and beard oil using all organic and nontoxic ingredients. After serving in the military as a Green Beret in the 3rd Special Forces Group,he became exposed to harmful chemicals while in the military and made the choice to use natural, nontoxic products in his daily life. Chris is local to where the hosts live in Texas and hopes his story of health and wellness resonates with men that listen to The Gutsy Truth. The hosts interview their guests from the listener’s perspective; what are they curious to know about the guest and/or topic, when and how to follow up with another question, and how to get in-depth with the guest. An episode that pleasantly surprised them was with a family friend of Abigail’s, Katie Neason, a real estate entrepreneur, active investor, and redeveloper (EP12). Katie dropped some serious truth bombs that both Abigail and Katelyn weren’t expecting. One in particular was the importance of seeing risk taking as a lifestyle and being gutsy in taking those risks. Which is in total alignment with The Gutsy Truth mission. Katelyn and Abigail would like to see more women show up fully and use podcasting as an opportunity to show the world what they are capable of. They want women to just be gutsy in all aspects of their life so they can live life to the fullest. “I think it’s community over competition. Like as women, let’s build each other up and continue to support each other. I wanna see more continued collaboration,” Katelyn says. That’s why they named their podcast The Gutsy Truth; to get the gutsy truth and to be gutsy women.

Website: thegutsytruth.com Instagram: @thegutsytruth Listen Here Country: United States 65

4 Sober Chicks by Kathy Barron

The sobriety movement has been gaining traction for some time now. What was once thought as a trend, is now a way of life for many people. For the hosts of 4 Sober Chicks, it’s essential that their stories of sobriety be heard so that people know they aren’t alone on their journey. Heather, Meredith, Dana, and Lisa all met in a recovery coaching skills class. They were getting their certifications to become recovery coaches, and Meredith asked if any of the women wanted to meet to practice what they were learning. The first time the group met, there were five women, but eventually it became just the four of them. As they got to know each other, they started sharing their stories and when the class ended Heather had a grand idea for the four of them. “I had been wanting to do some kind of podcast, I really wanted to share my story. I was on the verge of being in a place where I wanted to recover out loud…I hadn’t done that yet,” she explains. Before Heather suggested creating a podcast, she was intuitively hearing “four sober chicks” in her head and knew she was onto something. Even though none of the women had experience with podcasting, they all came together to make 4 Sober Chicks podcast a reality. Heather continues, “we really just wanted to replicate what we had been doing every week which was these conversations about life, you know, in the Heather sober world.” Unfortunately, Lisa’s priorities had shifted, and she had to make the difficult decision to leave the podcast. Around the same time they found out Lisa was leaving the show, Heather and Tracy met at an AA meeting and Tracy quickly became part of podcast. To “recover out loud” means to share what you are going through; the challenges, the triumphs, the truths. To be vulnerable takes courage. Recovering out loud isn’t about the ego or being narcissistic. It is a selfless act so that others may have hope. The first five episodes of 4 Sober Chicks are all about recovering out loud and why they decided to start the podcast. “It wasn’t the recording that was terrifying. It was the, like, putting it out there that was terrifying,” Heather recalls. Meredith remembers having a very frank conversation with everyone before hitting the record button. “…the realization that once it’s out there, it’s out there. I had to sit there being like is this something I want the entire world to have access to? And if it is, I have to be 1,000,000% okay with that. If I have the slightest inkling that it’s not, I can’t include it at all,” Meredith explains. The hosts talked about their children possibly listening to the podcast episodes at some point in the future and how it would affect them. They all agreed that they were ready to open their lives to the world and share their stories. Tracy adds, “I think the vulnerability and honesty, the authenticity of it, makes our podcast so strong and good. But you have to be careful to word things on how they affect me in my life without naming people or individuals.” One thing they definitely demonstrate on their podcast is grace. It’s one thing to navigate a podcast with two hosts but to manage four people - it’s a skill. When asked what the secret sauce is for not talking over each other or interrupting what the other person is saying, Meredith had one word: communication. They’ve learned how to read each other’s body language and whether they have their mute button on or off. 67

