I am happy to say that I’ve now hosted two podcasts; one with guests and one on my own. When I look back at each experience, I can say that having a guest on the episodes to riff with was a lot easier (and a lot more fun).
Hosting on your own teaches you a lot, but it’s hard stay engaging when it’s just you. The biggest reason I stopped ‘Content Corner’ was because on those days when I was tired or mentally drained, it came across in the recordings. I didn’t feel like I could willingly put those episodes out into the world for the sake of meeting a deadline that I had set for myself. It just didn’t feel right or like it was fair to my listeners.
I’m not saying that I wasn’t tired or emotionally drained at times when hosting ‘Middle Movers,’ but having someone else to chat to that had given up there time to be with me made it a lot easier to show up. Although I consider myself an ambivert that leans more towards the introverted side, I do get a lot out of positive and fulfilling interactions with others. Even if I didn’t feel my best going into recording, I always felt better afterwards and you could tell that spirits were high when you listened to the audio after.
Working alone, it was easy for me stay in complete control of the content. I had planned out my first six months of episodes in a single after, and I knew how it was all going to thread together. I thought that because I had no one else to coordinate with, I’d be able to stay motivated and bring the enthusiasm I had for all of my ideas to each recording session. I quickly found that no amount of enthusiasm enabled me to override my burnout or the exhaustion that came with it. To be honest, I’m still fighting through it to a degree.
If I do bring my solo podcast back, I think I’ll employ a hybrid format where I mostly do episodes alone, but then I bring guests on from time to time. I think my target audience enjoys my perspective, but would also appreciate some variety with folks that come from different backgrounds, work in different industries, and have differing levels of expertise.
That was the beauty of ‘Middle Movers.’ I was talking with other mid-level marketers about how they had gotten to that point, and what sort of paths they were hoping to take with their careers. I think it would be fun to bring on some entry-level folks just figuring it out, and some folks that have “cracked the code” and entered into the executive sphere.
Personally, I still have that list of ideas, and I’ve since come up with more. I’ve been thinking a lot more about how far I can truly go as an individual contributor. There are definitely pros to management, but I also believe that it shouldn’t be the default path for career progression. Not everyone wants to manage, and they shouldn’t feel forced into something that they don’t have the will to excel at.
If you’ve hosted a podcast before, what sort of format did you use? Would you do it again?
If you’re thinking of starting a podcast in the future, what sort of format would you go for?.
Let me know in the comments.
Khadijah Plummer Consulting 