Steve Shallenberger: Welcome to all of our Becoming Your Best podcast listeners, wherever you may be in the world today! This is your host, Steve Shallenberger – and we have a couple of amazing guests with us today! Welcome, Ginni and Michelle!
Michelle Sorro: What an honor to be here!
Ginni Saraswati: Hi, Steve! It’s great to be here again!
Steve Shallenberger: All righty! And this isn’t just one guest, my friends! It’s two. This is like double trouble! Lookout, we’re gonna have a great time! Okay, well, before we get started today – and this is going to be fun to our wonderful listeners; I think there will be a lot of insights that you’re going to have. We’re going to pull back the curtain of what is happening behind this curtain in the world of podcasts because we have two of the very best in the whole world right with us today!
Steve Shallenberger: So, first, let’s just talk about Ginni. Her family migrated to Australia from Sri Lanka when she was just two years old, and in the first few weeks at preschool, she did not speak because of her shyness and her lack of confidence, being the kid who looked different from everyone else. But, it was through the encouragement of her teachers and best friend that gave her the confidence to speak up. And now, with a career spanning over a decade in broadcast radio, Ginni has featured on two breakfast shows in Melbourne, she’s also a host of three podcasts – which she gets around; these are wonderful – and recently signed to Nova Entertainment, one of the leading broadcast networks in Australia. She’s currently based in New York City, and heads up Ginni Media, and works with over 20 clients in podcast coaching, distributing, marketing, and creation. She started this solo podcast in 2016, and she has just received so many credits! It’s amazing! So, Ginni, we’re excited to have you with us!
Ginni Saraswati: Thank you, Steve! What an introduction! I’m really, really grateful to be here. And, you know, I’m a big fan of yours and everything that you teach leaders – and you’ve definitely influenced me and my team. So, I’m grateful to be here and share this space with you and Michelle.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay, well, great! And Ginni has a wonderful business partner, Michelle. She is the founder of Live Video Academy, co-founder of the Podcast Accelerator – which we’re going to hear a little bit more about here, in this show – a TV retail host and host of the ‘Fire and Soul’ podcast, a top 10 in self-development. Let’s just tell you a little bit more about her because one of her expertise is how to develop a high-converting pitch to sell online with live video, and how to create and launch a published podcast and cultivate a deeply engaged online community. Here’s a couple of fun things about Michelle: she’s hosted ‘Deal Drop’ on Emmy-winning entertainment news shows, Extra – and her job was to convert viewers to customers and move thousands of units of inventory in 15 seconds per product. That’s no piece of cake! It’s an extremely demanding challenge to deliver the exact right message to achieve the sales quota within this tight timeline. So, she is amazing!
Steve Shallenberger: And I just would say this one thing before I ask a question of each of them, and that is that they have partnered up to create the Podcast Accelerator – a comprehensive step-by-step guide, a process, a service to creating and launching the podcast of your dreams. So, this is going to be great! They’ve poured their heart and soul into delivering their customers the most value in the world, in this marketplace. So, let’s jump right into our questions here! And the first one I want to ask is, let’s start with Ginni and then we’ll go to Michelle, tell us about your background – like, any turning points. How did you get to where you are today?
Steve Shallenberger: How did we get to where we are today… Well, it started with, I guess, my story as being a Podcast Producer coming to America, I went all-in on my podcast producing business and that’s when I connected with the lovely Michelle. She was looking to start a podcast and I’ll let her explain her story in that way. However, when I met Michelle, it was love at first call. We were very aligned, we both liked the same people, we were both inspired about the same people or from the same people. And then, working with her I think, from any other client of mine, she really has been wearing many hats. She’s a friend, she’s a coach, she also calls me out on my crap – I don’t know if I’m allowed to say that on the podcast, Steve, but I just did – and she’s also very, very authentic and heart-centered, which is such a unique mix to get that in a client and a friendship and all these layers of relationship that we have. She’s just a superhuman being. And I think last year she called me, she said, “Hey, what do you think about starting a program for podcasters?” And I’m like, “Great!” And we both had this crazy vision to take 30 plus people through a program and launch 30 plus podcasts on one day, and we both co-signed on each other’s crazy. And here we are, Steve, where we’re about to run our third program in a couple of weeks. And it’s just super exciting to share that journey with someone who is so aligned with your values and so committed to impacting people and serving people the way that you intend to, as well.