“Our big thing is…in the event we do have a guest on to kind of go where they are. Where they’ve been, where they are now, how they got on their sobriety journey and then from there that’s honestly where we gauge our questions,” Meredith explains. The hosts want to make sure they are being as efficient as possible so they spend the time they are together wisely. Heather’s most inspirational interview was with Dr. Dawn Nickel, Ph.D. who is the founder of SHE RECOVERS Foundation (EP8S2), a non-profit public charity and grassroots movement. Heather contributes Dr. Nickel’s work to leading her down the Meredith path she is currently on. An episode that spoke to Tracy and Dana is the recent episode with Jennifer Kautsch of Sober Sis! (EP9S2) where she talked about labels that people feel comfortable identifying with and that the ultimate goal for everyone is to feel better. “I had to really go in with an open mind,” Tracy says, “which is what I had to do with facing my alcoholism. It was about gray area drinking, not using the word alcoholic.” Dana adds, “At first I was put off by, wait, I can’t use the word recovery. I can’t use the word sobriety. I use them all the time. She really put it in a perspective that was very welcoming and not closing the door on anybody that has a label for themselves.” They realized that it wasn’t necessarily about the verbiage being used but being inclusive during the recovery process. I commended them on how smooth the episodes sound and that I’m sure editing is part of that as well. But Heather insists they don’t edit their episodes. Being in three different time zones has been one of the biggest hurdles they face as podcasters. They always need to make sure that when they schedule guests, that everyone is awake in all three time zones. All four hosts are very proud of how far they have come as a podcast because none of them had any prior experience with audio or video recording. They have been teaching themselves through the whole process. “We’re just doing what feels natural and we want it to be like, you know, around the table chat,” Heather says. Tracy has been a huge help with social media. Their followers went from 63 to 2,500 since she has joined the show. As a team, they each have their area of expertise and work well together. As four women in recovery, they believe it’s important to include men that support women in recovery. “One of my passions is the people who are the plus one to someone going through recovery,” Meredith says. “So if there is a male listening to us, and he knows a female needs to hear us, we want that open door.” One thing that has come up for the podcasters is related to the 12-step program and anonymity being one of their core foundations. Heather remembers mentioning 12 Step in an episode and had a panic attack. “I was beside myself cuz I wanna respect all forms of recovery,” she explains. Heather actually Googled how many podcasts have used the term “12 Step” and eventually relaxed into what had happened. She adds, “we don’t ever say anything negative, but that’s the bigger hesitation that I’ve had…it was more of like how I recover out loud because that is not necessarily a component of that program.” The fuel that keeps the four hosts recording episode after episode is the feedback they receive from listeners who have been inspired by hearing their stories. The biggest reward for the women is knowing that Tracie people are encouraged to reevaluate their relationship 68

with alcohol. “I feel like once our passion for and why we’re doing this actually comes to fruition where people are like, I have been toying with not drinking anymore. And that helps them get there without hitting the proverbial rock bottom,” Meredith says. Dana adds, “I wonder if I would’ve listened to a podcast in the throes of my substance use, you know? Because that’s putting a mirror up and it’s putting it up pretty close with seeing the fog and everything else.” Heather, Dana, Meredith, and Dana Tracy all feel that there are far more resources available now than when they were beginning their recovery journey. Meredith didn’t have a sober community or program when she began her journey nine years ago. But with the invention of the internet and the easy accessibility via Zoom, all of them are able to attend meetings and be part of a sober community with a click of a mouse. As far as the sobriety movement, Tracy doesn’t think it’s going away. “I’m happy that people are so curious. I’m happy that they are wanting to live a different kind of life and [an] alcohol-free life for whatever reason. I commend them.” The message seems to be changing that people don’t need to hit rock bottom in order to change their lives. There’s a new awareness among the twenty-somethings, and they are choosing not to drink. One thing that Meredith likes to do on Instagram is support the younger generation who are celebrating their sobriety. “At least once or twice a week I find random people on Instagram who’s celebrating and just shouting them out in our stories.” Heather adds, “I wanna celebrate that person who’s doing it (becoming sober) before they get married. It’s before they have kids, before they’ve done any of those things. Because the pain that I caused my family, myself, my friends. Like it’s part of my journey but man, if someone doesn’t have to have that same journey, that’s incredible.” Heather, Dana, Meredith, and Tracy want women podcasters to be courageous and bold especially if it’s something they are passionate about sharing. The more voices that are out there sharing their recovery stories is important not only for the podcast community, but the world as a whole. Heather declares, “Every person that shares their story really helps to reduce the shame. And the shame is what keeps so many of us locked in this, this war with our addictions. It just makes it better because if someone else realizes that they’re not the only one and you know that mistakes happen and that you’re not your worst mistake, I mean, how can we not benefit from that?” Be sure to tune in to 4 Sober Chicks and discover the power and potential of sobriety and recovery. Whether you are struggling with addiction or not, this podcast has something to offer everyone. So join the community of listeners who are finding hope, healing, and support in the sobriety movement.

