The Daily Pep! Part One
The cat is finally out of the bag, and I am so excited (and ever so slightly terrified) to announce that I’m launching a Daily Pep Talk podcast on 29th February 2020, called The Daily Pep!
I’m starting this blog series to document the month leading up to putting The Daily Pep! into the world, because I want to share with you the reality of what it looks like to build something. I’m so sick of seeing things pop up online that look like they were dropped off by the magic online business fairy in the middle of the night. I crave seeing behind the scenes, the rocky paths, the high-highs and the low-lows.
I want to see the moments when someone nearly gave up, and how they got back up.
So every week for the next four weeks, I’m going to be documenting the process. I’m going to be sharing with you what it actually looks like behind the scenes. Not the Instagramable version, not the Cinderella version where we skip the ugly step sisters and head straight to Prince Charming.
Nope.
I’m going to be sharing with you my wobbly moments, the messy moments and hopefully the joyful moments as well. All in the hope of helping you see you’re not alone in your shitty first drafts, you’re not alone in being scared shitless to put yourself out there, and starting a conversation about what it actually takes to do creative work.
So, let’s get into Part One!
First, you might be thinking, what even is The Daily Pep! ?
Well, let me just grab my current working version of the podcast description that’s ready to go on iTunes:
The Daily Pep is the daily podcast for couragemakers, creative and multi-passionate and unconventional women, who are looking for a daily dose of rebel-rousing, encouragement and reminders to keep going.
Because building a life you love and making the world a brighter place takes a shitload of courage, but you don’t have to do it alone
If you’re exhausted by the need to be all the things, want regular reminders that you’re on the right path and you matter, or you’re sick of being your very own personal dreamshitter, this is the podcast for you.
Every weekday, your host and professional rebel-rouser Meg Kissack shares short and snappy insights, reminders and stories to help you build a wholehearted creative life that feels good, is sustainable and joyful AND leaves the world a brighter place.
The Daily Pep is purposefully short and snappy, designed to fit in with your life and your routines. Listen with your morning coffee, while you walk the dog, on your commute, or while you’re trying to resist the snooze button.
The Daily Pep is a sister podcast of The Couragemakers Podcast. New episodes air every Monday - Friday 6AM GMT.
Where did it come from?
I’ve spent the past six years building a creative life and I’ve got to spend it in the company with the wisest and most creative and wonderful women. And even though we’ve been on different paths, there’s been one thing in common: it takes a shitload of courage, a shitload of perseverance and a fuck load of energy to keep going every day.
So The Daily Pep! comes from what I most needed and wanted to see in the world: frequent encouragement and rebel-rousing to keep going, and going, and going. And reminders not to sacrifice yourself (or your values) along the way.
I’ve tried to trace back when I first starting thinking about doing a daily podcast. It was in the last couple of months of 2019, and I really toyed with it for a while. I spent quite a few weeks looking for my intro and outro music. I thought I was wasting time, but in reality, I think that’s what gave me the space to get my head around whether it was something I wanted to pursue, and if so, what it would take to pull it off.
Around December I started taking it seriously and floating the idea around friends and clients. As I approached the start of the year, and since 2020 is my year of Doing, I figured I better make that decision.
Wobby Moments
I’d like to say I made the decision and stuck to it, but there was a LOT of back and forth. I thought my main concern was the huge amount of work it will take, but in reality, I think it’s because resistance is real and putting yourself out there is fucking scary. I made the decision early January, but there’s still been some wobbles. This evening, as I’ve just finished recording the first ever three episodes, I’m having the wobbles again.
Seriously, I’m coming up with every excuse under the sun not to do it. Not because I don’t want to do it, but because it’s taking a lot of courage. And because this really matters to me. I completely forgot how I felt back when I first launched Couragemakers, and the nerves are back.
This is what I wrote in my journal last night:
We’re officially in the month that’s launching The Daily Pep! and I’m officially bricking it. I have a gut feeling and I need to listen to that but I’m still so scared. It’s like properly taking people into the vulnerable bits and my ideas and the inner workings of my brain, and stuff I spend so much time thinking about. I guess I’m scared of being judged, of it not working out, of not being able to commit, of not being able to do it. I think I’m going to start documenting the process for accountability, to build momentum and to keep me going. Bloody hell - am I really doing this? Fucking hell. (I should note, in my scribbled handwriting it looks more like ‘fucking help’ 😂 ) We shall wee how this goes, it’s seriously putting me out of my comfort zone. Big time. Ooh ‘eck.
And it does feel incredibly vulnerable. It feels really vulnerable to document this, because I don’t have a crystal ball to look into the future. I don’t know how this is all going to turn out. It might go down like a sack of spuds, Couragemakers has really taken off like wildfire and my inner dreamshitter is whispering in my ear, “What if that was a fluke?”
But the thing is, I don’t know unless I try, and there’s no way I’m spending another year endlessly analysing every decision and being stuck in paralysis.
So far…
The podcast cover art is nearly done! I’ve had fun designing it and I’ll share with you some of the earlier versions (they are very…different) in next week’s post when I have the final version to show you! I’m still playing around with the colours and trying to decide whether to have different colours for the different days of the week:
I’ve recorded the first 3 episodes, after about two weeks of wimping out because it felt too scary. And that whole process has just felt ridiculous, because give me a microphone to record a solo episode of Couragemakers and I could do it with my eyes shut, and at a moment’s notice. (Hello irrational internal dreamshitter)
I’ve spent WAY too long choosing the intro and outro music (I’m going to leave that as a surprise!). It’s been bought and I’ve cut the track down for how I want it to work and it’s become my new favourite ear-worm!
I spent months deciding whether to buy a new microphone, and I learned a big lesson: research and hardcore procrastination can look like very similar things. In fact they can look identical. After all that time, I realised there’s nothing wrong with my current set up!
I’ve been doing lots of learning about storytelling and trying to get better.
I’ve created a media/sponsor kit and my next step is to put the feelers out for that and start pitching some amazing companies.
So what’s next?
For the next couple of weeks, I’m going to be fine-tuning everything, learning more about storytelling and how to tell good stories, putting the feelers out for sponsors and convincing myself to stop freaking out and just lean in.
In an attempt to not burn out before it goes live, I’m taking a week’s sabbatical starting at some point next week.
Everything is getting very real now, and the fear is starting to kick in.
But I have a feeling about this, and if I’ve learnt nothing else, it’s that sometimes you have to follow that feeling no matter how scary or how ridiculous it feels.
So here’s to seeing where this journey will take us.
Thank you SO much for your encouragement and support. I can’t wait to cheer you on and chat to you through your earbuds on a more frequent basis!