Coping Strategies For Podcasters Who Don't Like Change

Podcast innovation is coming at us faster than ever before. Spoiler: It’s not slowing down. How you react to new ideas that could fundamentally change podcasting says a lot about who you are.

September 8, 2020

Article

Remember the flood of new ideas and innovation that came just after the 2008 recession? Well, podcasters; get ready for 2021. I fully expect a massive influx of podcast innovation to hit in a few months. In fact, the first waves are already with us.

Change at the coming scale I think we’re about to see causes a lot of stress to many working podcasters, both seasoned and just starting out. Heck, even change-freaks like me start to get a little nervous when the pace of change increases precipitously.

But change happens, and we’ve absolutely no control over the initiation of changes or the pace at which these changes wash over us. The only thing we can control is how we working podcasters react to the changes we’re soon to be facing.

With zero intention of trying to turn you into a change-hungry weirdo like me, might I offer a straightforward, three-step process of reacting to change when you encounter something brand new in podcasting? Especially something brand new that might fundamentally change how podcasting itself works or at least how you navigate your day-to-day life as a working podcaster.

Step One: Assume The Best Intentions

When you see something new, recognize it as such and stop your brain from immediately looking for (or examining obvious) flaws in the idea.

Easier said than done, right? This is a constant struggle for me. Yes, I’m quick to judge, which surprises no one who’s known me personally for any length of time. But we have to resist that, at least initially, if we’re going to truly evaluate any new directory, app, service or whatever heads our way.

Instead, assume the new thing will be a good thing. You may not have much info to go off of to make a call either way, but make your default approach to be one of acceptance. Remember: effectively no one is introducing a new app, directory, or service because they want to make podcasting worse, right? Granted, their new idea in practice might change podcasting for the worst, but it’s much more likely that bad ideas put in practice just won’t be adopted and the new thing will die a natural death.

With very few exceptions, everybody envisioning something new for podcasting does so because they think their idea is going to make podcasting - or at least an aspect of podcasting - better. So likewise, with very few exceptions, you should accept the good intentions at face value and assume you will be supportive of the new thing. Because you like it when podcasting is made better, right?

Step Two: Be Pragmatic

By pragmatic, I mean don't accept the claims or even the tenets of the new podcasting app, directory, or service at face value. Yeah, I know I just said do that, kind of. But not really. The acceptance in Step One only orients yourself to be receptive to change. That doesn’t mean you should shut off your critical thinking skills. Shut down the cynic, but ramp up the skeptic!

I suggest scrutinizing the ideas and claims before you start poring over the details or nit-picking minor (and all too often obvious) flaws. Sure, sparse information and less-than-careful editing of launch pages can be the hallmark of a half-baked idea. But they can also be the residual of rushing to market. So put down the red pen for a moment.

Instead, closely examine the premises or core concepts behind the new offering and apply it to your world as a working podcaster. If the instigators of the idea are making bold claims to “fix” problem areas in podcasting, do you agree that what they’ve called out as a “problem area” actually exists and is, in fact, a problem for you? And if it’s not a problem for you, does it seem plausible that other working podcasters are experiencing the problem and are in need of a solution? There are lots of ways to podcast, so watch out for “this isn’t important to me, so therefore this won’t be important to anyone” thinking. You’re a sample size of one, and that makes for a pretty narrow dataset.

Credulity is not your friend in Step Two. Yes, you still want to assume good intentions. But you must critically examine the bold statements and assertions behind the claims. Oftentimes a few minutes with a search engine and an inquisitive mind will expose ideas that are less reflective of reality and more wishful thinking. And I’m all for wishful thinking. It’s just that reality is hard to beat.

Go ahead and get personal in this critical-thinking stage. Do you buy into their philosophy? Do their ideas ring true for you? What do your fellow working podcasters think about the idea? Is this a model you see them and others embracing fully? You have to apply critical thinking when evaluating claims before rushing headlong and investing heavily - whether that's money, time, or other precious resources - into some new thing that is supposedly going to change everything.

Be pragmatic. Don't get fooled by the glitz and glamour of cool-looking things that turn out to just be flim-flam.

Step Three: Let Them Try Again

Remember that behind these crazy ideas that will change everything for podcasters are people following the startup playbook. Startups are organizations in search of a business model. Quite often, that search dramatically changes the products and services offered so much that they are nearly unrecognizable from what came first.