Instagram: @4soberchicks LinkedIn: 4 Sober Chicks Facebook: 4 Sober Chicks Listen Here Country: United States & UAE 69

Podfade: What It Is & How To Avoid It You’ve caught the podcast bug and your podcast has hit the airwebs. Getting behind the mic to share your story makes you feel like Julie Andrews twirling on the hilltops of Austria. After a few days of launching your podcast, you check the download numbers and although you had hoped the numbers would be better, you’re going with the flow because podcasting is now a passion and nothing will stop you. So, week after week, you’re hitting the record button and publishing content. You’re feeling amazing! However, around the seventh episode, the download numbers haven’t moved much for all the time, effort, and publishing you’ve done. You start to doubt yourself and ask if the podcast is really worth it. You remember how exhilarating it was to record the first few episodes and so you stay on course and publish a few more. But that niggling feeling is back and eventually you let the podcast fade away. This is what we call podfade. What is Podfade? Podfade is when someone starts a new podcast and, after a handful of episodes, suddenly stops. It’s pretty common among the podcast community - it happens to about 75% of podcasters. So what steps can you take to prevent podfade before you launch your podcast? Choose the right topic You don’t have to be an expert on your show, but make sure you have a genuine curiosity about the topic and do the research to make the episode interesting enough for people to listen. If you’re genuinely interested in the topic, your enthusiasm will come through and people will listen. Start as a seasonal show There are many benefits to creating a podcast that is seasonal. If you get to the end of the first season (which can be 9-12 episodes) and you decide not to continue with the podcast, it won’t be considered podfade. If you decide to continue the podcast after taking the expected break, 71

listeners will think nothing of it and a second season will organically happen. There aren’t any hard and fast rules to how a podcast should be formatted. Even if you start as a weekly podcast, you can always change it to bi-weekly or monthly. It’s your podcast and you get to make the rules. Set realistic expectations It’s easy to get wrapped up in the excitement of starting a new podcast but be realistic when setting goals. New podcasters don’t realize how much work it takes to produce a podcast until they are actually in it. Set expectations based on what you’ve already got going on in your life (family, job, kids, pets). Slow and steady wins the race and stays motivated! Audio & Editing Made Easy Quality sound is important and will make editing easier. You don’t need to have the highest priced equipment but make sure you have a decent microphone and recording set up. Editing can be time consuming but learning short cuts and not deleting all of the “ums” and “ahs” will streamline the process. Record a Few Episodes Before Launching Having a few episodes at the ready before you officially launch your podcast will ease the pressure of recording week after week. You can also use those “extra” episodes when life happens and you can’t record an episode. Podfade is also something that seasoned podcasters combat. So, if your show has been around for awhile and you’re starting to feel a bit weary, check out these recommendations for fending off podfade. Back to Basics Take yourself back to the days when you were excited about starting your podcast. Or remember how good you felt when your creativity was firing on all cylinders. Those memories will help you get over the hump and remind you why you started the podcast in the first place. Adjust Frequency of Episodes Podcasts ebb and flow. Communicating with your listeners is key if you decide to publish episodes less frequently. Another way to fill the gaps is to repurpose previous episodes as an “encore episode.” There’s nothing wrong with recycling episodes that may not have gotten the attention it deserved. Reintroduce them to listeners - they’ll be pleasantly surprised! Go On a Hiatus Everyone needs a break to rejuvenate, reassess, and get some rest. Your loyal listeners will understand as long as you are honest with them. This is another great opportunity to repurpose previous episodes so you maintain the connection with listeners until you decide to return with new content. So, regardless if you’re starting a new podcast or have been podcasting for awhile, podfade is real. It’s important to check in with yourself when you’re feeling burnout so you can make the best decision for you. If, after trying these tips, you still aren’t able to get back into your creative flow, don’t force it. There are plenty of platforms available where you can get your message out.

Chronicles of a Podcasting Mama by Priscilla Conaway

“Did I pack the lunches?”, “I have to edit this episode”, and “hey, what did you think of that episode?” If you have found yourself asking one or all of these questions, multiple multiple times–congrats! You’re a podcasting mama! Unless you’re knee-deep in this love/hate role of motherhood and being a voice, who represents a platform to connect with the world–you can’t possibly begin to understand the various feelings (and breakdowns!) us mic-loving madres experience. I’ll be leaving some “confessions” of my very own podcasting mama brain in hopes that you find a village in this podcasting community and maybe get inspired to finally press “record.” I’m not sure how one usually gets their moment of clarity in choosing to share their voice with everyone, but mine arrived in a dream. Clichė, I know. But there it was, a vision. It was a vision that woke me up, in the middle of the night–as if I was channeling my very own Taylor Swift songwriting moment. It was 2021, and I was struggling with the identity of being a mama for the third time, and felt I needed to do more to share and support mamas just like me.. I began to plunge into a very deep rabbit hole of researching audio equipment, how to start a podcast, and what is even a podcast? I may have searched for a dinner recipe or two, in between, too. I quickly realized that unless you are famous, filthy rich, and/or already established as a wellknown podcaster,every piece of creating a podcast will have to be executed by you and you alone. Podcasting will be challenging, so don’t bother looking for any monetary incentives hiding under a rock. You may feel like you’re swimming in a sea of anxiety and constant preparation. It’s a special type of exhaustion that not even your own children could give you. That’s what the articles, social media, and anyone I asked, told me. And it is all true. And yet– I dove right in. Though I can’t swim, it was the best dive I ever did! With each passing episode and month I learned more, I got excited more, and I got to connect more. I began to find pieces of myself that help view these new stressors in a different way.. For example, dealing with a toddler tantrum while making dinner, caused me to miss my single days a bit, and intense mom guilt followed. My mama brain I wondered if that particular chaotic situation could make a great episode. The greatest thing about being a podcasting mama, is that you will never run out of material/topics to discuss. Like ever. This amateur podcaster has been able to praise, support, and hear “I thought I was the only one who felt that way,” from multiple women and mothers from multiple places around the world. These experiences caused a brand new purpose and fire within me. But this podcasting life, requires passion for us to continuously keep trying at it, despite everything else we must handle daily as mothers, employees, students, partners, etc.Still podcasting came with more challenges than I would have imagined. I think the biggest challenge I faced, after three seasons of sharing my life, fears, and previous traumas, is realizing that my mom brain and podcasting brain are always ON. For example, maybe I am having a great interview and we’re vibingand then I hear one of the kids crying downstairs. Do I pause the recording session to tend to one of my babies? Do I hope my partner “got it covered” and will handle the situation momentarily? But will it be as fast as mama does it? Why did I decide to do this? And it goes on, and on. Once you drink this 74

