What would happen if an expert in mindset, marketing, sales, and leadership with more than 30 years of entrepreneurship experience were willing to share the principles, playbooks, and processes he and his successful guests had learned with you? It would speed up your success. Welcome to The MindShift Podcast. Join host Darrell Evans and his amazing guests as they help you shift your mind so you can shift your results.
https://www.themindshiftpodcast.com
89: Fraud Investigator Turned Podcast Editor & Producer [transcript]
Today is a special episode as we sit down with our show’s producer, Leah Bryant from Leah Bryant Co. She is a fraud investigator turned podcast editor and producer. She went from fighting crime to conquering “ums” and “uhs”.
As a strategic podcast producer, she helps coaches launch and maintain their podcasts so they can share their inspirational and helpful messages without the podcast taking over their lives. She takes her superpowers from being an investigator, like her attention to detail and the ability to look at a problem from 10,000 feet, and finds a solution and strategy that best fits your podcasting needs.
She has the ability to show up confidently and inspire you to take the action you need to get your message out there. So if you’re looking to launch a podcast or you’re moving towards hiring a producer, you’re in for a treat with this episode.
Here are three reasons why you should listen to the full Episode:
- Discover the journey from fraud investigator to podcast producer.
- Find out how Leah accomplished exponential growth in her business.
- Learn some actionable tips for creating a great podcast.
Enjoying The MindShift Podcast?
Click here to follow on Apple Podcasts. While there, please leave a 5-star rating and review. Also, if you haven't done so already, join the free MindShift Community to connect with other like-minded people. Don't forget to tag me @mrdarrellevans on Instagram.
Thanks for listening,
Darrell
00:36 Leah Bryant
It came to a point
00:36
for me where it was like, okay,
00:39
yes, writing checks to someone
00:39
else is scary because you're
00:42
seeing that money leave, right
00:42
that you have. And at the end of
00:46
the day, if I write this check
00:46
to someone on my team, and they
00:51
can bring those zone of genius,
00:51
then that's giving me more time
00:55
that I can bring in more money,
00:55
right? I can find more clients.
00:59
So that way, the money that's
00:59
going out, well, there's gonna
01:01
be more that's gonna come in. So
01:01
we just kind of switch that
01:04
mindset to. I'm losing it. No,
01:04
no, no, I am opening the doors
01:09
to get more in return, right.
01:13 The MindShift Podcast
This is
01:13
The MindShift Podcast where we
01:15
share real stories, real
01:15
strategies that will help you
01:19
find real success. This is the
01:19
place to hear from people just
01:22
like you who have taken their
01:22
ideas, goals and dreams from a
01:26
point of inspiration to
01:26
realization or when life knock
01:29
them down from a point of break
01:29
down to break through. I'm your
01:33
host Darrell Evans. Let's get
01:33
started with today's episode.
01:40 Darrell Evans
Hey, my friend
01:40
welcome back to another episode
01:42
of The MindShift Podcast. I'm
01:42
your host, Darrell Evans. I'm
01:44
excited to have you here. Thank
01:44
you so much for taking time out
01:48
of your day to, spend it here
01:48
with us. If this is your first
01:51
time here, I would encourage you
01:51
to hit the follow and subscribe
01:54
button so you never miss an
01:54
episode. That is of course, if
01:57
you love today's episode, and I
01:57
know you will. Today's a special
02:01
episode for me because I have my
02:01
show's producer. On the show
02:07
today. Her name is Leah Bryant.
02:07
She is a former fraud
02:11
investigator, turned podcast
02:11
editor and producer she went
02:15
from fighting crime to
02:15
conquering ums and uhs is
02:22
basically the same thing. She's
02:22
a strategic Podcast Producer
02:26
helping coaches launch and
02:26
maintain their podcasts so they
02:30
can share their inspirational
02:30
and helpful messages without the
02:34
podcast taking over their lives.
02:34
And let me tell you, we're going
02:39
to talk about how it was taken
02:39
over my life. She takes her
02:41
superpowers from being an
02:41
investigator, which I can't wait
02:44
to pull apart and share with you
02:44
because I know a little bit
02:47
about that. It's her attention
02:47
to detail. It's her ability to
02:51
look over a problem at a 10,000
02:51
foot level. But then dig in and
02:55
find a solution and a strategy
02:55
that best fits your needs. When
03:00
it comes to podcasting, in
03:00
addition to helping manage and
03:05
launch over 200 episodes on 13
03:05
different shows. She helps
03:10
coaches learn how podcasting can
03:10
grow their audience of raving
03:15
fans and increase their income.
03:15
She has a custom approach in
03:19
launching and managing shows.
03:19
And she really can work with you
03:22
if you're thinking about
03:22
launching a podcast or if you're
03:24
listening right now. And you
03:24
already have a podcast, but it's
03:27
taking over your life and kind
03:27
of like I was I don't know how
03:31
many months ago, I was just
03:31
loving the show, but drown in
03:34
the back end. She has an ability
03:34
to show up confidently and
03:36
inspire you to take the action
03:36
you need to get your message out
03:39
there. And I remember when we
03:39
first met and when we got
03:42
introduced, I thought her
03:42
tagline on her website. It just
03:46
spoke directly to me. You're in
03:46
front of the mic behind the mic.
03:50
Leah Bryant. Welcome to the
03:50
show.
03:52 Leah Bryant
Thanks, Darrell.
03:52
It's a pleasure to be here.
03:55 Darrell Evans
Where do we want
03:55
to start fraud investigator?
03:57
Let's just get right into it
03:57
fraud investigator to a Podcast
04:01
Producer. I am not seeing the
04:01
bridge doesn't work. Tell
04:08
everybody first of all a little
04:08
bit about yourself where you
04:10
from? And let's start there.
04:10
Sure. So I
04:13 Leah Bryant
I am currently
04:13
outside of Cincinnati. And
04:16
originally I'm from Kentucky
04:16
farm girl here. So funny farm
04:21
girl to fraud to podcasting.
04:26 Darrell Evans
We're gonna laugh
04:26
a bit y'all today, just so you
04:27
know.
