Kat Kuan

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Lessons Learned from 30-Day Podcast Challenge

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I finished my 30-Day Podcast Challenge! It all started on a really hot day when I was sitting in my car in a parking lot in downtown San Jose. I had time to kill before my meeting, so I hit the record button and recorded my first episode.

I released it and committed to a goal of recording 1 podcast episode per day for 30 days. I wanted to try out podcasting as a platform, and I felt like a 30-Day Challenge was a quick way to see if I liked it or not.

Caveat: I started the challenge on June 1 and completed it on July 25, so it took me 55 days to create 30 episodes, but better late than never! I skipped some days or was too tired on other days, but nevertheless, I powered through and completed it!

Amassing a large number of subscribers was never a primary goal, I wanted to have zero expectations for my podcast, so I am pleasantly surprised that I have some listeners! Thank you, you know who you are!! I don’t mind sharing my analytics – everyone starts off with humble beginnings – so here are they are:

anchor podcast analytics

anchor podcast analytics

If you’re interested in doing your podcast, check out my earlier post on How to Start a Podcast. My friend Orlando mentioned he’s interested in doing a podcast now too, yay! It makes me super excited that I can encourage folks to do a podcast too and get their voice out there! 😀

Now to the main point of my blogpost. Here are the lessons learned from completing 30 episodes of my podcast:

1. Done is better than not done

I’ve always struggled with perfection, spending hours proofreading my blog posts and editing YouTube videos. When recording these podcasts in the Anchor app, you can’t edit individual audio segments. In cases like these, having limited functionality in an app is great! When I was recording, if I didn’t like the direction that I was going in, or I had a very long pause, then I would stop / delete the recording, and restart again. My episodes were around 5 minutes long, so that was one continuous audio recording. I learned to be okay with brief pauses or tiny stumbles because I didn’t want to record from the beginning again. This process could take me anywhere from 5 minutes to 30 mins to do an episode – much less time than doing a blogpost or YouTube video. Having a quick”win” by publishing an episode also gave me a high and a sense of accomplishment to keep me motivated to move onto my next work task during the day.

2. Having a podcast gives me a chance to practice speaking

I got lots of practice “public speaking” on my podcast. Technically I was talking into a phone by myself, but later other people would listen the podcast episode, so I would say it is somewhat like public speaking. I usually don’t like having the spotlight on me. Even in a 1:1 setting, sometimes I won’t know what to say, so I’ll redirect the focus onto the other person by asking them a question. Doing that habit over the course of my life means that I’m not used to having lots of blank space to fill with my own words. By having a one-woman podcast (monologue style), in a way, I was forced to fill the blank void and verbally express my thoughts and feelings. Over the 30 episodes, I noticed (and other people noticed), that I started to stutter / stumble / pause less. Hooray for progress! Now I do find it easier to talk on YouTube videos when I’ve had recent and consistent practice of doing my podcast.

3. When I admit my weaknesses or struggles, I feel less burdened by them

Through podcasting, I found an outlet for me to be pretty raw and vulnerable but in a safe way. It is scary to put myself out there, but with audio only, it’s a little easier. Maybe it’s because people can’t see me that I feel a little safer. Regardless, I’ve found podcasting as a place to open up and chat. Sometimes I ramble. Sometimes I talk about things that inspire me. Sometimes I talk about things that confuse me, or things that I’m not very good at (i.e. cooking), or the life skills I’m still working on (i.e. remembering to eat 3 meals a day). But in admitting all these imperfect sides of me, it gives me relief that I don’t have to hold up the mask of perfection of having it all together – because that is just tiring to keep up. And interestingly enough, once I admit these things publicly on my podcast, I feel that I’ve acknowledged/ accepted it as a part of me. Then I can take a deep breath and move onto other things.

WHAT’S NEXT

I’m sure there are more lessons that I’ve learned, but those will continue to unfold over time. I will continue creating podcast episodes because it brings me many positive feelings and benefits as mentioned above. But I probably won’t be publishing on a daily timeline. I’m happy to do it at my own pace, when I feel like I have something to share.

If you’re curious to check out my podcast, search for “What Kat Found Out” in your favorite podcast player or listen here: https://anchor.fm/katkuan

Have you thought about creating your own podcast? If so, what topic are you thinking of?

How to Start a Podcast

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Podcasts are all the rage these days. They’re audio-only and great for listening to while you’re commuting or on the go.

