What shifts in podcasting have you noticed in the last few months? In the first episode of 2025, Mary dives right into the changes we’ve seen in podcasting just since last fall. More and more hosts are leaning into partisan politics and using their shows to share their thoughts and concerns with a huge audience. This has further legitimized the industry, similar to when celebrities started to don the mantle of podcast host several years back. This mainstream growth has a real impact on your show, even if you aren’t interviewing Canada’s Prime Minister or the Democratic presidential candidate. Mary explores how you, as a podcast creator, can seize this opportunity to transform or elevate your show—ultimately your own media platform—to refresh stagnant formulas and revisit the most essential question: how does your podcast align with your values? Whether you’re brand new or years into podcasting, let’s think about: How podcasting becoming more mainstream affects you and your showHow you can lean into the shifts to bring a fresh perspectiveWhy you should use your podcast to control the message you want to spread Links worth mentioning from the episode: Find Podcast Success While Doing Less, Episode 87: https://www.organizedsound.ca/find-podcast-success-while-doing-less-episode-87/Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on facing impostor syndrome and taking criticism, Rethinking with Adam Grant: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/canadian-prime-minister-justin-trudeau-on-facing-impostor/id1554567118?i=1000658497013Gratitude enhances health, brings happiness — and may even lengthen lives, Harvard Health: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/gratitude-enhances-health-brings-happiness-and-may-even-lengthen-lives-202409113071 Connect with Mary! Leave a voice note with your feedback at https://www.speakpipe.com/VisibleVoice or email visiblevoicepodcast@gmail.comGet the full transcript of the episode at http://www.visiblevoicepodcast.comRead up on more secrets with the Visible Voice Insights Newsletter https://www.organizedsound.ca/newsletterTo learn more or work with Mary, check out https://www.organizedsound.caLink up on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/marychan-organizedsound/Engage on Instagram @OrganizedSoundProductions https://www.instagram.com/organizedsoundproductions Show Credits: Podcast audio design, engineering, and edited by Mary Chan of Organized Sound ProductionsShow notes written by Shannon Kirk of Right Words StudioPost-production support by Kristalee Forre of Forre You VAPodcast cover art by Emily Johnston of Artio Design Co. Transcript with Audio Description: [MUSIC IN - GHOSTHOOD FEATURING SARA AZRIEL “LET’S GO” BEGINS] MARY: Although it's February, and this is my first episode back from my year end break. Welcome back. It feels like a lifetime ago because so much has changed in this short little bit of time from my last episode that I published in early December. It's amazing what a few months can do for you. And toward the end of last year, too, in episode 87, called Find Podcast Success While Doing Less, that episode is a good one to listen to before this one, because it's kind of a continuation or maybe like a little addendum to that episode. Where are you on your podcasting journey to make your podcast more integrated with what you do and your values, especially in today's world when, yeah, we're still trying to figure out what to do with less time, less money, less capacity, all of that sort of stuff. So if you haven't listened to episode 87 yet, make sure you go find that one and then continue on to this one. Because, yeah, the world has changed. It doesn't matter which part of the world you live in. And I usually don't get very political. This podcast isn't political at all. And I don't slide into that realm. But I feel like with everything that I do, whether that is my personal life, my podcasting life, my business life, everything is all intertwined. So what does that political landscape actually mean for podcasting as a whole? And then more specifically, what does it mean for your show? A few things, actually. So listen in. This is episode number 90 of the Podcaster's Guide to a Visible Voice. << WOMAN SINGS: So so so so let’s go >> Hey, welcome back to the show. Oh, my gosh. This is episode 90. [INTRO MUSIC ENDS] And as I usually start my year, I like to go back on, okay, what did I do on my podcast? What do I want to talk about this year? And things like that? And I realized I'm going into my sixth year of this particular podcast. I've done podcasting before with a different show, but this one, this is my sixth year for this. And that also means I'm going into my eighth year in my podcast production company. Who would have thought when I started this adventure? So thank you so much. Whether you are a longtime listener, whether you've known me from the beginning of my podcast production company or even before then, if I'm lucky ...