04:28 Leah Bryant
Yes!
04:28 Darrell Evans
Every Thursday,
04:28
we have our production meeting.
04:30
And we spent a bunch of time
04:30
laughing. So hope y'all are in
04:33
for some fun today.
04:34 Leah Bryant
Yes, life is fun
04:34
and serious at the same time.
04:37
Right. So just to give you a
04:37
little backstory, I actually
04:41
started as a bill collector. And
04:41
while that was great, it just
04:47
wasn't a good fit for me. And I
04:47
had a manager at the time, say,
04:51
you know, I think that you'd be
04:51
really great at investigation
04:55
because you have their skill
04:55
sets, right? You're able to dig
04:58
into the details, find the
04:58
missing pieces and kind of like
05:03
see how they all come together
05:03
in the end. And I was like,
05:07
Okay, let's do this. So I went
05:07
into investigating credit card
05:11
and debit card fraud. And I did
05:11
that for almost 10 years. And it
05:16
was so amazing. It was so much
05:16
fun. Fraud is just something
05:19
different every day. You wish
05:19
that they would utilize those
05:23
skills for the good of the
05:23
world.
05:26 Darrell Evans
Right.
05:27 Leah Bryant
Committing crime,
05:27
because they're very, very, very
05:29
smart what they do. Then you get
05:29
to the point where I was ready
05:33
to start a family with my then
05:33
new husband David, we've now
05:38
been together for almost 10
05:38
years. And it was very stressful
05:42
for me my job. And so I was
05:42
like, You know what, I should
05:45
probably just go home as they
05:45
say, and try to start a family.
05:49
So we did that. And being a
05:49
mother, I'm blessed. And I don't
05:54
mean to say this to sound any
05:54
other way than that. But I was
05:57
kind of like, I need something
05:57
for me, I need something to
06:00
occupy my time to mentally
06:00
stimulate me, help me to use my
06:05
strategic side that I love to
06:05
do. And someone said, Well, you
06:09
know, you could be a virtual
06:09
assistant and work from home and
06:11
still have the time to spend
06:11
with your son. That was
06:14
brilliant. I was like, Okay,
06:14
let's do that. And while virtual
06:18
assisting was great, it was very
06:18
busy. I had a lot of fun, had
06:22
great clients, but I wasn't
06:22
fulfilled in the way that I
06:25
wasn't utilizing all those skill
06:25
sets that I missed using. So
06:29
someone said, you know, Leah,
06:29
you love podcasts? Yes, I do.
06:33
I've listened to podcasts for as
06:33
long as I can remember, just
06:37
kind of listening really, to
06:37
everything, mostly true crime,
06:41
you know, it's always got to
06:41
find who did it and why they did
06:45
it and all those good things.
06:45
But I was like, Okay, let's look
06:50
into what it takes to manage or
06:50
edit or produce a podcast. And I
06:55
found a course, that was able to
06:55
support me and all this
06:58
learning. And I was just like,
06:58
oh, my gosh, this is the best
07:01
fit ever. And so it just kind of
07:01
transitioned from there. And my
07:04
business has just grown
07:04
exponentially in the past half
07:08
of the year, I would say,
07:08
because, you know, when you find
07:11
something that you love, and
07:11
that you're good at, then your
07:15
clients appreciate the fact that
07:15
you do your job well. And then
07:18
they would then in turn, spread
07:18
the word, right? Like, she's
07:21
great. So and that brings us to
07:21
where we are now. And I get to
07:24
work with you. So it's so much
07:24
fun.
07:27 Darrell Evans
Yeah, you know, a
07:27
few things to really unpack
07:30
there that I think just a couple
07:30
of themes that I heard, and I
07:34
want the listener to hear. And
07:34
that is, you know, your decision
07:38
to start a family, there was a
07:38
little bit of emptiness there.
07:41
And there was this gratitude and
07:41
this lovely idea of starting a
07:46
family and being home. But
07:46
there's a unique skill set and a
07:48
unique what I like to call it,
07:48
you've heard me say this
07:51
superstar DNA that's inside of
07:51
you. There's these unique
07:54
skills, these unique gifts,
07:54
these perspectives and insights
07:58
that you only have and you're
07:58
thinking, but now I can't use
08:02
those. And so there's this
08:02
natural wrestling right of
08:05
unsettledness that I can't do
08:05
what I'm actually gifted at
08:09
doing. And so I love that you
08:09
said, Okay, let me now figure
08:13
out how to pivot and align those
08:13
skill sets, because you'll be
08:17
wrestlers. And if you're
08:17
listening to this, you know what
08:18
that feeling is like, you know,
08:18
when you're out of alignment
08:22
with your gift, and you feel it.
08:22
So I love that you said, let me
08:25
just start looking around,
08:25
because some people just sit in
08:27
it and end up unfortunately, you
08:27
know, things could be
08:31
depressing, they could have
08:31
anxiety. And so you're just
08:33
like, let me figure out how to
08:33
make this work with my home
08:36
life. Um, so I love that. Number
08:36
two, was this going towards your
08:40
passion, like you already
08:40
enjoyed listening to podcast.
08:44
And so you follow that itch. And
08:44
we talk a lot about like, Don't
08:47
do something just because it
08:47
makes money, don't do something
08:50
because it aligns with your
08:50
skills, even do it because you
08:53
actually enjoy the work. Like, I
08:53
already am interested in that.
08:57
And so I love those two, two
08:57
ideas. So talk a little bit
09:01
about you said your business has
09:01
grown exponentially. In the
09:04
last, you know, several months,
09:04
by the way, we're a year and a
09:07
half into a pandemic at this
09:07
time of recording this. And so,
09:11
talk a little bit about your
09:11
business growth. And you know,
09:14
what has led to your business
09:14
growing? And obviously, for
09:18
those listening, who are not
09:18
running a podcast, talk a little
09:20
bit about that growth story,
09:20
because I think a lot of
09:22
entrepreneurs who start they
09:22
think how could I get my
09:24
business to grow exponentially.
