September 5, 2025 • 40 mins
In this heartfelt episode, I open up about my personal journey and the experiences that led me to podcasting. From childhood dance recitals to a recent Cyndi Lauper concert, I reflect on the power of storytelling and its impact on our lives.
I share my unexpected path from higher education to podcast coaching, including the challenges and uncertainties I've faced along the way. This episode is a reminder that it's okay to question your direction and feel uncertain at times - we all do.
Key themes explored in this episode:
- The importance of sharing our stories, especially for women and marginalized voices
- How life experiences shape our personal and professional journeys
- Navigating career transitions and finding your passion
- The therapeutic and connective power of podcasting
- Balancing self-doubt with the drive to make a difference
I also discuss the various ways I support podcasters and aspiring speakers, from budget-friendly podcast launches to strategic guest appearances.
A call to action for listeners:
I invite you to reach out and share your podcasting needs, challenges, and goals. What support are you looking for? How can I help you amplify your voice and story? Email me and let me know: julie@podcastyourstorynow.com
This episode serves as a reminder that your experiences and perspective matter. Even in moments of doubt, remember: your story deserves to be heard, and someone out there needs to hear it.
Your Story Matters
Women's Story Matter
Thanks for the Reminder Cyndi!
Connect with your host, Dr. Julie Marty-Pearson –
Website - Instagram - Facebook - LinkedIn - Subscribe to my YouTube Channel
Contact your host via Email: julie@podcastyourstorynow.com
Are you a Podcast Host or Guest or want to become one? Join my new membership Podcast Your Story Community
Come network with other podcast hosts, guests, & speakers at the free monthly events in the Women's Podcaster Party Networking Community.
Shop our affiliate partner Nuvita CBD Use code Julie10 for 10% off!
Listen to The Story of My Pet Podcast- Website - Instagram - YouTube
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Hello and welcome to a brand new episode of Podcast
your Story.
I am your host, julie MartyPearson.
I apologize if my throat is alittle scratchy, fighting a bit
of a cold, but I realized thatone of the things I haven't done
(00:26):
on this podcast is really tella little bit more of my own
story and share with all of youwho I am, why I have a podcast,
what I do in my business andwhat got me here.
Do in my business and what gotme here.
I'm not going to make it a hugelong story, which I can do
(00:54):
Podcasters are really good atthat and I've shared parts of my
story here before.
I've shared parts of my storyon other people's podcasts that
I've been guesting on.
But I really wanted to talk toyou a little bit about just who
I am now and like what reallygot me here.
And I think some of this wasbrought up by a recent event
that I attended.
(01:14):
I was lucky enough to attend aconcert a few days ago.
A few days ago, that concertwas Cyndi Lauper.
All my fellow Gen Xers,xennials, etc.
(01:36):
Understand the importance ofCyndi.
You know I grew up in the timeof Girls Just Want to have Fun,
1984.
I don't know how many times Ilistened to that song over and
over again on our cassetteplayers or requesting it on the
radio, which is what you had todo back in the day.
And you know we love Cindy, weloved her energy and her message
(01:58):
and her fun music.
And in 1984 I was a part of avery fancy dance recital held in
my childhood home's garage withbig white I don't think they
were curtains, I think they weresheets hung around the back so
(02:19):
you couldn't see all the junkpiled up.
And also, which is a reallyfunny thing that we laugh about
now is in the photos, which Iwill share some when I put this
episode out, the oil pans thatwere down for the two cars in
the garage.
You know, to catch the oil theydidn't move those.
(02:40):
We had to dance around them.
That was a funny thought thatjust came to me.
I'm a very visual person sowhen I think about things like,
the images pop in my head.
And that just popped in my headNow.
We all danced my sister and I,many of my friends did, you know
, dance classes and did officialdance recitals on real stages
(03:04):
and all of that.
But this was a summer, let's dosomething fun, have a project.
So we all wore mostly outfitswe, you know, had from other
dance recitals.
I wore part of one of mine andmy friend who is the same age as
me, but I was always muchbigger than everyone.
I was a head or so taller thananyone my age.
(03:26):
She was wearing my outfit froma year or two before All of that
to say that summer, ourneighborhood girls.
So I lived on a cul-de-sac andthere were a few boys on the
street, but all of the girlshung out together.
We went house to house,swimming and playing and doing
all the fun things.
(03:47):
There was myself, my sister whowas in charge, and then three
other girls my age and a littleyounger, and so we each had a
solo.
My solo was to Like a Virginand we have watched we have a
VHS of this, we have a videothat we've watched over the
years that we were like our moms, let us dance to Like a Virgin,
(04:09):
like it's just so funny, had mysignature hip move, just so
many fun memories.
But our finale that all five ofus danced together was Cyndi
Lauper's Girls Just Wanna haveFun, and so you know she's an
icon to us.
We call ourselves the MarnieLane girls Get to hang out
together once in a while throughthe years of all the different
(04:32):
weddings and babies andgraduations and all those things
.
But that was like a seminalmoment in our lives, captured on
VHS and in photos that I'veshared before on social.
When it came up that Cindy wasplaying in LA at the Hollywood
Bowl, which is a little lessthan two hours from me my friend
(04:53):
Karen, who was one of the onesdancing with us that day or
night I do have to go back whenwe say it was a dance recital.
We practiced.
It was at night, so it was inthe evening.
We had the whole garage clearedout for us to dance.
We had folding chairs lined upin the driveway.
The boys several of the boys inthe neighborhood were DJs.
(05:16):
They were on the boom boxplaying the music for us.
We made up little pamphlets.
We had popcorn.
It was a full production onMarnie Lane.
All the neighbors came outwhether one of their kids were
in it or not.
So this was a big deal and Cindywas a very big part of my
(05:41):
childhood.
I never saw her in concert.
It wasn't everything, everanything that ever came across
my experience, that would besomething I could do, and so my
friend had seen that she wasplaying at the Hollywood Bowl
after she had taken one of hersons to see Jesus Christ
Superstar there recently, and soshe said we should go.
So we said, yes, we got tickets, and then we realized the night
(06:02):
we were supposed to go, herother son was leading the band
at the high school football team, and so we're like, oh well, we
can't go.
So we thought we'll have tosell them whatever.
That didn't happen.
Long story short, hollywoodBowl.
Let us switch it to the nextnight, to the Saturday night
that we did not know until wewere there that it was her final
(06:23):
concert of her farewell tour,her last concert she was ever
doing.
It was a full production.
They were filming it for a TVor a movie or something.
Several times they actuallyredid the whole song because she
wasn't happy with it orsomething happened that wasn't
right.
It was crazy and it was one ofthose things that could have
(06:43):
easily been like oh, we can't go.
It didn't happen, but it didand we were there and we had no
idea.
It was crazy and it was one ofthose things that could have
easily been like, oh, we can'tgo.
It didn't happen but it did andwe were there and we had no
idea it was the very last showever and they kept talking about
how we have all these specialguests.
These special guests and theopening act was like special
guests.
One of them made me cry when Imet them and we were like what
is happening?
What is happening Throughoutthe concert.
(07:05):
Of course, she played all thebig songs, but one of the things
that really struck me is,before almost every song, she
told us a story behind the songof why it was written when it
was written, what was happeningin her life, her career and as a
podcaster as someone who has apodcast called Podcast your
Story, who one of my taglines isyour Story Matters and I was
(07:26):
actually wearing my your StoryMatters t-shirt at the concert.
It was like, okay, there's areason I'm here, there's a
reason I'm hearing this, there'sa reason I'm like, yes, our
stories matter, our stories needto be told, women's stories
matter, women's stories need tobe told, and so it was this kind
of existential experience.
(07:46):
But also seeing Cindy, and shewas exactly who you think she is
like, exactly what you've everseen of her.
That's her personality, the wayshe talks and she did voices
and she's just an amazing humanbeing and singer and performer
and artist.
And yeah, it was a verypowerful experience, but also a
(08:10):
community experience because wewere all bonding with all these
strangers around us as we'relike who's coming next, oh my
God, and I have video and youcould actually hear us like
freaking out as different peoplejoined her.
So it started with about halfwaythrough her part of the concert
she was joined on stage by theone and only Joni Mitchell.
