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(By Troy Price) On episode 617 of The Cliff Ravenscraft Show, Cliff shared a recent conversation in which his advice could be perceived as a little harsh. As Cliff and Kevin spoke Kevin shared that he did not have a passion about recording his next podcast episode. Cliff flatly replied, “If you do not have the passion, you should shut down your podcast.” During the episode he went on to explain his opinion.
I do not know if Kevin is going to take Cliff’s advice and shut down his podcast. I know that when someone offers me advice I look to see if that person has demonstrated what they are saying to me in their own life choices. If Kevin does a deep-dive into Cliff’s past he would see a pattern of behavior consistent with his advice, and choices that anyone should consider emulating.
Cliff was successfully podcasting before podcasting was cool. And from almost the very beginning he ended podcasts when his passions led elsewhere. I was sad when the “Musically Challenged” podcast ended. I loved how Cliff would share podsafe music he enjoyed. I was also sad in 2007 when the “Bionic Woman Fan Podcast” ended well before the revival TV show ended (after only 8 episodes). I, like thousands of others on the planet, learned most of my technical understanding of podcasting from Cliff. I was surprised when he changed his moniker from the PodcastAnswerMan to the MindsetAnswerMan and began consulting and life-coaching not focusing on MP3’s and RSS’s. All these choices however created more time for other ever-evolving projects.
Cliff often shares on his show that his life is, “Getting better every day.” I am sure he would agree that this is due in great part to what he has stopped. You can find more about Cliff over at mindsetanswerman.com or freethedream.live.
Cliff’s advice to Kevin is also true for all of us. We live in a time when we can more easily follow our dreams and passions than ever before. Before we can do that, however, we must first have the time to commit to a new project or endeavor. Consider what you should be ending simply because your passion is not there.
_Troy Price is the co-founder of _Front Porch Studios_ in Berea, Kentucky. He’s been involved with podcasting for over a decade. Reach Troy by email at _Troy@frontporchstudios.com.
Comments:
While I have great respect for the person offering the comment, the advice is simply wrong. No one is passionate about everything they do all of the time. Kevin – according to your post – said he wasn’t passionate about the “next episode,” not about the podcast in general. Do you think Elton John is passionate about doing “Benny and the Jets” one more time at tonight’s gig in Omaha? No. But, he IS professional. Do you think the performers doing “Cats” for the umpteenth time are passionate about tonight’s show? No…but, they ARE professionals. The audience will never know the difference – because Elton and those Broadway performers ARE such a pros. The best podcasters have passion about their shows, their topic, their efforts. However, real professionals do not have to be passionate about every episode – but, we DO have to be pros and deliver with such professionalism that our audience remains engaged.
#### [Troy Price](http://frontporchrecordingstudios.com "troy@frontporchstudios.com") -
Thanks Scott for your comment. I looked at your website and subscribed to your podcast. Keep up the good work! Speaking for Cliff here, the ‘passion’ at the core of their conversation is more than just excitement for one’s individual work product. Elton might not get pumped about the 75,000 version of “Benny and the Jets” but the energy of a particular crowd, or knowing a special person is in attendance, or that he is giving the proceeds from the performance to his Foundation could give that performance meaning for him. I know in my life it is easier to suffer burnout when passion (even found tangentially) is absent. Professionalism can only take you so far… The point of the article was actually about decluttering your life so you can take action when passion leads you in a new direction. Surely you can agree with that?