And here’s how it actually works.
You’ve been thinking about starting a podcast for a long time.
Months. Maybe years.
You’ve got ideas sitting in your head like books you swear you’ll read someday. You know what a good podcast sounds like because you’ve listened to plenty of them. You’ve pictured the conversations. The topics. The kind of impact it could have.
But you still haven’t hit record.
Maybe it’s the tech.
Maybe it’s the time.
Maybe it’s that quiet voice asking who you think you are to start a podcast when there are already a million of them.
After ten years of podcasting, here’s what I know.
Most people who want to start never do.
Not because they can’t.
Not because they shouldn’t.
They’re waiting for perfect.
Perfect timing.
Perfect gear.
Perfect confidence.
That moment never shows up.
This isn’t a “someday” project.
This is a weekend.
By the end of it, you’ll have a published episode.
Why the Weekend Approach Works
You don’t need months of planning to start a podcast.
The people who spend months planning usually never launch. They get stuck researching gear they don’t need yet. They compare themselves to shows that have been around for years. They try to solve problems that only exist after episode twenty.
A weekend works because it removes the noise.
You give yourself a short window. That creates urgency without panic. You make decisions faster because you have to. There’s no time to overthink music, logos, or whether your mic is “good enough.”
Done beats perfect.
Every time.
Your first episode does not need to be great.
It just needs to exist.
What This Weekend Actually Looks Like
Here’s how this plays out in real life.
Friday Night:Concept and Direction
About 2 to 3 hours.
Open a notebook or a doc.
Answer three things.
What is your podcast about in one sentence?
Not a paragraph. One sentence.
Examples:
- I help dads stay engaged in their kids’ lives.
- I talk with founders about the mistakes they don’t post online.
- I cover actual crime cases that most people have never heard of.
What’s the format?
Solo. Interview. Pick one. You can change it later.
List your first five episode ideas.
Just topics or names. No scripts. This gives you direction without locking you in.
That’s it. Shut the laptop. Friday is done.
Saturday:Record and Edit
About 4 to 6 hours total.
Find a quiet spot. Closets work. Bedrooms work. Rooms with furniture sound better than empty spaces.
Set up your recording.
USB mic if you have one.
Your phone if you don’t.
Record a short test. Listen back. If you can hear yourself clearly, you’re good.
Record the episode. Keep going even when you stumble. Don’t restart every time you mess up. You’ll clean it up later.
Edit the recording.
Audacity is free.
GarageBand comes with Macs.
Cut long pauses. Cut obvious mistakes. Make it listenable, not perfect.
Add a simple intro and outro.
“Welcome to the show. I’m Joe.”
That’s enough.
Export it as an MP3.
You’re done recording.
Sunday:Publish and Share
About 3 to 4 hours.
Pick a podcast host. Buzzsprout. Spotify for Podcasters. Libsyn. Any of them work. Stop overthinking this.
Upload your episode.
Create cover art. Canva has templates. Pick one. Put the show name on it.
Write simple show notes. A short description. A few bullets. Maybe a link if it matters.
Hit publish.
Then tell people.
Post it.
Email a few friends.
Text three people who would care.
Don’t apologize for it.
Don’t say “it’s not great but…”
Just share it.
Your podcast is live.
What You Don’t Need
You don’t need expensive gear.
You don’t need professional editing software.
You don’t need custom music or a fancy website.
You don’t need followers before you start.
You don’t need permission.
You don’t need to sound like anyone else.
You just need to start.
What You Do Need
You need a reason. Not a business plan. A reason.
“I want to have conversations that matter.”
“I want to share what I’m learning.”
“I want to build something that’s mine.”
You need one episode’s worth of something to say.
You need basic tools.
A phone or a laptop.
Headphones help but aren’t required.
You need a few focused hours.
And you need to be willing to be new at this.
Messy.
Rough.
Learning as you go.
The Real Obstacle
The hardest part isn’t the tech.
It’s the voice in your head.
“Who am I to start a podcast?”
You’re someone with a voice. That’s enough.
“What if nobody listens?”
Someone will, even if it’s two people. Those two count.
“What if I’m not good?”
You won’t be at first. Nobody is. You get better by doing it.
Your first episode isn’t the goal.
It’s the starting line.
The people who succeed aren’t the ones who wait.
They’re the ones who started messily and kept showing up.
This Could Be Your Weekend
You’ve got a weekend coming up.
What if this is the one where you finally do it?
It won’t be perfect. You might feel exposed when you hit publish. That’s normal.
But it’ll be yours.
And it’ll be real.
That’s how this starts.
If you want the step-by-step roadmap I wish I had when I started, I built it for you.
It’s called Start Your Podcast in a Weekend.
It walks you from idea to published episode in 72 hours. Every decision. Every tool. Every moment where people usually get stuck.
It also includes a Custom GPT that acts like a podcast launch coach. You ask questions. It keeps you moving. It helps you decide without spiraling.
You don’t have to figure this out alone.
👉 Check it out here: The Custom GPT That Forces You to Finish
Your voice matters.
Let’s get it out there.