09:26 Leah Bryant
Right? So a big
09:26
piece of that is finding what
09:30
you love to do, right? What gets
09:30
you excited to get out of bed
09:33
every day, be able to get up and
09:33
be like, Oh my gosh, I get to
09:35
make a difference. I can help
09:35
someone have time so that they
09:40
can go and spend with their
09:40
family or do things that they
09:43
love to do. And once I was able
09:43
to really hone in on that, and
09:49
then also kind of like zero in
09:49
on whom I wanted to help in that
09:54
regard. As far as having as a
09:54
client. I went from serving kind
09:57
of like anybody who wanted to
09:57
start a podcast. I'm your girl
10:02
being really niched down as they
10:02
say to coaches, right? It helped
10:08
me to be able to speak to that
10:08
client in a way that they
10:13
understood and it resonated with
10:13
them. And I feel like that's
10:16
what's really helped grow my
10:16
business. And then also kind of
10:20
like investing back into myself,
10:20
right? Like we can invest in our
10:23
business. At the end of the day.
10:23
That's great. But what's
10:26
important is, is you as an
10:26
entrepreneur, investing in
10:29
yourself, whether that be
10:29
furthering education, self care,
10:35
or you know, anything that We'll
10:35
help you as a person grow,
10:38
because I think that you growing
10:38
will also help your business
10:41
grow in the end.
10:42 Darrell Evans
Yeah, you work
10:42
from home, right?
10:45 Leah Bryant
I do.
10:45 Darrell Evans
And you have a
10:45
son, right?
10:48 Leah Bryant
Yeah, I have a
10:48
three and a half year old.
10:50 Darrell Evans
And talk about
10:50
work life balance in the home
10:54
when you know, you've got a
10:54
young child in the house. Let's
10:57
talk a little bit about that.
10:57
How do you manage?
10:59 Leah Bryant
Sure. So I love to
10:59
get up really, really early. And
11:03
I also go to bed really, really
11:03
late. So in the early,
11:08 Darrell Evans
you said, Lucky.
11:08
Did I You said lucky? I don't
11:12
know. You shouldn't say that to
11:12
me. I can't that's the first
11:17
time I heard that one.
11:18 Leah Bryant
I just for some
11:18
reason don't require a lot of
11:21
sleep. And so I'm grateful for
11:21
that. Right? Because it gives me
11:23
those extra hours.
11:26 Darrell Evans
We're not gonna
11:26
digress, but oh, you know, you
11:31
don't need very much sleep. What
11:31
are you not human? Anyway,
11:38
alright, we'll come back to that
11:38
later.
11:40 Leah Bryant
But those early
11:40
morning hours, when the house is
11:43
really quiet, I usually just
11:43
like jump in and do a lot of
11:46
like editing work. And then in
11:46
the afternoon, if there's nap
11:49
time, if I'm blessed with
11:49
naptime, any moms out there who
11:53
have toddlers know exactly what
11:53
I'm talking about. Or at night,
11:58
once everybody has kind of gone
11:58
to bed, or we're kind of
12:00
settling down for the evening is
12:00
when I jump in and like either
12:03
continue editing or do other
12:03
like business tasks that I need
12:06
to do for clients. So it's just
12:06
kind of the great thing about
12:09
being an entrepreneur, it's not
12:09
me working to fit someone else's
12:13
schedule. It's I'm working to
12:13
fit my own schedule. So if
12:17
working in the early morning
12:17
works, then I do it. If working
12:20
in the afternoon works, then I
12:20
do it. And that's such a
12:23
blessing, I think in regards to
12:23
being an entrepreneur as being
12:26
able to set those times.
12:28 Darrell Evans
Do you ever feel
12:28
overwhelmed by the variation of
12:31
scheduling throughout the day,
12:31
because obviously, with a three
12:34
year old, you know, nap time
12:34
could happen? Nap time couldn't?
12:37
Course, we've had plenty of
12:37
meetings where he's walked in
12:39
the room, and I see a little
12:39
angst on your face sometimes.
12:42
And I'm thinking it's all good.
12:42
Like, it's all good. But talk to
12:45
us about that. Let's keep it 100
12:45
Right.
12:48 Leah Bryant
Yeah, at the
12:48
beginning, it was stressful. I'm
12:50
not gonna lie, right? Cuz, you
12:50
know, I'm trying to building a
12:53
business I'm trying to set you
12:53
know, how I...
12:56 Darrell Evans
Professional
12:56
expectation, yeah.
12:57 Leah Bryant
Exactly, exactly.
12:57
And, you know, having, you know,
13:01
a guest come on my Zoom calls,
13:01
and he's three and a half. And
13:04
it's just like, what's your
13:04
name? You know, it's a
13:08 Darrell Evans
production
13:08
assistant.
13:10 Leah Bryant
Exactly, I love it.
13:10
But, you know, it's just kind of
13:14
like, being able to understand
13:14
that I've set those expectations
13:19
at the beginning, hey, I work
13:19
from home, I have a toddler,
13:22
like, you are gonna see him. My
13:22
clients understand that. And I
13:25
think that realizing this, and
13:25
also I've starting to hire a
13:30
team, it also kind of helps
13:30
alleviate some of that stress as
13:33
well. So those two things
13:33
together, I think have really
13:37
helps with the stress side and
13:37
being able to balance
13:39
everything.
13:40 Darrell Evans
Yeah, I think
13:40
it's, you know, I use the phrase
13:43
work life integration.
13:44 Leah Bryant
Yeah
13:45 Darrell Evans
Especially when
13:45
just the life of an
13:47
entrepreneur, this is even
13:47
before I was working 100%. And
13:50
we went 100% virtual with my
13:50
company. But the idea of work
13:54
life balance can often mean we
13:54
win or lose in one of the
13:57
categories of the other. And I
13:57
just don't think that's a fair
14:01
assessment, and it can weigh us
14:01
down. I think it's about coming
14:04
up with an integrative approach
14:04
to both activities, because you
14:09
love them equally, right? You
14:09
love your family, love your time
14:12
with your child, you love your
14:12
time with your spouse, but at
14:15
the same time you love this
14:15
passion of yours. And so I
14:17
really believe it's work life
14:17
integration, I'm talking a lot
14:19
about that. You are building a
14:19
team now. And that's exciting.
