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Who Inspires You?
Never record a podcast on a Monday morning. A few weeks ago I was a guest on Michelle Daides’ Maverick Makers podcast. Things were progressing nicely until we entered the lightning round of questions and she asked:
“Who Inspires You?”
I was stumped. In fact, you can ask me again and I am still not sure how I would answer. But I can explain the blank response.
Since I first went on the radio when I was 18 years old – the goal was always to be yourself. I asked Terry Dimonte early on for advice and it was “Be yourself”. That advice was repeated throughout my career on air. If you ever wanted to do bad radio, cease being yourself and expect disappointing results. I can point to two occasions when I made off colour remarks in my quest to push the envelope, only to fall flat in the moment.
When I was 24 my program director at 100.3 the Bear in Edmonton, Eric Samuels, suggested I carried a fear of failure when constructing my radio breaks. I explored that and soon learned that I also played hockey and soccer the same way. I always appreciated that and never forgot it.
My dad died back in 2008. I always appreciated he’s calm demure when I would present him with my problem. Most of the time he reminded me that often there is no action to take and to find a way to enjoy moments instead of worrying about them. Today I find myself sharing that advice to so many people.
One of the first podcasts I enjoyed listening to was called Why Oh Why which was hosted by Andrea Silenzi. I loved the sound of the show, how they used remote mics to capture audio, and told a wonderful story. The sound of the show was indeed an inspiration for the podcasts we make at the network.
A few years ago when I was in the process of building up my voiceover business, Tara Sands inspired me to raise my performance bar and do become a better performer. She taught me to sing, warm up and take care of my voice.
More recently, Monique Pantel relocated to Panama, opened a pizzeria and started a podcast, and built a retreat in the jungle. Now she shares her inspiration with her clients. Avery Rich has channeled her experience as a yoga instructor into a short form podcast. And finally, Sarah Burke who started her Women in Media podcast network a few months ago, is already has 8 podcasts firing on all cylinders.
It’s tough not to confuse inspiration with mentorship. The two are not the same. When you have a moment, ask yourself: Who Inspires you?
STOP DOING THIS!
Stop using Zoom to record podcasts. There’s never been a podcast recorded on Zoom that didn’t sound like it. There are a solid half dozen excellent services that can record your show really well, including Squadcast, Riverside, Zencastr and ECamm.
Best Thing I Heard This Week…
Best Thing I Voiced This Week
I’ve never had a sub from Penn Station East Coast Subs, but I think I want to try one. This spot is running on the radio around the east coast of North America.
Media & Marketing Maven for Hire!
Yes we keep posting about this gal, but her work supersedes it all! See for yourself here on her portfolio site & her company site here!
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