201 | Don’t Quit Yet! How Indie Podcasters Can Thrive Long-Term

[00:00:00] Hey, do you remember back in 2011 when people thought the world was ending? Well, spoiler alert, since it's 2025, it didn't. But you know what does? Podcasts that quit too soon. Stick with me because your best episode is still ahead.

[00:00:24] Sound matters. Be heard. Welcome to the podcast where you get exclusive behind-the-scenes tips to make your own show sound truly spectacular. This is Podtastic Audio. What's happening? How are you doing today? Thank you so much. I truly do mean that. Thank you so very much for being here.

[00:00:50] I really do appreciate you spending your time with me today so that I can share everything about podcasting with you so that you can make an amazing show for your audience. And one amazing tool to help you make that happen is Riverside.fm. You know, today's episode is brought to you by Riverside, the all-in-one platform that helps creators like us make studio quality podcasts and videos, even in 4K,

[00:01:18] without all those stupid tech headaches. Hey, remember back in 2011 when some folks thought the world was ending? Yeah, well, we're still here. Check that out. Surprise. But do you know what needs to end? Wasting hours editing your podcast. That's where Riverside saves the day. You can record flawless audio and video, edit right inside the platform, use this thing called Magic Clips to instantly pull out social-ready highlights,

[00:01:48] and even get AI-generated show notes and descriptions all in one place. It's like a creator's dream toolkit. No fancy gear required. Check that out. You can start using Riverside right now for free. But when you're ready to upgrade, when you're ready to go pro, use my promo code PODTASTIC for 15% off any paid plan.

[00:02:12] Go to Riverside.fm right now, enter PODTASTIC, and make your next episode the best one yet. Because if we've all survived 2011, your show deserves to thrive. As an indie podcaster, somebody that does this for themselves, not for a company or anything big like that, well, you pretty much can talk about whatever you want. I mean, there's no rules. You can say whatever you want, have any kind of discussion with whoever you want.

[00:02:40] But even still, I would say there's probably two things we should never really talk about on our show. Those two things are this. One, never really talk about religion. And two, you really should never talk about politics. Because both of those can be very polarizing. Both of those can get people riled up one way or another. But today, I'm going to break that rule just a little bit.

[00:03:09] Because today, I'm going to talk a little bit about religion on this show today. And hey, before you go anywhere, before you get mad, I'm just going to be stating the facts of what actually happened. So, if you remember way back in the year 2011. Now, it felt like it was yesterday, but it was so, so long ago. So, in May of 2011, I was actually working where I work now as a driver.

[00:03:39] And I was doing a delivery. I'm driving up the coast, up to Oceanside from San Diego. I'm looking out and seeing the ocean. As I'm driving, I'm listening to the radio. Because on that particular day, it happened to be May 21st, 2011. And if you remember a guy by the name of Harold Camping. Now, Harold actually predicted the end of the world.

[00:04:04] Judgment Day itself, he predicted it to be on May 21st, 2011. Now, I don't remember the exact time. I think it was like 7 o'clock or something like that, Pacific time. I don't remember exactly. But here I am looking out the window, driving up the coast, looking over the ocean. And I'm wondering, like, what if? Because on the radio, they were doing this big, like, countdown. Like, oh my gosh, here it is.

[00:04:31] He predicted end of the world happening in 20 minutes. Everybody get ready. Here it comes. And so, here I am driving my truck, listening to talk radio. I'm driving up the freeway. And I'm looking out the window. And I'm just wondering, like, what is going to happen? What's going to happen next? And so, when the clock actually hit zero and it came to the exact time the world was going to end, on the radio show I was listening to, they were doing this big countdown. Like, here we go. Five, four, three, two, one.

[00:05:01] Here it goes. And then nothing happened. And they kept on saying, like, well, that was that. So, it was kind of weird because I kind of felt like this weird mix of relief and realization. Life was going to keep going. You know, I mean, but for so many, they had already given up on tomorrow before it even arrived. And that got me thinking about podcasting. Well, not back then, but today.

[00:05:31] And why so many indie hobby podcasters, so many indie shows quit before they even give their shows a real shot. So, if you do not know what I'm talking about, who even was Harold Camping? Well, Harold Camping was a civil engineer who turned into a Christian broadcaster. He ran the family radio. It was a global Christian network.