14:24
And talk to the audience.
14:24
Because there's a lot of
14:27
solopreneur solo practitioners
14:27
who get started in their
14:30
entrepreneurial venture and make
14:30
the mistake of doing it too long
14:35
by themselves. I'm raising my
14:35
hand here, for those that are on
14:39
audio only. I've done it too
14:39
many times. But the value of
14:44
expanding your team and making
14:44
the investment talk a little bit
14:47
about that at this early stage
14:47
in your business.
14:50 Leah Bryant
Sure. So I will
14:50
preface this by saying that when
14:52
I started producing podcasts,
14:52
managing and editing, I had no
14:58
want to start a team. I was
14:58
like, that's not really my
15:02
thing. I'm gonna do me, I'm
15:02
gonna do my business and serve
15:05
my clients and we're be great.
15:05
Call it a day. And it got to the
15:08
point where I was getting very,
15:08
very busy, which I am so
15:12
grateful for. And it just got to
15:12
the point where I was like,
15:15
Okay, let's be smart about this.
15:15
I need help. It's like, Hi, I'm
15:19
Leah and I need some help. So I
15:19
was able to voice that out and
15:22
it felt good. And for a long
15:22
time, I was very stubborn. I'm
15:28
gonna do this myself. I'm gonna
15:28
do this myself. Well, at the end
15:31
of the day, you really can't do
15:31
things by yourself if you want
15:35
to grow a business In my
15:35
opinion, but I was able to kind
15:39
of hone in, I know that this
15:39
phrase was thrown around a lot,
15:42
but narrow in on that zone of
15:42
genius, right, which is I love
15:47
to edit. And editing takes up a
15:47
big chunk of my time. So I was
15:50
able to kind of sit down and
15:50
realize, okay, I love to edit.
15:55
Let's find someone to help me
15:55
with transcriptions, or let's
15:58
find someone to help with show
15:58
notes. Because I am not a
16:02
copywriter, I don't do well with
16:02
that. So it's able to like,
16:04
okay, that's easy enough, let's
16:04
give it to someone else. And
16:07
then, you know, find someone to
16:07
help with editing for YouTube,
16:10
because now podcasts are going
16:10
from audio only to audio and
16:13
video, which I think is really
16:13
amazing. And just various
16:17
different aspects of the
16:17
business that I could find
16:20
someone else who that is their
16:20
zone of genius. And we can come
16:23
together and serve clients
16:23
really, really well. And it's
16:28
kind of like happened within a
16:28
span of like, 35 days.
16:31 Darrell Evans
Wow.
16:32 Leah Bryant
When I was like,
16:32
I'm gonna do it all myself too.
16:35
And I work with five women, and
16:35
it's just amazing. Like, I am
16:39
grateful for them and their
16:39
service to the clients that we
16:42
work with. And their abilities
16:42
and skill sets that they bring
16:46
to the table is really amazing.
16:48 Darrell Evans
Leah, that's such
16:48
a, if you're listening this, you
16:52
don't miss what she just said,
16:52
she needed to zone in on her
16:56
zone of genius, I call it that
16:56
superstar DNA. And then every
16:59
minute, hour week, month that
16:59
she was doing the other stuff
17:04
that was outside of her custom
17:04
skill. She was not only going to
17:08
hurt herself, but her business,
17:08
there's something else in there
17:11
that in order to get to that
17:11
place, you have to keep the main
17:14
thing, the main thing and that
17:14
is sales, right? She had to go
17:18
acquire customers. And in order
17:18
to acquire those customers to
17:21
then say, you said something,
17:21
and I want to go back to you
17:24
said, you got to the point where
17:24
like, do I want this to be a
17:28
business? And if so then I need
17:28
to get some help. Something like
17:32
that is how you put it.
17:33 Leah Bryant
Yeah.
17:33 Darrell Evans
And I think there
17:33
lies the distinction. I'll talk
17:36
about myself, in this case, when
17:36
I started this show. I didn't
17:39
know what I wanted to do with it
17:39
other than to record cool people
17:42
and talk about the journey from
17:42
inspiration realization from
17:45
break down to break through now
17:45
it's, you know, sure, there was
17:47
a bigger idea of maybe what I
17:47
wanted to do, but I wasn't
17:50
committed to that. It was just
17:50
like, hey, let's start
17:52
interviewing some cool people.
17:52
And, of course, now there's The
17:55
MindShift Business Academy and
17:55
all the things. And it was let
17:59
me see were two years and we've
17:59
been working together for what,
18:01
nine months now. Something like
18:01
that.
18:03 Leah Bryant
Yeah.
18:04 Darrell Evans
And so it was
18:04
finally when I made that same
18:06
distinction for this business to
18:06
say it is a business. It's not
18:11
just a podcast. And the minute
18:11
you make that distinction, that
18:15
it's a business, then now you've
18:15
got to treat it differently,
18:18
which is and I think from the
18:18
time I spoke to you, we were
18:21
working together within weeks,
18:21
was it? I mean? Yeah, it was
18:25
long, because I was done. I was
18:25
cooked with editing this thing.
18:30
I was years, and it took my
18:30
executive assistant say, why are
18:34
you doing that? And so it
18:34
doesn't matter how long you've
18:38
been in business, we all go back
18:38
to if it, I can do it better
18:41
than anybody else. Like we all
18:41
make this mistake as
18:43
entrepreneurs. So I just wanted
18:43
to share that because you made
18:47
the distinction. And then you
18:47
made the investment. And I know
18:50
a lot of people listening to the
18:50
show, they're afraid to start
18:53
writing checks to other people.
18:53
Right, I want to talk a bit
18:56
about how do you manage your
18:56
team? How do you find your team?
