Mini-Episode : One Year of A Day In Her Life

A Podcast Year in Review

In lieu of Five Favorite Things this week, I am bringing you a mini-episode celebrating one full year of A Day In Her Life! The trailer was released on March 24, and the first real episode of the podcast aired on April 11, 2023, with Ali Vander Baan. I don’t know what to consider the official anniversary, but I do know that April was too hectic, and it didn’t get properly celebrated.

So here we are with a little mini-episode! In this episode you will find:

• A State of The Podcast

• A look back on the past episodes from the first year

• What’s coming in the next few months

• What it looks like to put together an episode each week

• How I started the podcast

• Questions from listeners on Instagram including

  • How many hours are there in my day?

  • Would I ever do this full-time? Is it hard to make money podcasting?

  • What is my favorite part of the podcast?

  • How many interviews have I done?

  • How long does editing take

  • How do I choose and find guests?

Mini episodes are less edited/polished, so forgive any redundancy and rambling. My goal is to show you what this looks like from my side, my hopes and plans for the next year. If you have any questions, I’d LOVE for you to send me a message or leave in the comments!

And above all, thank you, thank you, thank you for listening. This podcast wouldn’t happen without the support of listeners, the time and support of the guests, and the kind messages, reviews, and encouragement I receive. This is filling my cup, and I want to thank you so much for that.

A Day In Her Life Q&A (listen to the episode for MUCH more)

How do I choose and find guests?

Starting out, it was a lot of me reaching out to guests. I have a master spreadsheet with goal guests, and I just went down the list reaching out to people and was pleasantly surprised as guests started to say yes. Since then, I’ve had listeners reach out suggesting friends, influencers, or themselves, guests make connections to other friends (looking at you

Julia @smarterinasec

), PR and Marketing teams reach out, and I also reach out to guests.

In my ideal world, I would do one interview a week (two if I have a week off scheduled), and those interviews would be 4-6 weeks before the air dates. I explain more in the episode, but I like to have a buffer between the recording and the episode airing to account for any schedule changes that may happen, but I also want to make sure that it’s not too far between recording and airing. Four weeks can feel like forever, and I don’t want it to be that far off from recording to airing. I have gotten too far ahead before, and right now I am on a pause of reaching out/scheduling new guests because I am (as

Hitha

would say) “as scheduled as I would like to be right now.”

I would love to do more than one episode a week, but I am just not able to with a full-time job, two kids, and 1M other things. I would love to chat with EVERYONE about their days!

How many interviews have I done?

I have recorded 55 interviews, and have another 12 currently scheduled! I do a run down in the episode of past guests and parts of the conversations, but here (and below - with linked substack if applicable) is the full list of episodes thus far. If you haven’t gone through the backlog (TOTALLY NORMAL) but also, take a look and see if something piques your interest!

1. Ali Vander Baan

2. Christina Tumminello (No One Asked, But.)

3. Sarah Madiera Day

4. Kate Bowler

5. Lizzie Johnson

6. Colleen Kavanagh

7. Ayana Lage (

   Ayana Gabrielle Lage
   )

8. Claire Wiley (

   The Stitch
   )

9. Caroline Allen

10. Kayla Mehr

11. Jess Klein

12. Erin DiMella and Meg Nugent

13. Jamie Terran

14. Zara Hanawalt

15. ME!

16. Julia S Powell

17. Shannon Gibson

18. Amanda Mitchell

19. Caro Chambers (What To Cook When You Don't Feel Like Cooking)

20. Liz Lidgett

21. Dr Jessica Wilen (

    A Cup of Ambition
    )

22. Dr Kathryn Boger

23. Nan Philip (

    Nan Philip’s Substack
    )

24. Brittany Sheehan

25. Julia Dzafic

26. Monica Ascioti

27. Lindsay Cadigan

28. Megan Elizabeth

29. Jenn Cote

30. Sandy Ko

31. Laura Huebner

32. Eleanor Leftwich

33. Tracy Skelly

34. Hattie Sparks

35. Meredith Cooney

36. Nora Massey

37. Sarah Lederman

38. Andrea Faulkner Williams

39. Catherine Brown (

    Catherine’s Substack
    )

40. Mollie Buckler (

    Benediction
    )

41. Julia @smarterinasec (

    VARSITY READER
    )

42. Suzanne Shade

43. Becca Galbraith Casey

44. Nicole Newhouse

45. Elizabeth Rees

46. Jo Piazza (

    Over the Influence
    )

47. Aja Frost and Aliza Sir (

    Platonic Love
    )

48. Patrice Poltzer

49. Lauren Ellison Fox

50. Meghan Guffey

51. Jamie O’Day and Emily Silver

Would I ever do this full-time? Is it hard to make money podcasting?

I don’t think I could do this full time and make what I need to make for our family currently. We are a dual-income household paying for childcare in one of the most expensive markets in the country. It’s INSANE.

In terms of making money, right now, the podcast is net-negative. I go into more specifics in the episode, but between hosting, recording, and editing software, the podcast costs me money each month. It’s worth it, and it fills my cup, but it would also be great if it were net-neutral (maybe even net-positive) eventually. I use affiliate links in the newsletter and Instagram, but I have yet to have any podcast sponsors, which is OK.

How long does editing take?

Editing is something I would LOVE to outsource, but until this is a net-positive endeavor, it will remain something I own. I started by editing everything myself in GarageBand. This was extremely time-consuming, and I think took north of 6hr per episode. I do two passes at each episode, and the first takes the longest. Now I use Descript, which has saved me at least 3hr per week. I think editing takes ~2-3hr max depending on the length of the episode now.

What’s next?

More episodes, more fun, more growth. I am hoping that the podcast continues to grow. The number of followers and downloads is growing month over month, and I hope that continues and eventually balloons (manifesting). The podcast only grows with your help, so I appreciate you continuing to share!

I also would like for the podcast to start making some money. This may look like turning on paid subscriptions for the Substack, as a way to support the podcast. I am thinking of it a bit like a Patreon, as an opportunity for you to support the podcast if feasible but without many “paid benefits” to start. Eventually, I’d like to find a way to support and grow a community with weekly/monthly subscriber-only prompts and questions in chats. TBD exactly how that will look, but it is something I’m considering.

What is my favorite part of the podcast?

Meeting so many fantastic women - both guests and listeners! I am continuously inspired by the women I am lucky enough to engage with as part of the podcast. From guests inspiring me to try something different, to listeners commiserating over making lunch for their kids - connecting with you all has been the highlight of starting this podcast for me. I love that some guests (and listeners) have become friends, and I am so excited for what’s to come.

Thanks for being here! If you like what you read, there’s a few ways you can support A Day In Her Life!

🎙️ - Listen and Subscribe to A Day In Her Life wherever you get your podcasts

⭐️ - If you like what you hear, leave us a review! I will ❤️ you forever

💌 - Share the Podcast or this Newsletter with a friend so you’ll have someone to chat with about all the fun stuff you hear/read!

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🔗 - Some of the links included in this newsletter are affiliate links, meaning if you purchase something, I may receive a (small) percentage. I only share things I love, and I am incredibly grateful for your support.