Season 1 Finale: Lessons Learned: Episode 25 Transcript
Today is August 26th and you are listening to the final episode in the first season of The Creative Table Podcast. I don’t know if I should laugh, or cry, or burst out into hysteria. Maybe I should do all three! I honestly cannot believe I made it a year. Last year at this time I was still wrapping my head around all the information I had consumed in a 3-day writing and speaking conference. Of course, since it was 2020 it was online. However, had it not been online I wouldn’t have been able to attend, and I wouldn’t have gotten the final confirmation and push from God that this was the exact direction I was supposed to be moving. I think I have shared this little nugget before but, I had my recording mic and several other recording items in my possession for over a year by the time I finally hit the record button!
I really had no idea what I was doing – and that did not sit well with my personality of wanting to know all that I can know about a subject before I jump into executing a task. There were so many questions I had. Should I record an episode every week? Should I do interviews or just record solo? Would I be stuck in one format forever, and if I would, how do I choose? Should I really do this? What if I’m awful? And most importantly…will anyone listen at all?
Of course, all those questions got answered in some form or fashion within the season. This first year has been a HUGE learning curve and I wanted to take this last episode of this first season to share with you a few lessons that I have learned. Some things I didn’t already know, others I knew, but the ones I knew have been rooted deeper in my life.
Lesson #1: I am not perfect, and I don’t need to be. I’ve shared this in a previous episode – perfectionism is one of my downfalls. Perfectionism is rooted in pride, and it keeps me stifled on so many occasions. There were days I would come in to record and my voice sounded so tired. I’m sure there were time you noticed this as well. I would often get up and simply not record at all because I thought it sounded awful. I could have used that excuse every time. Or I felt like I couldn’t get the right words out. Or that I had to edit too much out, or not enough! It didn’t matter. I needed to give myself grace to be the one-woman production that this is and simply keep moving forward and learning as I went. And so that is what I’ve done.
Lesson #2: If someone has faith in you, let them be your cheerleader! When you can’t see what they see, look through their lenses and trust what they are telling you. I shared with you that two of my friends, Zach and Ericka (you heard Zach at the beginning of this season, and you will hear Ericka in Episode 2 of next season), had been cheering me on and encouraging me for over a year. I was so scared, but they both saw something in me that I couldn’t fully see in myself. When it finally came down to it, I had to finish seeing my potential through the lens that they were looking through.
Lesson #3: Comparison really is the thief of joy. I’m not sure if you have noticed, but there are a lot of podcasts out there in the world. The truth is that anyone can start a podcast very easily. Now some will be huge, and some will be small. The beauty is, there is enough room for everyone because we all speak to different people. I don’t anticipate that I will ever have a big podcast, and I’m ok with that. What I know that I learned in the photography world, a rising tide lifts all boats. There is room for all of us and we only get better when we encourage and cheer each other on. When we look at what someone else is doing and wish for that – we diminish what we have been called to do, and in the perfect time that we have been called to do it.
Lesson #4: When you follow the prompting of God and step into the place, he is calling you, other opportunities open that you had no idea were even on the horizon! When I signed up to take that conference last year it was at the encouragement of another friend and cheerleader, Valerie (you heard her this season and you will hear here again in next season), who was encouraging me to write my story (another thing I had been talking about but had yet to do anything with). I would not have signed up for a writing and speaking conference without her gentle push. And then to watch both of us launch into these places I don’t think either expected has been so cool. I have been asked to speak at several women’s events this past Spring and this coming Fall, and I have been able to talk to several people about writing and the next steps on a book. Again, I had to step out in and remind myself that I know God has done good things in my life and, if he was calling me to this, he must have good things for me in it as well.
Lesson #5: Doing new things can be both scary and brave, and when you are brave enough to do one new thing, other new things follow. I thought that this podcast, and the blog, would be the scariest adventure I would bravely step toward this past year. At least, the scariest thing that I would choose to step into (I know I say this a lot, but Covid was scary, and I have yet to find bravery in the idea of potentially getting it again! However, that was out of my choosing, so let’s talk about the things I did choose!). Throughout the Fall of 2020 and the early Spring of this year I was seeing many friends be affected in the foster care system. I have friends who are foster parents, a dear friend was the caregiver for a child removed from the home, and I attend a church that has a heart for the foster and adoption community. This got me thinking that maybe I was being led to step into that world. Talk about scary! Yet, bravely, in early May I began the process of becoming a CASA in the state of Arizona. I wrap up hearing observations this week and will be sworn in next week. It is scary, but I am being brave because I know that I can do hard things. We can live in the both/and things of life: the things that are both scary and brave!