So whatever these new startups are offering right now might - and probably will - fail miserably. But they might try again, taking what they learned and coming back to the market with another offering. Many podcasting ideas are abandoned, but others morph into something quite different.

Your job is to not pre-judge the new idea through the lens of the prior failure. Yes, that’s hard. But their next offering is worthy of your consideration too. If the developers come back with a new concept or idea, give them another shot. Almost by definition, everybody's first offer is not fully baked by experience. A failed project doesn’t make the architects losers. It makes them learners.

Be willing to let them bring a new idea to your life again, but start your evaluation of their next new thing from Step One. Even better; keep tabs on companies or individuals who tried and failed to make a big change in podcasting. Maybe their still searching for the right model that works for them, you, me, and everyone else.

Yes, this is a thinly veiled attempt to get working podcasters like you to think more critically. Guilty as charged. But it’s also an attempt to get you out of your comfort zone so that you don’t get caught up in (or left behind by) the wave of new ideas and concepts coming our way, podcasters.

I know change is stressful to many. I know many podcasters have mastered just what they need to make the show(s) they are working on right now, and everything outside of that is a little scary. If you know someone like that, send them a link to this article. Perhaps the coping strategies I’ve presented here will help them continue to thrive in the podcasting world. And a little word of mouth for the show doesn’t hurt either, right?

And for you, fellow lover-of-change: If you really like ideas like this that I bring to your brain every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, please visit BuyMeACoffee.com/EvoTerra and do just that. I appreciate it.

I shall be back tomorrow with yet another Podcast Pontifications.

Cheers!

Transcript

PPS3E30 Coping Strategies For Podcasters Who Don't Like Change - Transcript

Podcast innovation is coming at us faster than ever before. Spoiler, it's not slowing down how you react to new ideas that could fundamentally change. Podcasting says a lot about who you are.

[00:00:19] hello, and welcome to another podcast. Pontifications with me, Evo, Tara. Those of you like me, who can remember the flood of new ideas and innovation that came out of the 2008 recession, we will all tell you this. Get ready for 2021. I know we're all done with 2020, but 2021 is going to be a massive dump of podcast.

[00:00:44] Change innovation, new ways of doing things big time. We're already seeing it right now in 2020. And that's just going to continue to spiral these things happen. It's a cycle. And where I think at the beginning of a new cycle, which is going to continue to press the pate precipitate. Yeah. That's where I look for change.

[00:01:04] Now, if you're a change freak like me, you love change, but not everybody is back. The vast majority of people do not like change. So when you see these new apps, these new services, these new directories, these new ways of doing podcasting, these new processes and procedures, you go, a lot of people do. Now, I'm not here to try and make you into a me, but I've got three pretty simple things for you to do, to think about, to keep in mind when you're looking at something brand new in podcasting, especially something brand new and podcasting that might.

[00:01:42] As I've said, fundamentally change how podcasting it's self works, how you operate in podcasting, these kind of an existential crisis. If you will, either localize to you or larger for the entire ecosystem, these three tips, it's just, it's a process. It's really one tip. There's a three step way of surviving.

[00:02:01] This might help if in fact that's what you need. So I'm going to stop teasing and I'm just going to get right into it. Here are some coping strategies for podcasters who simply do not like change. You start with this attitude when you see something new number one, first thing to do, start by embracing everything.

[00:02:22] And I know that's a very tall order. Wait a minute, Evo. That's not a coping strategy. Swallow it all now. Okay. I don't mean jump in head first. I mean, embrace the idea when something comes out your very first. Reaction, whatever it is. I want you to cut that off and I want you to force yourself to have a different reaction.

[00:02:45] And that is an reaction where you would embrace that change. You say that's going to be a good thing. You may not know much about it, but I want your default approach to be, this is going to be good because very few people are doing things in the ecosystem to change podcasting for the worse. They might change podcasting for the worst, but that's typically not their intention.

[00:03:09] Everybody making something new, whether it's an app or a service directory or whatever is doing it because they think this is going to make it better, something better. So that is your first default mindset adopt that. Okay. Except at face value that this thing's intention is to be better and you are going to be supportive of that thing because you like better things too.