[00:05:59] He was kind of known for his calm, authoritative delivery, using Bible passages plus numerology to predict the end of the world. That was his whole thing, predicting the end of time. Because who doesn't really want to know when the actual end of the world is going to happen? And Harold was all about it.

[00:06:21] So, back earlier probably when he wrote the book, I'm going to say 1993 is when he probably wrote the book because the book was called 1994? This was his first book he wrote. It was predicting an earlier end of the world. And spoiler alert here, guess what? It didn't happen. But based on that book, he actually gained a loyal following.

[00:06:46] People saw him as humble, devout, and somewhat trustworthy, which I don't know why they would consider him trustworthy if he made a prediction to end the world in 1994. And yet, surprise, it didn't happen. So, I don't know if Harold decided to bust out the new calculator on his iPhone or what happened. But he somehow predicted that maybe now the numbers are really right. The numbers are going to be 2011, May 21st, 2011.

[00:07:13] This is going to be the day for sure. So, camping predicted, judgment day, 2011, May 21st. Well, okay, great. So, the media went nuts. It went super crazy. There were billboards posted everywhere. That's how I first found out about it. I was actually driving around and I see this billboard. I saw multiple billboards all over San Diego saying, the world's ending, you know, May 21st, 2011. Are you ready?

[00:07:42] They were all over the place. He did tons of radio interviews, lots of global press, followers. I mean, there were lots of followers still because, you know, with any religion, of course, there's followers. But some of his followers that really believed him and believed what he was saying to be absolutely true, 100% true. So, they quit their jobs. They sold their homes. They donated thousands. I mean, thousands to family radio.

[00:08:11] Now, you're thinking like, why would anybody believe that? Well, that's why people, when I say don't talk about religion, this is kind of why I say don't talk about religion. So, the reason why people believed it is because of their fear, their faith, and they trusted his authority. There was lots of social pressure. I mean, tons and tons of social pressure.

[00:08:38] If your whole community believed in one thing, then it's kind of hard to like walk away from that because you're kind of in the pack. You're kind of believing what everybody else is believing around you. And also, I mean, this is a big one is that for most of us, there was kind of this desire for certainty in this kind of chaotic world. And he had the answer for that. He said on May 21st, 2011, it's all going to end.

[00:09:08] It's game over. That's it. End of the world. Judgment day. Get ready. And people by the thousands, probably even by the millions, believed him in that moment. So, you're probably thinking, okay, great. Nothing happened. The world didn't end. We're all still here. Great. Happy days. Keep on going. Great. But what really happened to those who really believed, there was such an emotional fallout.

[00:09:33] I mean, when May 21st came and went, followers were just crushed. Many had drained retirement accounts, sold their homes, left jobs, and donated everything. I mean, everything to family radio. You know, some went quiet from embarrassment. Others defended camping, saying that the date was symbolic or spiritual. I don't know.

[00:09:58] But some suffered mental health crisis, depression, anxiety, and public ridicule. I remember listening to that. There was a caller on the radio after it happened. And the talk radio was kind of making fun of them on the radio. And he was very sad. And hearing him on the radio, he just sounded like everything he believed in was crushed. Everything he imagined was just wiped away. It was gone.

[00:10:26] And this had a big impact on the families and other communities. So families split apart over these predictions. Some people felt like their life was financially ruined. And their marriages were they strained or probably even ended. Public backlash painted over all believers as maybe gullible, adding shame on top of the regret. Now, what camping said in his own response, he later admitted that he might have been wrong.

[00:10:56] And we humbly acknowledge we were wrong. But the damage has been done. And family radio lost credibility, money, and many of their listeners. So what hit me most about all this is how people weren't just being wrong about the date. They were left without the next chapter. Like, what happens next? They invested everything in the end of the world. And it didn't happen. And now how and where do they even start over?

