← The How To Podcast Series - Podcast Co-Hosts, Practical Podcast Tips, and Podcast Community
The How To Podcast Series - Podcast Co-Hosts, Practical Podcast Tips, and Podcast Community
E625 - Being Original is Overrated - Podcasters You Don't Need to Reinvent The Wheel
00:18:29
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- [00:01]
A
Hey, welcome back to the how to Podcast series. My name is Dave. Glad to be with you. I want to give you permission to steal today. Don't worry about getting caught, but I want you to have permission to steal. What am I talking about, Dave? What have you done? There's a book by Austin Kleon called Steal like an Artist. It's a part of a three pack that you can get on Audible. I will link in the show notes for you if you want to go check it out. I have to admit, I have listened to the audio version of Steal like an Artist. There's another one in the series, Keep Going. And there's another book that's coming on its way. I actually bought the actual copies of the book, the paperbacks, because I've listened to the audiobooks so many times that I'm hitting pause going, oh, I gotta write that down. I gotta write that down. I got. Oh, I like that. To the point where, like, I'm getting frustrated because it's so good. Probably 12, 15 times I've listened to these audiobooks again and again and again. I'm telling everybody. I'm telling you this right here, by the way. It's called word of mouth marketing. Yeah. It works for podcasts, too. So Austin Cleon's book, Steal like an Artist. Super great book. It looks like the size of a CD case. Like a jewel case that would have. I know. You're like, what's a cd anyways? On the back of a CD case would be the track listings of all the songs, and that's how he does the chapters. It's really kind of cool. Very creative. And the book is not your typical book. There's pictures, there's drawings, there's all kinds of stuff in here. And I want to take a look at the first chapter and bring out a few points from Steel Like a. Like an Artist. Because I think as podcasters, we're so caught up in being original. We want our show to be different. We want. And then that imposter syndrome is there. Like it. If I sound like everybody else, then nobody's going to care. You know, who. Who cares what I have to say? Because there's all these other shows, there's all these other podcasts about podcasting. Who cares what you have to say, Dave? Who cares? Right? And I think we need to be okay with stealing. And Austin Kleon gives us permission and Steal like an artist. 10 things nobody told you about being creative. And yeah, we have permission to steal. So it's based on the Book. You have to buy the book because it's amazing or listen to the audiobook because. Equally amazing. But I want to share a couple points that stand out for me and encourage you to buy this book and put this near your computer, wherever you. Doesn't matter if you're a podcaster yet or not. This is a book for any creative person. Musician, author, podcaster, fill in the blank. But go ahead and steal like an artist. Austin gives you permission. So do I. Austin starts the chapter with the question, where do you get your ideas from? And the answer that he's proposing is, I steal them. Like, oh, that's bold. Okay, that's kind of. That's an interesting take because everyone's so quick to say that they don't steal them. They're all, I'm original, I'm a unique. Austin brings up the idea that there's nothing new under the sun and we as creative people are the sum total of all of the influences in our life. And it's, it's really interesting as I go through this, the ideas and how ideas come to us, how we, how we figure out who we are as creative people. It's not up to you. It's up to everything you've collected along the way. Austin shares this quote in the book as well. Everything that needs to be said has already been said, but since no one was listening, everything must be said again. So there, if you're feeling like, oh, you know, who cares what I have to say? It's already been said. Everything's all been done before. Well, yeah, but people were listening the first time. So it's up to you to jump in and share your thoughts. And again, it's the wheel. Is the wheel. It's still the wheel. It's been like that since it was created. Not a lot of improvements. It's still round. So leverage what's already been created. And this whole pursuit about I have to be original and different. Maybe you don't. Maybe you just need to steal more. In this first chapter, Austin also talks about schooling yourself, and he talks about chase down every reference, go deeper than anybody else, and that's how you're going to get ahead as a creative person. He encourages us to Google everything. Like everything. Google your dreams, Google your problems, don't ask a question before you Google it. You'll either find the answer or you'll come up with a better question. I love that. So we need to be creative and curious. And he encourages us also to go to the library, read books, get lost in the Stacks of books read bibliographies. It's not the book you start with. It's the book that that book leads you to. Collect books, he says, even if you don't plan on reading them, nothing is more important than an unread library. And don't worry about doing research. Just search. It's interesting. He talks about this also in the audiobook. You'll hear him talk about, if you copy one person, then people will say you sound like that person, right? So if I. If I sing like Ariana Grande, which I can't, there's no way people would say you sound like Ariana Grande. But if I take a mixture of Ariana Grande, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, all these different artists, and I mash them all up together because there's multiple different points of reference, because I'm using more than one source and I'm blending them together in my own unique way and adding a little bit of Dave, then I'm creative. If I steal from one, it's obvious you're just copying so and so. But if I steal from the many and I blend them together, that's where creativity lies. It's interesting because I had Jordan Blair on the show, and Jordan came on to talk about her journey as a podcaster. She's a co host on Buzzcast, and she also has Dreamful Podcast, which is like a story podcast with beautiful music, very calm and relaxing, and it's a great show. And she talked about how to find her voice and how to be how she creatively did so, and based on some advice from a voice coach. And this is what, again, a reminder, if you haven't heard the episode, go check it out. But Jordan talks about this in the episode, about how she found her voice to do the Dreamville podcast.
