Giving young women the tools to navigate growing up through interviews with industry experts and girl talks with friends.

I am Makayla Lacy, a 19 year old Dallas based marketing student, marketing intern, content creator, and part time server. My mission is to help women from just out of high school to their late twenties navigate growing up. I share perspectives from industry experts, friends, and myself in topics ranging from wellness and skincare, to networking, manifestation, and finding your career path. All to help you (and me!) build our best aligned lives. Because growing up is hard!
 

I have been a dedicated podcast listener for about a year now. I enjoy interview style episodes with strong-voiced women founders and industry experts, as well as solo motivational episodes. Makayla's goal is to forge these value-packed interview style episodes with relatable girl talk episodes. I started this podcast one month ago, although I have pretended that I was hosting one (maybe through some shower speeches) ever since I became an avid listener a year ago. I released my first episode exactly a week after I texted my best friend that I was going to make a show, so just over a month ago. I have recently learned that motivation and inspiration will not always be present, so when you feel it you need to act immediately! Acting instantly on your motivation will help you complete the first steps, and once that motivation starts to fluctuate, you can rely on your discipline to continue the tasks that still need to be completed.
 

I am someone who feels like I am never doing enough! So naturally while juggling being a part time server, student, intern, and content creator, I decided to add a podcast to the mix. I seem to find excitement in passion projects and keeping myself busy. My schedule looks a bit like this: Mondays I plan the next weeks episode and work on my internship, Tuesdays I have school and serve, Wednesdays I have open to record and work on my internship, Thursdays I have school and serve, Fridays I have school and serve, Saturdays I create content and serve, and Sundays I do my weekly reset and edit the next weeks episode. Luckily my serving job is very fluid on their schedule, so if guests have a certain day they have to record I can most likely switch my shift. And of course I find time to fit in exercise, friendships, and relationships as well. I release episodes every Monday that range from 30 minutes to an hour. Recording and editing an episode can take anywhere from 2-6 hours. The money I make from serving and content creation directly funds the show, and studio costs range from $60-200. I enjoy funding my passion projects, and think of them as an investment!
 

Although I currently have not generated any revenue, I gain so much from hosting Making Makayla. The networking opportunities are unlike anything I've experienced before, especially when my podcast is focused on industry expert women. I have connected with women that I would never thought I would have the privilege of talking to so early in my life, and have some amazing guests lined up that I am so excited to bring on! The knowledge and wisdom that these women share with me and the listeners is priceless, and I am so grateful to host a platform where young women such as me can access this information for free. I am also gaining conversational skills, which is something I have always been insecure about my lack of. Although I am hopeful that revenue will be generated soon, it is not a driving factor by any means!
 

I plan each episode on Mondays, usually just through a google doc with bullet points. If I am recording with a guest, the planning won't be as rigid of a routine depending on when they let me know that they can be on the show. I like to interview in person for optimal quality and connection, so I look for Dallas based aligning women. I usually find them through Instagram and will send a DM, or send an email to the appropriate person. Once they respond that they want to be on, I'll send them a google doc of questions/topics that they can edit, and ask them to write a bit about themselves that I can introduce them to the show with. The software I use depends on if the episode is solo or an interview, for a solo episode I use my own mic and just record with GarageBand. If the episode is an interview, it depends on which studio I visit. Some have me bring a micro SD card and some record it for me and send me the audio file. I am also open to recording with a call if a guest that's not local to Dallas wants to be on, or if someone's schedule doesn't allow for in-person studio time!
 

I primarily market my podcast through my TikTok, because my followers are the target audience. I love how easy it is for your videos to get seen by people who don't follow you, so I am constantly reaching a new audience that still aligns with my target audience. It seems that Apple Podcasts is currently the most popular platform with 46%, although Spotify was in the lead for the past three weeks.
 

The hardest part is posting the first episode. When you feel motivated and inspired to create it, create it right then! Don't wait for the "right time" because that will never come, and it will stunt your potential growth. The earlier you start, the more time you will have to learn, grow, and improve. The one thing that truly shocked me in my first interview episode was my overuse of filler words. Beware of making that mistake, and practice eliminating them in your day to day vocabulary as it is very hard and time consuming to edit out!
 

Here is the link to all of my socials such as Instagram and TikTok, I post updates on episode releases and ask for audience feedback/suggestions: https://linktr.ee/makaylala
Here is the link to find my podcast on any platform, as well as become a subscriber to help support the show: https://makingmakayla.buzzsprout.com