“Happiness is a choice, not an emotion.”

I believe this quote can be attributed to Joel Osteen. I say this because I actually heard a radio program where the host was paraphrased something she read from Joel’s most recent book. I’d have to read it to make sure.

Aside from that, I shared with my ezine subscribers the various things I’m doing to make happiness a choice. I’m interested in hearing from you. What are you happy about? Add your comments below.

Here’s one that came through about the way I say podcast which made me smile. It’s a guy, but he’ll remain nameless for now.

I heard you on Blogger and Podcaster Magazine’s podcast and really struggled through it. You rarely use “T”s. You often say “podcas”, not “podcast”. Additionally, a pop filter may serve you well. I’m by FAR not perfect either, but I noticed these things and wanted to pass along my thoughts. As far as the content, it was great. I appreciate the info!

Can you spot the irony in this person’s comment? First, he said he struggled through the audio. Then, he ended off by saying that the content was great. Odd. How can you struggle with it and say it’s great all in the same breath?

So, I listened to a few of my recordings and it’s true, I constantly leave off the “t” when I say podcast. What’s even more tragic is that I always will say “podcas.” The only time I pronounce the T is when I say podcasting.

Blame my culture, my nationality, my level of education or where I live geographically. All these things influence how one enunciates certain words and it’s certainly influenced me.

Goodness, there must be bigger things in this world to be concerned about, like, people dying in Burma, or, people losing family members due to an earthquake in China. I guess when an author enunciates a word that’s not to someone’s liking, it’s right up there with rising oil costs and global warming.

This came through the helpdesk about a month ago. Name withheld.

So I did a search on “podcast expert” and there you were. I’ve been teaching myself about RSS and podcasting over the last 2 weeks.

I have tons of information, it’s just not all fitting neatly in my brain. I consider myself a seasoned Internet marketer, and a fast learner, I’m only just getting into podcasting.

Here’s what I’m hoping to achieve, without knowing if it’s possible:

I want to record and upload a mp3 files to my wordpress blog, then link to it in a post. I would like that mp3 automatically submitted to podcast directories… or whatever it does. This is where I get lost.

All these podcasting services say “Post it, then we take it from there.” What does that mean?! Is it included in my RSS feed? Is it submitted somewhere? Once I publish a post, I know its also in my feed, but what happens after that? Am I supposed to submit it somewhere?

I am also curious as to if there are any “podcast blogs” that are designed specifically for podcasters. Upload an mp3 file, title, description, then BOOM… traffic. Is there anything like that?

And FeedBurner. Wow, it really looks like a great service, but to a beginning podcaster, not very clear on whats going on here. What benefit do I have with a feed generated by FeedBurner over the feed I already have with wordpress?

Thanks in advance,
[name withheld] 

Wow! He had alot of time on his hands to type up this ticket. Too bad I don’t have as much time to type up a response.

I could easily point him to my freebie page that lists a whole bunch of plugins and resources to use. If it were that easy, I would’ve responded, but if you read his request, he wants to understand how everything works. That takes time.

Like him, I always want to dig around under the hood to see how things work. Once I “get it,” I can then delegate to someone else. Unfortunately, I don’t have time to answer questions on that minute level.

So, what was our reply?

Leesa no longer conducts one-on-one coaching sessions, but has a coaching club that will answer all of your questions and then some. To find out more about Six-Figure Podcasting, go to http://www.sixfigurepodcasting.com.

You might also be interested in Leesa’s book, Podcasting for Profit. If you go to http://www.leesabarnes.com you can download the first two chapters for free.

This ticket was opened in April. Again, I will withhold the name, but will publish the ticket in its entirety:

Leesa:
Please send me a copy of your various podcasting info products so I can determine the potential for me being an affiliate to promote your work to the nearly 2000 practitioners I’ve trained worldwide. Most want  to increase their business using the internet and I believe podcasting may be one important aspect of their efforts.
God speed
[name withheld] 

(**sigh**) There are many problems with this request:

1. You can only become one of my affiliates after you’ve bought a product. I made this change because I found that the affiliates with top sales were the ones who already used the product personally.
2. I don’t just send out my products at no charge to anyone. Well, not true. I’ve sent out review copies of my book to people who I know are influential in their industry. The factors I use to determine influence are subjective, however, one criteria is that I know who you are and I contact you first.

Our reply?

Our affiliate program is open only to current customers. You will receive an invitation to join our affiliate program after you’ve made a purchase. We recently made this change because we find that the best people to refer our products and services to others are those who have used them personally.

BTW, Leesa’s book, Podcasting for Profit, is an inexpensive way to discover what podcasting can do for your business and those who you trained. You can download 2 free chapters at http://www.podcastingforprofitbook.com to get a taste of all the great content that is waiting for you in her book.

I got a rather interesting ticket via my helpdesk about a couple months ago. I won’t identify the sender, but I will publish the request in its entirety.

My name is [name withheld]. I recently heard your interview and I love your ideas! Can you help me get started with podcasting? We have a very genuine and unique product line. I feel our customers and the world would benefit from our product(s). I really DO NOT have the time to sit and read a book, however, I do have the time to get instructions on how to get going with this adventure. I really feel I could use your help. Can you dedicate a few hours for my project ?

Now, why would I find this particular ticket interesting? It’s this line:

I really DO NOT have the time to sit and read a book, however, I do have the time to get instructions on how to get going with this adventure.

(**sigh**) The problem is that all my tips, tricks and tactics are IN THE BOOK. The time it would take me to get this chap going on this adventure would be equivalent to him just buying the book and reading it.

In essence, he was asking for the coles notes for Podcasting for Profit, only he wanted the coles notes delivered by me over the phone. Unfortunately, the coles notes just doesn’t exist either on paper or via a private 1-to-1 with me.

Our reply?

Thank you for contacting us, but Leesa no longer does one-on-one consultations or coaching sessions. She does have a podcasting membership that might be of value to you. There are monthly training audios, and the blog is full of valuable information about how to make money podcasting. You can get more information about it at http://www.sixfigurepodcasting.com