#101: My Biggest Takeaways From the First 100 Podcast Episodes

Welcome to the High Income Business Writing Podcast, helping you propel your writing business to a whole new level. And now, here's your host, Ed Gandia.

Well, hello there and thank you for joining me for episode 101 of the High Income Business Writing Podcast. My name is Ed Gandia and this is the podcast for business writers and copywriters who want to take their writing businesses to the six figure level or the part time equivalent. As a quick reminder, you can find the details shown us of this episode by going to B2B launcher.com episode 101 so. Wow man. Episode 101. It's kind of hard for me to believe that we're actually at this point in the show because frankly, when I launched the High Income Business Writing Podcast back In April of 2013, I was stepping into the unknown. I was excited to do this, but I was also nervous. And I was excited because I'd successfully launched other services and products such as the International Freelancers Academy, the best selling book the Wealthy Freelancer, which I co wrote with Steve Sloan White and Pete Savage, and of course, my own freelance writing and copywriting business. So I knew I could do this. But I was still nervous to launch a show for many reasons. For one, I'd never launched a podcast before. I'd never even tried anything like this. So I wonder if I'd be able to produce solid, quality content on a consistent basis. I wondered if the content would inspire listeners to make positive changes in their businesses and to attract high quality guests. That's also a big, big question, man. Can I, can I actually do that consistently? Can I gain a loyal audience? And you know, it's. It's never a guarantee, right? You might have aspirations, you might tell yourself, sure, we'll figure it out as we go. You guys know that I'm big into ready, fire, aim, but nobody wants to fall flat on their face, right? Nobody wants to scrap a project midstream because it didn't work out. It's never a good feeling. So on occasion of our 101st episode, I am thrilled to report that the High Encompass running podcast has been an overwhelming success. As I'm recording this, the show has had a whopping 277,000 episode downloads. I've been touched and inspired by your many kudos and comments, your many likes and shares, and I'm sincerely full of gratitude for the many fascinating guests who have agreed to come on the show. They've generously shared not only their tips and expertise, but also their challenges and triumphs. And they've Done this very enthusiastically. They've really wanted to do this from the heart. I've been very careful about who I bring on the show. There are a lot of people out there who want to go on different shows solely to promote something. They don't really care about the audience or the topic or the guest. And I try to do as good a job as I can in screening these people out because I want to make sure that we only have quality content. People who want to do this, who are sincere about sharing great ideas with my audience. The cool thing is I've learned so much from each of these guests, and I hope you have too. And to celebrate this milestone, what I thought I'd do is, is spend this podcast this particular episode, reflecting back on a few of the highlights from our past 100 episodes. I wanted to wait till the 101st that we had a full hundred episodes in the can and I had a complete set of episodes to choose from. And I have to tell you, narrowing it down to just kind of the top 20, which is. Which is my goal. I wanted to kind of narrow down to. To 20 episodes or 20 ideas. That was not easy. But I finally settled on a few episodes that resonated with me for a variety of reasons. Some surprised me, some delighted me, some provoked a lot of discussion. Some of these episodes got to the heart of the matter in a new and powerful way. And I will tell you, I didn't take the standard approach when people typically do this and bloggers and podcasters, they go by, you know, number of downloads and they just kind of take a very mathematical and objective approach to this. I used a combination of criteria. Not only that I look at popularity and number of comments and number of shares, but also kind of the tone of the enthusiasm around the topic, you know, because many times the numbers alone won't tell you the full story. So I took a very subjective view of all this and made that selection criteria based on some subjective measures, I will admit that. But this is what I ended up with. And so let's go through it. These are the 20 highlights from our first 100 podcast episodes. And these are in no particular order. So let's start with episode 48. And really the takeaway here was just sometimes getting laid off is the best thing that can happen to you. You know, when it comes to those gut wrenching moments in your life, few can top the feeling of being laid off. Have you ever been there? You think you'll know what it would be like until you're. Until it actually happens to you. It's, it's, it's pretty gut wrenching and traumatic and just full of mixed emotions. And if ever, if you've ever lost your job, you know exactly what I'm talking about. It's never easy, it never feels good. But that doesn't mean that getting laid off is always a bad thing. And in