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Okay, what am I trying to, like, model myself after? One of the easiest ways to improve upon something is to impersonate it. And I know that that's kind of like a weird thing, but I heard. I heard this from a choir teacher I had, like, a vocal coach. And they said one of the best ways to learn to sing is to copy how someone else sings. And so if you try to impersonate it, it's like your. Your body naturally tries to do that thing. And so what's so funny is when I created dreamful bedtime stories, I was trying to figure out what. What kind of voice would be the most restful to me. Like, what. When I picture a beautiful bedtime storytelling voice, what do I picture? And what I modeled my Voice after initially was Galadriel from the Lord of the Rings. Because I was like, the elves have this like just lovely level headedness and there's like almost like a flowiness to the cadence of how they speak. Speak, and everything just kind of goes. There's nothing abrupt or abrasive about the way that they speak. And it's so beautiful and soft and it just makes you, I don't know, it's just like a warm hug.
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So that's it. That's the way she, she puts it. She frames what she wanted. She went and found a voice that she resonated with and said, I want my voice in this situation to be like that. So it's good to have a point of reference. Jordan was stealing, but stealing with purpose because she wanted to have a show that replicated something that had the tone and the feel that she wanted for her podcast. When we steal, yes, we are going after what somebody else has already created. And you know what? They also stole from somebody else. Before you, before they even created the content that you're admiring, it was stolen. And that content was also stolen. And there's just a pattern of theft going way back. The idea that you're going to have a podcast and every episode is going to be unique, different and new is unrealistic. You, you're not going to have that. It's not going to happen because you don't even know where your influences come from. You don't even know you can't nail it down. So to imagine a podcast where you feel like this, on this pressure that your show has to be so uniquely creative, never been done before. This topic has never been covered. This, this insights never been shared is a high bar. And you're putting yourself under undue pressure to create something that is almost not possible. So before you create a show where you feel like you won't release it unless it's perfect, unless it's better than everything else and so unique that it stands on its own, your podcast is going to stand on its own because it's uniquely you. The uniqueness of your show is not just the content. It's not how it's presented, it's the host. The uniqueness is you. You are the sum total of every influence you've ever had in your life, from a child, before you even could form words, all the way to today. And that uniqueness is what makes you stand out in a world of other podcasters. So I have a podcast about podcasting. How dare I have a show, another show that Teaches podcasting. There's too many of them, Dave. So why am I doing this? Because I feel like I have something to give to the community. I want to be a support and I want to be a different voice compared to some of the other shows that can at times be negative, can at times be a little self serving. I want this show to be about you and to help you and to be a free resource in your ears for those times when you can't afford that two thousand dollar course from the other guru. Come here, find the stuff that you need to make your podcast better and free resources through my HowToPodcast CA where you and I can connect and have a virtual coffee, chat about your dreams, your podcast and come up with a plan. Happy to help you anytime. So I'm encouraging you as podcasters, you don't need to reinvent the wheel. You have everything you need. Do what you can with what you have, where you are and stop being so focused on being original. It's overrated. Steal like an artist Austin Kleon Books in the show notes I strongly advise if you're an audio listener. Well, you are right now because you're listening to the show to go listen to the audiobook series as well. There's three books in one, one download, three books. It's a great deal and you, like me, most likely will listen to it multiple times. Austin Kleon Great books. Thank you for putting these into the world and I'm proud to have these on my desk and to be able to talk about it today. HowToPodcast ca see you over there. Take care. Hey, thanks for being here. Thank you for listening to the end of the podcast. You're here with me. I'm so grateful. I want to put something in front of you for the person that's listened this far. You're my new best friend. So what I'm trying to do every month is I have a goal and you can help me with this goal. Very simple. What I'm trying to do is have five conversations this month with listeners of the how to Podcast series. You don't have to have a podcast to respond. This can be the first time ever that we're going to have a conversation. But I'm looking to