Exploring the impact of the guest's family backstory & cultural upbringing in shaping their values, ambitions and accolades.

The Journey Onwards podcast offers a platform for engaging conversations that can provide listeners with a deeper understanding of the interconnectedness of past, present, and future generations. The show usually starts by unraveling the story of the guest's previous generation(s) - to see how the guest ended up where they are today: in a culture and society that differs from their ethnic background. We then explore their upbringing, notably the cultural differences of their home environment and any key events / turning points that shaped their values, beliefs, and life ambitions. The conversation then flows naturally into the guest's main message e.g. their passion / purpose or a key life perspective.

The main listeners include those who have a common interest in exploring the influence of generational and cultural factors on people's lives. Broadly, it connects with 4 people profiles:

1. Those interested in personal development and understanding how the journey of their own previous generations, and the type of character traits those individuals portrayed (e.g. risk taking, loyalty to family) may now be seen in the guests own character and behaviour.

2. History and sociology enthusiasts: Those who have an interest in understanding societal and cultural shifts across different generations and how they impacted people's decisions to move to a new country and society. It provides an opportunity to explore how broader historical events in the last century, including social changes, have influenced people's paths.

3. People who value intergenerational conversations and believe in the importance of learning from different generations. The show offers insights into how various generations have been influenced by their respective time periods and how they can learn from each other to build a more inclusive society.

4. Those seeking to better understand diverse perspectives: The show's focus on exploring different cultural backgrounds and traditions can appeal to people who are interested in expanding their worldview.
 

The topics covered in my show are ones I have dived into a lot of detail in face-to-face conversations with friends, family and even strangers. It's something we all have a view on, because we all have a generational history, as well as certain cultural norms, values and traditions that we would have been surrounded by in our upbringing. One of the main points that emerges is that whether we followed in the footsteps of the previous generations, or decided to go against the grain, it's likely that it still had an influence.
Creating a podcast around this topic allows people to have access to these in-depth, personal and revealing conversations wherever they are in the world, and also listen to it whenever it works for them.

I'm a daily podcast listener myself, even before I started my own. Steven Bartlett, Jay Shetty and Chris Williamson (Modern Wisdom) are my 3 favourite hosts - and I love their shows. But I'm also a huge fan of True Crime podcasts, and the random bursts of education through 'Stuff You Should Know' and 'Business Wars'.

I started my show in Jan 2021, inspired by a project my friend was working on where he collected the stories of his parents' generation and the migration journey they had been through as a result of the 1971 Ugandan expulsion. From initial idea, to first episode release was about 1 month. Back then it was audio only, and with my iPhone headphones; it's come a long way since then.
 

Currently released once every two weeks. Production is definitely the biggest roadblock from making more episodes right now.
Editing a 60-75min episode myself takes anywhere from 4 to 5 hours. During this initial editing, I'll jot down the clips I want to put into the intro teaser, as well as parts I want to create social media clips (reels, YouTube shorts etc.) from. This effort then takes another 2 hours roughly.

I've made it a key priority to find time to work on the podcast. Luckily I can work from home 50% of the month, so I use these mornings to get some work done (8-9am) before logging on to work. And then I usually set aside 2 evenings a week, as well as half a day either on Saturday or Sunday, to focus on it.

I built my own studio which cost £1500-2000. It can be done for less, but also certainly way more. Hosting roughly £150 p.a. and then each episode around £60+ for editing and marketing. Currently my salary funds this luckily.
 

Sponsorship hasn't been a priority up until now because I was doing mainly online interviews and more as a hobby. But following some incredible feedback from guests, my own friends, and other listeners, I have decided to put in more investment to improve the quality and content. Now with more time, money and effort being put into each episode, I'll be looking into sponsor partners as the show grows.

Podcasting has benefited me in all the ways I expected as well as some unexpected ones. It's improved my learning through the pre-reading I do on guests' cultural backgrounds and the recent history that impacted their families. I've made some incredible friends through guests and their referrals, who also give me the confidence boost that the message being spread through the show is important and valuable. This has also opened me up to new event invites that I previously would never have heard of. Lastly, there's a lot I've learnt on the business and creative side: managing costs, managing client relationships and learning how to effectively market content.
 

I use Shure mics with an audio interface, and a combination of my own video editing and outsourced efforts to produce the final content pieces. The show is on most podcast platforms as well as the full video on YouTube.

As for prep. I have a briefing I've refined over time which I send to each guest. In there, I'll ask them to send me any web links and bio's that help me better understand the guest and their background. Then I'll do some research in the days leading up to the recording on the recent migration and socio-political history of their background country. I try not to over-do with planning the questions that I'll ask as I like the episodes to be conversational and flow naturally, much like how The Diary of a CEO is.

I'm focusing now on in-person interviews, but in the cases where I do them online, I use Riverside fm.
 

Marketing happens via Social Media currently: Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn being the main. And then through personal outreach (I'll recommend episodes to specific people depending on the topics discussed) and via the guest's network.

67% from iTunes, 23% Spotify and then 10% from other sources.

Instagram and LinkedIn are great. I'll only put content on the platforms where they feel relevant, and this way the message is constant and you see repeat interactions from viewers. TikTok I'm now starting to prioritize too.
 

Like many things, podcasting isn't just a hobby you can spend a couple hours a week on if you want to seriously gain some traction. It is like starting a business - you need to be clear with the vision (why you started), what messages you are looking to deliver and the profile of the listener. Unlike many businesses, the barriers to entry are low to get a podcast started, but that does not mean that making it profitable is 'easy' too. This applies to marketing and looking for guests and sponsorship too, you'll have to constantly outreach, use your network and refine based on listener feedback.

I found great help from RTP when I started. https://www.realtalkpodcast.ca/ Let them know I said hi if you reach out to them! They helped me learn what I needed to about the podcast in the quarter of the time it would have taken me.

Apart from that, I'm always watching videos of the 3 favourite podcast hosts I mentioned to generate new ideas for my own show. This includes improving my ability to be a host, as well as how to generate good marketing clips and calls to action.
 

The links to the podcast platforms and YouTube are at campsite.bio/tjo.

My personal instagram is @anandsworld, where I post some of the clips and in general is a good place to find me.

More information and me and the show can be found as ananddattani.me