Posts tagged: Skills

What is Creative Burnout?

Creative burnout is not your average burnout of physical, emotional and mental fatigue.  It’s a specific type of burnout that comes from creative work. This burnout hits differently, but many podcasters don’t know that it’s different; or maybe they know it’s different but can’t quite explain how or why. 

It’s not about being consistent, because you haven’t missed a release day for an episode. It’s more than needing a 4 week break. You’ve simply lost the podcast zeal because that creative tank is on E, for empty. When you’re podcasting, it can feel like you’re always on duty. You have to come up with new content ideas, record and edit your episodes, promote your show, and more. On top of all of that, maybe you also have a full time job, or a full time business and family responsibilities. You’re at a crossroads and as hard as you push or try, you can’t stay motivated.

Then there’s the guilt. On one hand,  you may be feeling guilty about quitting the podcast and disappointing others. You may also feel guilty, almost resentful at the thought of continuing to do it because right now your heart isn’t in it. 

I know where you’ve been because I’ve been there twice. Yes, twice. The first time was back in 2018 and the second, in 2021. The truth is as an independent podcaster you’re likely to have this experience multiple times, and you will feel embarrassed by this struggle, which is why most people don’t talk about it. The first time I went through this it was hard, but when that feeling came up again, most recently in 2021, I was able to recognize it immediately. I used improved strategies from my first experience to help me get through it.

Perhaps you’ve been on your podcast journey for a year, or two, or 7, or more like me. It’s ok to go through these periods of not feeling it, and thinking about whether it’s time to pivot or sunset the podcast. 

Strategies that Help to recover from Creative Burnout

If you’re a podcaster who is struggling with creative burnout, here are some strategies that I’ve used, to help me or my clients recover.

The First Step: Plan to take a break. You need time to recharge, refocus, and recenter yourself. This can be a difficult decision to make, but it’s important. Also, notice the word “plan”. Your burnout doesn’t happen overnight, it creeps up slowly. Once you start recognizing that burnout is looming, it’s time to plan for the break. The break could take many forms based on your show, your relationship with your audience, and the time of year. The most important part of taking a break is keeping it real with  your audience by letting them  know about the change and the reasons for it.

In addition to rest, do non-podcast things: One of the best way to get your creativity back is to take a break from whatever it is you’re doing. Stepping away from your podcast and doing other unrelated things can help you clear your head and come back with fresh ideas.

The second step is to reflect. Here’s where you think about what specifically is challenging or frustrating you, that may be contributing to your creative burnout.  The goal here is to try to identify the root cause or all the things that are causing your creative burnout.

The third step is where you have an honest conversation about the things you’ve uncovered in step 2, where you spent time reflecting: You may have realized that your creative rut is a result of losing focus of the original goal of the podcast. Or Maybe the show is not working but you have to be very clear about what exactly isn’t working. In this step you are considering whether it’s time to revamp the podcast, retire the podcast or maybe start a new podcast.  I remember during my first creative burnout I asked out loud to my friend – what if I quit Carry On Friends? They were shocked and said they weren’t ready to even process that decision. But I was serious! If I pack it up and retire the podcast what would that look like? Am I just retiring the show or from podcasting altogether? At the same time, if I continued, what would need to change?

The last thing, but also the most important thing is to get support. Whenever I went through a burnout spell, I always had someone who agreed to be supportive and listen to the doubts, concerns or to just bounce ideas off of. Having another supportive person or two, can help to give you some new perspectives on how to approach your podcast and jumpstart your creativity. 

I hope these tips were helpful and that you can use them the next time you’re feeling creatively burnt out. Do you have any other tips on how to overcome creative burnout? Share them with us in the comments below!

If you liked this article, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for more podcasting tips and resources.

Are you curious about podcasting?

Do you want to know more about what it is, how to get started and what the industry looks like? If so, then this mini course is for you! In this mini online course, we will provide an introduction to podcasting that will help clear up some common misconceptions and give you a better understanding of what is involved in starting your own show as well as an overview of the industry.

