What Will You Learn From Ed's Journal?

[Ed]

Thanks Cam.  Though at the moment I don't have much reason to promote my site at the moment.  After the 17th of June I'll start building it back up again, until then it's doubtful I'll have anything publishable.

In the meantime I'm still writing most days and that's one of the 3 habits I'm trying to do everyday.  There's heaps more that I do everyday but these 3 things I see as mandatory.  I allocate 20 minutes for each one.

1. Writing - I may not be publishing much at the moment but for some reason I find I'm more productive after a writing session.
2. Exercise - Going for a run or lifting weights, doesn't matter, so long as I'm doing something every day that keeps me physically active.
3. Public speaking - This one is still the harder one for me and the one that I'm most likely to avoid.  

 Today is the second day in what will become a long series of days in a row.  At least for 2 out of 3 of them.  Pretty sure you can guess which ones.

 

In other news I've got some hard decisions coming up soon, but I can't say too much at the moment.

[Cam Adair]

Promote away whenever you're ready. Appreciate all of your support over the years.

[Ed]

Just a quick post.

3/3 for daily habits today.

[Ed]

1. Writing - 500 words. Done 3 days in a row

2. Exercise - Went for a run.  I'm using an app called zombie run to make it a bit more fun. 3 days in a row

3. Public Speaking.  Made a recording.  It's not good enough to publish but there's bits in there that are good and also things I can improve.  I've also purchased podcast hosting with Libsyn, on the 20th of June I'll be launching a podcast.  It will cost me $7 a month for hosting and basic stats.  There's a couple of reasons I chose to do this, which I'll talk about in a bit more detail in tomorrow's post.

[Cam Adair]

Nice. I know doing 1 YouTube video/week has improved my public speaking by like 500%. I'm sure the same will happen for you with the podcast. Maybe you and @kortheo can do a podcast episode together.

[Ed]

Daily habits:

1. Writing 500 words - Done. 4 days in a row.  I've got a few things on my mind at the moment so my writing isn't great.  But the simple act of writing seems to help me get my thoughts in order and gives me a bit of momentum for the day.

2. Exercise - Did a workout, it was crap.  That's ok, an ineffective workout is still infinitely better than no workout. 4 days in a row

3. Public speaking - Made another rambling recording.  I'm not trying to make anything publishable at the moment, just working on delivery and impromptu speaking.  3 days in a row.

Why I chose to use Libsyn

Libsyn is a company that hosts podcasts, sort of like the Youtube of audio.  Except you need to pay the to host your files.  Another popular audio hosting company is Soundcloud, you get up to 200 minutes for free before you need to start paying.  For that reason Soundcloud is popular with people starting podcasting and bands.

So why did I go for the option I need to pay right away?  Like I said yesterday, there are a couple of reasons.  First one is that once you reach the 200 minute limit with Soundcloud you have to start paying $16 a month.  With Libsyn the fees are $5 per month if you keep your uploads under 50Mb, or a total of $7 with stats.  There's also the risk that Soundcloud will go out of business in the next year, there's reports that they haven't been profitable since they started.  And that would be a huge pain to move all the files to a different host.

The other reason is that by actually spending some money it makes it feel a bit more serious.  It's not a lot of money, $7 per month, that's less than a couple of beers will cost me.  I can easily justify the cost to myself as it's something that will help improve my life.

 

Nice. I know doing 1 YouTube video/week has improved my public speaking by like 500%. I'm sure the same will happen for you with the podcast. Maybe you and @kortheo can do a podcast episode together.

I would like to collaborate with other people, I'd just like to record 9 episodes first before I invite guests on my show.  That will tell myself and other people that I'm taking it seriously.  If someone wants me on their podcast before then I'd be happy to do it, it will be a couple of weeks before I'm available though.

[Cam Adair]

Awesome. So what date will you have 9 episodes done by? What's your stake in the ground?

[Ed]

1. Writing - Done - 5 days in a row

2. Exercise - Done 5 days in a row

3. Public speaking - Done - 4 days in a row.  It's kind of weird to call this public speaking practice when I have no intention of making most of these recordings public.

Awesome. So what date will you have 9 episodes done by? What's your stake in the ground?

The plan is to have one episode ready to go on the 20th, then release one a week.  And ideally be 3 weeks ahead.  So episode 9 should be recorded before 25th of July.

[Cam Adair]

1. Writing - Done - 5 days in a row

2. Exercise - Done 5 days in a row

3. Public speaking - Done - 4 days in a row.  It's kind of weird to call this public speaking practice when I have no intention of making most of these recordings public.

Awesome. So what date will you have 9 episodes done by? What's your stake in the ground?

The plan is to have one episode ready to go on the 20th, then release one a week.  And ideally be 3 weeks ahead.  So episode 9 should be recorded before 25th of July.