(08:32):
Now I will say that's notsomebody that I would have ever
even like had come to my mind.
I know that she is older nowand when I have seen her on TV
or something, she's alwayssitting.
You know, her mobility may benot great, but I mean the crowd
(08:52):
literally lost our minds once werealized that's who it was and
there was a little blip whenthey sang it and I think Joni
had coughed at one point.
So they redid the whole song.
It was amazing.
We got to hear it twice.
And then I'm trying to thinktime after time, she had us all
put our you know, phone lightson, so the whole 15,000 or
whatever people at the HollywoodBowl had our lights on and
(09:14):
Cindy talked about how we're alllights but how we're all a
community, and she was singing.
And then John Legend walked outin this amazing full length
black sparkle coat and I mean,his voice is amazing.
Someone I love, I've never seena concert.
And so we all freaked out.
And then True Colors, which youknow is so important, such an
(09:36):
important song about being whoyou are and owning who you are
and showing yourself fully butalso allowing everybody to be
exactly who they are yourselffully, but also allowing
everybody to be exactly who theyare.
And then she was joined onstage during that by SZA and at
the end they held up the prideflag and and then they redid
that one again.
It was just it was such a weirdexperience because we, you know
(09:57):
, you were like a part of themaking of this story and artist
and all of these things andgetting to watch them kind of be
like that wasn't right.
We're going to do that again.
And other thing I loved is thewhole time is you actually
physically could see Cindyleading the band.
It wasn't the band played andshe followed.
It was her counting and hermoving her hand to conduct them
(10:19):
and being like no faster up.
This, you know, was such animmersive experience.
And then, of course, the songof course I was waiting for, we
were all waiting for.
Girls Just Want to have Fun washer closing song, her very last
song.
She started singing it and shesaid I have a gal who you know,
she's a little newer, you mightknow her.
(10:40):
She's going to join me.
She starts singing, she kind ofmoves to the stage.
You can tell she's changingoutfits again.
She changed her outfit, shechanged her wig.
It was crazy, it was amazing.
She even showed a little behindthe scenes at one point of her
being changed in the backgroundwhile talking to us.
So we see her putting on hercoat for whatever this new
visual image is for this lastsong.
(11:00):
And as she's doing that,someone walks out from the
middle of the stage and you knowwe're pretty far up and nobody
saw it first.
And then they show oh, it'sCher in a matching coat, with
Cindy as she's changing and thetwo of them saying girls just
want to have fun.
And at the end Cindy also saidyou know they started singing,
(11:21):
but they were singing and mixingit up and Cindy's like girls
just want to have fundamentalrights.
People just want to havefundamental rights and that's a
big campaign.
Cindy has been a part of, usingher voice, her song, her
platform to advocate for womenand it was just this energy that
there's an energy at concerts,but it was on a whole other
(11:42):
level because it really was likethis immersive experience with
them performing and everyonearound us.
And you know, this concert wasfull of Gen Xers and baby
boomers, like very fewmillennials and down, I would
say.
Some kids were with parents,but for the most part it was us,
(12:03):
it was women and gay men whoSunny was an icon for all
different versions of people.
But you know our generation,who she really spoke to and we
were a part of her experienceand her journey and her career.
To get to experience that andyou could tell a few times as
(12:24):
she started to sing or wastalking, she would get choked up
and start to cry a little bitbecause we were all at the same
time realizing we're witnessingher seeing some of these songs
for possibly the last time everlive.
And you know, sometimes theycome back and do another Fair
World tour or whatever.
We don't know what all of thatis, but it was such a powerful
(12:44):
connective experience and Ithink there was a reason I was
there in terms to remind myselfthat I very easily get down on
what I'm doing with my business,with my podcast.
Is anyone listening?
Does anyone care?
Does this matter?
And especially in business?
(13:05):
Because you know, there's somany online businesses, so many
online coaches, so many podcasts, so many podcasters, that you
feel like you're one in a sea ofmillions of the same.
And I know that's not true, butwe still get in our head.
I get in my head all the time.
And so, bringing all of this towhy I'm having this episode to
(13:26):
just kind of talk about myselfand my own journey was I needed
that reminder that there werepoints at which Cindy talked
about, where she questionedherself, where she said, well, I
did that and, like, I don'tknow what's next, I don't know
how to keep this going, andother people would remind her.
Well, there's chapters in ourlife.
Every chapter has a close and anew beginning and you never may
(13:48):
know what that is, but you haveto just do it.
You have to push yourself.
And she talked about, you know,being involved in movies like
the Goonies and writing songsthat other people, sang and
sharing her own story and whythat was important, and talking
about her upbringing in New Yorkand how her family was all
immigrants that came here andstruggled and you just you
(14:10):
forget this aspect of our.
Stories are important becausesomebody else needs to hear that
it's OK to be having a hardtime, it's OK to question
yourself, it's OK to feel likewhy am I doing this?
Does this matter?
Does anyone care?
Does my voice matter?
Does my story matter?
Does what I'm doing in mybusiness matter?
I mean, the world is sooverwhelming most days and so
(14:33):
negative and not sure whereeveryone is listening from, but
here in the United States, everyday is a roller coaster of
negativity and awfulness andsadness and you just think what
could possibly come next.
So all of that to say that,whatever you feel a calling to
(14:58):
do or say or share or speak, doit, because it may not be
immediately obvious why youneeded to or who needed to hear
it or who needed to see it, butthere is this ripple effect and
the only way we're going to getthrough anything hard, any
struggles, struggles, any uphillbattles, which I feel like
(15:20):
everything is financialdifficulty, losing loved ones,
grief, loss all of it, whetherit's the loss of a home or to a
fire, which happened here thisyear for so many people, loss of
a loved one, loss of a pet,loss of a job or a marriage, you
(15:40):
know, there's just so manythings that we're all grieving
and you can't tell by looking atsomeone what they're going
through.
But one of the reasonspodcasting is so powerful and so
connective is because it isvery intimate.
All of you out there listeningto this right now, wherever you
are, you're choosing to turn iton on your computer or put it on
(16:03):
in your headphones or yourearpods or whatever it may be,
or pull this up on YouTube.
And that's a powerful thing toknow that people choose to
listen to you and your voice andwhat you have to say.
And a lot of times inpodcasting you don't know, you
feel like, is anybody listening?
Does anybody care?
(16:27):
We can look at numbers and datathat say this many people hit
download or this many peoplelisten for five minutes or
whatever it may be, but itreally is in a vacuum in a lot
of ways.
And there are so many incrediblepeople in podcasting.
There are so many incrediblewomen that I have often talked
to myself out of talking aboutthings or doing things because
it's like, oh well, they've donethat, that's fine, they did it
so well.
(16:47):
No one wants to hear my version, but also, that's what
podcasting is, is no one?
Of course, no one else is goingto be like me, or I can't be
like them, because we're alluniquely different, from the
genetics that made us, to ourexperiences, to where we live,
and you know how we were raised.
Whatever it may be, and assomeone who, five years ago, I
(17:12):
probably wouldn't believe you ifsomeone told me I was going to
have a podcast, let alone two,let alone multiple other ideas
for podcasts in my head, I'vealways had something to say, but
I've always been a quieterperson, definitely an introvert
with respect to.
I regain my energy alone orwith one or two people, or at
(17:32):
home, but I've always hadsomething to say.
It's a matter of feeling likeknowing when is the right time
to say it, and I've held a lotback over the years, and even
over the last few years.
You know, I started this podcast, I put five episodes out and
then I'm like what am I evendoing?
I'm just putting it out.
There's no rhyme or reason.
(17:53):
This doesn't make any sense.
This is not even what I teachpeople to do.
So I paused it and I reallyjust immersed myself in the
online space and networking andtalking to women and talking to
other podcasters, and so Ire-released it and then I kind
of felt lost again and I want tocontinue to share other
people's stories here because Ithink it's important it's
(18:13):
important especially for womento share our stories and really
put ourselves out there and helpput other women out there.
But I also realized that I needto share more of me and what I
do every day, as well as my ownexperiences and things I've been
through, and I did originallystart this podcast with that in
mind.
In the very first episode ofthis podcast, I shared a lot of
(18:35):
my physical health issues andbattles that I have been through
and again, I would have never,ever thought that I would do
that.
