December 24, 2025 • 26 mins
Episode 527 - Merry Christmas Eve, A Christmas Story for Podcasters and Seasons Greetings
A Christmas Eve Podcast Story
In the snug little town of Jinglejam Junction,
Livd Podcaster McPhee with a voice full of function.
Her booth was a bauble of blankets and foam,
Her microphone shimmering like fresh-chromed chrome.
On Christmas Eve night, with a peppermint grin,
She prepared for her episode: “Let the Yuletide Begin!”
She tapped on her soundboard - boop-bip! - just for flair,
While a garland of cables looped everywhere.
But just as she warmed up her holly-jolly flow,
Her laptop chirped warnings: “Update! Restart!” oh no.
“But not NOW!” she lamented with podcaster pain,
“For I just got my levels to sound less like a train!”
Still, she hit record anyway (as podcasters do),
For episodes must happen, tech tantrums or two.
She launched into stories with cinnamon zest,
About editing all night while refusing to rest.
She rhymed about listeners who email with glee,
Suggesting, politely, “More guests, less of thee.”
She joked that her intro still runs far too long,
And her outro has somehow become a whole song.
Then, CLATTER! CLONK! from the roof came a thunk.
“Is my neighbor again trying rooftop slam-dunk?”
But down through the vent with a grumbly sneeze,
Tumbled Santa himself, smelling faintly of cheese.
“I was checking my list on my Christmas Eve flight,
But your podcast popped up, ‘New Episode Tonight!’
I thought I could help! I’m a longtime fan too!
Though your mic needs a pop filter… maybe one, maybe two.”
He dusted off snowflakes and gave a quick wink,
Then adjusted her tripod, “It’s crooked, I think.”
He tightened her cables, he brightened her screen,
He even fixed hum that had haunted her since Spring.
Before she could speak, he whipped out a sack
And revealed a new gadget - a self-editing track!
“It auto-removes all your stutters and squeaks,
And those weird little gulps you record when you eat.”
She gasped at the gift - “It’s a podcaster’s dream!”
He nodded: “You bet - made by our North Pole Audio Team.”
Then they co-hosted together - what a magical sight,
A Christmas Eve special recorded in one flawless bite.
With a jolly “Ho-ho!” and a mic-drop for flair,
Santa zipped up the vent, disappearing in air.
And McPhee, full of wonder, hit Publish with joy,
A gift to her listeners, each girl and each boy.
Now every year since, on that festive Eve show,
There’s a faint jingle-jangle behind her audio.
Some say it’s a glitch. Some say it’s reverb.
But podcasters whisper, “It’s Santa… superb.”
And so if you’re editing late Christmas Eve,
And your software stops crashing - just suddenly leaves -
You might thank old Saint Nick for his podcaster cheer,
For he helps keep us all sounding crisp every year.
____
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
OK, we're rolling. Hey, welcome back to the Had a
podcast series. It's day with you.
Happy holidays. Wherever you are, whatever
you're celebrating, I'm thinkingof you this time of year.
I know you're busy. Today is a busy day.
Tomorrow is even busier. But I wanted to get in here and
just share my podcasting love with you over the holidays and
(00:24):
encouraging you to look back andcelebrate over this year.
You've done a lot. You've gained a lot of ground.
Your audience is growing. You're really close to starting
your podcast, right? 2026 maybe.
Maybe. Yeah.
Well, I just want to celebrate with you and thank you for being
part of this podcast, for being out there as a listener.
(00:49):
I see you in my stats. I see you people and I'm
grateful for every single listenanytime in 2025 that you pressed
play on any episode of the show.Just want to say thank you,
thank you, thank you. So I got a few things for you in
this kind of Christmas Eve themed episode of the How to
(01:10):
podcast series. I do have a Christmas story for
you. OK, Yeah, you're OK with that,
right? So in later on we'll have a
Christmas story for you with allof the the tinsel and the bells
and whistles and the ornaments and the hot chocolate and all
those things. I'm curious for you as a
(01:31):
podcaster, are you taking a break over the holidays?
Are you relaxing? Are you, are you just putting
your feet up, putting the mic away, stepping away from the
computer, having time with your families?
I hope you are sneak, sneak behind the scenes here.
I'm actually recording this on December 9th.
OK, I know I'm cheating, right? It's kind of cheating because
(01:52):
I'm not recording this on the 24th, even though this is going
out on Christmas Eve. I won't be recording on the 24th
because I'm batch recording. I'm recording this in the past
for the future. It's kind of a DeLorean Back to
the Future thing. When we can do that with
podcasting, it's so cool. So yeah, a few things.
But first, there's something I got to get off my chest and I'm
(02:18):
going to have to cue this U because this is really something
that I this time of year I really struggle with.
So I got I got OK, I got to stophere.
Let's just get this out of the way and we can move forward with
the episode. But first this.
And now it is time for Dave to share a most excellent rant on
something that he just won't stop talking about.
(02:39):
Please allow Dave to share his thoughts on this particular
subject so that his glorious wife Jennifer may have a moment
of rest from Dave going on and on and on about this topic.
Here is Dave and his rant for this week.
OK well my rant for this week isvery holiday themed.
Now I don't know if this is going to make you angry or jump
(03:00):
up for joy, so I'm going to takemy chances here.
I hope we're still friends afterthis.
Here's my rant for the holidays.OK?
Eggnog has nothing to do with podcasting.
I get this eggnog. I do not understand eggnog.