Steve Shallenberger: Oh, great. Okay, Michelle!
Michelle Sorro: Wow, Ginni! I’m sitting here getting all goosey-bumped. I was so touched by those words – and you say that to me directly, so, it still is never lost on me. You know, Steve, Ginni just really explained the timeline really well. It was just a little north of two years ago, and I wanted to start a podcast but had no idea where to begin or how to do it. And, after a couple of months of doing extensive Google searches, I was more confused after that than I was before I started. And I just feel like I was getting mixed messages and I just was more overwhelmed and felt more alone than before I started my deep research. And that’s where I believe grace intervened and connected Ginni and I. And it was love at first phone call and we were very aligned. I launched my podcast. By the way, I did not know there was such a thing as a Podcast Producer back then. I had been in television for 10 years, as you mentioned earlier; I always knew about television and film producers, but I didn’t know there was such a thing. And Lord, thank you for this position because it saved me a lot of time, a lot of tech overwhelm, and a lot of guesswork by just being able to sign on with her and record, and voila, I had everything ready! It’s like a plug-and-play producing media company that Ginni has over there – Ginni Media.
Michelle Sorro: And after about maybe a year and a half of producing my podcast with her and getting my dream guests and really growing my brand and my business and my mission, that’s when I did approach Ginni late last year of 2019 and said, “Is this completely crazy or could we help others like me who want to start a podcast but have no idea where to begin? And would you be open to doing that together?” And she said, “It is crazy. And I’m all in!” So, the way that I feel about Ginni today is even deeper than from our very first phone call where I knew it was aligned and I felt like there was so much grace involved. I would say about Ginni – and I say this to her directly as well – I’ve also, I think, come across maybe two or three people on the planet that have such a heart of gold, such fierce integrity. Ginni is very heart-centered as well. I can tell you, after hours and hours of amazing phone calls with her that are very friendship-based now, I’ve just never heard her say a negative word or gossip or complain about anything. She’s just this really beautiful soul that I feel privileged to know, much less be in business with. And now that we are so aligned on this mission to change lives and to empower people to be seen and heard to the passion of podcasting, lights me up to no end! So, it’s an honor to be here and to get to talk about the stuff that we’re so passionate about and that we get to do together in the world.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay, well, that’s wonderful! Thanks, Michelle. And just as we take a step back, a little reflection for our listeners, this is just how a business comes together. People have different strengths and many times, when they bring those strengths together – these backgrounds – we end up with a whole new something different that they couldn’t have envisioned themselves, and that’s where we’re at. So this is a fun, entrepreneurial idea that, as we figure out ways to work together, we can have something that’s far greater. So, congratulations to both of you for bringing those worlds together!
Michelle Sorro: Thank you, Steve! That’s exactly right. And Ginni and I talk about this all the time about knowing our professional lanes. And we also knew that our friendship came first so we were very clear about our lanes so that we didn’t have to worry about crossing over and maybe jeopardizing this beautiful friendship that we both enjoy. And so, yeah, I love what you said. It’s like, this is how a business comes together, and it can be a lot easier than people imagine, if you know your strengths, you know your X-Factor, you stay in your lane, you have a collaborative, visionary conversation, and you repeat that over and over to make sure that you continue to be aligned. But staying in your strength and in your lane has helped us now publish 53 podcasters in the world during a global pandemic. So, I love what you said in that setup there!
Steve Shallenberger: Well, you may have set a new world’s record with 30 at one time, that’s very impressive! Well, on this first question, maybe we could turn to Ginni – and certainly Michelle, at any time, feel free to chime in. But Ginni, share with our listeners what’s happening in the world of podcasts.
Ginni Saraswati: Well, it’s funny that you mentioned that, Steve. Last night, Michelle and I were on a call – we had our first open house last night – and we were going through some stats that were released about podcasts just last month. And the interesting thing is, Steve, you know, as a Podcast Producer, I keep my eye on how many podcasts are out there on Apple and just the trends, just to keep an idea of how much this platform is booming. And I’m not surprised given that – I think we had this conversation in the last interview I did with you – audio is the only medium that allows the end consumer full autonomy and freedom on how they choose to consume that piece of media. So, when we looked at the stats, I guess, say last year, the stats said that podcasts are usually consumed during a commute or when people are working out. It’s generally consumed while people are doing something else.