podcasting Kool-Aid, you need to expect every unexpected thing. It’s about embracing the fact that the demanding comparisons and struggles of wanting to support fellow Mamas, with the sharing and connecting, while also just wanting to be your children’s Mama–-and nothing else. And if you’re creating a podcast from scratch, odds are, you are a one-woman show: producer, editor, marketer, and more. I had no idea how to use Tik Tok until I realized that it was a huge platform for engaging & reaching out to as many mamas as I could. Figuring out the hashtags carried a special algorithm when it came to making my reels, so the mamas could connect them back to my podcast. But all of that takes time and patience, which is sparse for podcasting mamas. Which part of the day do you cut out for it? Did you cut out too much? Not enough? It’s a never-ending roller coaster of emotions, that might leave you feeling drained and asking “is this even worth it?”. And if each time, you helped a fellow mama view a situation differently or made them feel less alone, then it was damn sure well worth it. We’re finally at a time in the world where representation, vulnerability, and mental health is front and center. And however that looks, it takes bravery to be able to show it in various forms of art and communication. There’s been times where the wrong intro was added to an episode, the episode may have sounded “pitchy,” or there simply weren’t enough interested listeners that particular week. But every time an episode of mine was published, I got braver. I got stronger about my previous failed attempts. I got closer to whoever felt the same way, with their own particular situation, and I also got to put a piece of myself, out there for the world to connect with forever. Becoming a podcasting mama helped me tackle the same questions and approaches I had previously experienced and made but from a different angle because someone else embraced it differently, the next time that particular episode was heard. Within this role of host, producer, storyteller in the audio world, I also discovered parts of me. I had wanted to evolve, but again didn’t, due to fear. Motherhood helped heighten that fear and podcasting gave me the opportunity to let that hair come down. I soon discovered my support and connecting with other mamas didn’t have to start and end with podcasting. Like I said, I got braver. This journey also truly made me see what I have accomplished and that it was okay to outgrow and move on. I’ll never regret pressing record and publishing my words into the internet air because this community gave me the voice I always had but didn’t know I could use. So I am using it. And so should you, dear reader. And maybe one of you out there may finally get that fire-in-your-belly sign that tells you it may now be your turn to capture your own podcasting chronicles. If there’s a passion, aside from your mama and partner roles, that speaks to you and gives you another sense of purpose, try it. Don’t be afraid to fail at it, either. You wouldn’t keep your children from just trying to achieve whatever dreams they have, would you? And with that said, you’re doing a great job, mama. 75

Fabulous Over 50 by Kathy Barron

Many times when we are going through a difficult time in our lives, we tend to look outside of ourselves to get the answers, solutions, or guidance. Whether it’s from the internet or from a person, we hope that others can show us the steps to take toward our goal. However, sometimes we aren’t able to find those solutions, so we create a platform for everyone who is struggling for answers. For Jen Hardy, host of Fabulous Over Fifty, this is exactly what happened in her life, and it’s exactly what she did. In 2014, she became ill with seven kids to care for and a military husband who was working 12 hours a day. Jen spent six weeks in the hospital, twenty full days of infusions and stress and chaos around her. In an effort to care for her family while sick, she looked to the internet to see if there were other moms in her situation that could give her advice. There were quite a few people online talking about it, but no one provided solutions to what Jen was experiencing. So Jen took action and started a blog, Sick Moms Guide. While figuring out how blogging actually worked, she was listening to Pat Flynn talk about podcasting, and it sounded fun. “So I got a hospital table, like the ones that go next to your bed in the hospital, and I set up the boom arm and my computer on it, and it was my podcast studio. I started podcasting (under the podcast Hardy Mom) about the different systems I’d come up with. I interviewed people, like doctors and things that could come on and help us out,” Jen explains. Although Jen enjoyed helping other moms figure out how to navigate this world, she felt something was off, but couldn’t put her finger on it. The answer came to her when she attended PodFest and saw how many older women were in podcasting. Jen thought “I wanna do something just for them, so I’ve pivoted. Now it’s Fabulous Over 50, and it’s been so much fun.” She didn’t realize how tough it was to always focus on being sick all the time and it had taken a toll. The new rebrand to Fabulous Over 50 has been more uplifting for her after such a hard few years. Jen doesn’t shy away from talking about topics that make people uncomfortable. She feels the more we talk about things the more we understand each other. “We might have a perception about things but until you really know and talk about it with people who know, you don’t really fully understand anything,” she says. For Fabulous Over 50, Jen wants to talk about topics she’s curious about and share her personal experiences. Some hot topics on her list are overcoming feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt. “I don’t know if it’s the generation we were raised in that made us feel that way, but I know those are just hot topics for a lot of people I know,” she adds. The goal of Fabulous Over 50 is to help women embrace this new phase of their life and gain the courage (and curiosity) to start something new and different. You see, Jen isn’t supposed to be 77