Now I know some of you put alcohol in it, which changes,
(03:21):
it'll come drastically. But eggnog on its own?
Just eggnog. What do we call eggnog in the
Campbell household? We call it pancake mix.
That's what I call it, because it's basically the elements with
maybe some flour that all you need is eggnog and pan and flour
and you got yourself a bunch of pancakes.
So I don't understand people whodrink pancake mix that there's
(03:44):
something, there's something. Who hurt you with that eggnog?
Who came up with the eggnog ideaanyway?
Like who thought this was a great idea to drink eggs and nog
whatever the heck a nog is. I don't get eggnog.
My wife loves it and when I see eggnog in my fridge in November,
(04:06):
I do a serious, I'm telling you,a serious eye roll.
I give it all of the roll when Isee that in NN in my fridge.
Eggnog pancake mix. Now, I don't know if you're with
me or against me on this. I will fight you.
(04:28):
I will. I will.
I'll make a trip and come and fight you over this because
eggnog is, for me, disgusting. I don't get it.
My family loves it and I am. I am estranged from my family
every holiday season because of one simple drink, which is
(04:50):
really just gross eggnog. Now come for me.
OK, You eggnog lovers out there,come for me.
OK? I loved.
I'd love to hear your rebuttal. I will challenge you.
I will. I will pit myself against you
and all of my non egg loving friends.
Eggnog loving friends. We're going to we'll, we'll,
(05:13):
we'll convince you that this is the worst possible drink ever.
OK? I have that out of my system.
Thank you for letting me vent again.
I'm probably made some enemies, but I just know, I want you to
know I still, I still respect you as a person.
I don't respect your choices andI don't respect your taste buds
(05:34):
because eggnog is just pancake mix.
And now I'm done. So that now that I got my Jingle
Bells all rung out there, now I can move forward.
So thank you for that. Yeah, anyways, I will move on.
I'm good. I'm fine.
Are you OK? Are you still OK?
Are we still friends? OK, again, I did not mean to
(05:57):
harm any eggs in that conversation or that rent.
But I just had to let that go because my family, they don't
understand me and I'm hoping youdo.
I'm hoping someone understands me.
So if you are like me, then we can be friends.
And even if you love eggnog, I will lower my standards and we
(06:17):
can still be friends. So it is Christmas Eve at the
time you're listening to this and I'm thankful for you.
Normally I don't do any real podcast themed around a holiday
so that my podcasts are Evergreen so that you can listen
to this in August and it doesn'tmake you go Christmas.
But hey, I I wanted to do this because it's the 24th.
(06:40):
It just falls and the regular release of the episode.
So I have to, I can't ignore it's Christmas Eve, so I'm I'm
curious what your podcasting is like over the holidays.
One thing I would suggest for you is to consider the fact that
no matter where you live, peoplelive in other places in the
(07:01):
world. I know, I know.
I was shocked when I got the thee-mail too.
I was at a online podcasting conference thing and a notable
person from a podcast hosting site was presenting and, and was
saying that, you know, it's the best time of the time of the
(07:22):
week to release an episode was on this day at this time for
this, For these reasons. And and then they also got a
little bit into the topic of holiday podcast releases.
And I put up my hand and just went, well, that's fine.
If you live in that city, state,time zone, I would agree with
(07:42):
your thoughts. But the fact that we're a global
podcast, there's actually an audience for us around the
world. And our Christmas Eve is
somebody's regular work day. They don't celebrate Christmas.
I know, I know. I thought everybody did.
You thought so too, right? So we're not all American, we're
(08:03):
not all Canadian. We're not all from your city in
your time zone with your weatherand your holidays and your
beliefs and your background. No, no, no, no.
There's this big thing called the world.
It's amazing. And people celebrate different
things at different times. So what you celebrate is someone
(08:27):
else's regular every day. So when we talk about taking a
break over the holidays, I wonder if we're doing our
service to our audience by taking a big break or are we
just, we just need a break now. There's no problem taking
breaks. It's a podcast.
(08:48):
You could do whatever you want. But I would suggest to you that
recording in advance if you havethe ability to do so.
Again, I'm recording this on December 9th for the 24th.
If you can record in advance, ifyour schedule allows, you don't
know, don't stress about this, But if you can record in
advance, it gives you the opportunity to create content
(09:12):
that will be available over the holidays, your holidays, not
theirs, over your holidays to give you a break to go play with
the kiddos and drink hot chocolate and listen to other
podcasts. Whatever you do on your
holidays, do that. But recording in advance.
Patch recording gives you the freedom to not take a break from
(09:33):
the audience that does not celebrate what you celebrate.
I know. I know.
There are other people out therewho don't believe what you
believed. Did you know that?
Yeah, there are other people that Christmas means zero to
them. Nothing.
Nothing at all. It's not even a holiday.
They don't even take the day off.
So when you look at your stats and you look at your global
(09:55):
audience, are you willing to take a break from them, Those
who do not celebrate your holiday?
And to them, they're like, wheredid you go?
Oh yeah, you're an American and this is your Thanksgiving.
Oh yeah, you're a Canadian and this is your Christmas.
Oh, yeah, right. Your holidays doesn't translate
(10:16):
around the globe to everyone. So my encouragement for you, if
you're not going to be able to do it this year, 'cause it is
already the 24th when you're listening.
If you can't do it this year, then next year you can record
your Christmas edition of your podcast in June and make it go
live on the 25th. There's nothing stopping you.