talk to five people now. You're still here, so you're one of the people that I would love to talk to next. So on my HowToPodcast CA website is a calendar and I'd love to have you respond on howtopodcast ca. Just click the calendar link Set up time in my calendar and in the comment section for the meeting, just put something like listener. That's it. If you have a show, put it in the comments too, so I can go listen. But if you don't, I just want to talk to five listeners every month from now to the end of the month. So if you're, if you're listening to me right now, you're the person I want to talk to. And through howtopodcast ca, you and I can get together, chat about the show, chat about your journey as a podcaster. Where are you at? What do you need this show to become for you? What's missing? Your feedback? I just want to meet you. And as podcasters, I would encourage you to do something similar to this in your podcast so that you can meet and interact with your audience. So howtopodcast ca, I'm looking to talk to five people every month and I would love for you to be one of them. Reach out is free. I'm not selling you anything. I just want to talk to you at howtapodcast. Cat, let's get in the calendar and chat. Thanks for listening. You're still here. Great. Now I have people, a person reach out to me and they said, dave, I'm building up my calendar for 2026 and I want to fill in all the dates. I'm doing a weekly episode, once a week, new episode, and I want to fill out my. My calendar. What's a good starting point? What should I do? So we talked about their content and they have like a parenting style content. So I said, well, first of all, think of all the celebrations around parenting, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Grandparents Day, all those. And look on the calendar and either that falls before or after your episode release. So pick the dates where it's before that day and create your episode. Fill out your calendar and put right in there. This will be a Father's Day episode. This will be a Mother's Day episode. This will be a grandparents episode, whatever that is, and fill that out ahead of time. If you celebrate holidays like Christmas or whatever, fill out those dates. Also, you can theme your podcast around things like St. Patrick's Day or summer holidays or winter, spring, summer, fall. Those are all dates, right? Those could all be topics. So you could have like the beginning, the end of September, going into October, having a fall themed episode for parents, things you could do with your kids in the fall, how to fall in love with the fall. Right. That kind of stuff. And just go through the calendar and fill in the most logical dates that are seasonal or celebratory and have your content put in those right away. If you're going to do interviews, how many interviews a month do you want to do? 1, 2, 3, 4? Right. That's going to. That's also going to fill in your calendar. I would encourage you to do less interviews. If you're going to have a mix of interviews and solo episodes, try to balance them out. I do love the idea of an interview one week and then a recap episode the following week where you share your insights and your thoughts about the interview that happened the previous week. So you have an interview, your recap, an interview, a recap. Those are kind of nice because the audience gets to hear you with the guest and the audience gets to hear you one on one with them. It's kind of a nice trade off. Consider that that's another option that's really going to help you fill in your calendar pretty quickly and you won't be overwhelmed with the idea that I gotta come up with like 52 ideas for the year if I'm going to do an episode every week. You don't have to come up with 52. An interview is great because the guests helps you build the content together. A seasonal thing is something great because people are looking for something around that time of year. That's awesome. And then just having it around the events of life and whatever's relevant to your topic, build it around that. So if you have a conference, like I have like dad space, my dad podcast. Every November is Movember, where men are encouraged to grow a mustache and raise money for men's mental health and physical health. So it's already themed for me. I just do Movember episodes in November. Works really well. So that whole month is taken care of. I don't have to think about it. So yeah, so think about what makes sense for your community, what they do when they talk about it. You could do a Black History Month. You could do a Pride month. There are so many different things that are your at your feet. Here is for options. Just look at the calendar. Look at all of the. Look at the global calendar too. Not just where you live. Global calendar. Figure out what works and what your podcast could be matching up with and supportive of. It's a great idea. So that's an easy way to fill out your calendar. If you want to do the calendar exercise together. HowtoPodcast ca, we'll pull up a zoom meeting, we'll share our screens and we'll work through it together. I love helping people plan out their year. Happy to do so. HowToPodcast CA. Thanks for sticking around. See you next time.