10 Lessons from 10 Podcast Episodes
It’s been 10 episodes of A Podcast, By Kayleigh now and wow - what a learning curve it has been! One of the most amazing consequences from starting a podcast, is genuinely how much you learn and grow as a person. Each guest, and each episode is teaching me so much - from the technical details to the teachings from the guests themselves. I never expected this podcasting journey to be what it has become, but I’m loving every single minute. Today, I thought I would share 10 things I have learnt from each podcast episode. Whether it be something from a guest, or just simply something I learnt about myself. I hope you enjoy!
This was my intro episode. My biggest learn? Just do the damn thing. I wanted to podcast FOREVER! And one night, I just sat down, and thought - let me just film an episode. OK OK, that wasn’t too bad. OK that sounds pretty good. Let me just quickly put together some music to make an intro. OK this sounds pretty good so far. Let’s do the outro. OK now, where to host this thing. In one single night, I figured it out. And it wasn’t perfect, or easy. But I did it and it started one of my favourite things. Do it, and figure it out.
This was my solo intro episode. This episode for me, was when I really learnt about editing. And gosh, that was a journey, a long journey. At first it was taking me DAYS to edit a single episode, but now I can knock it out pretty quickly. We all start as beginners, everyone starts not knowing what the heck they are doing. But persist. Persistency over talent, always.
This was my last solo episode before I started interviewing guests. I wasn’t crazy about this episode if I’m honest. I second guessed it a bunch, but this is my most popular episode out of all of them! This goes to show, you just don’t know what will happen, so release it anyway. Release perfection. It could resonate more than you know.
My first guest, was the incredible Storme. I was so nervous, as it was my first time interviewing someone, but I was so lucky to have Storme, who was patient, kind and amazing. Speaking to Storme really was so inspiring, and she taught me the importance of coming at everything with love. Storme has an incredible team, and to her, this team was never a cash grab or a stream of income. This team was to support her clients. She nurtures, grows and supports every artist in that team. It showed me why her team was so successful, and growing year on year, as opposed to other teams I see in the space. Her team love her, genuinely, I’ve met them! Whatever you come at with love, if you nurture it, if you grow it, it will bloom into the most beautiful thing.
Next episode, I interviewed the amazing Amber Harlow. Amber showed me that real success, comes from when you bloody love what you do with every fibre of your being. I have never met anyone who loves their brides as much as Amber does. She truly lives, breathes and is obsessed with bridal. If you head to her Instagram, you will find her comments flooded by brides, who cheer her on, and she books easily 80-90 weddings a year. She taught me, if you truly are obsessed, if you show yourself, and your heart authentically, if you show up and love and nurture, the work will come.
In episode 6, I interviewed my amazing friend Valentina, who is a world travelling wedding planner, and multi award winning. I think this was the most honest conversation yet, and shows a glimpse of what we chat about when we go for coffee and hot chocolate dates. Valentina was open and honest about burnout, and she showed me that it’s OK to admit that. It’s OK to admit, we don’t know everything, we don’t need to know everything, and we are amazing humans, growing every single day.
In Episode 7, I spoke to the amazing Jen. Jen pitched herself to the podcast, so it was the first experience where I was interviewing someone I didnt know. We had SUCH a blast, which I’m 100% sure comes through in our conversation. Jen was so honest and open about her struggles with burnout and taking on too much, as well as her mental health. From Jen, I learnt it was OK to just, stop. It’s OK to have a break and take time away. And after this episode, I did. I stepped away and had some time off. I came back stronger, and more inspired than ever.
So number 8, was a solo episode, addressing the elephant in the room, which was - I had taken a month off and stopped podcasting. In this episode, I turned the format slightly. In my break, I realised, I didn’t always HAVE to be a huge value giving, content creating machine (hence why the format of these newsletters have changed drastically!). This episode was a fun one, because I spoke about 3 horror stories I had and what I learnt from them. Not every single episode, or piece of content I produce NEEDS to be a banger. Sometimes, I can create content for me, and thats OK!
In this podcast, I interviewed the legendary Mia Connor. Mia was a hugely requested guest, and I felt very inspired and grateful I was able to get her on! This happened, because I put out a Q&A and tagged each requested guest asking them to come on. I didn’t expect anything from this, but I ended up securing 6 amazing guests! From this I learnt, keep banging the drum. Keep asking. Keep persisting. Keep consisting. Keep bloody going.
And my last lesson, comes from my 10th guest - Hunter Donia. Hunter is essentially the hair, American version of me! He educates his own community on similar aspects, from business, to hair tips! From Hunter, I was immensely inspired by his attitude. He is just such a boss, with such an amazing work ethic. He really inspired me to just keep going. Keep preaching the message and serving my community. One thing that really stood out, Hunter would always come back to his clients. Every single thing, every single change he makes in his business, is FOR his clients. They are the centre of everything, and that really changed my mindset.