You know I talk openly about mySjogren's syndrome, which
caused I can't think of the wordto use, but irreversible damage
to my mouth and my teeth, andso at 32, I had what was left of
(18:59):
my teeth removed and now we'redentures and have since then and
at the time that happened.
It was a very difficult processto go through, not just the
physicalness of it, which wasvery painful and hard Just at 32
to have your teeth taken outand know you're going to be
wearing dentures the rest ofyour life and not knowing what
(19:20):
you would look like and how it'sgoing to change over time and
it continues to change over time.
Very few people even knew Iwent through that, as I was
going through it because I wasvery protective of that.
It had been something.
I had a lot of shame and guiltaround the physicalness of what
my teeth looked like, eventhough genetically there was
(19:40):
nothing I could do to keep itfrom happening.
And before I knew that therewas a lot of negativity from
dentists and doctors like do youwant to brush your teeth?
It was a lot of.
I didn't realize at the timegrief and trauma had gone
through because of that.
But I guess I found inpodcasting a space where I can
say all the things I've everwanted to say and even if people
(20:02):
have a negative reaction ordon't like it, I don't always
hear it.
So it's like I can put it outthere and just know I've kind of
released it.
And so what comes up a lot forme is podcasting can be
therapeutic, it can be healing,but it's also about our legacy
and I think that I've heardlegacy come up in conversation
and in my thinking a lot andthen going to back to Cindy's
(20:24):
concert like we were a part ofher legacy, of her last concert,
of her experience, of hersharing of her music, and you
know that's really powerful.
And one of the things I'vetoyed with doing for a long time
and I know I will at some pointit's figuring out what it looks
like is.
I have a lot of my dad's storieswritten down.
(20:45):
He hand wrote a lot of his lifestories for many years before
he passed away and we're verylucky to have those and I have
electronic versions of them thatI've taken photos of all of the
pages and a lot of his storiestalk about his childhood.
You know he was born in 1923.
Yes, he was 54 when I was born,so people who do math are like
(21:11):
wait what?
And he lived through World WarII.
He was in the army, he servedin World War II for the last
several years of the war andcame home after it was over, and
so I know there's importanthistory and stories and legacy
there that I want to share insome format.
I haven't decided if it's goingto be an audio only or a video
(21:31):
version with some of his imagesthat I have, but that's an
important legacy for me to leave, because I am his legacy and I
need to carry that on for him.
I don't have kids to pass it onto, but there's a whole world
that needs to not forget whatthey went through and what the
world went through, and I thinkeven more so now that we need to
(21:53):
see it and hear it, becausewe're about to go through it
again if people don't stand upand fight against what's
happening here in the UnitedStates.
And you know, that's one image,one piece of my story that I
feel like I really do need toshare, but it's also kind of
figuring out what it is I'mdoing with all of this.
I think it's really hard rightnow because of the economy and
(22:16):
money and everything costingmore.
You know you put out offers,you start programs and good
response, no response, a littleresponse, and you're constantly
kind of fighting like is thiswhat people need?
Is this what I should be doing?
And so I really kind of maybe acall to action to all of you to
say what is it that you're herefor?
(22:37):
What are you looking for?
Is it just to be inspired byother people?
Is it specific support?
You want Specific understandingand knowledge, and all of that.
I've done a lot of differentthings since I started my
business.
Before COVID we all used that Iworked in higher education.
Covid we all used that I workedin higher education.
(22:59):
I had been in that world foralmost 20 years.
I loved school.
I was always good at school.
As a good student.
I did all the things you know.
Undergrad I was a researchassistant, a teaching assistant.
I thought I wanted to be atherapist.
I started a doctoral program inclinical psychology and I could
have done it, but I didn't knowat the time.
(23:19):
I was starting to have theearly effects of the several
autoimmune illnesses I have andI was also burned out.
I went through undergrad intomy first master's, straight into
this doctoral program, and so Iwas also burned out.
Master's straight into thisdoctoral program, and so I was
also burnt out.
But it was my first time movingaway from home and everyone I
knew to a place I didn't know,even though it was up in the Bay
(23:41):
Area, and I loved that.
About six weeks, maybe less,after I moved there and started
my doctoral program, startedschool 9-11 happened and that
was very scary to be in a placeI didn't know.
Well, I didn't really knowanyone.
I'd barely been in classes fora week or two and the whole
(24:02):
world shut not the whole world,but the United States shuts down
and a lot of the world too.
And being right outside of SanFrancisco, there were army
people, there were tanks andtrucks and the bridges were shut
down and we had cell phones butthey weren't what they are now.
You could call each other butit wasn't like immediate texting
(24:23):
and everything we have now.
And you know, we had to do thedial-up modem still and I had
cable television so I couldwatch the news.
But it was very scary to bealone in that and we were all so
scared, just in general.
And that really impacted me, Ithink, staying there and
continuing that program.
And so I went through adevolution of different jobs and
(24:46):
different things, butthroughout my career I always
went back to higher education,whether it was teaching
part-time adjunct at a communitycollege or university or having
a full-time job at a school.
That was really where I alwayswent back to because I loved
that world, and I eventuallywent back and finished a
(25:08):
doctorate in organizationalpsychology and at the time my
dissertation was on something Iwas doing at my job at one of
the colleges I worked at.
So then, once I had that, Iwent to the next college and the
next college.
But really to move up in highered you have to move schools.
So I literally commuted allover California anywhere from an
(25:31):
hour to five hours away fromhome an hour to five hours away
from home.
The last six years or so of mycareer I was living in a
different place and coming homeon the weekends to where I live
with my husband, and so that washard.
That was hard on me physically,it was hard on us financially,
it was hard on marriage, livingaway and being together.
(25:53):
Only part of the time I livedout of a suitcase.
But in a couple of yearsleading up to COVID, I had more
health issues that led to mykidney disease diagnosis.
Then my dad passed away and Ilost a job and I lost another
job.
Just because there was so muchgoing on.
There was no normalcy andconsistency.
(26:14):
So it was actually the fall of2019, and I had left my last job
and was now having ahysterectomy, which in the end
was good for me physically, butit was a huge process, both
physically and emotionally, togo through.
So I was just coming out of allof that when COVID hit.
So I was unemployed, I had justgone through some pretty big
(26:38):
physical changes and it was like, oh, what am I going to do with
the rest of my life?
And I couldn't go get a job inthe world I had been in because
the schools were all closed andthey certainly weren't hiring
even once they opened up again.
So the last five years havebeen really hard A lot of ups
and downs and uncertainty andnot knowing and not
(27:00):
understanding and oh gosh.
So originally I started mybusiness in career coaching
because obviously that's what Iknew.
I worked in schools, I knew alot about career tracks and job
changes and you know just lotsof things.
So I did that fairly easily.
I mean, it wasn't necessarilyeasy to find clients, but I knew
(27:20):
how to do resumes and Vitas andinterest letters and talk about
career choices and I'd appliedto enough different jobs in my
life, just because you have tokind of move up and move around.
That I knew that whole processbut it wasn't exciting to me, it
wasn't super like, I didn'tfeel like it was my passion in
(27:40):
any way.
And so when I took a class onpodcasting, they kept saying you
have to do it on your business.
It's like, well, I keptthinking I had to, but then I
didn't because it's oh yeah,let's talk about resumes and
form letters and asking forreferences.
Like no, that wasn't excitingor interesting to me in any way.
So that is when I started mypodcast about pets, because it
(28:01):
was like what can I talk aboutfor any given time, any moment,
without preparation?
Animals Plenty of those storiesto share.
And so that's where my firstpodcast started was to just test
out podcasting and see if itwas even something I wanted to
do or made sense for me and thatreally reignited my love of
(28:22):
animals, which has always been apart of my life.
And I got more involved inanimal rescue and I volunteered
at my shelter.
I worked at one of my sheltersfor a while, I fostered and,
even though I couldn't really dothat, because physically and
emotionally again, that world isvery hard Shout out to shelter
(28:42):
workers and rescuers becausethey see the worst of humanity
every single day and they keepgoing.
I could not.
Actually, my blood pressurewent up and we couldn't get it
to come down.
The doctor's like this is notthe right place for you.
And so I keep the story of mypet podcast going because that's
my way of giving back byadvocating and educating and
(29:02):
allowing people to come on andshare what they do to help
animals.
