Last week I had written about how Aug 17th is a very special date for me and my podcast launch this August 17th. (Missed my last week's post ? - Click here). I had talked about how launching of the podcast was my BIG SMART GOAL for this year. And I had promised to reveal the magic that happened in the same week I sat down and defined my goal. Read on, to find out about this magic..
I love this quote from The Alchemist by Paulo Coleho - “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”. Even when setbacks keep occurring, I choose to believe in this quote!
So, here I was, excited about defining my BIG SMART GOAL . Yes, with all its milestones and the first big step saying Research!! I had no idea where to start. The minimal Google search made me realize that I will end up going through several rabbit holes! And, more importantly, I was not sure how I will figure out the "how to" from an Indian perspective. Right from equipment available in India, the hosting platforms, how to make it financially viable(read minimal investment from an Indian rupee standpoint rather than dollars), podcast recording, editing, marketing! I saw several separate articles and tutorials on each of these topics. I was sure I will end up in a maze on the podcast enablement journey itself. But then, if I am going to research on all this, who will focus on the content, the subject matter on which I wanted to podcast ?? I had no idea!! And then it happened.
Yes, in the same first week of January, I opened the newspaper and I saw an article titled 2019 - A year of the podcast! It featured a podcast coach Bijay Gautam. He offered a 6 week online coaching exactly aligned to the several rabbit holes/maze I was talking about!! When I reached out to him I was so excited to know about a couple of slots available in the batch starting in February. I enrolled immediately.. What more could I ask for!!
Tell me , of all the newspapers in the world, why should the newspaper I buy feature this article ? And that too in the same week of my Goal setting!! If this is not universe conspiring to help me achieve it, what else is???
Thus began my journey into this world of podcast. By the way my family was more excited about me joining this course, especially my children. The 'homework' given to us each week were challenging indeed, especially since I had to step out of my comfort zone! Bijay asked us to record our short intro over mobile and then share it with our batch mates. I felt 'Yeah, this is perfect, he is setting us on the right course!" He did so to make us feel comfortable listening to our own voice!! Imagine, this was even before the first class!!
And then, the next 6 weeks were amazing. There are 2 aspects about any course - the content and the teaching. The content coverage was well thought out and superb. The teaching part - I loved it. I am not referring to the techniques or the presentation, those were good indeed. But what stood out for me was the sincerity that Bijay showed. He was so keen on sharing his learnings. He was so interested in the success of our own podcast dreams that it was visible in every single class. Many times, we forgot we were doing a remote course virtually with so many participants. It was as if Bijay was standing next to each one of us and teaching us, helping us, clarifying our doubts. What more could one ask for ? And he continues guiding us even now, long after the course is over..
So, Bijay, thank you so much. By enabling this wonderful opportunity of being your student in the podcast journey, the universe truly has conspired to get what I wanted this year. Yes, to launch the podcast on Aug 17th!! .
Note - any of you guys out there wanting to do a podcast, look no further . Bijay, of late, is also doing the course at a Himalayan retreat! Don’t miss it.. By the way, this is not a sponsored post.
And somehow, this post is happening just before Teacher's Day - believe me, I did not intend it that way at all..Yes, the universe is at it.. always... Thanks again, Bijay.
All the best👍🏼