I hear it all the time from people interested in starting a podcast – “There are so many articles that give you so many options and information. It would be great to get some honest feedback about starting a podcast because it’s hard to take it all in.” Another frequent comment I hear is “I wish I had known this [insert whatever challenge] before starting my podcast.” Oftentimes the information people are looking for is even simpler than which equipment to choose or how to record. It’s along the lines of “what are the start-up costs?” ; “can I really make money, how?” or “what other things should I think about before starting a podcast?”

The Podcast Starter Mini Course

So, I decided to put together a mini course which will help address some of the common challenges and misconceptions about starting a podcast.

The Podcast Starter mini course is designed for people who are interested in starting their own show, but may be unsure of where to start or what is involved. The goal is not to give you all the answers, but rather provide you with enough information so that you can make an informed decision about whether or not podcasting is right for you.

The first chapter in this mini course is all about understanding what podcasts are and why they’re becoming increasingly popular. It will also give an overview of the industry, including some statistics. The mini course wraps up with dispelling some common misconceptions and give you a better understanding of what is involved in starting and running your own show.

Also included in the course is the Podcast Prerequisite Worksheet. This worksheet is designed to help you think through your motivations and goals for starting a podcast. It will also help you to identify any areas of podcasting that you may need further research on.

This mini course, won’t be teaching you how to record, edit your show or publish a podcast. It is meant to be only an introduction and brief overview.

Sign up for the course

The Podcast Starter Mini Course is perfect for anyone who wants to start a podcast but isn’t sure where to begin. It’s also great for those who want to learn more about the industry before making their first episode. You don’t need any prior knowledge or experience to take the course.

If you’re curious about starting a podcast but want to know more before taking the plunge, this mini course is for you! It only takes about 30 minutes to complete.

A while ago, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Aimee J. of Podcaster HQ for a lively interview. In this chat, I highlighted the importance of staying committed and authentic in podcasting. 

Aimee and I talk about the commitment required to host a podcast, and we encourage others not to view podcasting as a fad. With our many years of podcast experience, we explained that podcasting is not about quick results. It requires you to put in a lot of work as you perfect your craft. 

It is this commitment to podcasting that has allowed me to grow and evolve over the years. From blogging, to launching the Carry On Friends The Caribbean American Podcast in 2015, and now being an Executive Producer and teacher in the podcasting space.

What sparked my drive to start my podcast was the realization that there were others like her out there who also wanted to hear from immigrants of Caribbean heritage. So, I decided to “scratch her own itch” and talk about topics related to Caribbean Americans that weren’t found anywhere else on the internet. Since then, the podcast has seen steady growth.

Based on this experience, podcasting should be done from a place of fulfillment and joy, not from a place of lack. Aimee and I also explain that success in podcasting doesn’t come from focusing on profitability or comparison of yourself with others. Instead, it comes when you do it with passion.

Podcasters should not “run away from what makes you different. Embrace it. Own it.” It is the vulnerability and authenticity of podcasters that the audience respects and admires. This is also what makes them more relatable to their audience. 

In all, podcasters are encouraged to, “know who you are and who you are talking to and focus on that. Don’t be distracted.” Podcasters should believe in their show and what their show is supposed to do, and stay committed to the journey.

Success Takes Time

When it comes to success in podcasting it is a long game – success won’t come overnight. It’s worth noting that success is relative and everyone defines it differently. But generally there’s a podcast success single story that everyone knows which is – thousands of downloads per episode; thousands of highly engaged followers on social media and monetization success via sponsorship/ads, membership/donations or subscriptions etc. 

The hard reality is that audience and revenue growth takes a long time. Overnight success is rarely true and celebrities do not count. 

The truth is podcasting requires patience, persistence, quality content and consistency.  I’m not gonna lie, as an independent podcaster, me writing and you reading that prior sentence is much easier than the day-to-day reality.

Note I said “podcasting requires…” and not “podcasting success requires..”, because having patience, persistence, quality content and consistency still doesn’t guarantee success. 

However, thanks to headlines, some podcasts seem to be really successful. This creates a sense of hope and you start to think… “hmmm that could be me”. 