Ginni Saraswati: Now, I thought during COVID this is going to be super interesting to see what’s gonna happen because a lot of people aren’t commuting, they’re not going to gyms, they’re not outdoors doing things that they regularly would do in a pre-COVID world. And I thought, “I wonder if podcast stats are going to get impacted?” But what we found last night, Steve, was that, in fact, people are listening to podcasts in their home. So, I think it was something like 49% were listening in their homes and 22% were listening in their cars or while commuting. So, it just goes to show that podcasting now is a medium that is so powerful, that people do have that loyalty to their show. They want to hear the Alec Baldwin show or they want to hear Jay Shetty’s ‘On Purpose’ because they are so connected to that medium. It’s such a powerful medium because it’s built from connection. You can’t have a podcast if you don’t have a connection to your audience – or a successful podcast, should I say, if you don’t have that connection to your audience. So, it’s curious for me, at this time, to know that that stat has just flipped and flipped so quickly in this time of COVID. In April, Apple announced that 1 million podcasts or over 850,000 podcasts are live – and Michelle and I are probably responsible for about half of that during COVID. But it’s just deeply humbling that we can be in such a space that is bringing so much value to people and holding such an important space for people, too.
Steve Shallenberger: Well, great! And I might add that, as I mentioned, I did interview Ginni maybe about a year ago and she is our producer for the Becoming Your Best podcast series. She’s done a great job. Our listenership, just as far as listening to our podcast, I think just passed over 500,000 – I mean, it’s pretty impressive, isn’t it?
Ginni Saraswati: It’s amazing! Half a million listeners have listened to Becoming Your Best and it’s been a joy to watch you, guys, grow in the past two years that I’ve been working with you, Steve – and I’m not surprised, given the amazing content and guests like Michelle and I, that you have on the show.
Steve Shallenberger: Yeah, Amen!
Michelle Sorro: Wait! I have a question for you, Steve. I’m going to turn the tables if you don’t mind. This is my style. I am curious. I did not know about those download stats. That is deeply impressive! I have a question for you. When you were first considering starting this podcast, were you nervous? Did you have any fears or self-doubt? Were you thinking the market was maybe oversaturated? Why would anyone listen? I mean, did you ever think it would get to this point? Whatever question in there you would like to answer, I would love to know, as I’m getting to know you right now on this show.
Steve Shallenberger: Right! Oh, that’s a great question, Michelle! Well, absolutely, we were apprehensive from lots of points of view. One is, could we just do this? Because we had never done something like this. But, it’s like most things: once you dive in and you just go for it, you start getting some experience and you feel more comfortable. And, on the early podcasts, of course, you pick on your friends, somebody that you think you have confidence in that you can’t blow it with. So, we did that. But once we got going, it became a lot more comfortable. There’s another aspect that’s quite interesting: anytime we do something – whether it’s we teach a seminar or actually learn new things and teach other people within our families or our organizations – we are typically the ones that benefit the most. And that’s exactly how it is in podcasting because you know you have a show coming up, in our case, every single week, and we’re now on what? Episode 246. And, fortunately, Rob is there, and so, we can bounce things off of each other. But you need to be prepared. There’s thousands of people listening and you want it to be worth their time, and something that lifts their lives, that they’re better because of it. And so, you take it – at least, I would assume most people do – really quite seriously. We try to be well prepared and not just turn on the mic and start talking. And so, thanks for that question! And now, here we are. And, in the spirit of good, better, best, and becoming your best, we really want to take it to another level, at this point. How do we do better? How do we reach more people? And that’s probably exactly the type of things that you’re working on.