(10:39):
You can record whatever you want, whenever you want and date
it for the future. And that's what I do for my
shows. So living the next chapter, my
author podcast, it's already preloaded 3 episodes a week all the
way to May and it's December 9th.
That's how far out Three episodes a week all the way to
end into the beginning of May. Right now, I'm already
(11:03):
preloaded. I'm done.
I can walk away from that show for months and you'd have no
idea 'cause every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, like this
show, there's a new episode. So I'm always recording in
advance and giving myself my ownbandwidth back.
And that's because I'm an empty nester.
I have a quiet house during the day for the most part and I can
(11:24):
knock out episodes one after another and I work full time so
don't don't think this is all I do.
You know, I have a full time jobas well.
So I'm working this around my days off.
So today alone I've I've recorded probably 5 or 6
episodes on December 9th betweenall my different shows,
including right now leverage batch recording.
(11:46):
It's going to give you so much freedom and I am not a big lover
of podcasting in seasons. For me, for you, it might work
great. For me, I don't want to take a
break for my audience. I've got too much in my brain to
say to take a break. I don't know what I do with
myself. I really don't.
So I just keep cranking out episodes because I love talking
(12:07):
with you, I love spending time with you and I love this topic
of podcasting. And anytime I can come to the
mic, it's not work, it's joy. It's fun.
I anticipate it, I look forward to it.
I just love being a podcaster, so I love getting on the mic.
So do whatever works for you. But my encouragement for you is
(12:29):
on these holidays, Thanksgiving,Christmas, New Year's, your
birthday, your dog's birthday, whatever the holiday is, don't
take a break from your audience record in advance.
Make it go live during the holidays and spend time with
your family without excuse because you were planned ahead.
(12:51):
The biggest part of podcasting is planning ahead.
Having a calendar, having a goal, keeping track, and always
thinking about what's coming next for your sake of your
audience. Always be building.
Always be creating. Because when you're in that
loop, that's when more creativity find you.
That's where more ideas find you.
(13:13):
That's where inspiration will find you because you're in the
loop. When you step out of the loop
for a few weeks for holidays andtry to get back in, you know
it's hard. It's hard to get back into this
again. Turn on all the gear and what
was I doing right? Stay in the loop.
Record in advance, batch record where you can do what you can.
(13:34):
Your audience is listening. Your audience is waiting for you
and don't give them an excuse togo elsewhere, even on your
holidays. That's my encouragement for you.
Take it for what it is, not putting you down, but I just
want to encourage you that your audience does not always
celebrate what you celebrate when you celebrate it.
And other people are looking foryou to be that companion to
(13:55):
them. Even when you're on holidays,
keep them in mind. I want to say thanks to
everybody for being here for theyear.
If you're new to the show, a fewlittle housekeeping things for
you. We do have a meet up group
that's been going for over 2 years, well over 2 years now.
(14:15):
We meet every Tuesday and Saturday, even through the
holidays. People tap tap on the mic here.
We meet through the holidays. So if you want a break from
Uncle Ralph in the corner talking about politics, then
come join us on our meet up group because we would love to
have you there. A link is always on the How to
podcast.ca website. Come and join us completely
(14:37):
free. We don't sell anything.
We just make connections and help you find your next favorite
podcast and podcaster. Get to meet podcasters just like
you at the same level or maybe they've been doing it longer
than you, but you get to meet some other people.
Never ever podcast alone. Come and join us on our meet ups
and as well we are working on a a survey for the How to Podcast
(15:01):
series. It is on our website.
It's a survey right there and I'd love for you to go through
and answer that. Maybe if you have a few moments
through the holidays and you're bored and you're up to your ears
in wrapping paper, that all has to go somewhere.
Take a break, grab a coffee, maybe with something in it, I
don't know, and go do our survey.
(15:22):
Love to hear your thoughts aboutthis show and how we can make it
better. Having your input is amazing and
I'd love to do more for you and serve you better in 2026.
And you can steal my survey if you want.
If you need help setting up yoursurvey, reach out to me.
Love to help you with that as well.
So it is now time for our Christmas story and I hope that
(15:45):
you will join me for a festive Christmas story around a
podcaster and Santa during the holidays.
This is for you. There'll be some sound effects
and some fun music. And if you want more of this
kind of style of storytelling, head over to the Daily Santa
(16:09):
Podcast. It's my podcast that ends on the
25th, so tomorrow. But there's 25 episodes for
kids. So if your kids are bored and
they want an audio podcast, no screen time required, no video,
just audio so your kids can playwith their new toys and listen,
listen, yes, not watch, listen to a podcast.
(16:31):
Then the daily Santa Podcast is there for you to entertain your
kids and give you a break while they play with their toys
dailysantapodcast.com. But this is kind of the feel of
that show. But this is a this is a story
for you as a fellow podcaster. I hope you enjoy it and you get
a little bit of our Christmas magic here as well.
So you ready? Here we go.
(16:54):
In the snug little town of Jingle Jam Junction lived
podcaster McPhee with a voice full of function.
Her booth was a bauble of blankets and foam, her
microphone shimmering like freshchromed Chrome on Christmas Eve
night. With a peppermint grin, she
(17:15):
prepared for her episode, Let the Yuletide Begin.
She tapped on her soundboard. Boop bip, just for flare, while
a Garland of cake tables looped everywhere.
But just as she warmed up her holly jolly flow, her laptop
chirped warnings. Update, restart.