alive. In 2018, doctors told her that all they could do was make her comfortable (until she died). But she wasn’t having anything to do with that, and she fought to stay alive. She shared her story on an episode of Hardy Mom podcast (“You Have Waited Long Enough! The Time is NOW”) and when she decided to switch to Fabulous Over 50, she decided to keep all of the episodes because a lot of what she talked about still applies to her audience. Not having to talk about being sick is refreshing to Jen and now she can talk about ways women can be fabulous. She feels that people have been isolated from family and friends for the last few years and fabulous is not a word that is used enough. Jen wants “a word that kind of embodies all the goodness and excitement and everything that I want to convey to people.” Jen loves interviewing guests who are inspiring, defying age stereotypes, and bringing a wealth of knowledge to the show. One of those fabulous and empowering guests was Donna Tashjian, a survivor of sexual abuse, (“Got Baggage? Turn that Baggage into Luggage!”) who shares her journey of healing and transformation. She is a life coach who encourages others to recognize their worth and utilize all of the wisdom they carry within them. Something that Jen has learned over the years is that her voice truly matters, and her story is important for others to hear. Which is why she wants to see more women take the plunge into the podcasting pool. “It makes me sad that sometimes women are overlooked for things because we’re women and it’s very frustrating.” She’d like to see it a bit more equitable in the podcasting community because women have stories to tell and each have their own unique voice to tell them. An episode series that had the most impact on Jen was on the topic of cancer; diagnosis, talking to your children, and the importance of knowing your body. Two of the episodes were interviews with women who had stage four cancer (uterine and colorectal), and they had two different outlooks on their lives. One of the women started a foundation, drove chemo patients to their appointments while she was receiving treatment, and knew she was going to beat the cancer. However, the woman who was battling colorectal cancer for eight years and shared with Jen how to talk with your children about cancer, knew she was going to die. “She did pass away, and that is so hard because I have this connection. I sobbed because it was so sad, but the woman who said that she wasn’t going to die came back on my show over the summer.” Both of the women made an impression on Jen and the idea that mindset plays a huge part in our lives. She makes an effort to have a better attitude about her own health and life. The episodes that Jen has published all have their own story and journey through a challenge or trauma. For any podcaster, hearing from 78

listeners is validation that they need to keep sharing their voice and personal stories. After Jen told her personal story about her medical health issues and fighting to stay alive, a listener (and casual acquaintance) who had suicidal ideations reached out to her. “They listened to my episode where I talked about what I’ve gone through and they said if you can go through that and you’re still here, I didn’t kill myself,” Jen adds. She reached out to the listener to talk with them about their struggles. It’s moments like these that Jen is glad she shared her story in entirety. Something that Jen wish she knew before starting podcasting was knowing that her voice is important. “No matter where you are, what you’ve been through, you are a valuable person and what you have to say matters,” she says. Jen didn’t really feel that good about herself when she started her podcast and feels that’s one reason why people don’t start their own. Everyone’s voice and story is essential for others to hear because there’s usually someone out there needs to hear it. The most rewarding part of podcasting for her is the feeling of accomplishment. “Like I did it, you know, even when I didn’t feel good, even though I was in and out of the hospital.” It’s been a rough year in that she had Covid which turned into pneumonia, had a heart attack, and then a stroke. After her stroke, Jen could only say one word - podcast. Doctor’s wanted to give her a medicine that had a 94% chance of bringing her back from the stroke but there’s also a 6% chance she could die. “And I kept saying podcast to my husband and he said she has a podcast and she wants her voice back. You need to give her the medicine,” Jen explains. She never gave up and got back behind the microphone . “I can come in my studio and I can put out an episode and talk about whatever that is and maybe help somebody else who’s going through the same thing,” she adds. And it doesn’t matter if you’re helping people by entertaining, educating, or inspiring them, there is always something that will help people feel better. Whether you are already over fifty, approaching this milestone, or simply interested in learning more about what it means to be fabulous at any age, Fabulous Over 50 has something to offer.