But I also started realizinglike gosh, so many people need
to use this medium of podcastingto help themselves, others to
really educate, and so that'swhen I decided to start doing my
whole business aroundpodcasting and helping other
people start podcasts, growpodcasts, and now a large
(29:28):
portion of what I do is helpingpeople be podcast guests and use
that to whether it's advocatingfor something or helping grow
their business or helping peoplebuy their book, whatever it may
be.
So that's really what led me towhere I am now with Podcast
your Story the podcast withPodcast your Story community,
(29:50):
which has a membership where Ido a lot of workshops and group
coaching and things.
But in the process of creatingthis, one of the things I saw
lacking I had seen it some earlyin podcasting, but then it
faded for different reasons wasspaces for women to come
together and really support eachother in podcasting.
(30:11):
And so that's when I started mynetworking community, which I
called the Women's PodcasterParty, which I just think is fun
and kind of a light way ofsaying hey, we need time to get
together and chat and get toknow each other and share our
podcast, or share what we wantto talk about on podcast, or
share how we're doing and how wecan help other people do it
(30:32):
better or more efficiently,better or more efficiently.
And so it has not been easy.
I've spent a lot of time growingthat community, a lot of time
marketing and getting people tocome and getting people to speak
and getting people to come backagain.
And I've definitely hit lowpoints where I'm like why am I
doing this?
There's no money coming out ofthis, it's just me giving my
(30:55):
time and space.
And I get a lot of positivefeedback when I'm like, where is
this going and is this reallywhat I should be doing, when
ultimately, just like everybodyelse, I need to make money, I
say all this to say it's okay.
If you feel like is this it?
Why isn't this working?
What do people really want?
What do people really need?
(31:16):
It's a hard thing of feelinglike you have to shift every
time you see something change,like, oh, I got to do that now
to get people to want to workwith me and we can't change all
the time.
But we also have to beresponsive to the world around
us changing and, for example,with my membership.
I launched it and I had a greatresponse I have 10 founding
members and then it kind of wentdown and I've only had one or
(31:39):
two new members since then.
So again, I question it.
I try all these things.
It's like nobody wants to dothis.
Is this not what people need?
So I just wanted to share that.
This constant cycle ofuncertainty and questioning and
what's happening and then asuccess, and then it goes the
other way again.
It's like it's exhausting andit's no wonder so many
businesses fail or people giveup.
(32:01):
But I mean, ultimately it'sfinding your place in the world
and feeling good about whatyou're doing and creating and
helping other people to create.
And I know that there are manyreasons why I need to keep doing
what I have been doing, whichis this podcast, which is
sharing my own story, which issharing things I've learned as a
podcaster through the last fewyears, but also creating space
(32:25):
for women to come together andmeet each other and connect and
share and grow together, andthat I just have to keep
reminding people that these arethe things I could do to help
you.
Is that something you need?
Do you want to start a podcastbut don't have a lot of money?
Hey, I'm all about let's do iton a budget because it's
possible.
I do it on a budget, trust me.
(32:46):
But not everybody needs apodcast.
But if you have a business, youshould be tapping into it.
Is it videos on YouTube maybenot a full podcast, but just
showing up live streaming orwith video?
Is it being a guest and justconsistently every month, being
on one or two podcasts a month?
I really love helping peoplefigure that out being a guest
(33:13):
and being strategic about it andbeing consistent with it, or
how to go from being a speakerto a guest or vice versa.
You know, I think speaking isvery important and I have helped
a lot of my clients do some ofthat.
So one of the things that I didin transition from career
coaching to podcast coaching ishad to make money.
(33:35):
So some people may call itproject management, but really
VA, virtual assistant, executiveassistant work and there's
absolutely nothing wrong withthat because one of the things
I'm good at is process and listsand organization.
I don't always do it well formyself, but I can do it really
well for other people.
So I have had various clientsand still do have a few where I
(34:00):
help them with kind of the backend of whether it's managing and
scheduling, social mediamarketing, managing their
calendar.
I have helped several clientswith speaking in terms of
finding good events to speak atfor them, pitching them, getting
them booked, follow up,scheduling and then the follow
(34:21):
up with the people they met whenthey spoke, that who want to
speak more but don't know theprocesses.
Maybe they just need it set upfor them and then they can
handle it.
Maybe they need it done forthem because they just don't
have time.
And I see that with podcastguesting too, is knowing the
(34:42):
right places to go and to setyourself up whether it's
something like Podmatch or otherpodcast matching services or
just knowing the right places tosearch for podcasts and what
you're looking for and the bestway to connect with people.
And I always say please don'tever ask to be on a podcast you
haven't listened to.
I get emails every day Hi, I'mso-and-so and I have these
(35:06):
bullet lists of all these greatthings I can teach your people.
I would love to be on yourpodcast and I say great, you
realize, you just said you wantto be on the story of my pet,
right?
Yeah, I don't talk aboutentrepreneurship or business
marketing or social media onthat.
I talk about animal advocacyand rescue and fostering and
shelters.
That is really annoying as apodcast host that I have to
(35:28):
spend my time reading an emailthat really should have never
come to me.
And we're not all perfect andwe change what our podcasts are
about, so it's OK, it happens.
But if you write an email thatsays I want to be on the story
of my pet, here are the fivebusiness topics I can talk about
, that tells me one you haven'tlistened to the podcast to know
that we don't talk about thosethings.
(35:49):
And two, did you even read thename of the podcast Because you
wrote it but then never saidanother thing about pets?
There's a lot of those littlethings that I want to help
people to avoid, but I also wantother podcasts that host not to
be annoyed by people sendinglike form letters, basically to
every podcast they find onGoogle or on Listen Notes.
(36:13):
All of that to say I want tohear what you guys need.
Where are you struggling in theworld of podcasting, in the
world of business?
Are you wanting to speak moreand don't know where to find the
right opportunities?
Are you wanting to be a guestbut have no idea how to get
started?
Are you wanting to go?
Well, what do you mean by beinga podcast guest?
(36:34):
Strategically, I've thoughtabout a podcast for a long time,
but it's so expensive and theone person I talked to wanted
hundreds or thousands of dollarsa month.
Like no, no, no.
There are options.
There are options for peoplethat can show you how to do it
and then you do it yourself.
There are options for peopleyou can say, hey, I just want to
show up and do the episode, youdo everything else right.
There's options for all of us.
(36:55):
I know when I see some of myfellow entrepreneurs need
support in, but that doesn'tmean that's what everybody needs
.
So, sharing my story to let youknow it's okay.
If you feel lost, you feeluncertain, you feel a little
like what am I doing?
I think we're all strugglingfor a lot of reasons right now,
but, no matter what is happeningin the world around us, we are
(37:18):
still needed to do what we'redoing, which is share our story
in podcasting, share our advice,our experience, so other people
learn from it and don't makethe same mistakes.
Other people need theirbusinesses to grow and need to
be guesting, need to be speaking, need to be doing all these
things that they may not evenknow yet that they need to be
doing.
I'm here to say it's okay.
(37:41):
If you feel any of that, I dida video recently just a short
one saying it's okay to not beokay.
No one is okay 100% of everyminute of every day.
We all struggle, we all go upand down, but ultimately, I'm
here to help you feel less ofthat, to help you feel less
(38:01):
alone, less uncertain, less.
What do I do next?
Should I even be doing this?
Is this even working?
I love assessing things andresearching things, so let me
help you do that.
Tell me what you want me totalk about here, tell me what
you want me to teach here, tellme what you want me to share
(38:24):
here, and then also tell me, ifyou're struggling, what is the
support you're looking for.
Is it a membership?
Is it one-on-one coaching?
Is it just a networkingcommunity?
Tell me what you need, because,ultimately, I want what I'm
doing to be what people need, tobe what you need.
So, if you've made it this far,thank you.
(38:45):
Thank you for spending thistime with me.
Went a little all over the place, but that's okay, there's a
reason for it.
A little all over the place,but that's okay, there's a
reason for it.
So reach out, email me, followme on social and DM me.
(39:07):
Whatever that may be for you,julie at podcastyourstorynowcom
is my email.
Send me an email.
Tell me what you thought, tellme what came to your head.