Oh no. But not now, she lamented with
(17:38):
podcaster pain. For I just got my levels to
sound less like a train. Still, she hit record anyway, as
podcasters do for episodes Must happen tech tantrums or two.
She launched into stories with cinnamon zest about editing all
night while refusing to rest. She rhymed about listeners who
(18:02):
e-mail with Glee, suggesting politely more guests, less of
thee. She joked that her intro still
runs far too long and her outro has somehow become a whole song.
Then clatter clonk. From the roof came a thunk.
He's my neighbor again. Trying rooftop slam dunk, but
(18:25):
down through the vent with a grumbly sneeze tumbled Santa
himself, smelling faintly of cheese.
I was checking my list on my Christmas Eve flight, but your
podcast popped up. New episode tonight, I thought I
could help. I'm a long time fan too though.
Your mic needs a pop filter. Maybe one, maybe two.
(18:47):
He dusted off snowflakes and gave a quick wink, then adjusted
her tripod. It's crooked, I think.
He tightened her cables. He brightened her screen.
He even fixed hum that had haunted her since spring.
Before she could speak, he whipped out a sack and revealed
a new gadget. A self editing track.
(19:09):
Auto removes all your stutters and squeaks and those weird
little gulps you record when youeat.
She gasped at the gift. It's a podcaster's dream.
He nodded. You bet.
Made by our North Pole audio team.
Then they Co hosted together. What a magical sight.
(19:30):
A Christmas Eve special recordedin one flawless bite.
With a jolly ho ho and a mic drop for flair.
Santa zipped up the vent, disappearing in air and McPhee
full of wonder hit published with joy.
A gift to her listeners. Each girl and each boy, now
(19:51):
every years since on that festive eve show, there's a
faint Jingle jangle behind her audio.
Some say it's a glitch, some sayit's reverb.
But podcasters whisper it's Santa.
Superb. And so if you're editing late
Christmas Eve and your software stops crashing just suddenly
(20:13):
leaves, you might thank Old Saint Nick for his podcast, A
Cheer, for he helps keep us all sound.
Every year. So from my family here in
Ontario, Canada, as the host of the how to podcast series, I
just want to say thank you for being part of this podcast, for
(20:34):
being part of this community. Thank you for the speak pipe
messages. Thank you for the Buy me a
coffee sponsorships that you've done throughout the year
supporting and refilling my coffee cup guys are outstanding.
To our meet up community, thank you for being you.
Thank you for being a safe placefor new people to come and to
(20:57):
experience what it's like to be in community with other
podcasters. You make that meet up group sing
you are amazing and without you it would not be the same.
To all of the past guest Co hosts here on how to podcast
series, thank you for giving up of your time.
Thank you for showing up and providing value not just to me
(21:21):
as the host, but to everyone that's listened to your episode.
Thank you for contributing back,for giving back to people in the
way you have. It is outstanding to have the
highest level and quality guestsever as guest Co host on the
show and I am thrilled to make new connections with podcasters.
(21:45):
I'm thrilled to invite you to beon the show in 2026 and to share
share about your journey as a podcast, talk about your show,
what you're learning and and getin front of this audience so
they can find out more about Youcan reach me anytime.
I had a podcast.ca. I'd love to have you on the
show. And also for you who has gone to
(22:09):
my website and clicked on the calendar link, typed in listener
in the comments and we've met and we've talked through
podcasting together. We've had a virtual coffee in
2025. Thank you for responding.
Thank you for taking a chance onsome guy in Canada and thinking,
is this guy real? Is this guy really going to be
(22:29):
the same guy that I'm listening to right now?
Yeah, it's me and I, I'm just grateful that you said yes.
So thank you for being part of the podcast.
Thank you for being part of the community.
And I just want to wish you and your family, whatever you're
celebrating this year, at this time of year, I wish you well.
(22:50):
I wish you great time with your family.
A rest. If you're off work, if you're
working, find some time to rest when you can.
I just want to wish you the best.
And I wish that your family has a safe holiday.
If you're traveling, please be safe on the roads or flying.
We need you safe. We need you well.
(23:11):
Take care of yourself. Get some sleep, get some rest
and I hope the best present you have in 2026 is a podcast where
people reach out to you, supportyou the way you have done for
me. I'm wishing that for you.
It is the best feeling to see ane-mail come in a voice message,
come in a buy me a coffee, come in to to the podcast.
(23:36):
I want that for you in 2026 and you and I can make that happen.
So if you need help with your show, reach out to me.
I'm available throughout the holidays if you have some
downtime, always looking to talkto people like you.
But if not, 2026 is right aroundthe corner.
And if you haven't started your podcast yet, this is your year.
(23:59):
I am here with you. I will stand with you shoulder
to shoulder. We will make this happen and you
will be proud, Proud of your newpodcast and we're going to do
great things together. Great, thanks.
So thank you again for being part of the show.
Happy holidays. All the best to you.
May your gifts be great. May your connection with your
(24:22):
family be better and may all of your podcasts be bright.
From everyone at the had a podcast series, which is me and
my cat Penny, my dog Django and my dog Bert.
And thank you for being here forthe show.
Happy holidays, We'll see you onthe next episode.
(24:43):
Take care. Thank you so much for listening
to the entirety of the episode, including this part.
You know what, A lot of people leave right now, so we'll let
them leave. Give them a second to go.
OK? Now it's just you and me.
We have our meetups that we do for the How to Podcast series.
We do them during the week, and we also do them on Saturdays.
