I launched in August of 2019 and stayed pretty consistent through the first 4 months of life, the podcast had 21 episodes and I was elated with the progress. The podcast was growing and I was meeting tons of amazing women. And then… March 2020 hit and life for everyone on the planet got a little.. weird, right? So, between episode 35 and 36 there were 3 months of radio silence over here at Chaos Queens HQ.
In that time, I retired from my federal job, we sold our family home in Northern California, and then we moved to Texas. I also started a new job doing something I had never done before, making coffee. Which isn’t rocket science, but again, I worked for the federal government my entire adult life, this is super different.
In 2021, I put out 2 episodes. But I missed the podcast and connecting with YOU, the listeners as well as meeting new women to interview. I was ready to jump back in for 2022, but I also wanted to give myself the grace to allow life to happen and not be so rigidly scheduled on the podcast.
You’ll see some fun new series coming up and I can’t wait to check in with some of our earlier guests to see what new things they’ve been up to.
But for now, here are 5 things I’ve learned about podcasting in 50 episodes:
Time management is essential. If you don’t intentionally make time for podcasting, it’s easy to say “I’ll just wait until next week” and then you get a few month down the road and you’ve been putting off recording for too long. For some tips on time management, check out episode 44 Time, Oh Time. “When we focus on what matters we can build the life we want in the time we have” - Laura Vanderkamp
Batching is important if you’re not a full time podcaster because life happens.
Self Care can’t be overlooked. Whatever self care looks like, figure out what that is for you, and go all in. You can’t be creative or a good interviewer if you’re exhausted or exasperated. If you need more self cares ideas, check out episode 29 with Tami Hackbarth.
Your environment makes a difference. Clutter can lead to overwhelm and then you can’t think straight and your ideas don’t flow. But also, sometimes, you record where no one is screaming barking on otherwise making obnoxious noise. So, balance.
Have fun and give yourself grace. I learned to podcast by Googling everything. I thought my husband would be my producer and I could just be the talent, but let’s be honest, I’m too much of a control freak and my husband doesn’t listen to podcasts, so his editing style didn’t match what I was expecting. I do all the things all by myself, and one podcast from start to publish can take upwards of 2 hours or more to produce. And that doesn’t include any social media promoting or anything. If there’s an interview involved, double that to 4 hours.
I’m not complaining one bit about any of it, I’m so happy with what I’ve done so far and excited for my outlook for the podcast. Next week, I’m starting a series called “10 Days of Gratitude” in the 10 days leading up to Thanksgiving here in the US. I hope you’ll join me for these shorty episodes to get you in the holiday spirit.
Until next time, Queen!
XO,
Shannon