19:00
Let's talk about those two
19:00
points. Because I talk to a lot
19:03
of entrepreneurs, they're afraid
19:03
to put people on payroll, or
19:06
into a contractual agreement
19:06
where there's a monthly
19:08
recurring expense. And there's a
19:08
distinction of what was it for
19:13
you? And how do you manage that?
19:14 Leah Bryant
It came to a point
19:14
for me where it was like, okay,
19:18
yes, writing checks to someone
19:18
else is scary, because you're
19:21
seeing that money leave, right
19:21
that you have. And at the end of
19:24
the day, if I write this check
19:24
to someone on my team, and they
19:30
can bring their zone of genius.
19:30
And that's giving me more time
19:34
that I can bring in more money,
19:34
right, I can find more clients.
19:37
So that way, the money that's
19:37
going out, well, there's gonna
19:40
be more that's gonna come in. So
19:40
we just kind of switch that
19:43
mindset to, I'm losing it. No,
19:43
no, no, I am opening the doors
19:48
to get more in return. Right? So
19:48
not only am I helping someone,
19:54
by working with them, right as a
19:54
subcontractor on my team. And I
19:59
typically am working with women
19:59
only because I like the whole
20:02
effect of empowering women in
20:02
this space, because behind the
20:05
scenes is predominately male,
20:05
such as to be able to build a
20:09
team of women but you know, to
20:11 Darrell Evans
You don't have to
20:11
shy away from you. Yeah, I'm
20:15
working with women. I'm trying
20:15
to elevate my people.
20:19 Leah Bryant
Exactly. And you
20:19
know, and just kind of realizing
20:22
that switching that mindset from
20:22
oh I'm losing something No, no,
20:26
no, I'm not only am I helping
20:26
someone else by giving them the
20:31
opportunity to either like train
20:31
on the job learning or just come
20:35
exactly with their zone of
20:35
genius and do what they do. But
20:38
I'm also opening up those doors
20:38
to bring in more, right, bring
20:42
in more clients help more
20:42
people. And I think that that is
20:45
really the key thing to think
20:45
about when you're a wanting to
20:49
start a team or grow a team, and
20:49
it's like, oh, I don't know,
20:52
think about that, instead of
20:52
losing, you're actually gaining.
20:56
At first, it may not seem that
20:56
way. But believe me, it will
20:59
happen. And when it does, you're
20:59
gonna be like, Oh, my gosh, why
21:01
didn't I do this sooner, but
21:01
it's been really amazing. And
21:05
just getting really clear on
21:05
what you want your team to do, I
21:10
think is also important as far
21:10
as the managing aspect, because
21:13
once you get clear on your zone
21:13
of genius, what you need someone
21:17
else to do or help you with. And
21:17
then you bring those people in,
21:20
then it kind of like all lines
21:20
together, you know, you do your
21:23
part, and then it just kind of
21:23
all falls into place of each
21:26
person who does theirs. So it's
21:26
been pretty phenomenal in that
21:29
regard.
21:30 Darrell Evans
Yeah, it's kind
21:30
of interesting, because, you
21:33
know, and I love the way you
21:33
think about it. And there's so
21:35
much about how you're thinking
21:35
about entrepreneurship. Is this
21:38
your first entrepreneurial
21:38
venture?
21:40 Leah Bryant
It is.
21:41 Darrell Evans
Well, I would say
21:41
that there's a lot of great
21:43
thinking that you exhibit as a
21:43
entrepreneur who's not had a ton
21:48
of experience in
21:48
entrepreneurship, because it's
21:51
literally you're making great
21:51
decisions. You're making them
21:54
early. One aspect of being a
21:54
great entrepreneur is making
21:58
decisions. A lot of times we be
21:58
grudge making the decision to do
22:02
certain things because of fear
22:02
or those. No, you're making
22:05
great decisions to expand your
22:05
team stick to what you do best.
22:08
I want to ask about editing in
22:08
general, what's the worst part
22:11
about editing to you?
22:13 Leah Bryant
Oh, the worst part?
22:13
Um, no, I'm kidding.
22:19 Darrell Evans
Because I know
22:19
what it is for me. But what's
22:21
the worst part for you?
22:22 Leah Bryant
I would say
22:22
probably when someone doesn't
22:25
use a microphone. They're
22:25
talking in their computer
22:29
microphone.
22:31 Darrell Evans
hint, hint hint
22:31
for show producers and or guest.
22:35 Leah Bryant
Right? Yes. Have a
22:35
microphone.
22:38 Darrell Evans
Get a
22:38
microphones?
22:39 Leah Bryant
Yes. Yes, you don't
22:39
have to have a shure.
22:42 Darrell Evans
That's right.
22:44 Leah Bryant
Or Yeti, just make
22:44
sure you have you know, a good
22:46
quality dynamic mic that fits
22:46
the space that you're recording
22:49
in. And then also someone who
22:49
doesn't wear headphones, because
22:52
the Echo is sometimes hard to
22:52
get out.
22:55 Darrell Evans
So actually,
22:55
that's funny, we're gonna come
22:57
back to some tips, because I
22:57
want to give some tips and best
22:59
practices for those who are both
22:59
guests, as well as people
23:03
running their own shows. So
23:03
we'll come back to that. I want
23:06
to ask about the if you don't
23:06
mind me asking. You sit all day,
23:11
in this role? And if you don't
23:11
mind me asking, you could say,
23:14
Darrell, we're not going to go
23:14
there. But you've had some back
23:17
trouble.
23:17 Leah Bryant
Yes.
23:18 Darrell Evans
That not just
23:18
happened this year, but some
23:19
recurring. And I'd like to talk
23:19
about adversity and how you
23:22
fight through that. And I, if
23:22
you don't mind us talking about
23:25
that. Can you share a little bit
23:25
about how do you manage pain and
23:29
still make progress.