Should be or it will be? There is a significant difference in commitment, and commitment is what will drive your results. Let's put a stake in the ground and refuse to settle for anything less!

[Ed]

Daily habits:

1.Writing- Done - 6 days in a row

2. Exercise - Done - 6 days in a row

3. Public speaking - Done - 5 days in a row

These daily habits are not my main focus at the moment, but I find that each one has a cumulative positive effect on the other things I'm working on.  They're all small enough tasks that even when I have other things going on I'll still have the time to complete them.

 

Should be or it will be? There is a significant difference in commitment, and commitment is what will drive your results. Let's put a stake in the ground and refuse to settle for anything less!

You're right.  The change in words seems small, yet there is a huge difference in the power of the word "will" compared to "should".  I will have episode 9 recorded by 25th of July.

 

I've come up with a tentative list of titles for 5 titles.  The concepts discussed will remain, the order and the actual titles are likely to change.

1. Can you become a great public speaker if you're introverted?
2. How you can use this military tactic to destroy your fears
3. 2 things you need in a relationship
4. Will you help your best friend bury the body?
5. Every man needs to know these __ skills

[Cam Adair]

STAKE IN THE GROUND. LET'S GO.

Those titles look great. 

I keep a trello board with any ideas I think of or hear about for YouTube videos. Here's a quick screenshot of some of them:

 

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. W - Done - 7 in a row
2. Ex - Done - 7 in a row
3. PS - Done - 6 in a row

Those titles look great. 

Thanks.  They're good, they convey the general idea of what each episode will be about.  Though I'm sure I can tweak them and make them better.

I keep a trello board with any ideas I think of or hear about for YouTube videos. Here's a quick screenshot of some of them:

I don't use Trello, what I do is either write ideas on paper or type them in a word document.  I've still got a heap of half written blog posts that I never finished, sometimes you can know what you want to write and for some reason it just doesn't come out right.  I might rethink them and see if they'll be worthwhile to turn into podcasts.

[Marquess]

H-hey, Ed. Reading your blog right now. You should definitely spam promote it here as most people's blogs are shit, and yours is very good.

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. W - Done - 8 in a row
2. Ex - Done - 8 in a row
3. PS - Done - 7 in a row

H-hey, Ed. Reading your blog right now. You should definitely spam promote it here as most people's blogs are shit, and yours is very good.

Thanks, glad you like it.  I'll probably put a link to it in my sig once I start working on it again.  I don't think I'll be promoting it heavily here though, people will either visit my blog or they won't.  I'm not doing it to get famous or make money so while getting a huge amount of traffic would be nice it's not a major goal.  The major focus will be doing podcasts, so how much people like/dislike hearing my voice is a major factor.

[kortheo]

Daily habits:

1. Writing 500 words - Done. 4 days in a row.  I've got a few things on my mind at the moment so my writing isn't great.  But the simple act of writing seems to help me get my thoughts in order and gives me a bit of momentum for the day.

2. Exercise - Did a workout, it was crap.  That's ok, an ineffective workout is still infinitely better than no workout. 4 days in a row

3. Public speaking - Made another rambling recording.  I'm not trying to make anything publishable at the moment, just working on delivery and impromptu speaking.  3 days in a row.

Why I chose to use Libsyn

Libsyn is a company that hosts podcasts, sort of like the Youtube of audio.  Except you need to pay the to host your files.  Another popular audio hosting company is Soundcloud, you get up to 200 minutes for free before you need to start paying.  For that reason Soundcloud is popular with people starting podcasting and bands.

So why did I go for the option I need to pay right away?  Like I said yesterday, there are a couple of reasons.  First one is that once you reach the 200 minute limit with Soundcloud you have to start paying $16 a month.  With Libsyn the fees are $5 per month if you keep your uploads under 50Mb, or a total of $7 with stats.  There's also the risk that Soundcloud will go out of business in the next year, there's reports that they haven't been profitable since they started.  And that would be a huge pain to move all the files to a different host.

The other reason is that by actually spending some money it makes it feel a bit more serious.  It's not a lot of money, $7 per month, that's less than a couple of beers will cost me.  I can easily justify the cost to myself as it's something that will help improve my life.

 

Nice. I know doing 1 YouTube video/week has improved my public speaking by like 500%. I'm sure the same will happen for you with the podcast. Maybe you and @kortheo can do a podcast episode together.

I would like to collaborate with other people, I'd just like to record 9 episodes first before I invite guests on my show.  That will tell myself and other people that I'm taking it seriously.  If someone wants me on their podcast before then I'd be happy to do it, it will be a couple of weeks before I'm available though.

Hey Ed, this sounds awesome! I will definitely give Libsyn a look - I'm using soundcloud currently but didn't explore other options. I only have a handful of episodes under my belt so switching over wouldn't be a bit deal at this point. Your reasoning seems sensible on this.