[00:03:34] But that's just a position. Your default position is one of acceptance. It is welcome. It is. Let's see what you have to offer the smile on your face. Not a scowl. That's number one, number two, pragmatic and pragmatic. By that. I mean, don't accept everything at face value. I know. I just said do that kind of, but remember, that's the opening, you are welcoming someone into your head space to think about this that's welcoming, however, do not accept everything or really anything that they say to you at face value.

[00:04:21] One of the best ways I cope with change is these two things I'm ready for it. But as soon as they start laying out the position, I'm quick with a, well, hang on, can we re-examine this particular premise, this entire idea, this thing is what you're trying to sell me and whether I have to buy it or whether it was some free service.

[00:04:44] Is it is, are your claims valid? Do they hold up under scrutiny? And here's the trick about phase number two, you have to scrutinize. You have to scrutinize. You cannot be the credulous you cannot be while you want to. Except everybody is trying to do good. You need to examine their actions to see if that's true or not.

[00:05:10] And again, not that they're doing ill or evil, but they just may not really hold water. Right? I mean, some of the claims that you might see from some of these new services by make bold statements and assertions, that just simply don't reflect the way the world works today. And you as a discerning person who gets it needs to, we'll be able to look at that critically and say, do I buy that?

[00:05:35] Do I buy into that philosophy? That idea more importantly, does it work for me? Let me, let me look at me and the people who I know in the space as well and say, do we, do we fit in that particular model? We have to be pragmatic about things. We have to look at claims and we have to be able to be critical thinking critical thinkers.

[00:05:56] We have to apply critical thinking when we're evaluating these claims, before we rush headlong. Because while we're open to the idea before you start investing heavily, whether that's money or whether that's your time or resources before you really start investing heavily in that new tool that is really going to change everything.

[00:06:18] Be pragmatic, don't get fooled by the glitz and glamour of cool things. If they don't apply to you. Or if there's not really an application that makes sense to you. Don't get tripped up by the flim flam, third and final step of this entire process for a coping strategy for podcasters who do not like change, is to remember that whatever these new startups are doing right now might fail miserably, but they may come out the other end with a complete and total re tumbling.

[00:06:56] It's been oversaid that startups are simply organizations in search of a business problem to solve. Right. They're looking for a way to do something. Their first idea for startups oftentimes is not the final product. And it's the same in the podcasting space, even though something sounded great, the idea was there, but the ideas that said programmatic back when you were filtering through things, that's not going to work out very well.

[00:07:23] Well, The developers, the people behind this are thinking about all this stuff too. And the retooling and a lot of them would just simply dump the project and move on to tricep the gals. But some will come up with something quite different. They'll take some learnings from what it was. So even if you have embraced first and you went in not so much for step number two, keep your eye on those companies.

[00:07:46] If they come back again and say, Hey, we're trying something different. Give them another pass. Give them another shot. Don't just assume that. Well, they fool me once. Shame on me. No, no, no, no, no. That's not the way. It's not the way to operate because everybody's first offer is oftentimes not fully baked by definition.

[00:08:04] They're not fully baked. It's hard to get things right at the gate. So don't expect someone to do that. And if you do those three things, embrace that change. But then look very critically about it, but then be willing to let them come back into your life later. If it didn't work out for you, you'll find that this wave of change coming in podcasts makes you a little less stressed out and kind of, if you get to where I'm at with it kind of exciting, I get a little bored when a week goes by and there's not some groundbreaking earth shattering podcast flipping over new thing out there.

[00:08:38] Maybe you'll get to some crazy part where I'm at. Maybe not. I know I am totally a crazy person about that, but if you know a crazy person who would perhaps like, or maybe they're not crazy enough in your opinion, and they want to, they want to get through the change. Maybe, maybe they're struggling with all these new things coming up, send them this episode.

[00:08:56] Maybe these three, this little one, two, three step process will help them embrace change better. Cause you're already clearly love the change or you would probably wouldn't be paying attention to this stuff that I put out on regular basis. And if you really like what I'm doing, check out. Buy me a coffee.com/evo Terra and sign up small little donation helps a lot.

[00:09:16] You know, milk typically helps me understand that people not only want to hear and watch what I have to say and read what I have to say, but also I think that's really worthy of their support. So again, buy me a coffee.com/evo Terra. That's it. I shall be back tomorrow with yet another podcast.

[00:09:33] Pontifications cheers.

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