Michelle Sorro: 100%! And, you know, I always say, “Let’s never compare our beginning to someone else’s middle.” And your middle right now is someone else’s extraordinary, right? But you may be thinking, “Well, I want to get to a million downloads.” Like, for example, I was listening to Lewis Howes on Jay Shetty’s podcast yesterday. They’re both top 50 podcasts on Apple Podcasts. And Lewis just hit his thousandth episode and he’s had over 250 million downloads. But it was so interesting to hear Jay Shetty who’s massive in this podcast space, who’s one of the top 50 – some say he’s the number one but they said he was in the top 50 – but comparing his spot to Lewis’ spot. So, it’s just that beautiful perspective of just really honoring where we are in the moment. And, as you mentioned earlier, if you’re apprehensive, if you’ve got the self-doubt, if you’ve got the insecurities – I had tremendous imposter syndrome when I was considering starting one; even after I had launched it, I was like, “Take it down, take it down!” But you said it so beautifully. You just go all in, go for it. You don’t have to have it all figured out. Get your friends on, you know, your family on, in the beginning – and before you know it, you look back and you’re like, “Wow! 500,000 people have taken time to listen to our show because they, too, want to improve their lives and live the best version of themselves, even during a pandemic.” So, once again, I just salute all that you’re up to here. I have to subscribe to your podcast now! I’m going to be an avid fan. I have no doubt.
Steve Shallenberger: Alright. Well, there you go! That would be an honor! Thank you. Alright. Well, this question is for Michelle. If someone’s interested in hosting a podcast show, how do they get it done?
Michelle Sorro: Well, if it were December of 2019, I would have said, “Well, just call up Ginni or email Ginni because she’s my producer and I’m just a big fan of her. It’s worth the investment to have the entire team over there at Ginni Media do it all for you. All you’ve got to do is order $100 mic, have a laptop and Wi-Fi, and some good content that adds value to your listeners’ lives – and you get to decide that direction.” But that would have been what I said then. Now I would say, “Ah, but it can be isolating, it can be a little lonely trying to go solo when your friends and family might not be in the same space of understanding what it’s like to start a podcast, run a podcast, persevere in the podcast.” And so now, of course, the first thing I say is “Well, come learn about our Podcast Accelerator, which is the only done-for-you program on the planet, where we take you from ‘I’m not sure what my concept of my show would even be’, all the way through to having a published finished podcast by the end of our eight-week course.” And it just so happens, Steve, that we are launching our third and final Podcast Accelerator of 2020 in just a couple of weeks – and I’m sure you’re going to share that in your show resources. But that’s what I would say today.
Michelle Sorro: But there’s another piece, which is the underbelly, which is the real thing that I try and talk to the entire time in the Podcast Accelerator program, and it’s all mindset. Because people may talk about starting a podcast, but they oftentimes come up against the things that I was mentioning earlier – their insecurities, their self-doubt, “What would people think? Oh my gosh, what if it fails? What if I’m no good? What if I’m not nearly as good as Steve Shallenberger, or Oprah Winfrey, or Joe Rogan (or whomever your favorite flavor is as your podcaster)?” If we can just get inside of that fear and not let it run us, rise up and be a little bit brave, take some action, be consistent about it, before you know it, you can look back and – at least it’s been this way for me: The podcast has been the single most effective leverage to not only change my business, but also change my life because of the friendships that I’ve been able to create with the guests that come on my show that I didn’t know but now we just hit it off and connect and we move on as deep friends, or the doors that it’s opened, that’s also led to very meaningful personal new adventures in my life that have all been very exciting and deeply gratifying.
Michelle Sorro: So I would say it’s worth it busting through the fear, because I do believe that that’s underneath why somebody isn’t going to just pull the trigger and start. And when you do it in a program where you’ve got a whole group going through that with you, it’s very powerful, very supportive, very collaborative. And I think it gets you to the finish line, which is why we have a near 100% completion rate, which is unheard of in a digital course – it’s usually a 2 to 5%, just to give perspective for those out there who don’t know. We feel very proud of that, but we really believe it’s because we’re all on a singular focus together. And so, we’re all in it to win it and to get to that finish line, which is us publishing you the day before we finish up the eight-week course.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay, should any of our listeners have an interest in getting more information about this or how to participate within, we’ll share that before we sign off today so that we have that. That’s nice and clear. Ginni, just a little question: what are some things that podcasters can do to have as wide a reach as possible for their target listeners?
