One of the things podcasters say is “find your voice” without knowing that it’s Jargon. After all, is my voice lost? What does that mean? Today we will look at finding your voice, and I will tell you what the difference is to the listener. Because the interesting thing is your voice isn’t lost. It’s just got a lot of clutter on top of it.
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What Does Finding Your Voice Mean?
You start your podcast (congrats!), and you feel uncomfortable. You feel out of place, and people say, “You need to find your voice.” That is a really vague instruction.
What Voices Are Stopping Your Podcast?
While researching this, I found a blog podcast by Dan Cumberland on the Meaningful Moment website.
I’m always coming back to this. The most important question to consider when you don’t feel like you’ve found your voice is, what are the stories, and who are voices that keep you from speaking? If you don’t feel free to speak — and many of us don’t — there are reasons you feel that way. Those stories need to be told, and the lies within them need to be challenged.
Dan goes on to say, “You have something to say, and the fact that you don’t feel like you do is reason to grieve.”
The real work is wondering why you don’t like what you already have to say. The real work is letting your voice speak and to let it be good enough. The real work is letting your voice matter more than meeting the needs and expectations of everyone else (whether they are real or perceived).
Sidenote: After finding his site through a Google search, I now subscribe to his podcast. So do I need a website? Only if you want more downloads.
Steps to Finding Your Voice
I mention this in almost every episode. It starts with specifically knowing your WHY and Your WHO.
The more information you have on each, the clearer the target. The blurriness and fuzziness vision of your show leads to insecurity.
Who Are You and Who Aren't You?
What do you believe in? What are your values? Defining what you will and will NOT talk about helps clear the path for your content.
The Netflix show House of Cards had a scene where the main character kills a dog in the first scene. This was on purpose as they knew this would upset people. They thought, “Well, we might as well draw a line in the sand and offend people upfront. If they couldn't take the first episode, they would NEVER tolerate what else was coming in the remainder episodes.
Get Comfortable Through Practice
Think back to all the firsts in your life. The first step, first tricycle, bicycle, and first kiss are things we weren’t good at when we started. So do it again and again with the goal of improving with each version of your episodes getting better.
Acknowledge That This Will be Uncomfortable
When you want to pull away or return to it later, push through. If you’ve ever been through counseling of any sort (single, couples, etc) it is uncomfortable. However, you come out better on the other side. I dread getting on a treadmill but never regret getting off. So when you feel that uncomfortable feeling come upon you (and it will) embrace it. You're learning. You are growing. You are improving.
Not Everyone Will Like You, and That is OK
Life is not a popularity contest. That is one that is easy to say but not always easy to live. As with everything, the more you practice it, the better you will get at it. So when you get your first one-star review, realize that the listener was not your target audience.
Follow Your Gut
There is only one of you. You are 100% unique so embrace that. Every night there are multiple stations covering the same topics. There are different strokes for different folks. Being you is very easy for you. Trying to be something you're not is very hard to pull off and often robs you of your passion.
Double Check the Facts In Your Head Saying Negative Things
Brenda was trying to prove herself to an invisible audience. She had assumed they wanted her to skim over a broad topic. When she got her episode in front of ACTUAL people she found they would rather go deep into a narrow topic.
In The End, Be Yourself
In the end, you've had an entire lifetime being you. Relax and embrace your uniqueness. Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Stevie Nicks, and Rod Stewart have unique voices. You either love them or hate them. Their uniqueness has enabled them to have careers spanning multiple decades.
QUESTION OF THE MONTH
Each month I ask the audience a question. This is your chance to get involved with the show. The question is inserted dynamically (so you need to go to the link below to answer). Provide your answer, and tell us about your show and provide your website. (free exposure!)
Leave Your Answer at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/question
Where Will I Be?
I look forward to seeing you all; please come up and say hi. To see my full itinerary, go to schoolofpodcasting.com/where
Mentioned In This Episode
Building a Better Dave “The List” Episode
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Time Stamps
[00:00:47] – Introduction: Finding Your Voice
[00:01:06] – Opening
[00:01:57] – It Always Starts Here
[00:03:09] – Who Are You
[00:04:15] – Get Confident
[00:04:44] – Think of All Of Your Firsts
[00:05:36] – Acknowledge Uncomfort
[00:08:51] – Not Everyone Will Like You – And That Is OK
[00:11:23] – Dave's Mantra
[00:12:32] – Be the Most Talked About (https://amzn.to/3OnPzEz)
[00:13:44] – Meaningful Moment Dan Cumberland
[00:15:07] – Sidenote: Yes, You Need a Website
[00:15:34] – Meet Brenda
[00:17:53] – How Brenda Is Finding Her Voice
[00:20:56 ]– You're Not Weird – You're Unique
[00:25:29] – Quit Trying to Be Something You're Not
[00:26:47] – People Want To Hear You – So Be Yourself
[00:29:16] – Becoming More Confident
[00:30:44] – Back to School Special
[00:31:44 ]– Daily Podcast Tips
[00:32:03] – Quick Summary So Far
[00:33:22 ]– Dave Has Been Asked To Speak
[00:36:44] – Identify Your Topic and Share Your Thoughts
[00:38:17] – Double Check Your Thoughts
[00:41:51] – Unique = Good
[00:43:20] – Just Being You Is Scary
[00:44:15] – Question of the Month
[00:45:15] – Where Am I Going to Be?
[00:45:44] – Brenda's Future Podcast
[00:46:15] – Your Voice Is Right There
[00:47:37] – Join the School of Podcasting
[00:48:25] – Bloopers