23:31 Leah Bryant
So if you don't
23:31
mind, I want to take it a little
23:33
bit further. And just kind of
23:33
like talk about how you know
23:37
just what it is. And then what
23:37
happened this past year, just
23:39
because it kind of helps sets
23:39
the stage per se. So in 2011, I
23:43
was actually diagnosed with
23:43
Cauda Equina Syndrome. And I had
23:46
to have emergency surgery for my
23:46
L4-L5 on my back. And the
23:52
surgeons said after surgery was
23:52
if I had waited six more hours,
23:55
I would have been permanently
23:55
paralyzed. And now I do have
23:58
partial paralysis from the waist
23:58
down. It's kind of like, if you
24:03
sit for a long time your feet go
24:03
to sleep, I kind of have that
24:05
all the time. So it makes for
24:05
fun walking. But, and then
24:11
earlier this year, I started
24:11
working out again and then bent
24:15
down to pick something up and
24:15
inadvertently slipped another
24:19
disc at my S1-L5. And let me
24:19
tell you, that was a real downer
24:25
for a moment.
24:26 Darrell Evans
Yeah.
24:27 Leah Bryant
But, you know, I've
24:27
found that through trials, right
24:32
trials fear, anything that
24:32
challenges us, it's not
24:35
something to be scared of, or to
24:35
get down about. It's really to
24:40
say, Okay, this has happened,
24:40
how can I take what's happened
24:45
and A) learn from it, and B)
24:45
maybe help someone else who is
24:50
going through maybe not the same
24:50
thing, right? But something
24:53
similar or through a hard time a
24:53
tribulation? And how can I set
24:56
an example or help them inspire
24:56
them that hey, just because this
25:01
happened, doesn't mean it's not
25:01
going to get better? Or that the
25:05
lights not gonna shine again, or
25:05
whatever you want to say? You
25:08
just got to keep going. But I do
25:08
have pain, you know, I mean, I
25:12
have a slipped disc.
25:13 Darrell Evans
Right
25:14 Leah Bryant
I've had injections
25:14
and physical therapy and all
25:16
that fun stuff. But now it's,
25:16
you know, have another surgery
25:20
or just kind of deal with it. So
25:20
it's just kind of, I'm dealing
25:22
with it. You know, it just kind
25:22
of take life and just go with
25:25
it. And I'm grateful that I'm
25:25
walking and all the good things
25:28
and just really think about the
25:28
positive and not so much the bad
25:32
things right. Like I respect the
25:32
bad things because they've
25:35
helped shape me into who I am,
25:35
but kind of not dwell on it and
25:39
just kind of be grateful.
25:42 Darrell Evans
You know, thank
25:42
you for sharing that story. I
25:44
want to say that there hasn't
25:44
been, you know, I know that
25:48
during that time of the incident
25:48
earlier this year, you know, of
25:52
course, I'm extremely empathetic
25:52
to that situation. And I know
25:56
that I don't know that we even
25:56
canceled a meeting
25:59 Leah Bryant
I don't think so.
25:59 Darrell Evans
Through all of
25:59
that, you know, you're like, Oh,
26:02
well, we can meet a 10. I got to
26:02
be a doctor at one. And they
26:05
might do surgery today, or they
26:05
might not. But we can still
26:09
meet. And I'm like, What are you
26:09
talking about? What? What do you
26:14
mean, we can still meet? And
26:14
it's so I just so A, I just want
26:20
to highlight that and it's not
26:20
about toughness, it's not about
26:24
there's something else there.
26:24
It's like, No, I've had this
26:27
condition. That ain't going away
26:27
at this moment. Yes, they may
26:31
have to do surgery this
26:31
afternoon. And you know, how I
26:33
think about the mind shift
26:33
method, and you just exhibit
26:36
this idea that okay, the facts
26:36
are the facts. And I still have
26:40
a business to run. And if we
26:40
have to meet at 10. Well, my
26:45
surgery, is that 1? What Are you
26:45
talking about what we're not
26:52
going to meet today? No, we're
26:52
not going to meet today.
26:57 Leah Bryant
I have a job to do.
26:58 Darrell Evans
Yeah, so I but I
26:58
appreciate that. Because I get,
27:01
you know, we've got to be
27:01
willing to work through those
27:04
uncomfortable moments, we've got
27:04
to be able to say, Okay, if I am
27:08
going to be there, because I
27:08
said I was going to be there. A
27:12
lot of times we let ourselves
27:12
off the hook as entrepreneurs as
27:15
well. And there's obviously we
27:15
got to be careful with going too
27:18
far. Because back injury and
27:18
where you're at is extremely
27:21
serious, you know, be serious
27:21
about that. But I wanted to
27:24
highlight that mental tenacity
27:24
that you bring to the table. And
27:30
it's a soft spoken tenacity.
27:30
Because, in my mind, I'm sitting
27:33
there thinking like, I just
27:33
didn't know that that's that was
27:37
your character. And that's rare.
27:37
You know, it's just rare,
27:41
dangerous, but rare. Like, I
27:41
don't want you sitting in front
27:46
of me talking about a show
27:46
right? Now, we can pause that
27:49
whole process. So anyway, what
27:49
is changed about your thought
27:54
process between being an
27:54
entrepreneur and being an
27:56
employee? For all those years?
27:56
What's different now that you're
27:59
an entrepreneur?
28:00 Leah Bryant
Well, I will say
28:00
that, shifting that mindset, and
28:05
that has been probably the one
28:05
of the top five things hardest
28:09
for me to do. From being you
28:09
know, an employee with okay,
28:14
I've got this this and this to
28:14
do. And this is when I have to
28:16
do it, and I'll get it done. And
28:16
I, you know, live and breathe by
28:19
somebody else's schedule. And
28:19
yes, I'm there. Yes, Yes Yes. To
28:22
now. I'm running my business, I
28:22
answer to me, right. And to, if
28:29
I'm working with a client, and
28:29
I'm like, Oh, I'm really not
28:32
feeling like we are not
28:32
connecting, we are not on the
28:35
same page. You know, I am to the
28:35
point where it's like, okay, I
28:38
can respect myself, I can
28:38
respect my client. Be like, you
28:42
know, what, we are not a good
28:42
fit for each other. Right? To be
28:46
able to say that has been one of
28:46
the biggest things for me right
28:49
to be able to take the mindset
28:49
of always saying yes, to being
28:54
able to be more of a decider,
28:54
right, and to make those
28:58
decisions. But yeah, so it's
28:58
been a very interesting
29:03
experience to kind of go from
29:03
that mindset.