Email, tell me what you thought.
Tell me what came to your head,tell me what questions you have
, where you need support, whereyou see other people needing
support, whatever it may be.
I am here for you.
(39:27):
This podcast is for you.
So tell me what you need sothat I can help you move forward
and together we can make abetter place for all of us.
Because if we don't share ourstories, if we don't share our
struggles, if we don't helpother women and non-binary
people in the world, in business, in podcasting, no one else
(39:48):
will, and that is why I'm here,and I'm going to continue to be
here, even on the days where Ifeel like I don't know what to
do next.
I am here to figure that out,and I am here to help you figure
that out too.
So, thank you, and I'm justgoing to leave you with this
thought that I needed a reminderof and Cindy Lauper helped me
(40:13):
remember that, no matter what'shappening, no matter how hard it
is, no matter how dark it is,you matter, your life matters
and your story matters, andsomeone out there needs to hear
it.
Hello and welcome to a brand new episode of Podcast
your Story.
I am your host, julie MartyPearson.
I apologize if my throat is alittle scratchy, fighting a bit
of a cold, but I realized thatone of the things I haven't done
(00:26):
on this podcast is really tella little bit more of my own
story and share with all of youwho I am, why I have a podcast,
what I do in my business andwhat got me here.
Do in my business and what gotme here.
I'm not going to make it a hugelong story, which I can do
(00:54):
Podcasters are really good atthat and I've shared parts of my
story here before.
I've shared parts of my storyon other people's podcasts that
I've been guesting on.
But I really wanted to talk toyou a little bit about just who
I am now and like what reallygot me here.
And I think some of this wasbrought up by a recent event
that I attended.
(01:14):
I was lucky enough to attend aconcert a few days ago.
A few days ago, that concertwas Cyndi Lauper.
All my fellow Gen Xers,xennials, etc.
(01:36):
Understand the importance ofCyndi.
You know I grew up in the timeof Girls Just Want to have Fun,
1984.
I don't know how many times Ilistened to that song over and
over again on our cassetteplayers or requesting it on the
radio, which is what you had todo back in the day.
And you know we love Cindy, weloved her energy and her message
(01:58):
and her fun music.
And in 1984 I was a part of avery fancy dance recital held in
my childhood home's garage withbig white I don't think they
were curtains, I think they weresheets hung around the back so
(02:19):
you couldn't see all the junkpiled up.
And also, which is a reallyfunny thing that we laugh about
now is in the photos, which Iwill share some when I put this
episode out, the oil pans thatwere down for the two cars in
the garage.
You know, to catch the oil theydidn't move those.
(02:40):
We had to dance around them.
That was a funny thought thatjust came to me.
I'm a very visual person sowhen I think about things like,
the images pop in my head.
And that just popped in my headNow.
We all danced my sister and I,many of my friends did, you know
, dance classes and did officialdance recitals on real stages
(03:04):
and all of that.
But this was a summer, let's dosomething fun, have a project.
So we all wore mostly outfitswe, you know, had from other
dance recitals.
I wore part of one of mine andmy friend who is the same age as
me, but I was always muchbigger than everyone.
I was a head or so taller thananyone my age.
(03:26):
She was wearing my outfit froma year or two before All of that
to say that summer, ourneighborhood girls.
So I lived on a cul-de-sac andthere were a few boys on the
street, but all of the girlshung out together.
We went house to house,swimming and playing and doing
all the fun things.
(03:47):
There was myself, my sister whowas in charge, and then three
other girls my age and a littleyounger, and so we each had a
solo.
My solo was to Like a Virginand we have watched we have a
VHS of this, we have a videothat we've watched over the
years that we were like our moms, let us dance to Like a Virgin,
(04:09):
like it's just so funny, had mysignature hip move, just so
many fun memories.
But our finale that all five ofus danced together was Cyndi
Lauper's Girls Just Wanna haveFun, and so you know she's an
icon to us.
We call ourselves the MarnieLane girls Get to hang out
together once in a while throughthe years of all the different
(04:32):
weddings and babies andgraduations and all those things
.
But that was like a seminalmoment in our lives, captured on
VHS and in photos that I'veshared before on social.
When it came up that Cindy wasplaying in LA at the Hollywood
Bowl, which is a little lessthan two hours from me my friend
(04:53):
Karen, who was one of the onesdancing with us that day or
night I do have to go back whenwe say it was a dance recital.
We practiced.
It was at night, so it was inthe evening.
We had the whole garage clearedout for us to dance.
We had folding chairs lined upin the driveway.
The boys several of the boys inthe neighborhood were DJs.
(05:16):
They were on the boom boxplaying the music for us.
We made up little pamphlets.
We had popcorn.
It was a full production onMarnie Lane.
All the neighbors came outwhether one of their kids were
in it or not.
So this was a big deal and Cindywas a very big part of my
(05:41):
childhood.
I never saw her in concert.
It wasn't everything, everanything that ever came across
my experience, that would besomething I could do, and so my
friend had seen that she wasplaying at the Hollywood Bowl
after she had taken one of hersons to see Jesus Christ
Superstar there recently, and soshe said we should go.
So we said, yes, we got tickets, and then we realized the night
(06:02):
we were supposed to go, herother son was leading the band
at the high school football team, and so we're like, oh well, we
can't go.
So we thought we'll have tosell them whatever.
That didn't happen.
Long story short, hollywoodBowl.
Let us switch it to the nextnight, to the Saturday night
that we did not know until wewere there that it was her final
(06:23):
concert of her farewell tour,her last concert she was ever
doing.
It was a full production.
They were filming it for a TVor a movie or something.
Several times they actuallyredid the whole song because she
wasn't happy with it orsomething happened that wasn't
right.
It was crazy and it was one ofthose things that could have
(06:43):
easily been like oh, we can't go.
It didn't happen, but it didand we were there and we had no
idea.
It was crazy and it was one ofthose things that could have
easily been like, oh, we can'tgo.
It didn't happen but it did andwe were there and we had no
idea it was the very last showever and they kept talking about
how we have all these specialguests.
These special guests and theopening act was like special
guests.
One of them made me cry when Imet them and we were like what
is happening?
What is happening Throughoutthe concert.
(07:05):
Of course, she played all thebig songs, but one of the things
that really struck me is,before almost every song, she
told us a story behind the songof why it was written when it
was written, what was happeningin her life, her career and as a
podcaster as someone who has apodcast called Podcast your
Story, who one of my taglines isyour Story Matters and I was
(07:26):
actually wearing my your StoryMatters t-shirt at the concert.
It was like, okay, there's areason I'm here, there's a
reason I'm hearing this, there'sa reason I'm like, yes, our
stories matter, our stories needto be told, women's stories
matter, women's stories need tobe told, and so it was this kind
of existential experience.
(07:46):
But also seeing Cindy, and shewas exactly who you think she is
like, exactly what you've everseen of her.
That's her personality, the wayshe talks and she did voices
and she's just an amazing humanbeing and singer and performer
and artist.
And yeah, it was a verypowerful experience, but also a
(08:10):
community experience because wewere all bonding with all these
strangers around us as we'relike who's coming next, oh my
God, and I have video and youcould actually hear us like
freaking out as different peoplejoined her.
So it started with about halfwaythrough her part of the concert
she was joined on stage by theone and only Joni Mitchell.
(08:32):
Now I will say that's notsomebody that I would have ever
even like had come to my mind.
I know that she is older nowand when I have seen her on TV
or something, she's alwayssitting.
You know, her mobility may benot great, but I mean the crowd
(08:52):
literally lost our minds once werealized that's who it was and
there was a little blip whenthey sang it and I think Joni
had coughed at one point.
So they redid the whole song.
It was amazing.
We got to hear it twice.
And then I'm trying to thinktime after time, she had us all
put our you know, phone lightson, so the whole 15,000 or
whatever people at the HollywoodBowl had our lights on and
(09:14):
Cindy talked about how we're alllights but how we're all a
community, and she was singing.
And then John Legend walked outin this amazing full length
black sparkle coat and I mean,his voice is amazing.
Someone I love, I've never seena concert.
And so we all freaked out.
And then True Colors, which youknow is so important, such an
(09:36):
important song about being whoyou are and owning who you are
and showing yourself fully butalso allowing everybody to be
exactly who they are yourselffully, but also allowing
everybody to be exactly who theyare.