Perhaps we could collaborate on an episode if you're interested.

[JustBeingReal]

What I learned:

1. Don't compare yourself to others out or below your league.

2. Never be afraid to try

3. When it comes to habits, even a small amount can be a hastle to maintain.

For the rest, I think your journal is a decent read, I think your titles for the podcasts look decent. Good luck

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. W - Done - 9 in a row
2. Ex - Done - 9 in a row
3. PS - Done - 8 in a row

 

Perhaps we could collaborate on an episode if you're interested.

Definitely, it will have to wait until after the 17th.  I want to record 9 episodes before I have guests on my podcast but I'd be happy to be a guest on your podcast before then.

What I learned:

1. Don't compare yourself to others out or below your league.

2. Never be afraid to try

3. When it comes to habits, even a small amount can be a hastle to maintain.

For the rest, I think your journal is a decent read, I think your titles for the podcasts look decent. Good luck

Thanks.

3.  Most habits are easy to maintain if they're done consistently.  A lot of habits that are easy to do are just as easy to not do.  It's so easy to say "it won't hurt to miss out on it for one day", problem is that day becomes another day, then a week and eventually stops being a habit.  On the other hand, it's hard to focus on multiple things at the same time.  Sometimes I struggle with that, I want to do all these different things at the same time.

[JustBeingReal]

 

Thanks.

3.  Most habits are easy to maintain if they're done consistently.  A lot of habits that are easy to do are just as easy to not do.  It's so easy to say "it won't hurt to miss out on it for one day", problem is that day becomes another day, then a week and eventually stops being a habit.  On the other hand, it's hard to focus on multiple things at the same time.  Sometimes I struggle with that, I want to do all these different things at the same time.

I really recognize myself in this, as well. Also I think you are absolutely right about easy habbits being easy not to do. Thanks for the insight, I really appreciate it.

I'll definitely try out your next podcast (especially curious about the one with military trick)

 

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. W - Done - 11 in a row
2. Ex - Done - 11 in a row
3. PS - Done - 10 in a row

I'm starting to see diminishing returns on practicing recording podcasts.  The next level is to record stuff I know is going to be published and end up as a finished product.  But that would require writing up a script or at least an outline.  And at the moment I have other things I need to concentrate on, so it will have to wait just one more week.

I realized that I haven't posted any pics in this thread for a while so here's a rare selfie:

[Cam Adair]

Haha nice selfie. Create a quick outline and you're good to go.

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. Writing - Done - 12 in a row
2. Exercise - Done - 12 in a row
3. Public Speaking practice - Done - 11 in a row

 My old running shoes were falling apart.  I think I had them less than a year, they should have lasted longer.  The were Asics Kayano, I've bought the same shoe before and they were great, but this time they just seem to fall apart.  When I went to buy some new running shoes the guy told me that I wasn't the only one to have problems with Asics recently.  It's a shame, they used to make such great shoes.

So my new running shoes are the Nike Air Zoom Pegasus.  From the moment I tried them on in the store they felt amazing.  I went for a run and so far I'm really liking them.  We'll see how well they hold up over time.

[Ed]

Daily Habits:

1. Writing - Done - 13 in a row
2. Exercise - Done - 13 in a row
3. Public Speaking practice - Done - 12 in a row

 Went for a light 5km jog, finished it in 34 minutes, so definitely nothing to brag about.

I also did a bit of work setting up my podcast, getting the settings right and making some cover art.  If you want your podcast to be listed on iTunes it needs some cover art.  Unfortunately I am not at all skilled when it comes to graphic design.  So after a few minutes working with Gimp I came up with this amateur AF design:

 

[Cam Adair]

Haha nice. That's a start man! It's good enough to launch with and you can improve it over time as your design skills improve

[Ed]

Yep, it's a start.  If the podcast takes off and somehow becomes popular I think I'll hire someone to create a new design.

I'm not expecting my podcast to be that popular, doesn't matter, the aim isn't really about creating a popular podcast.  It's about working on a valuable skill, so if I record 100 podcasts and I'm a better public speaker, then I will consider this project a success.  Lack of skill/confidence at public speaking has cost me more opportunities than lack of technical skills ever has.

 

Daily Habits:

1. Writing - Done - 14 in a row
2. Exercise - Done - 14 in a row
3. Public Speaking practice - Done - 13 in a row

[Cam Adair]

I'm not expecting my podcast to be that popular, doesn't matter, the aim isn't really about creating a popular podcast.  It's about working on a valuable skill, so if I record 100 podcasts and I'm a better public speaker, then I will consider this project a success.  Lack of skill/confidence at public speaking has cost me more opportunities than lack of technical skills ever has.

Exactly.