The Weekend Wind-Down #35 - October 27, 2024

This week is a special edition. I'm going to share with you everything you need to know about Before We Get There, the new podcast I started. I had the idea a month ago, and since then, I've worked a few hours a week in my free time to get everything ready. And now it's time to launch! You can watch the trailer on YouTube, or listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or any other podcast platform. The first episodes will drop on October 31, and new episodes will launch weekly on Thursdays (Singapore time). I'm super excited to start this journey and hope you enjoy listening.

Why I'm starting Before We Get There

I've been an avid podcast listener for over a decade, I find podcasts fantastic to listen to while commuting, working out, or doing chores. In particular, I enjoy interview podcasts that go far deeper than a traditional Late Night Talk Show segment and allow for deep conversations that evolve naturally rather than preplanned scripts. However, I had never thought about making my own podcast before. Recently I had the opportunity to be on a couple of podcasts as a guest, and I realized first, that I could be a competent conversationalist for an hour, and second, that I would rather be the person asking the questions than answering them. I've always been more of a listener than a talker, and this format fits that perfectly.

The other factor that led to me starting this podcast has been my experience supporting TEDx Singapore this year. I have been part of the core team planning this year's major event. What stuck out to me the most was identifying and reaching out to potential speakers. We had an open mic night where we invited around 10 people to share about themselves and why they could be a good speaker and my eyes were opened to the variety of interesting people doing cool things that they were eager to share about. I even reached out to an extremely well-known MMA star and she was happy to meet with us about joining the event. That's when I started thinking about the possibilities and other channels that could be used to learn from and share more about all kinds of interesting people.

Then I started listing down people I could think of off the top of my head that I thought would make good guests. Without even thinking deeply about it, I came up with 20 people I knew from the gym, previous jobs, and other connections that I wanted to have on the show. So I put out some feelers, and asked the first three people I had thought of, if I started a podcast, would they be a guest? They all said yes. That was all the encouragement I needed to get started.

What will you get from listening to Before We Get There

With an exciting lineup of guests already scheduled, when you listen to Before We Get There you'll hear from entrepreneurs, corporate leaders, creatives, athletes, people carving out their own paths, and more. I won’t just be talking to them about their work and careers, we’ll dig into many aspects of their lives that are part of their journey, from personal development, being a parent, relationships, hobbies, and beyond. This will be a chance for you to learn about a variety of people from different backgrounds; the challenges and successes they've had along the way, what lessons they've learned, and advice they have for others. I believe that in this day and age, our communication style is too often surface level and we don't have deeper conversations that allow us to get to know people and their stories. This podcast is your chance to hear those stories, and as I've already found, even the guests themselves walk away with new perspectives after some deep discussion and introspection. I hope that my curiosity and the experiences of the guests will help you see our lives from new perspectives and perhaps make you stop and think about what your journey is like Before We Get There.

That's all for this week, but don't forget to check out all the podcast links and make sure to subscribe on your channel of choice so you don't miss launch day and all the exciting episodes to come!