Some podcasts have a special guest they interview for each episode. Other podcasts are more documentary style – such as Gary Vee’s The Audio Experience. His episodes are recordings of his speeches, meetings, and day-to-day life as CEO of VaynerMedia.

WHY I STARTED A PODCAST

I wanted to do a podcast as an outlet for me to share my experiences as a new author and business owner. I want to speak as honestly as I can about the entrepreneurial journey.

Another reason I wanted to experiment with this format was because audio episodes are a lot faster to create compared to YouTube videos. I keep the episodes short – around several minutes to maybe 10 minutes max.

THE EASY ROUTE

To get the podcast up and running, I wanted the easiest option for a beginner.

Luckily, the process is straightforward and free with the Anchor app.

They take care of all the complicated details like hosting the podcast and setting up a RSS feed (which would normally cost money). Now all I need to do is just hit buttons within the app. 😛

Anchor works on desktop (for more detailed features), but I mostly use the mobile app (Google Play, App Store).

GET STARTED WITH THE ANCHOR APP

1. Setup an account with your email address.

2. Pick a podcast name, description, and upload a cover art image.

3. Start recording a podcast episode. You can record individual segments that get compiled into an episode, or just record one segment.

4. When the episode is ready, you can set the episode name, upload an image for that episode (or it will use your default cover art image).

5. Then hit publish!

You can publish exclusively for the Anchor platform, or you can publish it everywhere, which includes other popular podcast platforms. This is one of other great advantages of Anchor because it pushes your podcast out to other services like Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, PocketCasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more.

For example, my podcast can be found on iTunes!

Note: Beyond rearranging individual segments, I don’t think there’s an option to edit the audio files to clip out or trim sections. But I don’t mind because my episodes don’t need to be super polished. The creation process goes a lot faster too when you don’t need to edit the audio files.

Another Note: If you want more polished audio files, you could record the audio with a voice notes app on your phone. Then use editing software to edit the audio file. Then upload it into an Anchor episode.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCE

For more advanced options on how to start a podcast, check out Gary Vee’s article, written by his audio engineer, so he knows his stuff. This is the article I used to start and how I discovered Anchor.

If you decide to create a podcast, let me know in the comments below. Would love to give it a listen!

To check out my podcast in action, visit What Kat Found Out or search for it on your favorite podcast player. 🙂

Latest Experiment: My Own Podcast

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In my podcast, I share daily snippets of life as I try to make it as an entrepreneur.

What Kat Found Out

I’ll keep the episodes short, and I’ll be doing this as an experiment for 30 days. Currently published:

  • Ep #1: Waiting in the Car
  • Ep #2: Meeting w/ Stife Studio & Creative Sparks Fly
  • Ep #3: Remembering What’s Important
  • Ep #4: Table for One

Listen Now

 

Favorite Podcast

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Okay, I’ve only ever listened to one podcast, but this is my favorite: NPR’s How I Built This.

First of all, I didn’t know how to play podcasts on my phone or which app to download. (I’m a little behind the times.) Turns out you can play this one for free from the Google Play Music app. Here’s the link.

In this podcast, entrepreneurs talk about how they built their companies and the movements that catapulted them into a well-known brand today. Guy Raz is an excellent host – practically reads my mind and asks nitty gritty questions about how they got from one point to the next.

The founders all started off as “normal” relatable people (sometimes just out of college or dropping out of college). But at some point, they unexpectedly stumbled upon a belief that people should have a certain product or service in their life. None of the founders realized how big their idea would get, which perhaps makes their stories more charming.

IN THE BEGINNING

They saw a small niche in the market and went after it with as much hustle as possible.

Kendra Scott started her jewelry business by taking some wire-wrapping classes at a local bead shop. She used $500 to buy initial supplies and created some jewelry pieces in the spare bedroom of her house. She went store-to-store in Austin trying to sell them, while carrying her son in a baby carrier. Eventually one of the stores agreed to place an order. She wasn’t sure if it was because they felt sorry for her and the baby!

Meanwhile, Alli Webb started DryBar after getting antsy with being a stay-at-home mom for 5 years. She asked the mom community in her neighborhood if anyone wanted a blowout. She would go to their house to do their hair. It was $40 because it was an easy amount – two $20 bills.

Kate Spade wanted to create a line of structured handbags that had clean, simple architectural shapes. In the beginning, she and her husband had a hard time buying materials to make the prototypes because fabric houses only sold in large bulk quantities of 100 yards. Hence, their first bag was made of burlap from a POTATO SACK company!