[00:11:26] Okay, now you're probably thinking, okay, Chris, what does this have to do with podcasting? What does the end of the world, a failed prediction, have anything to do with me and my podcast? Well, sit tight, Buttercup, because here we go. Because where it has to do with podcasting is that what clicked for me is while Harold Camping was predicting the end of the world, a lot of podcasters out there, maybe you're one of them,

[00:11:52] are quietly predicting the end of their shows every single day. Now, I've seen this play out over and over again, especially in the indie hobby podcaster arena. And so us indie hobby podcasters who possibly launch a show with so much excitement. I mean, when you first get started in podcasting, we're like so excited. I still get excited about starting something new, especially a podcast. And we all get it.

[00:12:22] We all get a brand new shiny microphone, maybe figure out some new software and like abracadabra, we're recording a podcast. Woo-hoo, check that out. And then maybe if we're lucky, we get some friends that tune in and check out our show. Maybe because they're curious, maybe family members are curious. And then that is when the doubt creeps in. The numbers are what they expected. The feedback is crickets. And they start quietly telling themselves, why am I even doing this?

[00:12:51] They're mentally preparing themselves for their own podcast doomsday. Like no one's listening. This space is too crowded. And I'm not as good as those big name shows. And without even realizing it, they're starting to pull back, posting less, promoting less, maybe skipping a week or two. And before long, their show quietly disappears.

[00:13:15] Not because it was bad, but because they convinced themselves it was over before it really even began. So let's break down the emotional connection to Harold Camping's prediction to podcasting. So Camping's followers gave up on their futures because they believed the end was inevitable. And podcasters give up on their shows for the very same reason. This show is going to die sometime soon.

[00:13:44] It's just going to happen. I can't break through. So why bother even trying? But here's the thing. 99% of shows don't fail because they're bad. They fail because the host stops before the audience actually even arrives. Hey, can I tell you honestly? I want to be really honest here. I've had these same moments myself. And I've stared at my stats. I hit refresh on them.

[00:14:14] I looked at them, especially this show and the other show. I sat there wondering, like, why am I putting all this work in only for a couple few hundred downloads or whatever it might have been? I don't know. But very small number of downloads. And I'm thinking, like, why am I doing all this work if only a small amount of people are listening? You know, I've wrestled with that voice in my head saying, who's even paying attention? And the truth is, most of us, most indie shows do this at some point.

[00:14:43] And podcasting is not like other forms of media content. It's just not. It's not at all. And the other forms of content, like the YouTube, the Instagram, the TikTok, things like that, things that are algorithm-based. Yeah, well, podcasting is not algorithm-based. There is no algorithm. So, when we look at things that are algorithm-based, like those other platforms, we think that this is going to be an overnight success.

[00:15:11] I'm going to post one episode with one big-time celebrity or big-time somebody or whatever. And the episode is going to go nuts. And my show is going to blow up. It's going to be amazing. But when you hear about, like, these top 1% shows, we've all heard them. We've all seen them. Some of us try to mimic those shows. But those ones with a massive audience, or at least they appear to have a massive audience.

[00:15:36] But what we don't really actually see is all the years they spent recording Into the Void, doing shows for nobody. There are plenty of comedians out there that are big now, but when they first got started, they were doing literally shows of, like, a handful of people just getting started, putting in the reps. And there are a lot of podcasters that have done the exact same thing. It doesn't happen overnight.

[00:16:03] So, we need to shift our mindset from thinking, well, I'm not doing anything right now. My show didn't blow up right now after, like, five episodes, and I don't have a big name attached to my show or a big draw. But yet my show has maybe five or six downloads on episode five. Great. But that's okay. Because what you can do is shift your mindset. Here's the key. Check this out. So, you are not late to the game.

[00:16:32] You're not behind. And your numbers are not a reflection of your worth as a creator. They're just a snapshot at a moment in time. The only way you'll lose at this game is if you walk away too soon. Podcasting is a long, long game. The longer you're in it, the more consistent you are, the more people come, the more you get better at it. It's just the way it is. So, maybe you're thinking, like, I don't know, man.

[00:17:02] I don't know, Chris. I'm, like, on the edge right now. So, if you're wondering, like, hey, I think it's time to call it quits. I think it's time to shut the show down. But before you do, I want to ask you, are you quitting because you genuinely reached your creative finish line? Or are you just quitting because you convinced yourself that no one cares? Because I promise you, people actually do care.