29:05 Darrell Evans
I love that
29:05
distinction. My from always
29:08
saying, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
29:08
To say, No, I get to decide.
29:11 Leah Bryant
Right.
29:12 Darrell Evans
And I do love the
29:12
fact that you have you, we've
29:15
talked a number of times about
29:15
these decisions about good
29:18
clients, what they look like,
29:18
and I tell a lot of people that
29:21
I work with, and you've got to
29:21
decide who is your ideal
29:24
customer and not this whole
29:24
superficial? How old are they?
29:27
What industry? Are they in? Are
29:27
they a coach or not a coach, you
29:30
got to get underneath what
29:30
behavioral characteristics
29:33
exhibit who I want to spend time
29:33
working with, I could care less
29:37
how much you pay me. You know, I
29:37
use my own things. If you're not
29:41
likable, if I don't like you,
29:41
like if there's just if you talk
29:44
a certain way that I don't talk
29:44
and you just want to talk, I
29:47
don't have to do that. Like you
29:47
have to decide what you want. If
29:50
you want to fuss if you want to
29:50
be late, if you don't want to
29:54
keep commitments to yourself, if
29:54
you don't reply to emails, I'm
29:58
not waiting, you know. So
29:58
anyway, I just love that you
30:02
have made those distinctions and
30:02
decisions and it's hard because
30:05
what it means as you now say no
30:05
to revenue.
30:08 Leah Bryant
Yes.
30:09 Darrell Evans
Right. But it's
30:09
not the right revenue.
30:12 Leah Bryant
Yes. I love that.
30:12
Right.
30:14 Darrell Evans
So let me ask you
30:14
this. Do you have coaching AND
30:16
and OR mentorship Have you
30:16
gotten coaching and or
30:19
mentorship in your journey as an
30:19
entrepreneur?
30:23 Leah Bryant
So I've received
30:23
like, I have a coach like a
30:25
podcasting, kind of like that
30:25
aspect of it. It's funny that
30:30
you asked this just this
30:30
morning, I was like, you know, I
30:31
really need to get a "business
30:31
coach", right to help with that.
30:36
aspect of it, but her name is
30:36
Lauren, but she is my podcasting
30:39
coach kind of like with that
30:39
side, it's been really great
30:43
because not only is she
30:43
coaching, but she's also a
30:45
mentor. And I feel like go to
30:45
her and be like, hey, and ask
30:48
all kinds of questions, and
30:48
she'll direct me to like, the
30:52
right answer. And I'm not
30:52
spending hours on Google right
30:54
or getting the wrong answer. But
30:54
she's also able to apply her
30:59
experience with what she's done
30:59
in podcasting to kind of help me
31:03
have those niche down answers.
31:05 Darrell Evans
Yeah, what's your
31:05
12 month goal? We're right now
31:09
recording at the end of 2021. If
31:09
we were sitting here a year from
31:12
today, what would you like to
31:12
have had happen in your business
31:16
one year from now.
31:16 Leah Bryant
So I've, I've had
31:16
podcasts that I've launched,
31:20
launch and be in the top 100.
31:20
One show, actually, in
31:26
particular was top 100 in two
31:26
different countries. I would
31:30
like to in 2022 make that to be
31:30
like a top 50 or top, you know,
31:34
25 we're gonna shoot for the
31:34
stars here. Joe Rogan look out.
31:38
We're coming for you.
31:39 Darrell Evans
Okay, which niche
31:39
is the show?
31:42 Leah Bryant
They're an art.
31:42
They're an art company.
31:45 Darrell Evans
Gotcha. So for
31:45
those listening, right now,
31:47
let's break down some best
31:47
practices if they're running a
31:50
podcast. And so if you're not
31:50
running a podcast right now,
31:53
we're not even thinking about
31:53
it. We won't spend too long
31:55
here. But let's take a couple
31:55
minutes and break down. If
31:58
someone is currently listening
31:58
to this, and they run their own
32:01
podcast, and they're editing it
32:01
themselves, and they were like,
32:04
I was looking at iMovie and
32:04
GarageBand. And going back and
32:07
forth, and thanking me, by the
32:07
way, was I doing an okay job
32:11
before? We?
32:12 Leah Bryant
I think so. Yeah.
32:15 Darrell Evans
dude, all right.
32:15
You know, do it i right. But the
32:18
problem is I was just doing all
32:18
right, you see, she said, You
32:21
were doing all right. But if you
32:21
want to take your game to the
32:23
next level, a couple, two or
32:23
three best practices for what a,
32:27
a show host should be doing to
32:27
prepare for a great podcast,
32:34
when they work with a producer
32:34
like you.
32:35 Leah Bryant
So I will say that
32:35
one of the best tips I can give
32:38
anybody is that a great episode
32:38
starts with your audio. Right?
32:42
And great audio begins before
32:42
you even hit record, you know,
32:47
meaning, the space the recording
32:47
in the equipment that you're
32:50
using, and not just you, but
32:50
your guests. Like where are they
32:54
recording? Are they recording in
32:54
a banquet hall? You're gonna
32:58
have a lot of echo. Are they
33:00 Darrell Evans
in their car?
33:01 Leah Bryant
Right
33:01 Darrell Evans
At the airport?
33:03 Leah Bryant
Right?
33:03 Darrell Evans
Like we've had it
33:03
we've had, and we've had to make
33:05
some rules, right? Yeah.
33:07 Leah Bryant
Yeah, you know, and
33:07
don't be afraid to make those
33:09
rules, right? It is, at the end
33:09
of the day, your show, you're
33:13
giving them the opportunity to
33:13
come on your show, and just talk
33:17
about whatever subject we're
33:17
gonna be talking about. So don't
33:20
be afraid to set those
33:20
boundaries, set those rules, you
33:24
know, set those requirements.
