How to Start a Podcast During a Pandemic

You’re thinking about launching into the world of podcasting. Congratulations, you’ve come to the right place. I launched my podcast last year and juggled with these thoughts myself. In many ways, I’m the perfect person to offer some suggestions on how to get started.

1. Start With Why Not?

I highly recommend Simeon Sinek’s book and his TED Talk on YouTube to get you thinking about why you’re starting a podcast. Being able to communicate why you’re doing what you’re doing puts you in a great position to share your message.

That said, I don’t think you should wait on your why to get started. You should start with why not? I had a few life experiences that pushed me to start recording interviews without having all the answers or a direction. I knew I wanted to contribute a message that changed how people felt about Monday morning. I knew I wanted to interview interesting people, share their lessons, and build a community with my viewers that believed in the same idea.

After putting out several episodes that didn’t have much direction or focus, I came back to Sinek’s Start With Why. Testing out the direction of my natural interests allowed me to feel through how to communicate my purpose. Some may want to focus on a particular industry, hobby, or skill set. I wanted to interview people that were passionate about their work to learn from them in our conversations. Seeing the evidence of this in action helped me crystallize my why.

At Cook on Monday Morning we believe in building lives that get us excited about Monday Morning. We believe that if you can own Monday Morning you can own the week, if you can own the week, you can own the year and if you change your year, you can change your life. You can join our community by subscribing on YouTube or connecting with me directly to talk more about your aspirations.

2. Scratch our Own Itch

This builds on my process of feeling my way through. There are people making millions on coaching and generating YouTube views by telling you to find a niche to build following online. There is value in having a niche, but you have to focus on what you’re going to be motivated to contribute.

I heard this communicated brilliantly in a Tim Ferris YouTube video about How to Start a Podcast, which is a great clip to watch if you haven’t started or you’re within your first year like me. You are going to find a community of supporters and it may only be 500 people instead of 5 Million. That’s okay.

I have growth goals, production deadlines, and costs I’m incurring to produce content. These were all worthwhile investments because I’m scratching my own itch.

3. Starter Hardware and Software Equipment:

To get the ball rolling all you need is a Zoom account and an idea. It’s free to set up a channel on YouTube so there are no actual barriers other than the ones you’re creating for yourself. I would not let getting the perfect lighting for a high quality microphone or camera be a reason for you to delay getting started. That said, I do have equipment and a few software subscriptions I use to help promote my episodes.

• Canon M50: Great starter camera that is pretty easy for a beginner and won’t break the bank. You can upgrade lenses on this camera or get a higher quality camera over time.
• Zoom h4n Pro: This is the industry standard, but not the most expensive option. Again, you can just record into your MacBook Pro to get started, but this is a great piece of equipment for strong audio recording.
• Sandisk Ultra 16G (2): You’ll need two of these, one for the Zoom h4n, one for the Canon M50 camera.
• Rode Microphone Procaster: Great starter microphone that is durable, easy to use, and affordable compared to many alternatives.
• XLR Male to Female Cable: You’ll need this to connect your Microphone to your Zoom h4n recorder.
• Mini USB Cable: You’ll use this to connect your Zoom h4n recorder to your Mac Book Pro. If you’re using the meeting software to record your interviews this plug-in will improve the quality of your audio.
• Dolica 62-Inch Proline Tripod: When you start to record on your Canon M50, this is a quality tripod that has been durable.
• AmazonBasics Tripod Boom Microphone Stand: I’ve been using this to hold the Procaster Microphone. It’s affordable, lightweight and a solid option for beginners.
• Pinecast: Audio uploading software that posts to all podcast streaming services. For 40% off during your first four months, use referral code: r-a9a78f
• Getresponse Pro: Email listserv that allows for mass mailings and collecting subscriptions, it has a clean interface, and much better customer service than MailChimp.

4. Find Mentors:

There are some people that want to start a podcast because it’s a wave, but if you’re like me you started because you loved the platform and chased the people that were your inspiration. There are several podcast hosts that I would call mentors, but we’ve never met.

They have achieved a level of success and a quality in their content that inspired me to get started. I continue to learn from their approach and listen to pick up strategies that I can test as I continue to grow.

• Tax Season With Taxstone: (The Freedom) Taxstone was aggressive and at times reckless in his interviews. He had a freedom that immediately drew me to his content. There was also this aspect to him that was growing, which he shared. Unfortunately, he is facing murder charges in New York City. I had the honor of interviewing his attorney Kenneth Montgomery, which was a great conversation and he’s someone I deeply respect for his community work.
• Jocko Podcast: (The Preparation) I never served in the military and I don’t practice Jiu Jitsu, but I listen to this podcast religiously. The stories are amazing, the lessons are relevant, and the comic relief with Echo Charles gives it an element that keeps me coming back week after week. I like it so much that I listen to all the advertisements at the end.
• Joe Rogan: (The Range) Rogan doesn’t have any niche, box, or focus. His podcast is probably the one I’m chasing most.
• T.I. (The Culture) I think Tip Harris was born to communicate. He’s a great ambassador for Hip Hop and the Black family. Given his success as a Rapper, he can have conversations with his peers that I haven’t quite seen from others in the space. There are many former rappers people doing great podcasts, but personally Tip Harris is my favorite.
• Tim Ferriss: (The Hustle) If you want to monetize your work, create seamless funnels online, multiple points of entry for potential listeners and learn how to conduct high level interviews you have to watch Ferriss.

5. Book Recommendations on Execution

Finally, putting out any content has to come down to execution. You can have the best ideas, get your equipment, collect mentors and never get started. Execution is the great divider and discipline is the only sure way to freedom. Here are three great books to consider. You can get the audio or paper version, whatever works best for you. Either option you’ll learn a ton.

• Deep Work: I have listened to all of Cal Newport’s books on Audible. Deep work was a game changer in helping me understand all the work processes and devices that were dividing my attention. Applying the principles of this book really helped me improve how I was spending my time.
• The Effective Executive: Peter Durcker is one of the most celebrated leadership writers ever. This read is older, but offers really good insights on how to think about your time, team and mindset around your vision.
• Four Disciplines of Execution: This framework is how I build my consulting practice, run my podcast, organize my workouts and serve my community. You’d be hard pressed to find a team that didn’t apply the 4 Disciplines and did not see amazing results.

These are my suggestions on how to start a podcast during the pandemic. I hope that if you found this article useful you’ll share it with others. Also, please subscribe to Cook on Monday Morning on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts.

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