Journal

Becca Atkinson on Why Alcoholic Shouldn’t Be a Bad Word

This week, I sit down with Becca Atkinson, host of The Unashamed Alcoholic, where she talks with sober people using their platforms to speak openly about their journey with addiction.

This includes sports stars, media celebrities, and more, and who inspired Becca to openly talk about her own journey as a recovering alcoholic.

The Freeing Power of Openness

Becca shares how she didn’t do anything by halves when it came to opening up about her journey as an alcoholic. Indeed, it was on a national radio station that she first got the courage to speak up, and she never looked back from there.

I wanted him to know he wasn’t alone and he still had a fan in me.

When Bobby Ryan ofNHL hockey team Ottawa Senators shared his own story of addiction, Becca wrote a letter to her local newspaper stating her unequivocal support for the player, and thanking him for his bravery in talking out This, in turn, enabled her own bravery.

The Expectation of Drinking

Despite more people opening up and talking about their own journeys with alcohol and addiction, it’s still a very taboo subject for many. Becca feels this can come down to how we’ve normalized drinking – we’re simply expected to start drinking at legal age – but we haven’t yet normalized talking about addiction.

I was never told being sober is an option

The Conversations with Family

When Becca was going through her journey, it led to conversations with her family about what she had been goingthrough, and the lengths she’d gone at times to hide that journey. It was interesting to hear how the different parts of the journey she was on led to very different conversations with her family, especially her two young children.

The Growth Process of Recovery

Recently, Becca posted a tweet about receiving an email from her ex-husband, and how she read the first line and deleted it, knowing she didn’t need that negativity in her life anymore. As she says, this is a part of the recovery process, and a good indicator of how far she’s come.

You just automatically start to do things that are better for you

Connect with Becca:

Contact me:danny@podcasterstories.com

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Season 4 of Podcaster Stories is sponsored by Accusonus. Make okay audio sound great with their built-in plugins to repair bad audio, for podcasters and creators alike! Visitpodcasterstories.com/audioand use the coupon PodcasterStories10 at checkout to get a sweet 10% off the ERA Bundle Standard yearly subscription!

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Goodniks podcast

Goodniks is a podcast exploring the journey and meaning of doing good in the world – for people who do good or are just thinking about it.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac – https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp

Frankly Kev on the Importance of Everyday Heroes

This week, I sit down with Kevin Steinberg, host of the Frankly Kev podcast, where he talks to everyday heroes who have experienced one or more of life’s many challenges.

No experts giving you a checklist of how to perfectly do things. Or spokespeople and gurus to sell you products with pitch-perfect phrases. No celebrities to gawk at or fawn over. Just real people telling you real life stories.

You Know What? They’re People Too

When Kevin first started his show, he used to do a quick intro about his guest and then get straightto the “meat” of the topicthey were talking about. But then he had an epiphany – you wouldn’t talk like this away from podcasting, so why do it now? This led to a much different, and more valued, approach to his show.

Putting Yourself in Someone Else’s Shoes

Kevin’s background is in acting, and he feels this is a key part of him being able to make guests feel comfortable when it comes to talking about very difficult topics. He tries to put himself in their shoes, to see what feels right and what shouldn’t be asked, and that helps him really empathize with his guests.

If this is a teachablemoment, please tell me and we’ll move on.

My Sovereign Shield Has Been Humour

Despite the topicson the show being dark, Kevin shares how he and his guests often laugh while recording, because sometimes that’s the best defence – and offence – against the horrors that life can throw at us.

People Who Need People

Kevin takes his inspiration in life from other people. Whether that’s people whose views he agrees with, or those who differgreatly – just taking the time to talk, listen, and learn. Because at the end of the day, we’re all we’ve got.

The Heroes Behind the Scenes

While Kevin’s podcast is about everyday heroes and what they’ve overcome, his goal for the second season and beyond is an interesting take on the people behind the heroes.

Connect with Kevin:

Frankly Kev Podcast
Frankly Kev About page (check it out, it’s awesome!)

Contact me:danny@podcasterstories.com

My equipment:

Recommended resources:

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac – https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp

Suzanne Falter on Being the Woman Her Daughter Wanted Her to Be

This week, I sit down with Suzanne Falter, host of the Self-Care for Extremely Busy Women podcast, a show about the importance of self-care and building healthy self-care habits for women everywhere.

She’s also the author of several books and continues the legacy of her daughter Teal, who passed in 2012 ,through helping other women be who they were meant to be.

On Slowing Down and Going Within

Suzanne shares the importance of taking care of ourselves. She had never done that her whole life, and it was only when she lost her daughter that she made the time to truly focus on her and her wellness.

A Certain Level of Denial

As we enter the third year of the global pandemic that is Covid, Suzanne makes an important point about the toll it’s taken on us as human beings, beyond the obvious physical loss of life.

We need to keep the ability to daydreamto get insights to our recovery.

The Lights Are Shining

Suzanne’s show has a multitude of guests on a variety of topics, and she shares the example of one who talked about the rise in verbal abuse, and how we may not treat that the same as we do with physical abuse.