Yes it is true that some podcasters are able to make a living out of podcasting or even start their own business, but it is also true some podcasters may not see success for years, if at all. That is the fundamental point with podcast success – things aren’t instantaneous – which is why it’s more of a long game than anything else.

Playing the long game

Since it’s a long game, what’s my game plan? 

1. Go back to the goal, the reason the podcast was created. This reason shouldn’t be anchored in just wishes and riches.  I regularly review this goal to remind me of why I do what I am doing, and who I am doing it for – hint: it’s the audience.  
2. Build and nurture the right relationships. Being in community with your listener is important, as well as in community with other podcasters, other creators or entrepreneurs. For many independent podcasters, podcasting is a lonely place. Finding and nurturing the right relationships helps sustain playing the long game.  
3. Be open. I know that success looks different not only to everyone, but even to me and how I initially envisioned success. So while I may have a vision of how I want success to look, I must be open to the different paths or opportunities that I couldn’t have anticipated that can lead to or build on success. 
4. Time, patience and consistency.  Admittedly, sometimes I get frustrated at how slowly things are going because I just want to fast track the results. When I am experiencing these moments, the best thing for me to do is to chat with some in my support system about how I’m feeling and/or step away and do something fun or relaxing – not related to podcasting. 

I started podcasting over 8 years ago because my blogging audience wanted something from me that I knew was better delivered in a podcast format. I had no idea where it would take me, as long as the audience got the content they wanted. Since then, podcasting has given me opportunities in and outside of podcasting that I couldn’t have envisioned for myself. It has also taught me some very hard but important lessons, including the value of playing a long game.

How have you sustained playing the long game?

New Year, Big Goals

It’s a new year and with it comes hopes for a fresh start, achieving big goals! You’re probably thinking that this is THE year that all your podcasting dreams come true.

In years past, I’ve set very detailed goals for my podcast, Carry On Friends. Those goals were in the 3 main categories of social media, content and monetization. For example, in the social media category alone, I had goals and metrics to be met for all the platforms I was on. By the time I was done writing all my goals at the top of the year, I was pleased with myself at how detailed I was. But most of the time, those detailed goals were not met and so 2019 was the last year I did goals that way. What I now realized was writing down the goals was easy, executing on them was hard, especially when there were so many. 

Less is More

As an independent podcaster, it is important to not just set goals for yourself and your podcast, but to also have realistic expectations. 

Less is more when it comes to setting realistic podcasting goals. With so many variables involved, podcasting outcomes are very different and difficult because the results are not always predictable. This unpredictability leads to longer runtimes in achieving specific goals and as a result, setting too many goals could mean spreading yourself thin. In other words, you could end up with multiple goals that may lead nowhere fast.

This is exactly what happened to me, I set more goals than I could realistically achieve in a year. By the 2nd quarter, trying to work from my goals list had fizzled. Heeding to my lessons of the past, I started 2020 with fewer goals – I had 5 goals spread across my different brands. However, with a global pandemic I was forced to strip the goals down even further to only 2 – 1 for my podcast and 1 for my business. So really, technically 1 per brand. 

This lean approach taught me that setting less goals didn’t mean I would accomplish less. Instead, it meant that I would give myself the capacity to do other tasks that I couldn’t anticipate, as a result of working towards this main goal. The most important thing I learned was that achieving the goal didn’t always mean I could quickly move on to the next goal. I learned that I needed to put systems in place to create an iterative process that involves: 

1. Maintenance – first maintaining the initial achievement 
2. Learning – create opportunities that allow you to learn more. 
3. Improving – apply what you’ve learned to improve on the initial achievement. 

Focus on the top 2

Whether your goal is: 

1. Metrics/numbers driven. Example: x amount of downloads, followers, guests, membership etc. Or
2. Not numbers driven for example: better content, interviewing skills, better editing, more interaction/connection with audience or community etc. 

I recommend focusing your energy on your top 2 goals that you really want to commit to achieving. Before moving on to the next goal, be sure to document your process, put systems in place so you can create an iterate system that lays the foundation upon which you can  build and achieve more goals.