For her first meeting with a big buyer Neiman Marcus, Sara Blakely flew out to Dallas for a 10 minute meeting. When she realized that the woman was losing interest, she desperately asked, “Will you come with me to the bathroom? I want to show you something.” Sara ended up showing her the outfit without Spanx (shapewear to keep you slim), went into the stall to put Spanx on, and then came out. The buyer was shocked at the difference it made and was sold on the idea, right in the bathroom. I guess a business deal can happen anywhere.

WHAT TO CALL IT?

There are also funny tidbits like how they came up with the names of their companies.

Nolan Bushnell wanted start a family-friendly arcade place called Coyote Pizza. He thought he had bought a coyote costume, but it was actually a rat. (I guess they look somewhat similar?) That was a problem, so he suggested to change the name to Rick Rat’s Pizza. The marketing team thought that was a terrible idea, so they came up with a three-smile name: Chuck E. Cheese’s. 😀

Sara Blakely from Spanx wrote potential names on scrap pieces of paper, even on the back of rental car agreements because she was traveling so much. She wanted a name with a strong “k” sound because she heard from comedian friends that the “k” sound makes people laugh. (Does it?) Eventually, Sara chose the name Spanx because the word is both a little naughty and funny. The name also fits because her product is about making your butt look good. 😉

In Austin, John Mackey and his girlfriend Renee Lawson opened a natural food store called SaferWay (a pun on Safeway), which would go on to become Whole Foods Market.

THE ROLLERCOASTER

From the stories, I realized that running a business never gets easier. Even if the founders achieved a certain level of success (i.e. getting an item into a department store), new challenges kept cropping up.

In the beginning, Sara Blakely literally stood in the Neiman Marcus hosiery section every day to explain how to use Spanx to potential customers. She also gave money to friends of friends (even someone she hadn’t talked to since elementary school) to buy her products in the 7 initial cities where Neiman Marcus sold her product.

Kendra Scott fulfilled her first big order to Harold’s stores ($75k of jewelry) out of her home. It was finished on the dining table and UPS picked it up from her front doorstep.

John Mackey’s first Whole Foods store was doing well, but then the city got hit with the worst flood in 70 years. All the inventory and equipment were damaged. They had to borrow even more money to rebuild the store again.

Every day, they be hustlin’.

LEARNING

All the founders drew on their past experience – whether it was from working in a different business (Kendra Scott once owned a hat store) or at a big company as a little minion (Kate Spade was an accessories editor at Mademoiselle magazine). They were getting an education when they didn’t even know it. Hence, when they started their businesses, they had expertise but also a fresh perspective on the problem they were solving.

Most of them admit that they had no freaking idea what they were doing along the way. (I can relate to that!) They had to ramp up on business skills. Angie Hicks from Angie’s List (which maintains a list of recommended contractors in your neighborhood) even took a hiatus from her company to go back to business school.Others gained work experience from apprenticing under someone they really admired. All of them found someone to join forces with – like a husband, brother, mentor, or even the competitors down the street. And they all learned through sheer trial and error, some nearly going bankrupt in difficult times.

One story I especially liked was about celebrity chef José Andrés, who made the small plate (tapas) dining concept popular in the U.S. This guy had a crazy mentor whose way of teaching him on the fly included throwing a hot pan towards his head. If a hot pan was thrown at me, I would freeze and watch it hit the floor in slow motion. 😮

José found another invaluable mentor in Ferran Adrià who taught him some important life lessons. Those words also stuck with me that I decided to go back and transcribe it for you guys: “Don’t be afraid of trying and don’t take things for granted. You have to experience and discover things on your own. If you follow the teachings before you, you are only following what somebody else has done before you. You need not only to read and learn the theory, you need to discover on your own. That’s the moment of true learning.” SO DEEP! 

WRAP UP

All in all, it was fun to hear the stories of the brands that I know and love. Which brands? Well, let’s just say on my 22nd birthday, I went with friends to Chuck E. Cheese to celebrate. I loved it. Arcade games are the best. My friends were sure to squirt lots of hand sanitizer on their hands upon leaving the place.

Me having a blast

I also got my first Kate Spade bag as a birthday gift two years ago and was thrilled (see below). I have since been hooked, adding wallets and crossbody bags to my collection. Sigh, they’re too cute to resist.

Me being smitten with my bag

I have yet to wear Spanx, but as I look down at my love handles overflowing my jeans, it’s something I’m considering buying. 😉

Alright, so check out the NPR podcast if you’re interested. Enjoy!