Ginni Saraswati: Oh, that’s a great question! Actually, Michelle’s very great at this, too, so I’m gonna ask her to chime in after me. But wider reach? I think, when you’re starting a podcast, one of the common questions that I get is, you know, “How am I going to grow my show? How am I going to monetize this?” And I think, when it comes to podcasting, you’ve got to think of, you know, going back to intention and vision – and I know, Steve, you teach this a lot in business principles and everything like that. However, coming back to the whole way of sitting with your intention, like, what do you want to create with this podcast? Who do you want to impact? And if you focus on that one person or that person that you’re talking to about your show or about your vision and how you want to serve them, I think organically, over time you will see that multiply and that expand. And there’s just such a great power in community. You have a guest on your show, and then that guest shares it with their community, and then someone from their community tunes into your show. So, there’s like this real, beautiful Law of Reciprocity going on. And you build a community intentionally or unwillingly, as a result of that. So I think when you’re starting a podcast, if you just focus on one episode at a time, staying consistent, it’s essentially like a weight loss plan or a gym plan, really. You’ve just got to keep doing what you’re doing and you will see results in time, as we’ve seen with your podcast, Steve. Like, you guys have been consistent in the two-three years that I’ve been working with you and you’re nearly at your over half a million downloads, and that doesn’t happen just because you decided to; it’s because you did the work and you put in the time. But there are other ways that we can explore the podcast, but I think I’ll hand that to Michelle because she’s very good at that.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay.
Michelle Sorro: Oh, wow! Well, I appreciate that. You know, Ginni and I talk about this in our Podcast Accelerator program quite a bit because the first two questions – usually the first question that someone asks is, “How can I make money on it?” So I’ll talk about that one first. But the second question is, “How do I grow my audience reach?” The reality is – and I got this from Tim Ferriss, who’s also a top 100 podcaster in the world. I remember when I was doing my Google Search way back in the day before I had met Ginni over at Ginni Media, he had said something that really resonated with me and he said, “If you are starting a podcast to monetize, you’re in the wrong business. Because the reality is that you want to share content to add value to serve your listener.” And also, if you’re trying to figure out how to get a $200 sponsor here, a $500 sponsor there, $1000 sponsor there, that might be important in the beginning for everybody’s budget and financial status. However, you have to think about your listener’s experience. And what happens when you’ve got the little advertisements is that your listener has to go through all those, obviously, to make sense for you. So, if you’ve got two or three or four or five of those in one 40-minute episode, that can be very annoying to a listener.
Michelle Sorro: So what Tim Ferriss said is, “Wait until you’re getting 10,000 or 100,000 downloads per episode, and you can get a much larger sponsor in one swoop. So, it’s only a 30-second commercial, versus four or five or six smaller commercials to make up for the same sum.” And I really took that on and, in the midst of me running my podcast now for two years, I decided to not go with sponsors and because I’m a trainer and a coach and I have various programs that I’m running in addition to the Podcast Accelerator, I just always open up enrollment on my podcast – I mention it as I talk – and I’ve gotten quite a few listeners that are now in my community and learning from me and off into the world-changing lives, just the way they were inspired by me. That’s the first piece.
Michelle Sorro: The second piece is how to grow your audience. Ginni taught me this and I really do believe it’s true. The fastest way to grow it is to get on other people’s podcasts, to be introduced to other communities. I have definitely grown my listenership because of that. The more important piece is to be consistent. You know, you look back and you’re like, “Oh, there were only 100 listens or 50 listens.” It’s like, Wait a second! That was 100 people. Imagine them in your living room right now. It’s not just a number. They’re whole human beings that took the time to listen. So, nurture them and treat them like a raving fan, and really respect and honor them, and do everything for them and they will share it and it will grow organically, and then you look back and you’re like, “Wow, I’ve got over half a million downloads simply because I was consistent and I was committed to my mission of adding value to other people’s lives!” Which is exactly what this show is here.
Steve Shallenberger: Yeah! And that’s great! So, how can you make a podcast show relevant?
Ginni Saraswati: Oh, that is a question and a half, Steve Shallenberger! How can you make a podcast show relevant? I think there’s two ways to do this. One is through connection and authenticity – you know, I remember when Michelle came to me and said, “How do I grow my audience?” And another one thing that I said to her is, “When you’re doing solo episodes, it’s just pure fire because you’re speaking from the heart, you’re being authentic.” And funnily enough, when she did start to do that, we saw a bit of a change in her downloads and a change in her show name, too, which perfectly aligned quite nicely.