episode 48, Don Sadler, freelance writer, actually here in Atlanta, great guy. He shared with us his story of getting laid off in 2009 and how he was able to turn his misfortune into a six figure freelance business. There's a lot of great lessons and takeaways here. It's a very inspiring episode. And I remember one of the biggest things that Don shared that I think is everyone should pay attention to if you're looking to transition is the fact that he started freelancing on the side. So he moonlighted for several years in his case, and by the time he was laid off unexpectedly, he had built up a strong enough business that he was able to transition very easily. Many of you know my story. I did something similar, but I was on a very fast track. I mean, I was just really humping it. I was going 100 miles an hour and it was taking a toll. So it's not necessarily something I would recommend. I had a reason for doing it. Many people have a reason for going at that pace as well. But if you have a choice, doing it the way Don did it over a period of years, man, that will give you such an advantage. And it basically he created an insurance policy for himself. So you'll find that@bwlauncher.com Episode 48. Definitely one to check out. The next one was episode 23 and it was about content marketing. Content marketing has obviously gotten a ton of attention over the past couple of years, but when something gets hot so fast, you also have to wonder if interest in that topic will eventually peak and fizzle. And there's been a lot of criticism about content marketing. Some of my peers have widely criticized it. But you know what? According to Joe Polizi, who's the author and founder of the Content Marketing Institute and the author of several books on content marketing, this is not the case. This is not a fad. And he shared his perspectives with us in episode 23. Content marketing, according to Joe, and I couldn't agree more with him, is only getting hotter. And that makes sense when you understand that content marketing is simply a new term for an industry that's been around for a hundred years. This is not a new concept. So this is not one of these fads that, you know, it's, as soon as everyone just kind of gets tired of it, they'll move on to something else. This has been around for a long time. It's, it's not going to go away because it's, it's deeply ingrained into the way we learn, into the way we buy, the way we make decisions. Content is, is king, to use a cliche, and it will continue to be extremely relevant. And if you look at the, if you look at the, the statistics, if you look at the trends, if you just look at the fundamentals, and you'll see that that's, that's right. I mean, this is not, this is not a fad. Like so many other things these days, at the heart of content marketing is storytelling. You know, and I think that's, that's really the biggest reason why it's not going to go away. As humans, we've been hardwired for stories ever since we gathered around campfires and shared tales. And this is, this is the same concept, but in just, in a completely different environment and context. So it's, it's part of who we are. It's how we learn. It's how we gather information. Good content marketing follows that, and that's what you need to strive for if you're a content marketer. So you can check out the episode My interview with Joe at episode 23 B2B. Launcher.com forward/episode 23. The next one was episode 74, and it was about ramping up your business when you're new, when you have to make this work very, very fast. So aside from dating and parenting, few things garner as much unsolicited advice as launching or ramping up your freelance business. Right? That's when everyone comes out of the woodwork and wants to give you advice, Especially people who've never freelanced a day in their lives. They somehow feel they need to share with you their nuggets of wisdom on the topic and in doing so, show their ignorance. Shockingly, perhaps not so much shockingly, not all of this advice is legitimate, even if it does come with the best of intentions. So in episode 74, freelance writer and researcher Diana Schneidman shared 10 pieces of advice that new freelance business writers have probably heard dozens of times, but that they shouldn't follow if they want their freelance business to get off the ground quickly. I found that a lot of what she shared was counterintuitive, and her advice was specifically relevant for people who find themselves Suddenly freelancing in having to sink or swim as quickly as possible, right? A sink or swim situation, they have to make it work and fast. They have to start getting results very, very quickly. And as you, when you look at it in that context, what she shared in that episode makes a ton of sense. One of the biggest advice, pieces of advice that she shared is when you're starting out and you're in that situation, don't blog. And that's congruent with advice that I've shared in the past for people in that situation or similar situation. So you can check it out. B2B launcher.com forward/episode74 It's a great interview. Number four was about financial advice. Since we're on the topic of getting advice, especially from people who don't really understand what self employment or freelancing is all about, this one was one of my