NICE TO MEET YOU

I'M Steph Shoell

YOUR POD SAVVY GUIDE

I started podcasting in 2017, really as a hobby. What began as a passion project eventually turned into a career, and today I specialize in business-to-business podcasting.

Between producing real estate podcasts for work and running my own shows, I’ve created dozens of podcast series and published 1,000+ episodes.

But the coolest thing podcasting has given me is confidence.

Confidence to start conversations. To ask better questions. To figure out the tech. To share what I think. And to trust myself when something doesn’t go exactly as planned.

I didn’t have that confidence when I started. I built it by recording episode after episode.

That’s where my podcasting mantra comes from: I believe done is better than perfect. You don’t have to feel completely ready or know exactly what you’re doing. Hit record, learn from the episode, and let yourself get better as you go.

My Story

My podcasting story actually starts in 2016 in Ketchikan, Alaska, during what I lovingly refer to as my full-blown “30-life crisis.”

I was working at a fishing lodge, cleaning toilets, doing dishes, and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.

The island was remote, everyone else was usually out fishing, and there wasn’t a whole lot of conversation happening.

So I turned to podcasts.

The Wi-Fi was painfully slow, so I’d download episodes the night before and hope they were ready by morning. Those podcast hosts started to feel like friends. They kept me company, introduced me to new ideas, and let me step into someone else’s world for a little while.

Somewhere between scrubbing floors and hitting play, I thought:

Maybe I could do this too.

A friend told me, “You know what I love about you, Steph? You’re a dreamer.”

And I remember thinking:

No. I’m a doer.

Except…it took me 10 months to actually publish my first episode.

I bought the equipment. I overthought the tech. I worried about the editing. I recorded nine episodes and didn't publish a single one because I was scared they weren't good enough.

Eventually, I realized waiting until I felt ready wasn't getting my podcast anywhere.

So on Memorial Day weekend in 2017, I hit publish.

And I kept hitting publish.

More than 1,000 episodes later, podcasting has taken me places I never could have predicted when I downloaded those first episodes in Alaska.

And it all started with finally getting that first episode out.

Why I Do It

For almost five years, I helped lead a local podcasting coalition, and I met so many women who wanted to start a podcast but kept putting it off.

“I’m not good with tech.”
“I don’t have the time.”
“I hate hearing my own voice.”
“I don’t like how I look on camera.”
“What would I even talk about?”
“What if nobody listens?”
“What will people I know think?”

I get it. I’ve had some of those thoughts too.

But I also know how much I would have missed if I’d let them stop me.

That’s why I’m so passionate about helping more women start.

I don't want a podcast you've been thinking about for months—or maybe even years—to stay an idea because you weren't sure how to get it out into the world.

There are people who could learn from what you know, connect with your experiences, or simply really enjoy hearing what you have to say.