Ginni Saraswati: The other thing in connection, too, Steve, is that you’re being authentic and you’re talking in a way that someone may not react to what you’re saying, however, they passively consume it, you’re gonna open up so many avenues for yourself to connect with different people. So, connection and authenticity will always remain relevant, I guess, because it’s a human experience you’re talking about. And we go through human experiences every day. So, that’s always going to be timeless content. And the other thing is to make it topical and contextual. You know, current affairs, news, events. If you can talk about those things in a way that’s relatable to you, that resonates with you, and then share that with your audiences, you can keep the content relevant and you can keep it in a way that people learn to trust you. Because, really, podcasting or any kind of media that you put out there as a podcaster or a host or a content creator, it’s about establishing trust with your audience. You want them to trust you enough to come to you for comfort, or just to have that company or just to hear someone talk about leadership principles or something like that. You’ll want the listener to trust you like your customer would trust you if you were running a business. So, that’s what I think you can do to remain relevant.
Steve Shallenberger: Wow, what a great answer! That was spot on! Michelle, anything else you wanted to add to that?
Michelle Sorro: Oh, man, she just nailed it! And I love that whole piece about timeless content is always going to be authenticity and connection. The only other word that I would add to that is vulnerability. The more vulnerable that we are, the more timeless that we will always be. And that, I think, is what really helps to cultivate the trust factor. And not only vulnerable in your solo episodes, but when you are in conversation – well, I will speak for myself, but I’m pretty sure Ginni co-signs because we teach this in our Podcast Accelerator program – treat a conversation like it is a formal interview. Even if you have a business-focused podcast, like this one, we still believe that people want to hear the underbelly. It’s not unlike my 10 years in TV – everybody wanted to see the bloopers and the behind-the-scenes real deal. And that’s what we’re really seeing in 2020; now, more than ever, nobody wants perfection – everybody wants real.
Michelle Sorro: So, in the world of leadership, as an example of this, I was training a US presidential candidate in the late fall of last year – who has, by the way, since dropped out. However, this person wanted to learn how to truly occur authentic and vulnerable and transparent and real on their Facebook live videos. And it made such a difference in terms of their viewerships and the shares in our two months of training together. And it just really proved my theoretical concept. People want vulnerability and I do believe is always going to be relevant. Of course, you want to come on with some idea of a structure, right? The how to’s, the three tips, the ‘try this and you’ll do that’ and we definitely want that. But inside those conversations, keep it as real and vulnerable and authentic and present as possible. Your listeners will hang on every word and share it with their friends. It’s just the way that it goes.
Steve Shallenberger: Alright, great! Well, I am always blown away by how fast the time goes – and that is doubly so today. We’re at the end of our show and this has been great! We could do a whole nother half hour, right? I have the questions and have just been thinking about this – but, any final tips you’d like to leave our listeners with today? And then, before we wrap up, we’ll have you share how people can find out about you. So, final tips, Michelle, and then Ginni. And then, we’ll wrap it up!
Michelle Sorro: I mean, if this is all about living our best lives and becoming your best, then I think it’s time – especially, you know, hopefully, everybody’s had some time to self-reflect during this pandemic – to decide what you really want and to believe in yourself enough to go for it. You know, there’s something to be said for that third dimension of grace or faith, whatever you want to call something larger than yourself, to tap into that, that you are totally a part of it. This works for leadership and business, entrepreneurship, stay-at-home moms – it doesn’t really matter, it’s all the same. But I think that, as we’ve had some time to, in some cases, slow down and really self-reflect and get clear on priorities and what’s most important, what matters the most now – and if it’s something that you want to go for, but you’ve been a little bit scared, a little bit apprehensive, a little bit of like, “Oh gosh! What would people think? What would that look like? What if I fail?” I mean, it is time to carpe diem your dreams. And it really just starts from taking a little bit of bravery steps right outside your comfort zone, staying consistent, and going for it. I mean, every person that we admire, whether it’d be Sara Blakely of Spanx or all the leaders that we buy their products, use their products, learn from – they all started there, and they just went for it, like you were saying earlier. So, that would be my final two cents: Do not delay on your dreams one second longer! The world is waiting for it, even if it’s one person at a time, one listen at a time. When you change that one life, I mean, nothing compares to getting that email, that dm, that private message on Facebook, where you made a difference. I mean, that’s a life that has true meaning for me – and that would be my final two cents of the day.