(25:05):
So twice a week you have the opportunity to meet other
podcasters just like you. Some people have just started,
some people haven't even released an episode yet.
Some have been doing it forever.And we get together and talk
podcasting. We want to help you in community
to continue with your show, to start your show, to grow your
show. So come and meet listeners of
(25:26):
this show in one space on meetup.com.
Again, through How to podcast.ca, you'll see the
links. It's completely free to join.
Come whenever you have an opportunity to come.
There's no commitment. You don't have to sign any
waivers. You can just come join us.
Come join the conversation. We'd love to have you there
(25:48):
because the only thing that's going to make these meetups
better is you being there. So I'm hoping you will say yes
and you'll say, Dave, I'm tired of podcasting by myself.
I wish there were people I couldconnect with that are fellow
podcasters and share my frustrations with guests who
ghost me. And my editing software is
(26:09):
crapping out on me and I'm just having this hard time.
I'm having a hard time coming upwith podcasts, episodes and
titles and all the things and social media.
Oh man, man, man, man, man. Wouldn't it be great to get in a
room with other podcasters and share best practices and learn?
Three of our four Saturdays every month are themed to have a
(26:31):
topic, but that lasts Saturday of every month.
It's open question and answer. Ask anything.
Come meet a podcaster. Come enjoy the podcasting
community throughout a podcast.ca.
Come to our meetups. Can't wait to see you there.
OK, we're rolling. Hey, welcome back to the Had a
podcast series. It's day with you.
Happy holidays. Wherever you are, whatever
you're celebrating, I'm thinkingof you this time of year.
I know you're busy. Today is a busy day.
Tomorrow is even busier. But I wanted to get in here and
just share my podcasting love with you over the holidays and
(00:24):
encouraging you to look back andcelebrate over this year.
You've done a lot. You've gained a lot of ground.
Your audience is growing. You're really close to starting
your podcast, right? 2026 maybe.
Maybe. Yeah.
Well, I just want to celebrate with you and thank you for being
part of this podcast, for being out there as a listener.
(00:49):
I see you in my stats. I see you people and I'm
grateful for every single listenanytime in 2025 that you pressed
play on any episode of the show.Just want to say thank you,
thank you, thank you. So I got a few things for you in
this kind of Christmas Eve themed episode of the How to
(01:10):
podcast series. I do have a Christmas story for
you. OK, Yeah, you're OK with that,
right? So in later on we'll have a
Christmas story for you with allof the the tinsel and the bells
and whistles and the ornaments and the hot chocolate and all
those things. I'm curious for you as a
(01:31):
podcaster, are you taking a break over the holidays?
Are you relaxing? Are you, are you just putting
your feet up, putting the mic away, stepping away from the
computer, having time with your families?
I hope you are sneak, sneak behind the scenes here.
I'm actually recording this on December 9th.
OK, I know I'm cheating, right? It's kind of cheating because
(01:52):
I'm not recording this on the 24th, even though this is going
out on Christmas Eve. I won't be recording on the 24th
because I'm batch recording. I'm recording this in the past
for the future. It's kind of a DeLorean Back to
the Future thing. When we can do that with
podcasting, it's so cool. So yeah, a few things.
But first, there's something I got to get off my chest and I'm
(02:18):
going to have to cue this U because this is really something
that I this time of year I really struggle with.
So I got I got OK, I got to stophere.
Let's just get this out of the way and we can move forward with
the episode. But first this.
And now it is time for Dave to share a most excellent rant on
something that he just won't stop talking about.
(02:39):
Please allow Dave to share his thoughts on this particular
subject so that his glorious wife Jennifer may have a moment
of rest from Dave going on and on and on about this topic.
Here is Dave and his rant for this week.
OK well my rant for this week isvery holiday themed.
Now I don't know if this is going to make you angry or jump
(03:00):
up for joy, so I'm going to takemy chances here.
I hope we're still friends afterthis.
Here's my rant for the holidays.OK?
Eggnog has nothing to do with podcasting.
I get this eggnog. I do not understand eggnog.
Now I know some of you put alcohol in it, which changes,
(03:21):
it'll come drastically. But eggnog on its own?
Just eggnog. What do we call eggnog in the
Campbell household? We call it pancake mix.
That's what I call it, because it's basically the elements with
maybe some flour that all you need is eggnog and pan and flour
and you got yourself a bunch of pancakes.
So I don't understand people whodrink pancake mix that there's
(03:44):
something, there's something. Who hurt you with that eggnog?
Who came up with the eggnog ideaanyway?
Like who thought this was a great idea to drink eggs and nog
whatever the heck a nog is. I don't get eggnog.
My wife loves it and when I see eggnog in my fridge in November,
(04:06):
I do a serious, I'm telling you,a serious eye roll.
I give it all of the roll when Isee that in NN in my fridge.
Eggnog pancake mix. Now, I don't know if you're with
me or against me on this. I will fight you.
(04:28):
I will. I will.
I'll make a trip and come and fight you over this because
eggnog is, for me, disgusting. I don't get it.
My family loves it and I am. I am estranged from my family
every holiday season because of one simple drink, which is
(04:50):
really just gross eggnog. Now come for me.
OK, You eggnog lovers out there,come for me.
OK? I loved.
I'd love to hear your rebuttal. I will challenge you.
I will. I will pit myself against you
and all of my non egg loving friends.
Eggnog loving friends. We're going to we'll, we'll,
(05:13):
we'll convince you that this is the worst possible drink ever.