And then she was joined onstage during that by SZA and at
the end they held up the prideflag and and then they redid
that one again.
It was just it was such a weirdexperience because we, you know
(09:57):
, you were like a part of themaking of this story and artist
and all of these things andgetting to watch them kind of be
like that wasn't right.
We're going to do that again.
And other thing I loved is thewhole time is you actually
physically could see Cindyleading the band.
It wasn't the band played andshe followed.
It was her counting and hermoving her hand to conduct them
(10:19):
and being like no faster up.
This, you know, was such animmersive experience.
And then, of course, the songof course I was waiting for, we
were all waiting for.
Girls Just Want to have Fun washer closing song, her very last
song.
She started singing it and shesaid I have a gal who you know,
she's a little newer, you mightknow her.
(10:40):
She's going to join me.
She starts singing, she kind ofmoves to the stage.
You can tell she's changingoutfits again.
She changed her outfit, shechanged her wig.
It was crazy, it was amazing.
She even showed a little behindthe scenes at one point of her
being changed in the backgroundwhile talking to us.
So we see her putting on hercoat for whatever this new
visual image is for this lastsong.
(11:00):
And as she's doing that,someone walks out from the
middle of the stage and you knowwe're pretty far up and nobody
saw it first.
And then they show oh, it'sCher in a matching coat, with
Cindy as she's changing and thetwo of them saying girls just
want to have fun.
And at the end Cindy also saidyou know they started singing,
(11:21):
but they were singing and mixingit up and Cindy's like girls
just want to have fundamentalrights.
People just want to havefundamental rights and that's a
big campaign.
Cindy has been a part of, usingher voice, her song, her
platform to advocate for womenand it was just this energy that
there's an energy at concerts,but it was on a whole other
(11:42):
level because it really was likethis immersive experience with
them performing and everyonearound us.
And you know, this concert wasfull of Gen Xers and baby
boomers, like very fewmillennials and down, I would
say.
Some kids were with parents,but for the most part it was us,
(12:03):
it was women and gay men whoSunny was an icon for all
different versions of people.
But you know our generation,who she really spoke to and we
were a part of her experienceand her journey and her career.
To get to experience that andyou could tell a few times as
(12:24):
she started to sing or wastalking, she would get choked up
and start to cry a little bitbecause we were all at the same
time realizing we're witnessingher seeing some of these songs
for possibly the last time everlive.
And you know, sometimes theycome back and do another Fair
World tour or whatever.
We don't know what all of thatis, but it was such a powerful
(12:44):
connective experience and Ithink there was a reason I was
there in terms to remind myselfthat I very easily get down on
what I'm doing with my business,with my podcast.
Is anyone listening?
Does anyone care?
Does this matter?
And especially in business?
(13:05):
Because you know, there's somany online businesses, so many
online coaches, so many podcasts, so many podcasters, that you
feel like you're one in a sea ofmillions of the same.
And I know that's not true, butwe still get in our head.
I get in my head all the time.
And so, bringing all of this towhy I'm having this episode to
(13:26):
just kind of talk about myselfand my own journey was I needed
that reminder that there werepoints at which Cindy talked
about, where she questionedherself, where she said, well, I
did that and, like, I don'tknow what's next, I don't know
how to keep this going, andother people would remind her.
Well, there's chapters in ourlife.
Every chapter has a close and anew beginning and you never may
(13:48):
know what that is, but you haveto just do it.
You have to push yourself.
And she talked about, you know,being involved in movies like
the Goonies and writing songsthat other people, sang and
sharing her own story and whythat was important, and talking
about her upbringing in New Yorkand how her family was all
immigrants that came here andstruggled and you just you
(14:10):
forget this aspect of our.
Stories are important becausesomebody else needs to hear that
it's OK to be having a hardtime, it's OK to question
yourself, it's OK to feel likewhy am I doing this?
Does this matter?
Does anyone care?
Does my voice matter?
Does my story matter?
Does what I'm doing in mybusiness matter?
I mean, the world is sooverwhelming most days and so
(14:33):
negative and not sure whereeveryone is listening from, but
here in the United States, everyday is a roller coaster of
negativity and awfulness andsadness and you just think what
could possibly come next.
So all of that to say that,whatever you feel a calling to
(14:58):
do or say or share or speak, doit, because it may not be
immediately obvious why youneeded to or who needed to hear
it or who needed to see it, butthere is this ripple effect and
the only way we're going to getthrough anything hard, any
struggles, struggles, any uphillbattles, which I feel like
(15:20):
everything is financialdifficulty, losing loved ones,
grief, loss all of it, whetherit's the loss of a home or to a
fire, which happened here thisyear for so many people, loss of
a loved one, loss of a pet,loss of a job or a marriage, you
(15:40):
know, there's just so manythings that we're all grieving
and you can't tell by looking atsomeone what they're going
through.
But one of the reasonspodcasting is so powerful and so
connective is because it isvery intimate.
All of you out there listeningto this right now, wherever you
are, you're choosing to turn iton on your computer or put it on
(16:03):
in your headphones or yourearpods or whatever it may be,
or pull this up on YouTube.
And that's a powerful thing toknow that people choose to
listen to you and your voice andwhat you have to say.
And a lot of times inpodcasting you don't know, you
feel like, is anybody listening?
Does anybody care?
(16:27):
We can look at numbers and datathat say this many people hit
download or this many peoplelisten for five minutes or
whatever it may be, but itreally is in a vacuum in a lot
of ways.
And there are so many incrediblepeople in podcasting.
There are so many incrediblewomen that I have often talked
to myself out of talking aboutthings or doing things because
it's like, oh well, they've donethat, that's fine, they did it
so well.
(16:47):
No one wants to hear my version, but also, that's what
podcasting is, is no one?
Of course, no one else is goingto be like me, or I can't be
like them, because we're alluniquely different, from the
genetics that made us, to ourexperiences, to where we live,
and you know how we were raised.
Whatever it may be, and assomeone who, five years ago, I
(17:12):
probably wouldn't believe you ifsomeone told me I was going to
have a podcast, let alone two,let alone multiple other ideas
for podcasts in my head, I'vealways had something to say, but
I've always been a quieterperson, definitely an introvert
with respect to.
I regain my energy alone orwith one or two people, or at
(17:32):
home, but I've always hadsomething to say.
It's a matter of feeling likeknowing when is the right time
to say it, and I've held a lotback over the years, and even
over the last few years.
You know, I started this podcast, I put five episodes out and
then I'm like what am I evendoing?
I'm just putting it out.
There's no rhyme or reason.
(17:53):
This doesn't make any sense.
This is not even what I teachpeople to do.
So I paused it and I reallyjust immersed myself in the
online space and networking andtalking to women and talking to
other podcasters, and so Ire-released it and then I kind
of felt lost again and I want tocontinue to share other
people's stories here because Ithink it's important it's
(18:13):
important especially for womento share our stories and really
put ourselves out there and helpput other women out there.
But I also realized that I needto share more of me and what I
do every day, as well as my ownexperiences and things I've been
through, and I did originallystart this podcast with that in
mind.
In the very first episode ofthis podcast, I shared a lot of
(18:35):
my physical health issues andbattles that I have been through
and again, I would have never,ever thought that I would do
that.
You know I talk openly about mySjogren's syndrome, which
caused I can't think of the wordto use, but irreversible damage
to my mouth and my teeth, andso at 32, I had what was left of
(18:59):
my teeth removed and now we'redentures and have since then and
at the time that happened.
It was a very difficult processto go through, not just the
physicalness of it, which wasvery painful and hard Just at 32
to have your teeth taken outand know you're going to be
wearing dentures the rest ofyour life and not knowing what
(19:20):
you would look like and how it'sgoing to change over time and
it continues to change over time.
Very few people even knew Iwent through that, as I was
going through it because I wasvery protective of that.
It had been something.
I had a lot of shame and guiltaround the physicalness of what
my teeth looked like, eventhough genetically there was
(19:40):
nothing I could do to keep itfrom happening.
And before I knew that therewas a lot of negativity from
dentists and doctors like do youwant to brush your teeth?
It was a lot of.