33:24
And because when you do that,
33:27
not only are you helping
33:27
yourself, but you're also
33:29
helping your audience. And I
33:29
know that a lot of people have
33:32
podcasts, they primarily do it
33:32
because they want to share a
33:35
message, right? In order to
33:35
share that message. You need to
33:38
share it to where they can,
33:38
people can actually consume it.
33:41
So yeah, that would be my number
33:41
one tip.
33:43 Darrell Evans
So number one tip
33:43
is get that audio right, it
33:46
starts before you even hit
33:46
record. And I echo you know,
33:50
Leah has given me so many tips
33:50
about things. Every time we
33:53
meet, there is something new
33:53
that she has given me some
33:57
insight on, have you thought
33:57
about, maybe you could. So she's
34:01
not just editing a show, let's
34:01
be clear about that. Right.
34:04
She's not just taking care of
34:04
what I used to do with iMovie
34:07
and GarageBand. And there's a
34:07
lot a lot of different programs,
34:10
you know, Adobe Audition, all
34:10
sorts of tools, right? It's not
34:13
just that piece. She's
34:13
producing, she's listening for
34:17
things in the playback. She's
34:17
giving me feedback every single
34:20
week. I hope that I'm coachable.
34:20
I hope that I take her advice as
34:24
much as possible. I know today I
34:24
had a little scratchy throat
34:27
right before we started
34:27
recording, I've been hitting the
34:30
mute button on the microphone,
34:30
which was another tip she gave
34:32
me. Don't just clear your throat
34:32
into microphone. I didn't
34:35
realize I was doing that at
34:35
times. So she's giving you
34:38
advice. She's listening for
34:38
nuances, all of those kinds of
34:41
things. It's what a producer
34:41
does. So she's not just an
34:45
editor, and I just wanted to
34:45
kind of throw that in there.
34:47
She's listening for those
34:47
things, which allows you to then
34:49
go do what you do best find
34:49
great guests have great
34:52
conversations, right? That is of
34:52
course, if you're doing a
34:54
conversation show. When Should
34:54
someone think about hiring a
34:59
producer like you in their
34:59
podcast journey?
35:01 Leah Bryant
Well, if you are
35:01
spending hours on Google, how do
35:05
I start a podcast? Let's chat.
35:09 Darrell Evans
Let's keep it
35:09
simple.
35:11 Leah Bryant
I mean, really,
35:11
you know, in the day, we can
35:14
always make more money. We can't
35:14
make more time.
35:16 Darrell Evans
Yeah.
35:17 Leah Bryant
So if it's costing
35:17
you time, yeah, let's talk
35:20
whether that be I want to launch
35:20
a podcast How do I do it? Or I
35:23
currently have a show and it's
35:23
taking me X amount of hours a
35:26
week to edit doing all the post
35:26
production work getting all the
35:29
show notes and everything ready
35:29
uploaded scheduled social media
35:32
if you want to do that, all the
35:32
things right or even If you have
35:36
a show and you're doing
35:36
everything great, maybe you want
35:38
to strategize, you know about
35:38
something in your show, you
35:41
know, how can I do this? Or what
35:41
can I do and things like that.
35:43
So those are all different
35:43
pieces that I help with. And,
35:47
you know, those are all
35:47
opportunities to reach out. And
35:50
let's, you know, work together
35:50
and create awesome content for
35:53
your audience.
35:54 Darrell Evans
Yeah, what would
35:54
you do if you give back 200
35:56
hours in your calendar year.
35:58 Leah Bryant
Right.
35:58 Darrell Evans
Because that's
35:58
what I got back in my calendar
36:01
200 hours back in the calendar
36:01
year, what can you do in your
36:04
business? So even if you're just
36:04
getting started, and maybe you
36:07
don't have a monetization
36:07
strategy, I guarantee with 200
36:09
hours, you'll figure out a
36:09
monetization strategy. So Leah,
36:13
it has been a pleasure having
36:13
you on the show, we could keep
36:15
going on and on. But if
36:15
someone's listening right now,
36:18
and they're thinking about
36:18
starting a show, or they want to
36:22
think about now moving towards
36:22
hiring a producer, maybe they
36:25
want to have a chat with you.
36:25
How can they find you?
36:27 Leah Bryant
Sure. So you can
36:27
visit my website,
36:29
LeahBryantco.com. I'm also
36:29
active on Instagram and
36:33
LinkedIn. LinkedIn is Leah
36:33
Bryant. And then Instagram is
36:36
@LeahBryant_Co. and I'll be
36:36
happy to talk to you, you know,
36:41
it's always free to chat. So
36:41
yeah, don't have a fear to reach
36:44
out.
36:44 Darrell Evans
Yeah, Leah was
36:44
amazing. When I got referred to
36:46
her. I got on a call. And I
36:46
think we were ready to roll in
36:50
three weeks or so I don't think
36:50
it was much longer than that. So
36:53
thank you, Leah. We're going to
36:53
link up all of Leah's places in
36:57
the show notes. So be sure to
36:57
head over to
36:59
TheMindShiftPodcast.com and
36:59
check that out. And Leah as you
37:02
know, cuz you edit the show. You
37:02
know, the last question. For
37:08
whatever reason, today was your
37:08
last day here on this planet we
37:11
call earth? What would you want
37:11
everyone to remember you for?
37:15 Leah Bryant
I would want to be
37:15
remembered that, that I always
37:18
left any person or situation
37:18
better than I found it, and that
37:23
I was always willing to help
37:23
someone in their time of need.
37:26 Darrell Evans
I love it. Leah.
37:26
I'll see you on Thursday.
37:28 Leah Bryant
Alrighty.
37:32 Darrell Evans
Thanks for being
37:32
on the show.
37:34 Leah Bryant
Thank you so much,
37:34
sir. Have a great week.
37:39 The MindShift Podcast
Hey, my
37:39
friend. Thanks again for
37:40
listening to today's episode of
37:40
the mind shift podcast. Listen,
37:43
let's not have the conversation
37:43
in here. Connect with me on
37:46
social @MrDarrellEvans, until
37:46
next week, remember you're just
37:57
one shift away from the
37:57
breakthrough you're looking for.