Mike Murphy Unplugged

Episode Summary: Why this podcast started in the first place, and 9 real reasons to start a podcast in 2016 — knowing your "why" is what keeps you motivated when the work gets hard.

What You'll Learn

• Why knowing your "why" matters more than the topic you pick
• The real purpose and belief behind starting this podcast
• 10 real reasons to start a podcast in 2016, still mostly true today
• A recommended tool for recording remote interviews beyond Skype

"The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why." — Mark Twain

Ask Mike Anything: Recording Interviews Beyond Skype

Guest question from: Cara Lumen, Deeper Song Community.

Question: Any suggestions for recording coaching calls or interviews besides Skype?

Answer: Plenty of options — Zoom, Google Hangouts, or iOS apps like Ringr. The pick, though, is a newer service called Zencastr, whose tagline is "record your guests in top quality directly from their web browser." It's built specifically with podcasters in mind — send a link to guests, hit record, and Zencastr handles the heavy lifting, delivering high-quality audio on separate tracks. Genuinely easy.

I. Why Start a Podcast?

Why: the purpose, cause, or belief that drives what you do. Resource mentioned: Simon Sinek's Start with Why.

What inspired this podcast? The purpose is simply to teach and inspire people to do great things by sharing technical knowledge and a unique perspective.

The belief driving it comes from a Steve Jobs quote: "We're here to put a dent in the universe. Otherwise why else even be here?" It may be naive, but the belief holds that talent, skills, interests, and a genuine passion to learn and create things can add up to something meaningful. A recurring frustration with being a jack-of-all-trades has always come from knowing there's a lot to offer and wanting to share it and help others along the way — wanting to put a dent in the universe, no matter how big or small, without ever being quite sure how to start.

The core "why" here: this podcast is a platform to teach and impact others, and a starting attempt at making that dent. Pretty deep, admittedly — but knowing your why is genuinely critical, since it's what keeps you motivated, focused, and excited when the work gets hard.

II. Why Start a Podcast in 2016?

There are real benefits to podcasting for one-man bands and small brands. Disclaimer: podcasting is a big commitment that takes real work to start and maintain — it's a great platform, but that shouldn't be downplayed.

It's gaining popularity. Still a relatively new medium, so getting in early helps establish long-term footing. Entertain and be creative. It's your show — mak…

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Episode Summary: The 5 most common podcast formats — solo, interview, co-host, NPR-style storytelling, and mix & match — with real pros, cons, and examples to help decide which fits.

What You'll Learn

• The 5 most common podcast formats, with real pros and cons for each
• 5 questions worth answering before picking a format
• Real examples of each format done well, from Serial to Entrepreneur on Fire
• A recommended webcam for live webcasting on Blab or Google Hangouts

Ask Mike Anything: A Webcam for Live Webcasting

Question: What webcam is recommended for live webcasting on sites like Blab and Google Hangouts?

Answer: The Logitech C920 — 1080p high-definition, a great camera, and findable on Amazon for about $65, which is an incredible deal.

Why Format Matters

The format chosen needs to tell the story, teach the listener, or entertain the audience in the most authentic and effective way possible. Format is 100% up to the host and can change any time, but consistency is what keeps subscribers coming back week after week — keep that in mind before switching things up too often.

Questions to Ask When Starting a Podcast

What's the purpose of the show? What's it actually about? What value does the content deliver to listeners? What's the best method to deliver the message? What should listeners experience by tuning in?

The 5 Formats

1. The Solo/Monocast — "The One Man Band"

One person on the mic.

Pros: easy to start, complete creative control, personable and intimate, technically simpler — plug a mic into a mixer or recorder and go, versus managing a guest's audio quality too.

Cons: no one to fall back on, 100% responsible for all content, harder to stay conversational without another person, can feel lonely for extroverts.

Examples: Mike Murphy Unplugged and Omar Zenhom of $100 MBA.

2. The Interview

The host interviews a guest.

Pros: people genuinely like listening to interviews, reaches more people faster than a solo show, real networking opportunities, guest brings the knowledge and content, less scripting required.

Cons: scheduling, batching, and technical coordination all get harder with a second person involved.

Example: John Lee Dumas and Entrepreneur on Fire.

3. The Co-Host

Two podcasters (same room or remote) doing the show together.