I didn't realize at the timegrief and trauma had gone
through because of that.
But I guess I found inpodcasting a space where I can
say all the things I've everwanted to say and even if people
(20:02):
have a negative reaction ordon't like it, I don't always
hear it.
So it's like I can put it outthere and just know I've kind of
released it.
And so what comes up a lot forme is podcasting can be
therapeutic, it can be healing,but it's also about our legacy
and I think that I've heardlegacy come up in conversation
and in my thinking a lot andthen going to back to Cindy's
(20:24):
concert like we were a part ofher legacy, of her last concert,
of her experience, of hersharing of her music, and you
know that's really powerful.
And one of the things I'vetoyed with doing for a long time
and I know I will at some pointit's figuring out what it looks
like is.
I have a lot of my dad's storieswritten down.
(20:45):
He hand wrote a lot of his lifestories for many years before
he passed away and we're verylucky to have those and I have
electronic versions of them thatI've taken photos of all of the
pages and a lot of his storiestalk about his childhood.
You know he was born in 1923.
Yes, he was 54 when I was born,so people who do math are like
(21:11):
wait what?
And he lived through World WarII.
He was in the army, he servedin World War II for the last
several years of the war andcame home after it was over, and
so I know there's importanthistory and stories and legacy
there that I want to share insome format.
I haven't decided if it's goingto be an audio only or a video
(21:31):
version with some of his imagesthat I have, but that's an
important legacy for me to leave, because I am his legacy and I
need to carry that on for him.
I don't have kids to pass it onto, but there's a whole world
that needs to not forget whatthey went through and what the
world went through, and I thinkeven more so now that we need to
(21:53):
see it and hear it, becausewe're about to go through it
again if people don't stand upand fight against what's
happening here in the UnitedStates.
And you know, that's one image,one piece of my story that I
feel like I really do need toshare, but it's also kind of
figuring out what it is I'mdoing with all of this.
I think it's really hard rightnow because of the economy and
(22:16):
money and everything costingmore.
You know you put out offers,you start programs and good
response, no response, a littleresponse, and you're constantly
kind of fighting like is thiswhat people need?
Is this what I should be doing?
And so I really kind of maybe acall to action to all of you to
say what is it that you're herefor?
(22:37):
What are you looking for?
Is it just to be inspired byother people?
Is it specific support?
You want Specific understandingand knowledge, and all of that.
I've done a lot of differentthings since I started my
business.
Before COVID we all used that Iworked in higher education.
Covid we all used that I workedin higher education.
(22:59):
I had been in that world foralmost 20 years.
I loved school.
I was always good at school.
As a good student.
I did all the things you know.
Undergrad I was a researchassistant, a teaching assistant.
I thought I wanted to be atherapist.
I started a doctoral program inclinical psychology and I could
have done it, but I didn't knowat the time.
(23:19):
I was starting to have theearly effects of the several
autoimmune illnesses I have andI was also burned out.
I went through undergrad intomy first master's, straight into
this doctoral program, and so Iwas also burned out.
Master's straight into thisdoctoral program, and so I was
also burnt out.
But it was my first time movingaway from home and everyone I
knew to a place I didn't know,even though it was up in the Bay
(23:41):
Area, and I loved that.
About six weeks, maybe less,after I moved there and started
my doctoral program, startedschool 9-11 happened and that
was very scary to be in a placeI didn't know.
Well, I didn't really knowanyone.
I'd barely been in classes fora week or two and the whole
(24:02):
world shut not the whole world,but the United States shuts down
and a lot of the world too.
And being right outside of SanFrancisco, there were army
people, there were tanks andtrucks and the bridges were shut
down and we had cell phones butthey weren't what they are now.
You could call each other butit wasn't like immediate texting
(24:23):
and everything we have now.
And you know, we had to do thedial-up modem still and I had
cable television so I couldwatch the news.
But it was very scary to bealone in that and we were all so
scared, just in general.
And that really impacted me, Ithink, staying there and
continuing that program.
And so I went through adevolution of different jobs and
(24:46):
different things, butthroughout my career I always
went back to higher education,whether it was teaching
part-time adjunct at a communitycollege or university or having
a full-time job at a school.
That was really where I alwayswent back to because I loved
that world, and I eventuallywent back and finished a
(25:08):
doctorate in organizationalpsychology and at the time my
dissertation was on something Iwas doing at my job at one of
the colleges I worked at.
So then, once I had that, Iwent to the next college and the
next college.
But really to move up in highered you have to move schools.
So I literally commuted allover California anywhere from an
(25:31):
hour to five hours away fromhome an hour to five hours away
from home.
The last six years or so of mycareer I was living in a
different place and coming homeon the weekends to where I live
with my husband, and so that washard.
That was hard on me physically,it was hard on us financially,
it was hard on marriage, livingaway and being together.
(25:53):
Only part of the time I livedout of a suitcase.
But in a couple of yearsleading up to COVID, I had more
health issues that led to mykidney disease diagnosis.
Then my dad passed away and Ilost a job and I lost another
job.
Just because there was so muchgoing on.
There was no normalcy andconsistency.
(26:14):
So it was actually the fall of2019, and I had left my last job
and was now having ahysterectomy, which in the end
was good for me physically, butit was a huge process, both
physically and emotionally, togo through.
So I was just coming out of allof that when COVID hit.
So I was unemployed, I had justgone through some pretty big
(26:38):
physical changes and it was like, oh, what am I going to do with
the rest of my life?
And I couldn't go get a job inthe world I had been in because
the schools were all closed andthey certainly weren't hiring
even once they opened up again.
So the last five years havebeen really hard A lot of ups
and downs and uncertainty andnot knowing and not
(27:00):
understanding and oh gosh.
So originally I started mybusiness in career coaching
because obviously that's what Iknew.
I worked in schools, I knew alot about career tracks and job
changes and you know just lotsof things.
So I did that fairly easily.
I mean, it wasn't necessarilyeasy to find clients, but I knew
(27:20):
how to do resumes and Vitas andinterest letters and talk about
career choices and I'd appliedto enough different jobs in my
life, just because you have tokind of move up and move around.
That I knew that whole processbut it wasn't exciting to me, it
wasn't super like, I didn'tfeel like it was my passion in
(27:40):
any way.
And so when I took a class onpodcasting, they kept saying you
have to do it on your business.
It's like, well, I keptthinking I had to, but then I
didn't because it's oh yeah,let's talk about resumes and
form letters and asking forreferences.
Like no, that wasn't excitingor interesting to me in any way.
So that is when I started mypodcast about pets, because it
(28:01):
was like what can I talk aboutfor any given time, any moment,
without preparation?
Animals Plenty of those storiesto share.
And so that's where my firstpodcast started was to just test
out podcasting and see if itwas even something I wanted to
do or made sense for me and thatreally reignited my love of
(28:22):
animals, which has always been apart of my life.
And I got more involved inanimal rescue and I volunteered
at my shelter.
I worked at one of my sheltersfor a while, I fostered and,
even though I couldn't really dothat, because physically and
emotionally again, that world isvery hard Shout out to shelter
(28:42):
workers and rescuers becausethey see the worst of humanity
every single day and they keepgoing.
I could not.
Actually, my blood pressurewent up and we couldn't get it
to come down.
The doctor's like this is notthe right place for you.
And so I keep the story of mypet podcast going because that's
my way of giving back byadvocating and educating and
(29:02):
allowing people to come on andshare what they do to help
animals.
But I also started realizinglike gosh, so many people need
to use this medium of podcastingto help themselves, others to
really educate, and so that'swhen I decided to start doing my
whole business aroundpodcasting and helping other
people start podcasts, growpodcasts, and now a large
(29:28):
portion of what I do is helpingpeople be podcast guests and use
that to whether it's advocatingfor something or helping grow
their business or helping peoplebuy their book, whatever it may
be.
So that's really what led me towhere I am now with Podcast
your Story the podcast withPodcast your Story community,
(29:50):
which has a membership where Ido a lot of workshops and group
coaching and things.
But in the process of creatingthis, one of the things I saw
lacking I had seen it some earlyin podcasting, but then it
faded for different reasons wasspaces for women to come
together and really support eachother in podcasting.