Lesson #6: Speaking of both/and, turns out I could have a podcast that was both interviews AND solo episodes. I really didn’t know what I wanted to do. At first, I thought that I never wanted it to be just me on the mic once my initial intro episode was done. Then I did a few interviews, and while I totally enjoy them, there are more details to work out in an interview than a solo version. So, I did 4 out of 25 episodes (including this one) that were interviews and the rest of the season simply sharing who I am and what my heart and passions are all about. I’m so thankful I did. If you haven’t listened to those interview episodes already, I encourage you to go check them out. They are Episode 2 (Valerie sharing about God’s Perfect Path), Episode 4 (Zach talking about Discovering and Living into Your Strengths), and Episodes 7 & 8 (my beachside conversation with dear friends about navigating female friendships in the different stages of life). So, while I recorded mostly solo episodes in Season 1, Season 2 will be mostly interviews. As a matter of fact, I have just one more interview to record and then all episodes through December will be done! I’m still stunned that I’m that far ahead of the game (never mind that I still need to edit them!!).
Lesson #7: Learn from others! I remember talking to Ericka and Zach and asking them how they decided how often they were going to record or interview and how many episodes they would release per week or month. I learned by listening to each of them that there was no way I was going to be able to keep up with once episode per week. Not a chance in the world was that going to happen. But I could most likely do an episode every other week. And I also knew that I didn’t think I could handle episodes that were more than 15-30 minutes long if I was solo. I didn’t know if my voice would hold out, or if I really had that much to say. Turns out, I am very glad I listened to my gut. Now I could certainly go for 30 minutes or more by myself, but the way I did it was good for my personal pace and sanity. It allowed me to release an episode every other week (apart from a few weeks) and then to write and send out an email on the other weeks (which if you haven’t subscribed to A Seat at The Table – you really should. I will leave a link in the show notes, or you can subscribe on the website). The episodes for season 2 will be a bit longer.
Those are the big lessons that come to mind, but here are a few more:
#8: You can learn anything on Google and YouTube
#9: Everyone loves a giveaway – but always support local
#10: In a heated political season, during a pandemic, keep your political views on the DL
#11: You don’t have to stop recording if you cough or need a sip of water – editing is the best!
#12: Try to plan as far ahead as you are able. I’m getting better at this for the podcast (which you would think I would be good at already, since I do this in the other areas of life)
#13: Make sure your spouse is not watching a war movie or documentary while you are recording! This has happened multiple times.
#14: Get an ‘on air’ sign for the door. I was gifted one by my sweet friend, Denisha over at Reclaimed Story, and I didn’t know how much I needed it until she sent it to me! Thank you Denisha!
#15: Your body will wait until you hit the record button to do all the things you don’t want it to do when you hit the record button. Things like burp, or your mouth goes dry like the desert, or you start to salivate like the Colorado River, or you suddenly must pee, or you sneeze. Or any number of other things. Again, editing is my friend!
#16 The house can be completely silent all day long, but as soon as you start to record the dog barks, the doorbell rings, the hubby goes in and out of the door multiple times or, as referenced before, a war movie or documentary begins and the scene that is playing is the height of whatever war is happening!
#17: Finally, I started this with the understanding that I was recording for an audience of One - God. So, it doesn’t matter if 2 or 2000 people listen, I’m doing this because God said ‘go’. That said, you’re out there and you are listening and I’m so very thankful.
So, there you have it…some of the lessons I have learned over the past year. Next week, on August 31st, The Creative Table will celebrate One Year in the podcast universe. I’m thankful, blessed, and humbled that you choose to listen each time and episode releases. Listen for the Season 2 Trailer next Tuesday and on September 2nd, next Thursday, Season 2, Episode 1 will go live!
Again, thank you so very much for choosing to press the play button and listen to this little podcast called The Creative Table, and until next time, go out and find a creative way to make someone smile!
Photo by Belinda Fewings on Unsplash