OK? I have that out of my system.
Thank you for letting me vent again.
I'm probably made some enemies, but I just know, I want you to
know I still, I still respect you as a person.
I don't respect your choices andI don't respect your taste buds
(05:34):
because eggnog is just pancake mix.
And now I'm done. So that now that I got my Jingle
Bells all rung out there, now I can move forward.
So thank you for that. Yeah, anyways, I will move on.
I'm good. I'm fine.
Are you OK? Are you still OK?
Are we still friends? OK, again, I did not mean to
(05:57):
harm any eggs in that conversation or that rent.
But I just had to let that go because my family, they don't
understand me and I'm hoping youdo.
I'm hoping someone understands me.
So if you are like me, then we can be friends.
And even if you love eggnog, I will lower my standards and we
(06:17):
can still be friends. So it is Christmas Eve at the
time you're listening to this and I'm thankful for you.
Normally I don't do any real podcast themed around a holiday
so that my podcasts are Evergreen so that you can listen
to this in August and it doesn'tmake you go Christmas.
But hey, I I wanted to do this because it's the 24th.
(06:40):
It just falls and the regular release of the episode.
So I have to, I can't ignore it's Christmas Eve, so I'm I'm
curious what your podcasting is like over the holidays.
One thing I would suggest for you is to consider the fact that
no matter where you live, peoplelive in other places in the
(07:01):
world. I know, I know.
I was shocked when I got the thee-mail too.
I was at a online podcasting conference thing and a notable
person from a podcast hosting site was presenting and, and was
saying that, you know, it's the best time of the time of the
(07:22):
week to release an episode was on this day at this time for
this, For these reasons. And and then they also got a
little bit into the topic of holiday podcast releases.
And I put up my hand and just went, well, that's fine.
If you live in that city, state,time zone, I would agree with
(07:42):
your thoughts. But the fact that we're a global
podcast, there's actually an audience for us around the
world. And our Christmas Eve is
somebody's regular work day. They don't celebrate Christmas.
I know, I know. I thought everybody did.
You thought so too, right? So we're not all American, we're
(08:03):
not all Canadian. We're not all from your city in
your time zone with your weatherand your holidays and your
beliefs and your background. No, no, no, no.
There's this big thing called the world.
It's amazing. And people celebrate different
things at different times. So what you celebrate is someone
(08:27):
else's regular every day. So when we talk about taking a
break over the holidays, I wonder if we're doing our
service to our audience by taking a big break or are we
just, we just need a break now. There's no problem taking
breaks. It's a podcast.
(08:48):
You could do whatever you want. But I would suggest to you that
recording in advance if you havethe ability to do so.
Again, I'm recording this on December 9th for the 24th.
If you can record in advance, ifyour schedule allows, you don't
know, don't stress about this, But if you can record in
advance, it gives you the opportunity to create content
(09:12):
that will be available over the holidays, your holidays, not
theirs, over your holidays to give you a break to go play with
the kiddos and drink hot chocolate and listen to other
podcasts. Whatever you do on your
holidays, do that. But recording in advance.
Patch recording gives you the freedom to not take a break from
(09:33):
the audience that does not celebrate what you celebrate.
I know. I know.
There are other people out therewho don't believe what you
believed. Did you know that?
Yeah, there are other people that Christmas means zero to
them. Nothing.
Nothing at all. It's not even a holiday.
They don't even take the day off.
So when you look at your stats and you look at your global
(09:55):
audience, are you willing to take a break from them, Those
who do not celebrate your holiday?
And to them, they're like, wheredid you go?
Oh yeah, you're an American and this is your Thanksgiving.
Oh yeah, you're a Canadian and this is your Christmas.
Oh, yeah, right. Your holidays doesn't translate
(10:16):
around the globe to everyone. So my encouragement for you, if
you're not going to be able to do it this year, 'cause it is
already the 24th when you're listening.
If you can't do it this year, then next year you can record
your Christmas edition of your podcast in June and make it go
live on the 25th. There's nothing stopping you.
(10:39):
You can record whatever you want, whenever you want and date
it for the future. And that's what I do for my
shows. So living the next chapter, my
author podcast, it's already preloaded 3 episodes a week all the
way to May and it's December 9th.
That's how far out Three episodes a week all the way to
end into the beginning of May. Right now, I'm already
(11:03):
preloaded. I'm done.
I can walk away from that show for months and you'd have no
idea 'cause every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, like this
show, there's a new episode. So I'm always recording in
advance and giving myself my ownbandwidth back.
And that's because I'm an empty nester.
I have a quiet house during the day for the most part and I can
(11:24):
knock out episodes one after another and I work full time so
don't don't think this is all I do.
You know, I have a full time jobas well.
So I'm working this around my days off.
So today alone I've I've recorded probably 5 or 6
episodes on December 9th betweenall my different shows,
including right now leverage batch recording.
(11:46):
It's going to give you so much freedom and I am not a big lover
of podcasting in seasons. For me, for you, it might work
great. For me, I don't want to take a
break for my audience. I've got too much in my brain to
say to take a break. I don't know what I do with
myself. I really don't.
So I just keep cranking out episodes because I love talking
(12:07):
with you, I love spending time with you and I love this topic
of podcasting. And anytime I can come to the
mic, it's not work, it's joy. It's fun.
I anticipate it, I look forward to it.
I just love being a podcaster, so I love getting on the mic.
