Just recently I’ve received a lot of correspondence from people who’ve downloaded my ebook ‘Pitch Perfect Podcasts – The Art Of Talking Up Your Business’
First of all, thank you for doing so – I greatly appreciate it, and I hope it’s helping you realise your dream of making a podcast, or, at the very least, furthering your interest in making one of your own at some point.
The people who’ve been contacting me are all at a similar stage, where they’re about to hit the big red button, but they have a few niggling issues before doing so.
The ‘what ifs’, the ‘maybe we shoulds’, the ‘I’m not sure abouts’.
Every single one of the concerns raised with me are natural, human, everyday issues people do feel when embarking on something new and slightly scary, but none of them should defeat you.
They are niggles, not real obstacles. They’re about preferences.
So it’s not a case of you literally not being able to make your microphone work – you’re wondering if it sounds better with this microphone or that one, in this space here or is the acoustic better over there?
I appreciate professionalism and the desire to be one’s best.
Lewis Hamilton didn’t drive for the very first time and win a Grand Prix.
He probably kangarooed around a car park like the rest of us trying to figure out how the gears and the clutch worked.
Champions are made when no-one is watching. History is made when the world is watching.
In other words, for every great champion there are hours and hours of frustration, blood, sweat and tears put into reaching that level of performance.
However, they’ve not attained perfection, and one of the most damaging phrases in the world in my opinion is ‘Practice Makes Perfect’.
It doesn’t. There’s always room for improvement. Maybe not from you, but from someone who can be better.
We all have our limitations, and perfection is not attainable. It doesn’t mean you should stop aiming for it.
We should always be looking to improve.
But don’t let your quest for perfection cripple you before you even start out on that journey.
Practice, for sure. Get to know the equipment, get a feel for what works and what doesn’t. Be comfortable with it, to an extent, but at some point, be prepared to take the leap of faith.
Take that test drive. Jump out of the plane. Go for broke.
You’ll never be perfect, but the road there has to start somewhere, and then the improvements and fine-tuning take place over a life long journey.
Always keep learning. Push the big red button.
John Mellis is a radio and audio professional with over thirty years of experience in those sectors. Today, he operates in a variety of roles as a presenter for Global Media’s Smooth Radio across the UK, a BBC contributor and as a creator and host of multiple podcasts designed to promote the businesses and business owners who commission them. In this weekly Tip Sheet he introduces the concepts and building blocks for designing your own business podcast. You can subscribe to it below, as well as downloading John’s free ebook ‘Pitch Perfect Podcasts’ and sign up for the online course ‘Win Business Podcasting’ which takes you from newbie to nerd at your own pace so you can conceive, record and publish a business podcast of your own. Let’s make great conversation!
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