favorite episodes because it's something I think about quite a bit, financial advice and the financial advice that freelancers receive and why it's often not the best advice. So the tricky thing about financial advice is that so much of it comes from financial experts and kind of financial celebrities of money management books that are speaking to a very different audience. They're speaking to an audience of traditionally employed people. And in episode 92, my good friend, copywriter and marketing consultant Diana Huff throws the hammer down and all that standard financial advice that really at the end of the day doesn't work well for self employed professionals. She gives some very specific and very realistic advice strategies and tips to help freelancers manage your finances and to actually live well when you have variable cash flow. And really at the heart of everything Diana was talking about was that very important element, variable cash flow. That's what changes so much of what we hear out there. That's what makes it irrelevant to a large degree, is that people who are traditionally employed for the most part have a very predictable stream of cash flow or income. And in our case that's not the case for, for most of us. So how does all that change, all that advice change when you can't really predict not only when you land work, but when you get paid, which just throws a whole new wrench in into the problem. So you can listen to Diana's Advice at episode 92. It's one that I would, I think everyone needs to listen to regardless of where you live, because this is a problem that's universal for freelancers in all professions. Number five was about the whole travel angle and work wherever you want idea that so many of us fall in love with and start thinking about when we're seriously considering working from home and working as a freelance professional. It's a very tempting idea, you know, to work from anywhere in the world, but is this really possible? You know, can we really work from anywhere where there's just basically WI fi, you know, do. Is it all we need a laptop and a cell phone and wi fi? It's become kind of a cliche. It's into the business. I realize that this is maybe not reality, but is it reality? Is it a dream? What's the story here? Is this possible? Even if you have some limitations, such as young children or anything that could maybe hold you back? And in episode 61 we learned that it depends on how you look at it. There are many different ways to look at this idea and to live that dream. And my guest was Steve Roller who has actually taken this dream and turned it into a reality. And as we learned from Steve in that episode, there are so many ways to do this. The only way is not the Tim Ferriss way from the four hour work week. Tim is a single guy. He has no responsibilities in terms of family. He could just, you know, get up and go. And for many of us with, with families and other limitations, we don't have that luxury. Steve is, you know, he's, he's got kids, he's got obligations and he's been able to make this work. And this is, this is. I love this episode because it really made me expand my thinking about this idea of just changing your environment and being able to work from different places. And the idea which was one that really attracted me to self employment. But then I forgot about once I got kind of deep into it and into the day to day grind, if you will. After talking with Steve, I was inspired again and he got me thinking about it a little differently. And I know for many of you that was the same case. This one got a lot of positive reactions and I think Steve gave everyone lots of great ideas. Episode 61 is where you'll find that b2b launcher.com Episode 61. The next one was about mindset. Episode 84. So what's the first step in successfully making the switch from traditional employment to freelance work? And the answer is that it's not the typical stuff. It's not writing a business plan, it's not building a side business. It's not pumping up your skills necessarily. As we learn from Michelle Ward in this episode, the first step to making that shift to freelance work is changing your mindset. And ignoring the vampire voices in your head. This is one that again, it has to deal with transitioning out of either a full time job or a different situation and into freelancing. Michelle did this like many of us have. She did it successfully. She brought new ideas to the table. And that I think many of us can benefit from if you're in that situation. So it's definitely one that I would tune into if you're there or if you're in that process, because it's advice from someone who did it. It's not theory. And she's a very enthusiastic lady. Shared a lot of great ideas. There were some great reactions to that interview. All right, moving on. The seventh episode, again, these are in no particular order, was one that I did on this, the imposter syndrome. So if you're quietly surprised when clients agree to your prices, or if you worry that someday they'll figure out that you don't really know what you're doing, even if you've been doing this successfully for years, then you're probably dealing or have dealt with the imposter syndrome. And I would, what I shared in that episode is that, look, you're not alone. The imposter syndrome