4 Life Changing Lessons – PTC 455

LESSONS THAT SKYROCKETED MY BUSINESS The lessons that come to us on our journey can change our lives if we are open to embracing them. We simply need to see the silver lining. This week I received an email from a client. She said, "This week I was really wondering if this is worth my time. My life is so out of balance!!" My heart fell to my stomach. It hurt so much, because I have been there. Growing your podcast can be lonely. Building a business and being an entrepreneur can often make you feel like you're alone on an island. Over the years I have realized that it is truly darkest before the light. Just when you think you're on the wrong path, the sun comes over the horizon. There are four lessons I've learned over the years that can help you when you're ready to throw in the towel. If you want to talk about your journey and craft your podcast strategy, apply for a free podcast strategy call with me at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply. THE LESSONS OF CORNERS First, embrace change. You never know what opportunity is around the corner. Music was all around me growing up. It really developed my love of every genre. I grew up listening to Jim Croce, the Beach Boys and Tom Jones from my mom. Dad was listening to Johnny Cash, Kenny Rogers and Marty Robbins. My older brothers and sisters were all about the Beatles, Elton John and Bachman Turner Overdrive. When it came to my babysitter, we were listening to the Eagles, John Denver and the BeeGees. Rick was my best friend. He was listening to the Doors, the Cars and the Clash. RECORD STORE LESSONS When I was a senior in high school, I played the sax in band and landed a job at a local record store. I loved music and this was perfect. One night in the fall, a coworker asked me to cover his Saturday night shift at the store. I typically didn't work Saturdays, so I agreed. Then, our high school band director announced we had the biggest marching band competition of the year on that same day. Suddenly, I couldn't cover the shift. I called everyone to see if they would fill in. It was Saturday night, and I could find nobody. When I called the new store manager who had only been there a few weeks, I explained it to him. He told me to either find someone or show up. It was my responsibility. I had just called every employee. It wasn't happening. I called the shift manager and told him the situation. When I told him I wouldn't be there, he told me to not worry about it. They could handle it without me. The band won the competition and it was a great day. On Sunday, I go to the store and work my regular shift. At the end of the night, the manager calls me into the office. He asks me why I didn't show up on Saturday. I explain what he already knows. The manager then tells me that he is letting me go due to my lack of musical knowledge. It was the first time I got fired. THE NEXT DOOR OPENS I'm in my drafting class the next day. It was part of my journey to become an architect. My teacher Mr. Weaver comes over to tell me he received a call from a local drafting firm. The owner is looking for a draftsman and wants Weaver to send his best draftsman. Weave asks if I'm interested. When I say yes, he gives me the guy's number and tells me to go see him after school. That afternoon, I was offered a job as a draftsman making nearly twice as much as I was making at the record store. I would start the next Monday. Embrace change when it comes. You never know what opportunity is around the corner. THE LESSONS OF CHANCES The next lesson is take chances and follow your heart. Embrace your passion. I worked for that drafting firm for two-and-a-half years. It grew from the two of us to hiring 3 other draftsman. Then, the drafting firm closed. The owner was taking a job with one of our clients to become their in-house drafting department. I was out of a job again. One Saturday I was hanging around the house when the phone rang. It was my brother's boss. My brother Keith worked at a radio station in town running the board. Keith and I both worked with the station manager at the local roller skating rink. Boss needed Keith to fill in for some shifts, but he wasn't home. Boss told me he needed help at the radio station and wondered if I was interested. I was a broke college student at the time and needed some cash. Radio always sounded fun as well. So, I took the job and started on my journey into radio. ARCHITECTURE VS RADIO During the next year, my love for radio grew while my passion for architecture was fading. I started considering switching my degree from architecture to journalism. After taking a few journalism classes, I realized I knew most of it by already working in a radio station. So, I finished the architecture degree and stayed in radio. Radio was my new passion. It started out with me working overnights. I had two other jobs just to pay rent and make ends meet. But I was having a blast. My parents thought I lost my mind. All that work in architecture just to work overnights on the radio. It wasn't until 7 years later when I started programming the radio station that my dad finally accepted my career. When things got tough, I had to fight the doubters and follow my passion. Trust your heart. Take chances. Embrace your passion. Follow your intuition. THE LESSONS IN CONNECTIONS The next lesson is all about connection. You never know who you might meet and where you might meet them. A few years later I was in a temporary radio gig. I was hired to keep the station on the tracks while the owner sold it. After the sale, I was out of a job. So, I left radio in January and accepted a job as an audio producer at a teleservices company. I was producing the audio on those phone lines that you call to activate your bank card. During that job, I met the woman who would become my wife and change my world. Jen was an account manager at the company. After starting in January, our first date was in March. She accepted another job and left the company in April. By July, I was back in radio at a new station. Jen and I worked with each other for less than four months. But, it was the start of our lifetime together. You never know who you might meet and where you might meet them. As you're on your journey, never say no to a mic. You never know who is in the audience and what might develop. QUALITY The final lesson is it's not the size of the audience that matters. It's the quality of those in the audience. I had just launched my Podcast Profits Concierge program. This allows coaches to show up and perform while leaving all the production, editing, and social medial asset creation up to my team. We do it all for them. The program also involves one-on-one coaching with me. It's a very powerful program and I was ready to take information experts to the next level. A few clients had enrolled as I was looking for stages and other opportunities to be in front of clients who could hire me. MASTERMIND INVITE I was invited to speak to a mastermind. As I just mentioned, never say no to a mic. She was a friend, and that gave me even more reason to say yes. When I showed up to the mastermind call, there were six people in the room. Not as many as I had hoped, but I came to deliver. We had a great conversation. I gave it my all and talked about what I love about podcasting. Later that day, I got an email from one of the people in the room. He wanted to discuss launching a podcast. On the call, I told him all about Podcast Fast Blueprint to launch the show. Then we got into Podcast Profits Concierge and all it could do for him and his business. By the end of the call, I had created a custom program for him that eventually turned him into a $20,000 client. It isn't the size of the audience that matters. Be more concerned about the quality of the audience. When you compare your downloads to others, keep this in mind. Not all podcast audiences are created equal. Fill your audience with quality prospects and turn them into valuable clients. YOUR STRATEGY These four lessons can help keep proper perspective when you're ready to throw in the towel. When your podcast isn't helping you grow your business, it can be frustrating. You're not alone. Many podcasters tell me they simply can't continue to dump time and energy into a podcast that isn't producing results. That's where I can help you. If you want to talk about your journey and craft your podcast strategy, apply for a free podcast strategy call with me at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.