Is Talent Over Rated? Why You Just Need To Get Out There!

This morning, I came across a video on YouTube that carries a message that I feel strongly about as a podcast consultant. Let me explain…

Many of my clients today ask me, “Cliff, did you always want to be on the radio?” or “Cliff, did you go to some sort of school for broadcasting?” Better yet are the folks who say “Cliff, you have a natural talent for podcasting.”

See, when my clients listen to any of my recent podcast episodes, they here a confident show host who seems to know what he’s doing and who has learned to communicate well. And when they learn that I actually don’t do a SINGLE BIT OF EDITING on my shows, they are simply blown away.

Now this post isn’t here for me to share with you about how great people say I am. Not at all! In fact, the point that I want to make here is that while I will admit there is a foundation that was laid by some core talents, what makes my podcasts what they are today is not based so much on talent, but more so on experience.

Let me give you an example. Click the play button here and listen to just the first two minutes of this recent episode of Podcast Answer Man.

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Now, click the play button here and listen to just the first two minutes of this very first podcast episode I ever recorded.

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I hope you noticed just a little bit of a difference there. I’m not going to go into great detail here in this post, because I really believe this video has a lot to say and I think you’ll pick up on it.

Here’s the video:

After viewing the video, do me a favor and click here to see what it took to get my overall quality from what it was in that first episode to what it is today. (Hint: Look at the “number” of episodes that I have recorded since December 2005)

So the message today is this. Don’t wait until you sound perfect to get started! The key principle in this video is called “Deliberate Practice.” The idea is that you just keep PUSHING YOURSELF!

Now if you are podcasting for your business and your brand is on the line, then perhaps you do what Chris Rock did. You try different venues to practice in until you’re ready for your big cable network special.

For me, I actually do all my deliberate practicing in my actual shows themselves. But then again, my brand is all about “growing personally.” The key here is to simply put out content. The more you do it, the more natural it will become over time.