[00:17:29] And they can't find your work if you've already walked away, not can they? So, here are some tips to help you keep going. I have six strategies that you can use right now to help you get your podcast from kind of the tipping point of falling apart and being done one foot in the grave to maybe keep it going.

[00:17:53] And perhaps maybe reach your podcasting goals you had dreamed of when you first started doing the podcast in the first place. Tip number one, keep publishing consistently. Even, and especially even, you only have a few people listening. Keep it going. Because if you keep going to those few people, those two people don't know they're only a few people. Ever think about that?

[00:18:23] Your listeners do not know who the other listeners are or how many. All they care about is that they're listening to you and you produce content consistently and they enjoy consuming it. So, do it for them. Moving on to tip number two, focus on making each episode sharper, just not bigger. Now, what does this really mean?

[00:18:50] It means that you need to focus on delivering something valuable to your audience. Focus on each episode being sharper and not just like I'm going to have this big production and big names and all this pizzazz and all this maybe fluff and sound effects and all this cool stuff. Pizzazz it up a bit. Well, you know what?

[00:19:14] Sometimes the actual content can get buried in all of the audio noise. I know some of us like to do crazy sound effects. I know some of us like to get nuts with all the crazy noise and all the fluff and all this stuff. I did the same thing too. When I first got started in podcasting, I was realizing, oh my goodness, I could add this sound effect there and I could do this here and I could play with this. It gets tempting. It gets addictive. It gets addictive.

[00:19:39] Just like somebody who just buys a brand new Rodecaster Pro 2 for the very first time and they push all the bells and whistles. They're pushing things and going nuts. Listen, I have one too, but I don't push any of the buttons. I keep it simple. I keep it focused on the actual content. Moving on to tip number three. This is one I've said many times over and over again and it reigns really true, especially when you see small numbers and you think about quitting and giving up.

[00:20:09] But perhaps maybe focus your content of your show. Focus it on one listener at a time. You know, one great thing about podcasting is that it allows us to sit right here in this house, in this space, and yet I can connect with you. Podcasting builds relationships, which also helps build a community.

[00:20:35] And being surrounded by a good, positive community will help you push through those hard times and get behind your back when you feel like, well, I don't feel like doing a show anymore. I don't feel like doing this. There's always positive support within the community. And if your audience, even if it's small, are behind you and pumping you up and telling you positive, positive things, then it's going to keep you wanting to keep going.

[00:21:02] Okay, moving on to tip number four. You can maybe, you know, if you want to, use stats as a tool, not just a self-judgment scoreboard. Because we get in our heads about the stats. You know, one big podcaster I heard, maybe, I don't know if this is true or not, but he was saying that for many years, at least the first year or so, he didn't look at stats at all.

[00:21:30] And he's kind of glad he didn't because if he had, the stats would be like all over the place, small numbers. And it'd be very discouraging for him to keep going with his show, knowing that he might have a small audience. Knowing that not as many people are listening than he thought were actually listening. And I can see where that actually can be very frustrating for a podcaster.

[00:21:53] I mean, listen, I look at my stats pretty much all the time, but I kind of look at them like a tool, like trying to figure out maybe, well, obviously the show is working. Obviously, when I pressed upload to this podcast on this podcast platform here, that obviously went somewhere because I'm getting downloads coming back. So they must be working and it must be resonating. You know, someone said today, I think it was on social media, we're talking about like stats and downloads and numbers.

[00:22:21] And I think I said something like, I would much rather have one honest, real listener feedback from a listener that actually wrote in and said, oh, I loved your show for whatever reason. You know, telling me the direct stuff I talked about in the episode, actually communicating one-on-one. I'd rather have that than a thousand downloads that mean nothing, mean nothing if nobody says anything. Actual real feedback means the world to me.

[00:22:51] Hint, hint, if you want to drop me a line, you can. Listen, I love reading your emails. I love reading your text messages. I love all that stuff. I like thrive on actual like feedback. So if you want to like make me love you more, well, then perhaps maybe you can send me a message. That'd be fantastic. Fantastic. So moving on to the fifth thing and the fifth tip you can do to keep going with your podcast right now. If you feel like burning out, you feel like you're at the end of your rope when it comes to your podcast.