So do whatever works for you. But my encouragement for you is
(12:29):
on these holidays, Thanksgiving,Christmas, New Year's, your
birthday, your dog's birthday, whatever the holiday is, don't
take a break from your audience record in advance.
Make it go live during the holidays and spend time with
your family without excuse because you were planned ahead.
(12:51):
The biggest part of podcasting is planning ahead.
Having a calendar, having a goal, keeping track, and always
thinking about what's coming next for your sake of your
audience. Always be building.
Always be creating. Because when you're in that
loop, that's when more creativity find you.
That's where more ideas find you.
(13:13):
That's where inspiration will find you because you're in the
loop. When you step out of the loop
for a few weeks for holidays andtry to get back in, you know
it's hard. It's hard to get back into this
again. Turn on all the gear and what
was I doing right? Stay in the loop.
Record in advance, batch record where you can do what you can.
(13:34):
Your audience is listening. Your audience is waiting for you
and don't give them an excuse togo elsewhere, even on your
holidays. That's my encouragement for you.
Take it for what it is, not putting you down, but I just
want to encourage you that your audience does not always
celebrate what you celebrate when you celebrate it.
And other people are looking foryou to be that companion to
(13:55):
them. Even when you're on holidays,
keep them in mind. I want to say thanks to
everybody for being here for theyear.
If you're new to the show, a fewlittle housekeeping things for
you. We do have a meet up group
that's been going for over 2 years, well over 2 years now.
(14:15):
We meet every Tuesday and Saturday, even through the
holidays. People tap tap on the mic here.
We meet through the holidays. So if you want a break from
Uncle Ralph in the corner talking about politics, then
come join us on our meet up group because we would love to
have you there. A link is always on the How to
podcast.ca website. Come and join us completely
(14:37):
free. We don't sell anything.
We just make connections and help you find your next favorite
podcast and podcaster. Get to meet podcasters just like
you at the same level or maybe they've been doing it longer
than you, but you get to meet some other people.
Never ever podcast alone. Come and join us on our meet ups
and as well we are working on a a survey for the How to Podcast
(15:01):
series. It is on our website.
It's a survey right there and I'd love for you to go through
and answer that. Maybe if you have a few moments
through the holidays and you're bored and you're up to your ears
in wrapping paper, that all has to go somewhere.
Take a break, grab a coffee, maybe with something in it, I
don't know, and go do our survey.
(15:22):
Love to hear your thoughts aboutthis show and how we can make it
better. Having your input is amazing and
I'd love to do more for you and serve you better in 2026.
And you can steal my survey if you want.
If you need help setting up yoursurvey, reach out to me.
Love to help you with that as well.
So it is now time for our Christmas story and I hope that
(15:45):
you will join me for a festive Christmas story around a
podcaster and Santa during the holidays.
This is for you. There'll be some sound effects
and some fun music. And if you want more of this
kind of style of storytelling, head over to the Daily Santa
(16:09):
Podcast. It's my podcast that ends on the
25th, so tomorrow. But there's 25 episodes for
kids. So if your kids are bored and
they want an audio podcast, no screen time required, no video,
just audio so your kids can playwith their new toys and listen,
listen, yes, not watch, listen to a podcast.
(16:31):
Then the daily Santa Podcast is there for you to entertain your
kids and give you a break while they play with their toys
dailysantapodcast.com. But this is kind of the feel of
that show. But this is a this is a story
for you as a fellow podcaster. I hope you enjoy it and you get
a little bit of our Christmas magic here as well.
So you ready? Here we go.
(16:54):
In the snug little town of Jingle Jam Junction lived
podcaster McPhee with a voice full of function.
Her booth was a bauble of blankets and foam, her
microphone shimmering like freshchromed Chrome on Christmas Eve
night. With a peppermint grin, she
(17:15):
prepared for her episode, Let the Yuletide Begin.
She tapped on her soundboard. Boop bip, just for flare, while
a Garland of cake tables looped everywhere.
But just as she warmed up her holly jolly flow, her laptop
chirped warnings. Update, restart.
Oh no. But not now, she lamented with
(17:38):
podcaster pain. For I just got my levels to
sound less like a train. Still, she hit record anyway, as
podcasters do for episodes Must happen tech tantrums or two.
She launched into stories with cinnamon zest about editing all
night while refusing to rest. She rhymed about listeners who
(18:02):
e-mail with Glee, suggesting politely more guests, less of
thee. She joked that her intro still
runs far too long and her outro has somehow become a whole song.
Then clatter clonk. From the roof came a thunk.
He's my neighbor again. Trying rooftop slam dunk, but
(18:25):
down through the vent with a grumbly sneeze tumbled Santa
himself, smelling faintly of cheese.
I was checking my list on my Christmas Eve flight, but your
podcast popped up. New episode tonight, I thought I
could help. I'm a long time fan too though.
Your mic needs a pop filter. Maybe one, maybe two.
(18:47):
He dusted off snowflakes and gave a quick wink, then adjusted
her tripod. It's crooked, I think.
He tightened her cables. He brightened her screen.
He even fixed hum that had haunted her since spring.
Before she could speak, he whipped out a sack and revealed
a new gadget. A self editing track.
(19:09):
Auto removes all your stutters and squeaks and those weird
little gulps you record when youeat.
She gasped at the gift. It's a podcaster's dream.
He nodded. You bet.
Made by our North Pole audio team.
Then they Co hosted together. What a magical sight.
