Each week interview successful founders to give aspiring entrepreneurs the tools they need to build their dream lives.
Each week interview successful founders to give aspiring entrepreneurs the tools they need to build their dream lives.
"...to really think about what you want to be known for before starting."
Today Maddie Kelley, the creator of Mimir shares her story of entrepreneurship podcast.
► Tell us about you and your podcast
Hi! I'm Maddie, host of Mimir. Two years ago, I was unemployed and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life. My dream was to be my own boss and have my own company. But I had no idea how to make that dream a reality. So, the only thing I could think to do at the time, was leverage the wisdom of entrepreneurs before me. As an aspiring entrepreneur, I wanted to learn as much as I could from successful founders across a wide range of industries, so when the time came for me to venture out on my own, I could (hopefully) be ready.
Each week on Mimir, I dive deep into the entrepreneur journey to give you, and me, the tools necessary to build our dream lives! My sincerest hope is that by tuning in, aspiring entrepreneurs will find the inspiration and the know-how to take the first steps towards those dreams.
My biggest frustration with other business podcasts as an aspiring entrepreneur was how high level they were. Everyone would say, "yep we started the business two years ago and then got our really big break and here we are now." But no one talked about what happened in those two years to get that big break. That's the information I need at this stage in order to start my business and get it off the ground.
So, that's what I heavily focus on for Mimir. I want people to find not only inspiration and mindset tips, but also actionable takeaways that they can apply today to help them get from zero to one.
► Why & how did you start this podcast?
I was actually very against the idea of a podcast at first. I figured that everyone did podcasts and I didn't want to be another fish in a large ocean. So, when I started Mimir, it was actually a blog! It was the same concept, I would interview successful founders, but afterwards I would write an article and publish it on my website mimir.ink.
Funnily enough, everyone assumed it was a podcast and kept asking me when the interviews would be posted on Apple or Spotify. After enough times of people being confused that it wasn't a podcast, I decided to give the people what they want, and last November I transitioned Mimir into a podcast, and I'm so glad I did. I'd always loved making YouTube videos and I'm an avid podcast consumer, so when I tried interviewing I found that it came really naturally to me.
Also, it was way easier to make podcasts than to write articles. Trying to squeeze in all the wisdom from an hour interview into a blog post was nearly impossible. Everyone has different takeaways when it comes to listening to interviews and I didn't want to leave any nugget of wisdom out.
My ultimate goal for this podcast is that it inspires someone to take that first step in building their dream lives - whether that's starting that tech platform they've always dreamed about, writing that book, launching their ceramics company, or becoming a social media content creator.
► How'd you find the time and funding to do this podcast?
I release episodes every Monday. Finding the time to edit is actually pretty easy. My dad used to say that if you're lucky enough to do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life, and I really love interviewing other founders. Getting to connect with like minded individuals, learn from their experiences, and share their wisdom with other people like me is incredibly fulfilling. The idea that I'm helping someone build their dreams is like magic to me. I couldn't imagine not podcasting anymore.
I don't think I've missed one week of posting since I launched (well maybe I took one week off during the holidays or something). But other than that, it was important to me to remain disciplined. I figured if I was going to be an entrepreneur, I had to be able to manage my time well enough to post one episode a week. If I couldn't do that, then I wasn't cut out for entrepreneurship.
I actually did a whole solo episode on how I manage my time with my day job. I get super in depth on the exact format I use to set my days and weeks up for success. If you want to learn more about how I do that, check it out!
The podcast is entirely self funded. I do all the editing myself to save money. At first, I thought I needed to hire someone to help me with the sound editing. But because I do vlogs as well, I discovered that I could do all the editing in iMovie. It's pretty easy! I also make all my own social posts etc. I don't know exactly how much I spend, but all in all it's pretty low cost.
► What do you gain from podcasting?
I don't currently make any revenue from the podcast. One day I would love to open it up to subscriptions or have sponsors. When I first launched, I was heavily focused on getting funding for the podcast. I used to think that you weren't a real podcast until you had sponsors, that that's how you knew you were successful.
But I quickly realized that line of thinking was going to lead to burnout. I needed to reframe my mindset. So I started to see the podcast as a journey, and that sponsorship would come in the future, but for now, I just need to enjoy the process and focus on why I do this podcast.
I don't podcast to make money, I do it to help other people achieve their dreams. If the podcast is doing that already, then I'm happy and I feel like it's successful. Frankly, if I never made any money from this venture, I would be okay with that.
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► How does your podcasting process look like?
My editing process is pretty streamlined. I use Riverside to record my podcast. Then I export the file to iMovie and make both the audio files and YouTube videos from there. That process probably takes me about 2-2.5hours total. I think because I practiced so much on iMovie with making vlogs that it really set me up for success for editing the podcast. I find it to be pretty easy and low lift.
It's a dream of mine to have a studio one day and host in person interviews. I think there would be such magic in connecting face to face. But for now, I get the chance to talk with people all over the world and connect via video chat.
When I started podcasting, a lot of other podcasters warned me that getting guests would be really hard. But that hasn't been my experience at all. I've been very lucky to have a steady stream of guests that want to be featured on the pod. I owe most of that to matchmaker.fm, a platform designed to connect guests and podcasts. I found out about this service when I published my first book. I started using it as a guest and now I use it to find them. I recommend it to all other podcasters.
► How do you market your show?
Mimir is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube. The majority of my streams are on Apple (45%) and the other is Spotify. I think people enjoy watching podcasts on YouTube too! It's interesting though because I think YouTube is a very different demographic than those who are exclusively listening on Spotify or Apple.
When it comes to promotion, I post on YouTube shorts, Instagram and TikTok. I find that those channels are the best way to promote because I use them the most frequently. I've invested a lot of time in building my online community through those channels so it makes the most sense for me to promote there. Someone else might have a better time on Linkedin or other social avenues.
► What advice would you share with aspiring (new) podcasters?
My biggest advice that I would give to aspiring podcasters is to really think about what you want to be known for before starting. I think the reason so many people stop podcasting, or get burnt out, is because they're not being authentic.
I spent weeks figuring out what I wanted to talk about and ensuring that entrepreneurialism wasn't something I was ever going to be sick of. We're all multi-faceted human beings with a wide range of interests. But I knew if I did a fashion or wellness podcast, I would eventually lose steam. It's not my true passion.
I believe that following your true passions will never lead you astray. I think it's why the podcast feels so easy for me to create. It's not something I have to force myself to do because this podcast is a reflection of who I am at my core. So my biggest advice would be to find what that equivalent is to you.
On a more tactical level, the above advice will apply to how you edit, what channels you promote etc. What works for some might not work for you and that's okay! That just gives you alternate spaces to succeed in. You just need to focus on how you can create continuously and with joy. Truly the hardest part of this journey will be starting.
Don't hyper fixate on making your first episode, or your website "perfect." I've iterated a hundred times since launching last November.
If you're looking for helpful resources, I have an episode on my podcast dedicated to what makes a successful podcast
. Also, I'm always happy to take a 15 min call and chat through any questions someone might have! Just shoot me an email and we can connect.
► Where can we learn more about you & your podcasts?
All the relevant links in one place: https://linktr.ee/himaddiekelley
OR
IG: https://instagram.com/himaddiekelley
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@himaddiekelley?_t=8pnwCImkvOd&_r=1
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-Dec-VHMSoR5sNExmtwQUA/
Website: https://www.mimir.ink/
Apple Podcasts:
Spotify Podcasts:
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