isn't new. It's not unusual. In fact, many talented artists, scientists, elite athletes, and even public figures feel unworthy of their success. And in episode 89, that's what I did. I peeled back the layers of imposter syndrome. I gave you a ton of examples of people who've dealt with people, you know, very well known figures out there in, in again in the world of, of art, of film, of sports. And while you may never lose these kinds of insecurities entirely, my point was they don't have to hold you back. So I give you some ideas on things you could do, very tangible things to try to, to, to cope with, with this very natural feeling of, of just feeling like, like an imposter. This one got a lot of reactions because everyone had a ton of you come back to me, many of you privately, just to tell me that, you know, that I hit it on the head and that you appreciated the fact that I was very honest about this. I deal with this all the time. It's not an easy thing. I would say almost every day I have this imposter syndrome feeling. It manifests itself somehow many times, at least once a day, it. So it's, it's crazy. It is what it is. It's not about trying to suppress it, it's about just dealing with it. And Working with it and seeing it for what it is. So some advice there from personal experience and from research I did on episode 89. That's what you'll find that, by the way. So all this is in the show notes. So if you're somewhere where you can't write some of this down, don't worry. We got a very detailed summary of all these episodes in the direct links in the show notes. All right, so the next one was about networking. And we all know that networking can be a viable way to land new clients, but few of us enjoy doing it. Most of us would rather do something painful, such as, like get a root canal, would rather do that than to work a room, than to go out there and network. And the good news is, is that it doesn't have to be this way. You know, you can keep all your teeth. You don't have to get a fruit canal, you don't have to trade. In episode 28, writer John Corcoran shares the. His methodical but very authentic approach to networking. An approach that's so successful that it actually took him all the way to the White House. I liked the, the step by step approach he shared there. I think it's very realistic. I've implemented some elements of that. But what John did was, gave us, he gave us a clear picture that, that I think anyone could, could follow. So we've touched on this a couple of times, but I wanted to point out John's ideas because, because they were so clear. And I think it's any. It's something that any of us could really copy and model. The next one was episode 76 and it was about the whole issue of clients who suddenly go away, right? Clients or prospects who are in touch with you, you're quoting something and suddenly they disappear out of the face of the earth. So what happens when someone is interested in your services and then they just disappear? How should you follow up? You know, how should you follow up? And this is an annoying phenomenon that I think most of us, if not all of us, have experience. The question is, how do you deal with it? And in episode 76, my friend and colleague Elise Bennen and I dug into this topic in detail. We used some very concrete advice from. For how to deal with these situations. And what we did is we grouped them into different sets because I think that's the important thing. You need to understand the context and the actual situation. So you have a protocol to follow, if you will, something you could follow depending on what the context is and the background and the Details. So I think we did a pretty good job of giving you a framework that you can use to make better decisions. Because I think that's what most of us feel, right. It's this anxiety of, oh my gosh, what do I do? How do I make this decision? And we end up doing nothing. In fact, we end up just stressing out and it just keeps piling up. So I think you'll find some very specific ideas there on how to deal with these situations, depending on what happened and what you've done so far. And that's all in episode 76. All right, this next one was a little bit on the controversial side, and I expected it, even though many of you weren't really too upset about it. But it's about finding good clients on Elance and Upwork. And I will tell you that this is. This is one that I've been trying to approach for a while. We've actually had one episode where we did a case study on one particular writer who's had good success there. But what I was hoping for is to find a guest who could really speak to a step by step system to actually be successful in these sites. And we're able to do that. So Laura Pennington came on the show in episode 95 and she talked about her experience in getting started with very little experience. She was actually very young when she started this, had worked as a teacher for, I believe, a year or two. That's all the experience she had. And she had done some writing, I think, in some summer jobs that she had during college, but that's it. And she was able to kickstart her freelance business using Elance, which is now Upwork, despite the fact that she had very little work experience. She had no samples, no ratings or reviews, and no.