Steve Shallenberger: Wonderful, wonderful! Ginni!
Ginni Saraswati: Well, I have to co-sign on what Michelle said about taking the time to self-reflect. I think there is such power in pausing and there’s such wisdom in the moments that we do pause. But we’re so programmed to be go-go-go in autopilot and let’s make sure we cross up another thing on our to-do list that we miss that magic. And what I found to be true, especially this year with forced circumstances to literally go indoors and inward, is that when you do pause, when you do allow yourself to feel, you’re able to make decisions that have such a powerful trajectory. And I’m going to use the example Michelle used in this podcast where she launched it on her first day, and she called me saying, “I want to take this down!” And I actually said to her, “Sleep on it!” Had she not have taken that pause, Steve, you, me, and Michelle would firstly not be having this conversation today, she would not have touched the lives that she had, I would still not be her Podcast Producer, and the opportunities that we’ve created for ourselves and the people that we’ve impacted, and the 53 podcasts that we’ve launched into this world, would not have happened. So that all happened because she dared to pause. So, I think with anything, if you want to live your best life, take the time to pause because I think so much wisdom is already within us and we’ve just got to pause to find it.
Steve Shallenberger: Well, fantastic! So, how can people find out about the Podcast Accelerator?
Michelle Sorro: Oh, Steve, that’s a long one! So, I will share it here, and then it’d be great if you wouldn’t mind sharing it in your show resources. It is currently on my website, although, make no mistake, that can also be found on Ginni Media – but for purposes of the answer, it’s michelle-sorro.com/podcast-accelerator.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay. Any other connects you want to put on there, while we’re talking about them? We’ll be sure to add them.
Michelle Sorro: Yeah, come say hi! I’m Michelle Sorro everywhere – LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook.
Steve Shallenberger: Okay. And Ginni Media! Do you want to give a shout out for that one?
Ginni Saraswati: Thank you, Steve! Well, ginnimedia.com. You can actually also find links to the Podcast Accelerator there, as well. If you want to start your podcast, not sure how but you need a little bit of hand-holding, we will promise you first-class service, premium quality podcast production, and you’ll be a published podcaster by the end of it. So, ginnimedia.com is where you can go, as well.
Michelle Sorro: I can add one more thing if you don’t mind, Steve. You know, we only hold two open houses to come and learn about the Podcast Accelerator. So, if you’ve got anyone listening, I’m speaking to you right now – if you’re considering starting a podcast, just come and learn about it. We are holding our final Open House of 2020 on September 9th, at 5 pm Pacific, and you can sign up for that anywhere that we just listed. And we’d love to have you there! You can let us know that Steve sent you – and that will just be one big beautiful podcasting community!
Steve Shallenberger: Wonderful! Well, thank you, Ginni and Michelle! It’s been a delight to be here. It’s been a fun podcast. And you are making a difference, so congratulations to both of you!
Michelle Sorro: Likewise, my friend!
Ginni Saraswati: Thank you, Steve! Appreciate that!
Steve Shallenberger: Okay, well, we certainly wish you the best as you’re making a difference. And to all of our listeners, it’s such a delight to be together! It’s an honor, it’s a privilege. And I know you’re making a difference every single day in your life – and we wish you the best as you have a great day! This is Steve Shallenberger with Becoming Your Best Global Leadership!
Check out The Podcast Accelerator which removes ALL the guesswork of how to get started.
This is the only program on the planet that produces your podcast FOR YOU.
Michelle and Ginni have produced 53 podcasts during the pandemic!
This full-service program gives you all the tools, tech resources, and support you need to become the successful podcaster you’re meant to be.
Yep, you’re guaranteed a LIVE professionally edited podcast on all your favorite podcast apps by the end of the program.
If you’re ready to share your amazing, one-of-a-kind message with the world, we’re here to make that happen.
Come by our last Open House of the year, Wednesday, September 9 at 5pm PST / 8pm EST to learn more.
Sign up for our Open House here.
SPACE IS LIMITED AND THIS PROGRAM ALWAYS SELLS OUT.