Website: jenhardy.net Instagram: @thejenhardy Facebook: Fabulous Over 50 Show Listen Here Country: United States 79

The Heartful Truth by Jane Schneider

When preparing to interview Melly and Gaby (aka 7Octoberz) Moreno for this article, my first thought was how will I connect with them. Gaby’s long-running podcast Nightmare on Sedgwick Avenue is a review of hip hop music and horror films – two things I know very little about. And within the first few minutes of the conversation with these two highly creative sisters, it was clear. When we have real, open conversations, our differences are just as valuable as our similarities. This is why we podcast. Creating a new show is an iterative process. From determining the focus, types of questions to ask, and potential guests to naming the show. The name for this show was hashed out in the parking lot of a park one day. They knew they wanted to bring the truth about artists’ lives. They also knew they wanted to connect, be vulnerable and come from the heart. And after doing some play on words, The Heartful Truth was born. Their joint podcast launched in 2022 and goes deeper in conversation to bring out the human aspect of an artist. Gaby points out, “When you see an artist, you kind of just see them on the surface level, but you never get to see what they’re going through on a daily basis.” Before an interview, they research the guest’s work and their life to find topics they might relate to. For example, when interviewing emcee, entrepreneur, and fashion designer Noa James in Season 1, Episode 3, they heard his grandmother had recently passed away. The sisters had gone through a similar experience the year prior having lost their grandmother who was a big part of their life. Giving Noa space to share this story was healing and insightful for all who listened. When sitting down with a guest, Melly explains the goal is to “…kind of share a part of ourselves as well. That way they can feel comfortable.” Melly and Gaby specifically look for topics not typically covered in other interviews or articles about the guest and how they might relate it to their lives. Other times, it might be a specific song or lines from a song that resonates and dig deeper into how the artist was inspired to write those words. Their audience will soon realize the power of a conversation watching or listening to The Heartful Truth. In Season 2, Episode 8 with Russ Taka, owner of Human Catalyst clothing, they followed their curiosity about his family and how he came to be an entrepreneur. It was literally during the conversation he realized his parents and grandparents had been entrepreneurs as well, but he never thought of it that way before. Conversations where new perspectives surface helps us all look at life differently and even learn more about ourselves. 81

Since launching the show, The Heartful Truth has delivered three seasons with nine episodes each. The show is part of a creative group called Platform Collection on YouTube promoting podcasters, musicians, and the underground hip hop culture. Through the Collective, they have access to a booker with a wide reach for future guests. Each season Melly and Gaby make a list of guests for their booker to work through. Next, they line them all up over a short period to have the full season ready to go all at once. From there, shows are dropped every two weeks. This approach to production and the seasons give them breaks in between, so they aren’t continually producing content. For Gaby, it was a new experience to co-host with anyone, let alone her sister. The two had to work through some growing pains while they learned who was better at each task and divided them up while teaching each other along the way. Gaby had the tech skills to get mics, cameras, and recording equipment working perfectly. Melly had a knack for promotion and research. They’ve learned that research is key to helping the guest connect. When you think about it, they’ve never met each other, and they have to help the guest feel safe to open up. Those moments on the show are very powerful and the hope is it encourages listeners to open up in their lives too. The show began on Zoom and quickly moved to in-person interviews. Gaby and Melly find being in person adds a layer of personal connection and puts people even more at ease. The promotion style has evolved as well. In addition to the promo from Platform Collection, Melly creates content on Instagram using quotes from the episodes overlaying an image. She finds a bonus of this approach has been going back and listening again, to get more out of the episode personally. “I think when you’re in the actual zone of it, you do listen, but I feel you might miss some stuff that you might not … understand during the time” according to Melly. They have had so many notable guests in the music industry. When asked who’s on their interview wish list, Melly was quick to answer the American rapper Russ. He’s an independent artist and based on his music and messages; she thinks he’d be able to open up and share a lot with listeners. Gaby has a longer list. First, the rapper Ab-Soul. He’s a deep thinker and much of what he talks about in his music is of interest to her. With her love of TV and movies, she would like to interview Teyana Talyor. Teyana crosses many of Gaby’s interests including R&B singing, dancing, directing, and performing in music videos, television, and movies. Gaby would like to pick her brain about how she found her way to do such a variety of roles in the performance industry. Lastly, Issa Rae who began her career with Awkward Black Girl, a YouTube series she wrote, filmed, and produced herself as a teenager. The show went viral and was backed by a Kickstarter mid-season. From there she created a series picked up by HBO called Insecure about an adult African American woman and her life. So many questions for Issa, but in short how did she do all of that? 82

When asked what advice they would give women wanting to start a podcast it was a resounding “DO IT!” They recommend just taking the first simple step. A podcast can be recorded with something as basic as your phone – for audio or video – and then go from there. People think you have to have expensive microphones, cameras, or editing software to start, but they don’t. Just start. Keep in mind, being an independent podcaster takes work and commitment. Many times people are funding their show along with doing all the work like research, editing, and promoting.