Pros: entertaining and fun when the personalities and rapport are good, often more educational with two perspectives, workload gets split, and co-hosts can bail each other out when stuck.

Cons: can ramble or run long on catch-up intros, staying on topic gets harder, scheduling requires both hosts to commit, and one h…

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Episode Summary: Why anyone would listen to yet another podcast on a crowded topic — it comes down to perspective — plus 5 real benefits of teaching and 5 concrete ways to start teaching online.

What You'll Learn

• 5 real benefits of teaching: authority, skill-building, service, marketing, and revenue
• 5 ways to teach online: blog, YouTube, courses, social media, or a podcast
• Why perspective — not the topic itself — is what makes a podcast unique
• Why niching down is hard for a jack-of-all-trades, and why teaching helps anyway

Ask Mike Anything: Why Would Anyone Listen to Me?

Question (from the Blab chatroom): I want to start a tech podcast, but there are already so many. Why would anyone listen to me?

Answer: Perspective — credit to teacher and podcaster Chris Nesi for the framing. This show is unique because of the perspective brought to every topic, not the topic itself. Watch the evening news on any given night — the same story sounds completely different depending on the station or reporter covering it. The reason someone listens, even to a familiar topic, comes down to the relationship and connection built with the audience. That perspective will resonate with some listeners and not others, and developing a real voice and style takes time, practice, and experience. But genuine passion and knowledge, without worrying about the competition, is what actually gets people listening.

5 Benefits of Teaching

1. Authority. The more a topic gets taught, the more people associate the teacher with it as an expert. Authority in any industry opens doors and builds confidence. Niching down is genuinely hard for a jack-of-all-trades — this has been an ongoing struggle with too many interests to easily pick just one — but teaching consistently is still the answer.
2. Learning & improving skills. Teaching is the best way to learn and master a skill. Writing podcast scripts and explaining topics to others has taught more than almost anything else — every lesson forces the questions: what's the purpose here, what steps are required, what should people take away? Deconstructing a process to explain it simply is a skill in itself.
3. Helping others. Genuinely rewarding — watching someone go from frustrated or overwhelmed to unstuck is deeply satisfying. Helping others, through social media "serving hours" or otherwise, sharpens skills while building real relationships and a strong network. Word of mouth follows naturally.
4. Marketing & promotion. Teaching is the ultimate online marketing tool — sharing knowledge gets a brand in front of people in a positive light. Sharing a great article instead of a breakfast photo, or guest-writing for someone respected, provides real value and reaches new audiences. The more people associate a brand with genuine, useful content, the more that brand grows.
5. Financial. Teaching can genuinely generate serious income — through consulting, coaching, or training courses.

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: Why hosting on your own platform beats renting space from a trendy one, how to overcome impostor syndrome, and why becoming an authority has nothing to do with knowing everything.

What You'll Learn

• Why owning your RSS feed matters more than picking a trendy hosting platform
• How to define and start overcoming impostor syndrome
• The real definition of being an authority — it's not about knowing everything
• Why teaching for free is the fastest path to establishing authority

Ask Mike Anything: Should You Host on SoundCloud?

Question (from Blab.im): Is SoundCloud recommended for hosting a podcast?

Answer: No. SoundCloud is genuinely well-designed as a user experience, and hosting there was considered early on — but the advice against it turned out to be right. Complete control over the RSS feed matters. As Scottish online buddy Kevin Scullion puts it: you don't want to build your home on other people's land. SoundCloud was also rumored to be in real financial trouble at the time, adding more reason not to take the chance — without feed control, migrating to a new host later could become a genuine hassle.

Recommendation, and what's actually used: Libsyn for audio hosting, and Blubrry PowerPress to generate the feed through WordPress. Either company is a safe bet — $15/month for Libsyn.

1. How to Overcome Fear

It's all about mindset. Impostor syndrome can be defined as a collection of feelings of inadequacy, experienced internally as chronic self-doubt and feelings of intellectual fraudulence. Resources mentioned: Austin Kleon and Anne Lamott's essay on "Shitty First Drafts".

2. Become an Authority

"Try not to become a person of success. Rather become a person of value." — Albert Einstein

Resource mentioned: Derek Sivers's "What's Obvious to You".

