The Secret to the Perfect Podcast Episode
It's Simpler Than You Think
There is one super easy trick to planning the perfect episode. It takes almost no time or effort, and it works without fail.
Just don’t produce it.
The episode you have in your head sounds great! It’s clever, concise, error-free, and it says exactly what you intended without any room for ambiguity. The only minor hitch: no one outside your skull is ever going to hear it.
You’ve probably heard the saying “don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” It doesn’t mean you should release any old mess, but if your standards are too high, you’ll never be able to share your work with the world. It’s true in almost any endeavor, but it’s especially good advice for the new podcaster.
A podcast isn’t like a novel. It doesn’t need to have a seamless storyline and a single recognizable style from first chapter to last. Producing a podcast is much more akin to drawing a comic book. Your style will evolve as you gain experience. You can try out structural conventions that suit different parts of a your narrative or personality. You can experiment, with your voiceover, pacing, music and other sound elements, as well as the level of detail in your scripts and how often you release new episodes.
Treating each episode as its own mini composition gives you the freedom to tinker with the formula, but it also lets you stop searching for the one perfect way to do it. You can release each episode when it sounds good, knowing that what sounds good this time will grow and change as you do.
That said, it’s best to let those changes happen organically, rather than chopping bits off and welding on them in new spots whenever the mood strikes. Drastic changes that come too frequently can be confusing for an audience, so let them absorb a few zigs before you tee up the next zag.
The most important indicator of when to make an adjustment is your level of comfort. If something starts to feel stale and unfulfilling, it’s time to think about doing it differently.
If you have an idea for a podcast, or a show that needs some shaking up, I’d love to help you make it sound more like what you’re hearing in your head. Click here to book a call.