Gaby Moreno

Melly Moreno

So why do it? First, it’s the power of connection with the guest. How else do you get to sit down with someone whose work you admire and ask personal questions? Second, it’s the hope that it will have an impact on yourself and the listeners. And third, the community you build around the show. Gaby and Melly value the audience’s feedback so much. In Season 1, Episode 1, XP The Marxman talks about his Mom’s passing, anxiety, and doing meditation. The comments and exchanges on their YouTube post following the episode were incredible. People responded and opened up exactly as hoped. The whole point of The Heartful Truth is to have real, vulnerable heartfelt conversations. They aren’t hiding the conversations from anyone – that is, they hope their parents, family, and friends listen because they are being real. In addition, they aren’t avoiding topics. They look for topics that are relatable and honest to help all of us feel connected with them and with their guests. With a formula like that, the show is destined to have an impact on its audience. Looking forward to more seasons and more stories with the The Heartful Truth!

Instagram: @theheartfultruth Listen Here Country: United States 83

The SOS Pod by Tina Jaramillo

Molly Cottrell and Alissa Razzano, the co-hosts of the podcast The SOS Pod, recently sat down with Women Who Podcast to share their story. The duo met while working as servers and bonded over their mutual dissatisfaction with their jobs. They both craved a creative outlet and saw podcasting as a means to explore their passions. Molly explained that they were inspired to start the podcast after experiencing a “life SOS moment” and realized that they needed to make a change. She added, “There was no alignment in our lives of how we saw ourselves, and what we wanted our lives to be, and what our day to day life was looking like.” “A lot of my life prior to this podcast was that kind of meltdown,” said Alissa. “When you’re not fulfilling that huge part of your identity when you’re just letting that go out of comfort out of habit because you’re enabled by the quick money you can make at a restaurant. You just don’t think that you can do anything better.” The podcast has been a way for them to channel their frustrations and make a difference. “We’re essentially talking into an echo chamber because we agree with each other about everything,” said Molly. “We need that outlet, but at the same time, we want it to go somewhere and do something.” After leaving the restaurant they worked at, the two decided to take the leap and start the podcast. They had one long day at a coffee shop where they brainstormed the concept and name for the show. Alissa noted that this was a transformative day for them both. “After so many years of a lot of rejection in our various fields or various artistic fields…there [were] just so many amazing ideas that were being shared with each other, and we were learning about each other all over again.” Then they spent two months putting together the trailer and the first few episodes. The hosts wanted to talk about a variety of topics, including social justice issues and mental health, but they didn’t want to be just another podcast with two friends chatting about life. They wanted to provide their listeners with valuable insights and tools for navigating the challenges of modern life. The SOS Pod has become a platform for the hosts to share their passions and connect with others who are on a similar journey of self-discovery. As Alissa put it, “It really got our creative juices flowing.” But like most podcasters, Molly and Alissa have day jobs. They spoke candidly about how they lean on each other to make the show a success. “It’s still very important to us, but it’s not easy,” said Alissa, referring to the challenges of balancing their day jobs with the podcast. “But we lean on each other in a way that I think speaks to the general idea and theme of our show, you know, ‘turning meltdowns into magic’. If you can’t do it yourself, rely on someone you trust.” Molly agreed, adding, “I’m really grateful to have a partner in this whose head is always in the same place in terms of what we’re trying to say, and what issues we 85 want to talk about.”