This then results in tragic circumstances as we see the fallout of silence and inaction. She hopes social justice movements like #MeToo will drive more conversations and awareness.

On the Need to Remove Cultural Conditioning

With Suzanne’s podcast and books geared towards empowering women to live the life they want and deserve, she talks about how cultural conditioning is stopping women from meeting that goal. Often they feel guilty for wanting more, and this line of thinking has been instilled almost from birth.

We like to do more than the job requires.

Being the Person Her Daughter Wanted Her to Be

As her daughter Teal lay in her hospital bed, Suzanne realized she knew she was going to die, and this realization made her determined to be the kind of person her daughter would have wanted her to be.

Connect with Suzanne:

Contact me:danny@podcasterstories.com

My equipment:

Recommended resources:

Season 4 of Podcaster Stories is sponsored by Accusonus. Make okay audio sound great with their built-in plugins to repair bad audio, for podcasters and creators alike! Visit podcasterstories.com/audio and use the coupon PodcasterStories10 at checkout to get a sweet 10% off the ERA Bundle Standard yearly subscription!

Mentioned in this episode:

Check out the Goodniks podcast

Goodniks is a podcast exploring the journey and meaning of doing good in the world – for people who do good or are just thinking about it.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac – https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp

Andrew Davie on a Life-Saving Series of Unfortunate Circumstances

This week, I sit down with Andrew Davie, co-host of the Happy Hour with Heather and Guest podcast, a show that highlights local artists to perform and promote their music, live events, and more.

Andrew is also a survivor of a life-changing event that happened on his 40th birthday, and he shares that story and more on today’s episode.

The Opposing Views That Got Him Into Podcasting

While the podcast that he co-hosts with Heather is his current passion project, Andrew had another podcast that ran for several years,over 500+ episodes. He shares how listening to a podcast where one co-host had to convince the other host why a certain band was good helped him on his podcast journey.

The Expectation in Life of How Something is Going to Be

Andrew used the example of how heavy metal music fans are supposed to look acertain way and how he looks anything but that. And that’s something that we need to look at in life, how our expectations are shaped by stereotypical learnings, and how that holds us back.

How a Series of Unfortunate Circumstances Saved His Life

Andrew was due to fly out to visit his family,but his life was about to take a hugeturn. Thankfully, as Andrew shares, there was a series of unfortunate – but, as it turned out, fortunate – circumstances that led him to where he is today.

“It’s the little things that get you through the difficult days.”

Connect with Andrew:

Contact me:danny@podcasterstories.com

My equipment:

Recommended resources:

Season 4 of Podcaster Stories is sponsored by Accusonus. Make okay audio sound great with their built-in plugins to repair bad audio, for podcasters and creators alike! Visit podcasterstories.com/audio and use the coupon PodcasterStories10 at checkout to get a sweet 10% off the ERA Bundle Standard yearly subscription!

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac – https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp

Nick Nalbach on Working Towards Nine-Five Freedom

This week, I sit down with Nick Nalbach, host of the Nine-Five Podcast, a show that features entrepreneurs sharingwhat got them to where they’re at to help youget inspiredto launch your own entrepreneurial journey.

From new entrepreneurs to entrepreneurial veterans, Nick dives into what made them choose this path, and how they’ve managed to find success in their given niche.

I don’t really know what to do with my hands

Nick’s original idea was for a video show, but he felt uncomfortable being “on display”, and wasn’t really sure how to present himself that the audio-only option of a podcast was far more attractive.

Content that Has an Impact

Nick makes a really good point on how we can often talk ourselvesout of creating something, because we feel we’ll never be as good as someone who’s already doing it. But all content can make an impact, and that’s the thing we should be looking at.

I can be present

Nick shares how he spent years blogging, and he could never have imaginedhaving the guest he has on his podcast write guest posts for the blog. However, having a podcast has given him a presence that guests seem to be more inclined to appear on, and that’s helped him grow personally and professionally.

Why You Should Fire Yourself From Your Business

One of the things that can be hard to manage is when to outsource your needs. Financescan play a part, as can being reluctant to let go of your “baby”. But as Nick shares with an example from one of his guest’s, hiring can make you much more efficient and thereby earn more revenue.

Success is Different for Everybody

Nick talks about why he was always turned off by the 9-5 job, and much of it is down to the lack of control. You’re always adhering to someone else’s clock and schedule, and you usually have little say in how your own work life revolves around that. Not that you can’t feel successful in a 9-5 job, as everyone’s goals are different.

Connect with Nick:

Contact me:danny@podcasterstories.com

My equipment:

Recommended resources:

Season 4 of Podcaster Stories is sponsored by Accusonus. Make okay audio sound great with their built-in plugins to repair bad audio, for podcasters and creators alike! Visit podcasterstories.com/audio and use the coupon PodcasterStories10 at checkout to get a sweet 10% off the ERA Bundle Standard yearly subscription!

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podtrac – https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp