The Fizzle Show

<p>Inside Fizzle there’s a course called “Choosing a Topic.” This is one of our most popular courses, and it’s at the beginning of the roadmap. This course helps people in three different situations starting out on the entrepreneurial path: “I have too many potential business ideas and don’t know how to choose just one.” “I don’t have any ideas, how do I come up with a good one.” “I have my heart set on this one idea, is it any good?” The course guides people through a series of lessons aimed at helping them choose the best business idea for them, based on several essential criteria. One of those essential criterion is something we call “business boosters.” A business booster is something that gives you an advantage over the competition. On today’s episode of The Fizzle Show podcast we discuss five categories of business boosters guaranteed to give you a meaningful competitive advantage. Any business idea you choose should have at least one of these, preferably more than one. ShowNotes: Fizzleshow.co/207</p>

<p>We’ve got some articles, some books, some podcasts and some videos that can help you with your vision, motivation, productivity and all the other good stuff you need to succeed in modern indie business. Give the podcast episode a listen if you’re not already subscribed… the context on each of these is fun, inspiring and meaningful. Enjoy! Show Notes: fizzleshow.co/206</p>

<p>If you’re trying to build an online business, then chances are good you’ve come across a few stories about how incredible Facebook ads can be as a marketing tool. “A zillion webinar sign ups that resulted in a million sales!” “Automated list building around the clock!” “A constant stream of high-quality traffic that converts!” That’s great. *But how’s it really done? * Show Notes: Fizzleshow.co/205</p>

<p>On the podcast today we interview someone who actually found out how to make his living doing something he loved. And, I swear to god, if he can do it with this niche, there’s at least a chance for you to do it in whatever topic that’s got you excited. Because this guy, Ross Symons, literally makes little paper animals. THAT’S. IT. Origami, that’s the interest Ross pursued. No, I’m serious, ORIGAMI! Little. Paper. Animals. Is there something you’re dreaming of pursuing? Or something that’s growing in interest for you? Chances are, if you’re like a lot of us, you can’t even tell — your life is so crammed with responsibility, obligation, and, as Ross puts it, “What you THINK you want” that you can’t hear that little spark of true interest in you. If that’s you, LISTEN TO THIS EPISODE. It’s a heavy duty, full-on glorious, interesting, quirky and human example of someone finding their own way. My dream for you listening to this would be: - You trust more that small voice inside yourself. - You decide to actively pursue what interests you personally. - You research your situation a little to see if you’re choosing success over your self, your happiness. - You see with fresh eyes how wonderfully diverse are the ways the internet can enable you to grow an audience, serve customers and earn revenue! That’s what I want for you. So, let’s dive in! Fizzleshow.co/204</p>

<p>Listen, some things you just need to quit. You realize you need to stop doing it, stop it. Acknowledge and move on. But other things… other things are big, hairy, important, terrifying things. To quit these kinds of things is heavy, emotional, traumatic. So, in this article (and accompanying podcast) I’m going to share: - How we get “bamboozled” into working on stuff that burns us out; - What role our intuition plays in deciding what to quit and what to pursue; - How to play a simple game to make your quitting decision crystal clear. Let’s get into it. Show Notes: fizzleshow.co/203</p>

<p>In every significant marketplace there is competition. In many ways, competition is a great thing — it drives innovation, it pushes businesses to be better and it gives customers choices. When we’re vying for the same customers, it’s tempting to hide away with our ideas and keep our precious audiences to ourselves. But is this really the best way? Should we be afraid of the competition? Should we distance ourselves from them in hopes that customers will choose us over them? Or do we have more to gain by reaching out, starting relationships, maybe even partnering with our competition? This week I talked to Natalie Franke on the Courage & Clarity podcast. She’s the founder of The Rising Tide Society, an international network of creatives who believe in the concept of “Community over Competition”. We decided to expand on our own experience with these juicy questions — let’s get into it :) Show Notes: fizzleshow.co/202</p>

<p>We’ve all heard it before. You should “follow your passion” if you want to be happy and successful in life. But what if you don’t know what your passion is? Or what if there’s no money in your passion? Or what if you have multiple passions!? Within the Fizzle team, we believe “follow your passion” is actually both essential AND terrible advice. It’s a great episode, and, let’s be honest, your life is in an awesome place to hear this right now. Enjoy! Show Notes: Fizzlshow.co/201</p>

<p>“Though usually regarded as the result of trying to give too much, burnout in my experience results from trying to give what I do not possess.” That is a quote from Parker Palmer. Parker Palmer is awesome. I’ll prove it. And you are awesome too. But you’re in danger of burnout. **If you want to create something interesting…** you’re up against burnout. **If you want to create something important…** you’re up against burnout. **If you want to create something you care about…** burnout. On the show today we hear from a Fizzle member who is literally burnt out. We talk about why burnout happens and how you can overcome it before it makes you give up. Thank you for listening and please, enjoy the show! Read more: fizzleshow.co/200</p>

<p>This is episode 199 (one hundred and ninety-nine!) of the Fizzle show! That’s one podcast a week for three and a half years. For many of you listening running a blog or podcast for a living is a dream. For others, it’s a nightmare, or a necessary step to creating an audience you can serve for over time. On this incredibly honest episode you’ll hear about what it’s like behind the scenes of a large blog and podcast. We get into: - Why we started the Fizzle Show in the first place. What our strategies and goals were. - How to reframe the way you think about your relationship with your audience so you can have fresh insights about what to make. - How we pivot and get the content strategy back on track when it starts to feel too cumbersome. - What we’ve learned about the “long slog” of content creation over several years. Thank you for listening to the show. We’ve got a whole slew of good stuff planned for the next 200 episodes :) … but we wouldn’t have any fun doing this if you didn’t let us know it mattered to you. For all of you who listen, however much you do so, thank you for your hearts, your time and your attention. Now, please be our guest and enjoy episode 199 of the Fizzle Show: Show Notes: Fizzleshow.co/199</p>

<p>Might sound crazy, but in this podcast we literally teach you how to be successful. Simple as that. You want to become successful. You want to make headway towards your goal. You want to feel inspired and insightful about the work you do. You want to live life on your terms, employ your own damn self, define your own lifestyle. In this podcast we teach you — as I said — *literally* how to do that… how to get successful. It’s a deep dive into what we mean when we say “successful,” how that word bamboozles us, hoodwinks us and we lose touch with the very thing that’s going to contribute most to genuine success in our lives. BTW, this is not, like, some “The Secret” stuff or some pie-in-the-sky power of positivity… it’s cold hard empiricism and experience, but with real heart. You’re gonna like it. Make a cup of tea or coffee, invest an hour now in real, lasting success, and let’s dig in. Show Notes: Fizzleshow.co/198</p>

<p>What does it take to launch a popular podcast? Well, Steph just did it and on the show today she shares the 3 big tactics she learned so you have a better shot of doing it yourself. Oh, yea, btw, we’ve got a new podcast to tell you about :) Show Notes: fizzleshow.co/197</p>

<p>We surveyed Fizzle members and asked them: what is the most difficult thing in your business right now. Today on the show we talk about 3 of the most common responses to that question, offering in return some of that wisdom, humor and experience you’ve come to expect from the Fizzle Show. (BTW, you can see the results of the entire survey [here] with beautiful illustrations.) Enjoy!</p>

<p>I’ve been working for myself full time for a little under a decade now and I use tools to get my work done every day. Some tools are essential, like, I wouldn’t be able to get my work done without them. Others are just super helpful. On the show today we talk about 10 pieces of gear we rely on to get our work done. Some are fun, some are serious, some are perfect for that Amazon gift card you’ve got burning a hole in your pocket :) Be sure to subscribe and say hi in the comments below and enjoy this episode of The Fizzle Show! Show Notes: Fizzleshow.com/195</p>

<p>Today we are talking about goal setting… which is *not* a favorite subject of mine. If you feel the same way, this conversation is *for you* because the Steph will literally change everything you think and feel about goals. I know because it happened to me… live… as we recorded the episode. In this episode she walks us through a kind of 5-step process for setting REAL goals… not the fake stuff that you set and feel hopeful about for a few weeks before fizzling out. If you want to learn how to set goals that you’ll STICK with, press play and download the toolkit below to follow along. Enjoy! Read more: fizzleshow.co/194</p>

<p>There are 10 modern trends in small business you need to know about. 5 of them are recent, emerging, and the other 5 continue to be timeless. On the show today we’re going to walk you through each one. Enjoy! Oh wait, we are doing the first ever survey of fizzle show listeners and I want to hear your thoughts, Fizzleshow.co/survey I’ll tell you more about it in the episode, but if you’re at a computer right now go to Fizzleshow.co/survey. Okay lets do it. FizzleShow.co/193</p>