To teach online: step out of your comfort zone and share what you know — give the knowledge away for free. Authority gets established when the focus shifts away from yourself and toward solving other people's problems and offering real help. Creating content or solving even a small problem for someone is genuinely valuable.

Being an authority doesn't mean knowing everything — remember that. John Lee Dumas of EOFire often references the legal definition of "expert": simply knowing more than others in the room. Authority stems from helping others and knowing enough to solve real problems. The more you serve and engage, the more you're perceived as an expert — and the more you create and practice your craft, the better you actually become.

It starts with a mindset shift, and develops the moment you start sharing your knowledge.

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: A brief recap of the 2016 Roadmap and the exact tools used to implement it and stay on course all year — plus a recommended lavalier mic setup for better iPhone audio.

What You'll Learn

• A brief recap of the 2016 Roadmap, goal by goal, with real actions attached
• The exact tools used to build the roadmap and stay on track all year
• A recommended lavalier mic setup for better iPhone/Periscope audio
• Two great external resources for running your own annual review

Download the 2016 Roadmap PDF — see Episode 17 for the full roadmap this episode recaps.

Ask Mike Anything: Better Audio for iPhone Periscope

Question: How do you get better audio when using an iPhone for Periscope?

Answer: The Rode SmartLav+ is the recommended microphone — it works with all iOS devices.

Rode SmartLav+ Lavalier Microphone.

Recommended accessories: the Rode SC3 3.5mm TRRS to TRS Adapter (for use with other devices — cameras, the Zoom H6), the Rode VXLR Adapter, and the Rode SC6 Dual TRRS Input & Headphone Output for Smartphones.

Priorities of 2016

• Goal: improve podcast quality and take audio production skills to the next level. Action: ask for feedback and help in Google+ groups, study, and practice.
• Goal: make more video and written tutorials, and improve video skills. Action: commit to one video tutorial per week, and keep studying video editing.
• Goal: increase networking and build relationships in the podcast community. Action: serving hours on social media, plus direct contact.
• Goal: drive more website traffic and grow the email list. Action: increase the number of lead magnets and calls to action.
• Goal: repurpose content more consistently. Action: turn 2015 episodes into blog posts and tutorials, and reuse Blab content.
• Goal: monetize. Action: more product videos for affiliate links and courses.

Social Media Plan

Twitter: 5 tweets/week. Facebook: 2 posts/week. Instagram: 3-5 posts/week. Pinterest: 1/month. Blab: Open Mike Night, Mondays at 9pm EST. Serving hours: 2 hours/week.

Tools Used to Create the 2016 Roadmap

Scrivener — professional writing software used for every podcast script and more. Workflowy — an easy, powerful web-based outliner.

Tools Used to Stay on Track

Asana — free project manag…

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: The full 2016 roadmap for Mike Murphy Co. — 6 top-level priorities, a concrete weekly content and social plan, and real financial goals for the year ahead.

What You'll Learn

• 6 top-level priorities for the business heading into 2016
• A concrete weekly content and social media plan, platform by platform
• What a mix-minus is and how to solve for it without special hardware
• Real financial and list-growth goals set for the year

Ask Mike Anything: What Is a Mix-Minus?

Question (from Blab.im's Open Mike Night): What is a mix-minus?

Answer: A mix-minus is typically used when interviewing guests over Skype. It lets the guest hear everything going through the podcaster's mixer minus their own voice — preventing an echo on their end, since they're also talking into a mic and would otherwise hear themselves reflected back. Hence: the mix, minus their echoed voice.

Alternative solution using Skype: ECamm Call Recorder (Mac) or Pamela (Windows). Ray Ortega's tutorial does a great job simplifying a proper mix-minus setup for anyone who wants to go that route.

Roadmap for 2016

"If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there." — Lewis Carroll

Top-Level Priorities for 2016

1. Get better at the art of podcasting and audio production
2. Get better and more consistent at making tutorials and classes
3. Network with other podcasters and establish authority
4. Grow the email list and community
5. Drive more traffic to the website
6. Repurpose content to build exposure

What Gets Created, and How Often

Podcast: once per week. Newsletter: once per week. Blog posts: one per week. Tutorials: ideally one per week. Classes: 3 full classes on Udemy and Skillshare across all of 2016.