(30:11):
And so that's when I started mynetworking community, which I
called the Women's PodcasterParty, which I just think is fun
and kind of a light way ofsaying hey, we need time to get
together and chat and get toknow each other and share our
podcast, or share what we wantto talk about on podcast, or
share how we're doing and how wecan help other people do it
(30:32):
better or more efficiently,better or more efficiently.
And so it has not been easy.
I've spent a lot of time growingthat community, a lot of time
marketing and getting people tocome and getting people to speak
and getting people to come backagain.
And I've definitely hit lowpoints where I'm like why am I
doing this?
There's no money coming out ofthis, it's just me giving my
(30:55):
time and space.
And I get a lot of positivefeedback when I'm like, where is
this going and is this reallywhat I should be doing, when
ultimately, just like everybodyelse, I need to make money, I
say all this to say it's okay.
If you feel like is this it?
Why isn't this working?
What do people really want?
What do people really need?
(31:16):
It's a hard thing of feelinglike you have to shift every
time you see something change,like, oh, I got to do that now
to get people to want to workwith me and we can't change all
the time.
But we also have to beresponsive to the world around
us changing and, for example,with my membership.
I launched it and I had a greatresponse I have 10 founding
members and then it kind of wentdown and I've only had one or
(31:39):
two new members since then.
So again, I question it.
I try all these things.
It's like nobody wants to dothis.
Is this not what people need?
So I just wanted to share that.
This constant cycle ofuncertainty and questioning and
what's happening and then asuccess, and then it goes the
other way again.
It's like it's exhausting andit's no wonder so many
businesses fail or people giveup.
(32:01):
But I mean, ultimately it'sfinding your place in the world
and feeling good about whatyou're doing and creating and
helping other people to create.
And I know that there are manyreasons why I need to keep doing
what I have been doing, whichis this podcast, which is
sharing my own story, which issharing things I've learned as a
podcaster through the last fewyears, but also creating space
(32:25):
for women to come together andmeet each other and connect and
share and grow together, andthat I just have to keep
reminding people that these arethe things I could do to help
you.
Is that something you need?
Do you want to start a podcastbut don't have a lot of money?
Hey, I'm all about let's do iton a budget because it's
possible.
I do it on a budget, trust me.
(32:46):
But not everybody needs apodcast.
But if you have a business, youshould be tapping into it.
Is it videos on YouTube maybenot a full podcast, but just
showing up live streaming orwith video?
Is it being a guest and justconsistently every month, being
on one or two podcasts a month?
I really love helping peoplefigure that out being a guest
(33:13):
and being strategic about it andbeing consistent with it, or
how to go from being a speakerto a guest or vice versa.
You know, I think speaking isvery important and I have helped
a lot of my clients do some ofthat.
So one of the things that I didin transition from career
coaching to podcast coaching ishad to make money.
(33:35):
So some people may call itproject management, but really
VA, virtual assistant, executiveassistant work and there's
absolutely nothing wrong withthat because one of the things
I'm good at is process and listsand organization.
I don't always do it well formyself, but I can do it really
well for other people.
So I have had various clientsand still do have a few where I
(34:00):
help them with kind of the backend of whether it's managing and
scheduling, social mediamarketing, managing their
calendar.
I have helped several clientswith speaking in terms of
finding good events to speak atfor them, pitching them, getting
them booked, follow up,scheduling and then the follow
(34:21):
up with the people they met whenthey spoke, that who want to
speak more but don't know theprocesses.
Maybe they just need it set upfor them and then they can
handle it.
Maybe they need it done forthem because they just don't
have time.
And I see that with podcastguesting too, is knowing the
(34:42):
right places to go and to setyourself up whether it's
something like Podmatch or otherpodcast matching services or
just knowing the right places tosearch for podcasts and what
you're looking for and the bestway to connect with people.
And I always say please don'tever ask to be on a podcast you
haven't listened to.
I get emails every day Hi, I'mso-and-so and I have these
(35:06):
bullet lists of all these greatthings I can teach your people.
I would love to be on yourpodcast and I say great, you
realize, you just said you wantto be on the story of my pet,
right?
Yeah, I don't talk aboutentrepreneurship or business
marketing or social media onthat.
I talk about animal advocacyand rescue and fostering and
shelters.
That is really annoying as apodcast host that I have to
(35:28):
spend my time reading an emailthat really should have never
come to me.
And we're not all perfect andwe change what our podcasts are
about, so it's OK, it happens.
But if you write an email thatsays I want to be on the story
of my pet, here are the fivebusiness topics I can talk about
, that tells me one you haven'tlistened to the podcast to know
that we don't talk about thosethings.
(35:49):
And two, did you even read thename of the podcast Because you
wrote it but then never saidanother thing about pets?
There's a lot of those littlethings that I want to help
people to avoid, but I also wantother podcasts that host not to
be annoyed by people sendinglike form letters, basically to
every podcast they find onGoogle or on Listen Notes.
(36:13):
All of that to say I want tohear what you guys need.
Where are you struggling in theworld of podcasting, in the
world of business?
Are you wanting to speak moreand don't know where to find the
right opportunities?
Are you wanting to be a guestbut have no idea how to get
started?
Are you wanting to go?
Well, what do you mean by beinga podcast guest?
(36:34):
Strategically, I've thoughtabout a podcast for a long time,
but it's so expensive and theone person I talked to wanted
hundreds or thousands of dollarsa month.
Like no, no, no.
There are options.
There are options for peoplethat can show you how to do it
and then you do it yourself.
There are options for peopleyou can say, hey, I just want to
show up and do the episode, youdo everything else right.
There's options for all of us.
(36:55):
I know when I see some of myfellow entrepreneurs need
support in, but that doesn'tmean that's what everybody needs
.
So, sharing my story to let youknow it's okay.
If you feel lost, you feeluncertain, you feel a little
like what am I doing?
I think we're all strugglingfor a lot of reasons right now,
but, no matter what is happeningin the world around us, we are
(37:18):
still needed to do what we'redoing, which is share our story
in podcasting, share our advice,our experience, so other people
learn from it and don't makethe same mistakes.
Other people need theirbusinesses to grow and need to
be guesting, need to be speaking, need to be doing all these
things that they may not evenknow yet that they need to be
doing.
I'm here to say it's okay.
(37:41):
If you feel any of that, I dida video recently just a short
one saying it's okay to not beokay.
No one is okay 100% of everyminute of every day.
We all struggle, we all go upand down, but ultimately, I'm
here to help you feel less ofthat, to help you feel less
(38:01):
alone, less uncertain, less.
What do I do next?
Should I even be doing this?
Is this even working?
I love assessing things andresearching things, so let me
help you do that.
Tell me what you want me totalk about here, tell me what
you want me to teach here, tellme what you want me to share
(38:24):
here, and then also tell me, ifyou're struggling, what is the
support you're looking for.
Is it a membership?
Is it one-on-one coaching?
Is it just a networkingcommunity?
Tell me what you need, because,ultimately, I want what I'm
doing to be what people need, tobe what you need.
So, if you've made it this far,thank you.
(38:45):
Thank you for spending thistime with me.
Went a little all over the place, but that's okay, there's a
reason for it.
A little all over the place,but that's okay, there's a
reason for it.
So reach out, email me, followme on social and DM me.
(39:07):
Whatever that may be for you,julie at podcastyourstorynowcom
is my email.
Send me an email.
Tell me what you thought, tellme what came to your head.
Email, tell me what you thought.
Tell me what came to your head,tell me what questions you have
, where you need support, whereyou see other people needing
support, whatever it may be.
I am here for you.
(39:27):
This podcast is for you.
So tell me what you need sothat I can help you move forward
and together we can make abetter place for all of us.
Because if we don't share ourstories, if we don't share our
struggles, if we don't helpother women and non-binary
people in the world, in business, in podcasting, no one else
(39:48):
will, and that is why I'm here,and I'm going to continue to be
here, even on the days where Ifeel like I don't know what to
do next.
I am here to figure that out,and I am here to help you figure
that out too.
So, thank you, and I'm justgoing to leave you with this
thought that I needed a reminderof and Cindy Lauper helped me
(40:13):
remember that, no matter what'shappening, no matter how hard it
is, no matter how dark it is,you matter, your life matters
and your story matters, andsomeone out there needs to hear
it.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies!
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!