10-Year Podiversary – Lessons Learned – TPW499

We’re celebrating 10 years of The Productive Woman podcast and I’m sharing some lessons I’ve learned along the way. Who we are is more important than what we do...and other important lessons learned in 10 years of The Productive Woman podcast This week’s episode is a milestone one. The very first episode of The Productive Woman--a short introductory “episode 0”--was published on July 1, 2014. That makes this week the 10-year “podiversary” of The Productive Woman. And I’m amazed to have made it to this milestone.  When I first launched the podcast, I wasn’t sure I’d make it to one year. I thought maybe my mom would listen to a few episodes, cause she loves me, but I wasn’t sure anyone else would. Why would they? I was nobody important or famous, no expert. I was just a wife, a mom, a lawyer, and someone interested in productivity since I was young.   I could not have imagined back then that I’d still be at it 10 years later, nor could I have imagined how much I’d learn along the way.  Milestone lessons 1. We make time for what really matters to us.  There are lots of things I say are important to me but I don’t take action on them. But planning, preparing, recording, and publishing an episode each Wednesday morning--I’ve made time for that.  Our calendar and our checkbook tend to tell the truth about what’s important to us.  * Episode 452 - Making Time for What Matters Most to You 2. Just start. I’ve always tended to want to have everything perfect before I do anything--which has led to much stalling and many missed opportunities. When I decided to start a podcast, I signed up for an online podcasting course--30 days that took you from idea to first recorded episode. I spent that time learning about the logistics, equipment, etc., needed, setting up my website and my media host, and so on. I intended to launch the first week of January. But week after week I kept finding reasons why I wasn’t quite ready. 6 months went by, and I hadn’t yet launched. But then I heard a message about starting and iterating, and finally took my iPad into my walk-in closet, recorded that first short episode, promised I’d be back the next week with more, and was off. Lesson learned: don’t have to wait until we feel ready; just start, and improve as you go.  * Episode 412 - Don’t Wait  3. There's no right answer When it comes to productivity and making a life that matters, there’s no one right answer that works for everyone. Productivity is a very personal thing, and what works for each of us depends on our individual situation--life stage, health, values, goals, priorities.  * Episode 405 - Take It or Leave It: Productivity Advice that Might or Might Not Work  4. You are not alone No matter how I might feel, I’m not alone. (I’m not the only one.) That might be among the most important things I’ve learned in 10 years of hosting this podcast and mastermind groups. Believing that I am the only one struggling with certain things causes me to put up walls that separate me from others. When we let those walls down, we find that we’re not the only ones--and we can start to share ideas, encouragement, and accountability.  5. Lean on others We need each other.