Social Media Plan

Twitter: 5 tweets per week — easy, since most are re-shares of discovered articles. Facebook: 2 posts per week, sharing blog posts and episodes; growing the Facebook group is part of the roadmap. Instagram: a daily photo streak has held since the podcast launched, without a single missed day — that goal is complete. 2016 backs off slightly to 3-5 posts per week; daily was too aggressive to sustain, but the creative and marketing boost from Instagram has been real. Pinterest: largely set-and-forget, but not ignored given its marketing potential — one day per month dedicated to cleaning up and managing boards. Blab: keeping the once-a-week schedule, aiming for more structure and focus per session — the unsustainable 9pm-2am, 5-hour Blabs are done. Blab is seen as a huge platform for podcasters, and getting in early is paying off. Overall social goal: 2 hours per week of "serving hours" — browsing Facebook and Google+, answering questions, and engaging in discussions to help people.

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: Part 3 of the Learn, Create, Move Forward trilogy — a holiday episode on what moving forward actually means, overcoming impostor syndrome, and small concrete steps to put yourself out there.

What You'll Learn

• What moving forward actually means after you've learned and created
• How to define and overcome impostor syndrome
• 6 small, concrete steps to actually put yourself out there
• Tools for managing social media across a growing business

Part 1 covered learning, Part 2 covered creating. In this holiday episode: what moving forward means, overcoming doubt and impostor syndrome, and how to actually move forward.

Ask Mike Anything: Managing Social Media for Business

Guest question from: Heather Donlan, photographer. Any good resources for managing social media for a business?

Answer: Hootsuite, Buffer, Pablo by Buffer, Latergramme, Schedugram. Bonus: MeetEdgar.

What Is Moving Forward?

"There are seven days in the week, and someday isn't one of them."

Resource mentioned: the Momentum Chrome extension.

Overcoming Doubt & Impostor Syndrome

Impostor syndrome can be defined as a collection of feelings of inadequacy, experienced internally as chronic self-doubt and feelings of intellectual fraudulence.

"To overcome doubt, do something out of your comfort zone."

Remedy: be genuine and be yourself, and there's nothing to worry about. Respect and learn from others in the same space, but don't measure success against what others are doing — focus on being you, and people will respond.

Moving Forward

Keep learning, keep creating, and keep working to improve and establish authority in your space. Push past your comfort zone and forward motion follows. There's no such thing as overnight success — the hard work is what eventually pays off.

Small steps:

• Guest blog posts
• Be interviewed on podcasts
• Answer questions and be helpful in Facebook groups and social media
• Participate on Blab
• Make a YouTube video
• Put yourself out there

Happy Holidays!

—Mike

Music: "Life of Riley" & "Wallpaper" (incompetech.com).

Show Notes & Links

Heather Donlan Photography Hootsuite Buffer Pablo by Buffer Latergramme Schedugram MeetEdgar Momentum (Chrome Extension)

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: Part 2 of the Learn, Create, Move Forward trilogy — what content creation actually means (it's not the same as creativity), and the full list of things created regularly to serve one specific audience.

What You'll Learn

• The real definition of content creation, and why it's not the same as creativity
• A full list of the content types created regularly: website, blog, video, podcast, and more
• Why your only real focus should be creating for your specific audience, or "tribe"
• Whether a professional website needs a custom developer or a template will do

Part 1 covered where to learn. This episode covers creation, not to be confused with creativity. Part 3 covers moving forward.

Ask Mike Anything: Template or Custom Developer?

Question: Does a professional-looking website for a mortgage business need a hired web developer/designer, or will a template work?

Answer: WordPress templates and frameworks work for most scenarios today — coding a website from scratch isn't necessary to get a professional site up quickly. Template resources: ThemeForest, Elegant Themes, Squarespace, WooThemes.

1. What Is Content Creation?

Per Wikipedia: content is "something that is to be expressed through some medium, as speech, writing or any of various arts" for self-expression, distribution, marketing, and/or publication. Typical forms include maintaining and updating websites, blogging, photography, videography, podcasting, managing social media accounts, and editing/distributing digital media like audio, video, or design.