(19:30):
A Christmas Eve special recordedin one flawless bite.
With a jolly ho ho and a mic drop for flair.
Santa zipped up the vent, disappearing in air and McPhee
full of wonder hit published with joy.
A gift to her listeners. Each girl and each boy, now
(19:51):
every years since on that festive eve show, there's a
faint Jingle jangle behind her audio.
Some say it's a glitch, some sayit's reverb.
But podcasters whisper it's Santa.
Superb. And so if you're editing late
Christmas Eve and your software stops crashing just suddenly
(20:13):
leaves, you might thank Old Saint Nick for his podcast, A
Cheer, for he helps keep us all sound.
Every year. So from my family here in
Ontario, Canada, as the host of the how to podcast series, I
just want to say thank you for being part of this podcast, for
(20:34):
being part of this community. Thank you for the speak pipe
messages. Thank you for the Buy me a
coffee sponsorships that you've done throughout the year
supporting and refilling my coffee cup guys are outstanding.
To our meet up community, thank you for being you.
Thank you for being a safe placefor new people to come and to
(20:57):
experience what it's like to be in community with other
podcasters. You make that meet up group sing
you are amazing and without you it would not be the same.
To all of the past guest Co hosts here on how to podcast
series, thank you for giving up of your time.
Thank you for showing up and providing value not just to me
(21:21):
as the host, but to everyone that's listened to your episode.
Thank you for contributing back,for giving back to people in the
way you have. It is outstanding to have the
highest level and quality guestsever as guest Co host on the
show and I am thrilled to make new connections with podcasters.
(21:45):
I'm thrilled to invite you to beon the show in 2026 and to share
share about your journey as a podcast, talk about your show,
what you're learning and and getin front of this audience so
they can find out more about Youcan reach me anytime.
I had a podcast.ca. I'd love to have you on the
show. And also for you who has gone to
(22:09):
my website and clicked on the calendar link, typed in listener
in the comments and we've met and we've talked through
podcasting together. We've had a virtual coffee in
2025. Thank you for responding.
Thank you for taking a chance onsome guy in Canada and thinking,
is this guy real? Is this guy really going to be
(22:29):
the same guy that I'm listening to right now?
Yeah, it's me and I, I'm just grateful that you said yes.
So thank you for being part of the podcast.
Thank you for being part of the community.
And I just want to wish you and your family, whatever you're
celebrating this year, at this time of year, I wish you well.
(22:50):
I wish you great time with your family.
A rest. If you're off work, if you're
working, find some time to rest when you can.
I just want to wish you the best.
And I wish that your family has a safe holiday.
If you're traveling, please be safe on the roads or flying.
We need you safe. We need you well.
(23:11):
Take care of yourself. Get some sleep, get some rest
and I hope the best present you have in 2026 is a podcast where
people reach out to you, supportyou the way you have done for
me. I'm wishing that for you.
It is the best feeling to see ane-mail come in a voice message,
come in a buy me a coffee, come in to to the podcast.
(23:36):
I want that for you in 2026 and you and I can make that happen.
So if you need help with your show, reach out to me.
I'm available throughout the holidays if you have some
downtime, always looking to talkto people like you.
But if not, 2026 is right aroundthe corner.
And if you haven't started your podcast yet, this is your year.
(23:59):
I am here with you. I will stand with you shoulder
to shoulder. We will make this happen and you
will be proud, Proud of your newpodcast and we're going to do
great things together. Great, thanks.
So thank you again for being part of the show.
Happy holidays. All the best to you.
May your gifts be great. May your connection with your
(24:22):
family be better and may all of your podcasts be bright.
From everyone at the had a podcast series, which is me and
my cat Penny, my dog Django and my dog Bert.
And thank you for being here forthe show.
Happy holidays, We'll see you onthe next episode.
(24:43):
Take care. Thank you so much for listening
to the entirety of the episode, including this part.
You know what, A lot of people leave right now, so we'll let
them leave. Give them a second to go.
OK? Now it's just you and me.
We have our meetups that we do for the How to Podcast series.
We do them during the week, and we also do them on Saturdays.
(25:05):
So twice a week you have the opportunity to meet other
podcasters just like you. Some people have just started,
some people haven't even released an episode yet.
Some have been doing it forever.And we get together and talk
podcasting. We want to help you in community
to continue with your show, to start your show, to grow your
show. So come and meet listeners of
(25:26):
this show in one space on meetup.com.
Again, through How to podcast.ca, you'll see the
links. It's completely free to join.
Come whenever you have an opportunity to come.
There's no commitment. You don't have to sign any
waivers. You can just come join us.
Come join the conversation. We'd love to have you there
(25:48):
because the only thing that's going to make these meetups
better is you being there. So I'm hoping you will say yes
and you'll say, Dave, I'm tired of podcasting by myself.
I wish there were people I couldconnect with that are fellow
podcasters and share my frustrations with guests who
ghost me. And my editing software is
(26:09):
crapping out on me and I'm just having this hard time.
I'm having a hard time coming upwith podcasts, episodes and
titles and all the things and social media.
Oh man, man, man, man, man. Wouldn't it be great to get in a
room with other podcasters and share best practices and learn?
Three of our four Saturdays every month are themed to have a
(26:31):
topic, but that lasts Saturday of every month.
It's open question and answer. Ask anything.
Come meet a podcaster. Come enjoy the podcasting
community throughout a podcast.ca.
Come to our meetups. Can't wait to see you there.
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