[00:23:21] Remember, this is tip number five. This is probably like the biggest tip of all. Remember why you started in the first place. Remember to have fun. Put fun first. Fun, creativity, connection. It's not just about the stupid fame. I cannot believe that there were some indie podcasters that were telling me that they want to be famous from their podcast.

[00:23:47] They are looking to as fame as being the goal of creating a podcast in the first place. Are you nuts? Why would you even want to be famous in the first place? Why would you even want that? Oh, because maybe I can, you know, buy a fancy car and a fancy house and I can be famous and people are going to love me. The truth about fame, when you hit a certain number of your podcast or YouTube channel or whatever it is, if you become quote like famous as it were, you get those, you know, great comments.

[00:24:16] Yeah, you get those too. But you also get a lot of the backlash and hate as equally as you do. The good stuff comes in with the bad stuff. You have to be willing to handle both. You have to be willing to accept the bad comments and the bad hate. And if you have very thin skin, well, I have to tell you, man, it's going to be hard for you if you become somewhat like famous with your show.

[00:24:44] But hey, always remember why you did this in the first place. I did this because I love podcasting. I did this because I love creating. I love having fun on the podcast. I love this stuff. I love listening to what I've created. I love listening to your show. This is a fun experience for me. So for me, it's not about the fame. I don't want to be famous from this show. I don't want a millions and millions of downloads every episode. I don't want that. I just want you to listen.

[00:25:13] I want you to create an amazing podcast of your own. I do this because I love podcasting. I create this show because I love doing this. Not because I'm trying to sell you something. I'm not trying to pitch you something. I'm not trying to get you to join my service plan or try to join my coaching thing. No, not at all. Scrapping all that stuff. I am here just because I actually love podcasting, which might sound like a total mind trip for most of you.

[00:25:42] And that brings us to the sixth and final bonus tip of this little thing here. So the bonus tip, tip number six is basically if you ever got some feedback from a listener that was kind of like just out of the blue, wasn't expected, or maybe even was a five-star review that wasn't even expected. Maybe it was something that somebody wrote and you're like, wow, that's super cool.

[00:26:07] Or they said something randomly about your show, a text, an email, whatever it may be. Screenshot those things. Screenshot those things and put them in a folder so that you can look back at them later when you're having days when you're feeling like the show isn't worth anything. When you feel like maybe I should give up, look at those words of affirmation. Look at those emails. Look at those things and say, yeah, somebody out there appreciates my show.

[00:26:37] Somebody out there appreciates what I'm doing right now. Obviously, they wrote it down. They sent it to me. Here it is in writing. I'm looking right at it. Screenshot those things. Save those things. Put them in a folder. Keep them safe. Maybe if you have to, maybe just print them out and put them somewhere on your desk, somewhere by your computer, somewhere when you have doubts that you're going to record a podcast. You're thinking, man, do I really have to today?

[00:27:06] This is kind of, I don't know if I want to do this. No one's listening. No one cares. Why am I even doing this? And then you see that note from a listener saying, your show is amazing. Your show got me through some hard times. I really appreciate you and the things you do. I listen every single episode. Keep up the great work. It's been amazing. Thank you. Those things mean the world and they can save you from podcast burnout.

[00:27:36] Hey, so you don't need a sign to keep going with your podcast. The fact is that you're still here, still showing up, still pressing record. That's the sign. Don't quit before the magic actually really happens. Keep creating. You have no idea whose life you might touch next. And with that, I want to say thank you so much for being here all the way to the very end of this episode.

[00:28:04] Hey, I do these shows for you. That is it. Like I said before, they are not about a business. It's not about making money with me. It's about making sure you can create an amazing show for your audience. I'm probably like the only podcast on podcasting that can actually say that. So there's that. So if you want to get a hold of me and you want to share your podcast and any amazing stories

[00:28:29] that you have within the podcasting experience and podcasting journey of your own, you can share them with me at podtasticaudio.com. Go to the contact page and there's a form. Click on that. And that way you can send a message directly to me. I mean, right to me. That's podtasticaudio.com. And thank you once again. And I cannot wait to share the next episode with you. And until then, happy podcasting.

[00:28:57] Keep on podcasting and make sure you make something special for that one listener who truly loves your show.