The only real focus needs to be creating content for your audience — or, as Seth Godin calls it, your tribe. What does that specific audience need? Don't let "infobesity" — the feeling that there's already too much content out there — become a reason not to bother. Your voice is unique, and your audience needs you specifically to create content that helps them.

Note: Sean McCabe has a great video addressing this directly, called "Who Am I to Try".

2. What Gets Created, and How

Website, blog posts, videos, classes, podcast episodes, artwork, lead magnets, email newsletters, tutorials, behind-the-scenes videos.

Classes taught on Skillshare: Photoshop: The Art of the Headswap and WordPress Cheatsheet for Entrepreneurs.

The big-ticket items already covered — website, blog, videos, classes, podcast — are the core. Everything else fills in the ga…

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: Part 1 of the Learn, Create, Move Forward trilogy — a curated tour of every platform and YouTube channel used to keep learning about tech, podcasting, business, design, photography, and video.

What You'll Learn

• The paid platforms used most for ongoing learning: Lynda, KelbyOne, Skillshare
• A massive curated list of audio, video, photo, and design learning resources
• The real downside of learning too much without practicing or shipping
• Two Skillshare classes taught, for anyone wanting a peek behind the curtain

This episode kicks off a 3-part series: Learn, Create, Move Forward. Part 2 covers creation, Part 3 covers moving forward.

Ask Mike Anything: Teaching Podcasting to Students

Question (from Blab): From a high school teacher — are there any good resources online to teach students about podcasting?

Answer: The Free Podcast Course by John Lee Dumas, and this show itself, Mike Murphy Unplugged.

The Cons of Learning Too Much

Becoming a jack-of-all-trades, losing track of what you're actually good at, not practicing what's being learned, and fear of ever actually starting something.

Where I Learn

Lynda.com ($35/month) — the best, hands down. KelbyOne ($199/year) — photography, Photoshop, video, and more. Skillshare ($9.99/month).

Favorite Skillshare classes: Logo Design the Draplin Way: Building with Shape, Type, and Color by Aaron Draplin, and Buy Smarter, Taste More: Getting Started with Wine by Gary Vaynerchuk.

Classes taught on Skillshare: Photoshop: The Art of the Headswap and WordPress Cheatsheet for Entrepreneurs.

Audio Resources

Adobe Audition & post-production: Larry Jordan, Curtis Judd, Music Radio Creative, The Recording Revolution, Ian Shepherd, Rode's YouTube channel, Tuts+.

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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Episode Summary: A complete resource list for building a brand from scratch — logos, fonts, colors, graphics, stock photos, video footage, music, and where to outsource the rest.

What You'll Learn

• A complete resource list across branding, photos, video, audio, and outsourcing
• Where to find logos, fonts, and color palettes without hiring a designer
• Free and paid stock resources for photos, video footage, and music
• The top outsourcing platforms for getting things done fast

The 5 Categories

1. Branding (the big category)
2. Photos (stock photos)
3. Video footage & animations (intros, lower thirds)
4. Audio (for podcasts and video projects)
5. Outsourcing

1. Branding & Graphics

Covers logos, fonts, colors, and general graphics.

Logos: Tailor Brands (~$50), Squarespace Logo ($10), 99designs, 48HourLogo. Bonus tip: browse Dribbble or LogoPond for logo inspiration.

Fonts: Adobe Typekit, MyFonts, Font Squirrel (favorite free source), League of Moveable Type (for a hipster fix), Google Fonts, DaFont. Pairing fonts: Type Genius. Bonus resource: a roundup of 100 free fonts from 2015.

Colors: Adobe Color CC (formerly Kuler), Coolors, and the "super secret" tool 0to255 — great for getting fast variations of a color you like.

Graphics & templates: the Adobe CC Marketplace (tons of free assets bundled into every CC app), Adobe Exchange, Creative Market, GraphicRiver, Canva. Bonus tip: Canva is also a great place to scope out trendy new fonts.

Warning: with any stock resource, respect copyright. Don't just Google a photo and use it because it works — using only photos you have the right to use is your responsibility, and citing the source or pleading ignorance won't cut it.

2. Photos

Unsplash (hipster favorite), Death to Stock Photo, picjumbo, CompFight (Flickr search).

3. Videos

VideoHive and VideoBlocks.

Read the complete show notes and resources on mikemurphy.ai.

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