Despite the challenges, they remain committed to their mission. “Once you get it out, and you feel like it’s living a life of its own, and other people are gaining something from the conversations,” said Molly, “you feel like you’re making a difference.” Part of those conversations include guest interviews. Molly and Alissa discussed their process for finding guests. According to Molly, the two of them have had a lot of success with cold DMs on Instagram. They find pages that focus on topics like mental health, wellness, or social justice, and then reach out to the people behind those pages to ask them to be on their show. Alissa admits to being more shy about reaching out to potential guests, but she acknowledges that Molly has a lot of confidence in this area. Molly’s background in the arts, music, and acting, as well as her experience in the service industry, has helped her build a network of fascinating people from all walks of life. In the first year of their podcast, Molly and Alissa leaned heavily on that network, and the show has grown from there. Molly and Alissa have also found that once someone comes on their show, they often recommend other potential guests, which has helped them grow their network even further. Overall, Molly and Alissa’s process for finding guests is a mix of cold outreach, tapping into their network, and putting out calls for recommendations. It’s a time-consuming process, but it has helped them build a diverse and interesting roster of guests. The ladies also revealed their dream guests. Alissa was quick to mention her gynecologist as her dream guest, explaining that her doctor is “just so smart.” Molly, on the other hand, talked about That’s So Retrograde, a podcast they both love. “I found their podcast and listened to them for like 5 years through some of the hardest years of my life; they were a staple for me,” she said. The duo managed to get the hosts from That’s So Retrograde on their show. Molly revealed that she had messaged them on social media, and they said yes. “That one felt like a full circle moment when we started our podcast,” she said. The SOS Pod is full of valuable advice, and their dream guests reflect their personalities perfectly. While having great guests and a concept are important first steps, equipment is also crucial. So how do these two hosts record their podcast? Alissa explained that they have a studio in her apartment and when they can manage to get together, they use that space to record. However, with busy schedules and during the pandemic, it wasn’t always possible. When they can’t be in the same space, they rely on Zoom. Molly pointed out that recording via Zoom has been a great advantage for them. They can reach out to guests no matter where they are located. Previously, they had only considered local guests, but now they interview anyone from anywhere in the world. In the beginning, Alissa and Molly initially relied on guests they knew locally. However, when the pandemic hit, they realized they had to start conducting interviews via Zoom. Despite the challenges of producing a podcast during a pandemic, the two have managed to keep it going. 86

Now, as they continue to grow their audience, they are looking for ways to take their podcast to the next level. They would love to have a production company work with them and have a dedicated studio space. It’s just the two of them, and with busy schedules and limited resources, they are realizing they need help to keep growing. In the end, it’s all about finding ways to keep the podcast going and reaching more listeners. With the flexibility of Zoom and the right partnerships, Molly and Alissa are sure to continue growing their audience and producing great content for years to come.

Molly Cottrell

Alissa Razzano

We also discussed some of the challenges they have faced in the industry, specifically as female podcasters. Although they have not had any obvious “blow up” moments where they were blatantly disregarded, they did mention some subtler obstacles. According to Molly, they have encountered the stereotype that women are not capable of having deep, insightful conversations. She says, “I think it is a stereotype thing, especially two millennial best friends having a podcast.” Alissa adds that people are often surprised by how good their interviews are and the level of depth they bring to their discussions. She admits that some people might have a preconceived notion that they are just “fun girls that laugh, and they don’t take themselves seriously.” Although they have received some pushback from trolls on social media, they do not let it discourage them. Alissa mentioned that they received derogatory comments after their political episodes, but they do not let it get to them. Instead, they continue to focus on creating content that is informative, fun, and inclusive. What’s more, they have not let these challenges prevent them from creating content that is informative and entertaining. They continue to inspire their listeners with their intelligent and insightful conversations. In conclusion, Molly and Alissa are doing an incredible job with The SOS Pod, and their passion for their work is evident. Their podcast is a testament to their dedication and hard work, and they are making a difference in their own way. They provide their listeners with valuable insights and tools for navigating the challenges of modern life, and they are not afraid to tackle important issues that are often overlooked. If you haven’t already, be sure to listen to The SOS Pod and hear their fresh perspective on important topics.

Instagram: @thesospod Listen Here Country: United States

Content Strategy: The 3 C’s & The 3 R’s

As consumers, we are inundated with information twenty-four seven, three hundred sixty-five days of the year. It’s quite overwhelming and at times annoying. However, as podcasters, this same information is essential for marketing our podcast and engaging with listeners/followers. But do we create content that our listeners/followers what to hear and see? Or do we churn out poor quality content just for the sake of checking it off the to-do list? How you use the content is only part of the equation. How you write the content is where it all starts. Here are some tips for writing content that will hit the bullseye every time. Clarity Be clear in explaining your topic. Come at it from the perspective of the listener/follower because they may not know very much about the topic. Keep it as simple as possible. You know the saying, “imagine you are explaining it to your grandmother.” Conciseness Be short and to the point. Focus on the information that is most important for people to know. Run on sentences are not pretty and people will feel like they are running a marathon. A rule of thumb: one sentence, one idea. Consistency When writing content, use the same terminology throughout the document, post, etc. Don’t try to impress people with colorful language - it will only confuse them. When writing content, your goal is to create clear, concise, and consistent information so people understand the message without having to solve a riddle or puzzle. Now that you have the most amazing content written, it’s time to put it to good use. Below are a few ways to save time, energy, and money when marketing your podcast and engaging listeners/followers. Reduce Repurpose long and in-depth show notes into shorter and easy-to-read social media posts. This will surely pique people’s interest when it’s in easier to digest portions. Reuse A common word in podcasting is “evergreen.” Evergreen content is timeless and will always be relevant. Typically, content is only seen by 10% of your followers, so it can be used when you don’t have time to write new content. Recycle Recycling content using a different medium is a great way to expand your listenership without the extra work. Your time is valuable, so the next time you’re sitting down to create content, remember the 3 C’s and the 3 R’s. Because what will follow is the 4th R: Reward. 89