Celebrating 1 Year of Faithful on the Clock

Welcome, everybody, to the Faithful on the Clock podcast, the show where all we do is try to get your faith and work aligned. I'm your host, Wanda Thibodeaux, and today is an incredible episode, because we are celebrating one full year of producing the show. We're gonna take a look back and review our wins our losses, everything we've learned, hated, and loved about getting the show available to you. So stick around. It'll be a fun show, and if you're new, it'll be a great opportunity to learn what the show is all about and what we've been trying to accomplish. Here we go!

Okay. I just want to go ahead and get some of the maybe not-so-great things about the past year out of the way so we can end the show on a high note. Remember, when I say not-so-great things, it doesn't mean they're bad. It just means that these were the things that I didn't expect or that we can take and grow from. Because it's always smart to evaluate both your strengths and weaknesses, right?

So the first thing that I have learned from this past year of doing the show is that I definitely need to do a little better on preparation. And what I mean by that is I honestly was not prepared for everything that it would take to put this show together. Because even though I had considered the time it would take to record and edit, you know, all that stuff, I didn't really take into consideration all of the additional marketing time and what it would take to promote the show well. And I didn't take into account the time that I would need to learn all of these new technical things or just to go find out where to connect with people or who might be able to give me advice and support. And so, you know, initially, I thought I was only going to need to put in a coupla hours a week. But oh no, no. That ended up being more like at least 20 hours a week, if I was lucky. And so I really had to work on my schedule to figure out how to make all of that work and still produce a show that I considered to be high quality, or at least, you know, the best that I could do with the experience that I have.

And that leads me to the second thing that I have learned, which is that, if I want to have other projects and serve God in other ways and still support my family, I unfortunately am not going to be able to maintain the schedule that I have had for the previous year. So I thought about this for quite a while really hard, and what I decided was that it is best for me, it's best for you, if I can move to a bi-weekly schedule. That way, when I do the show, I actually have energy and focus and can be consistent in the way that I wanna be for you. And I think that, you know, if there are some weeks where I have more energy and time, you know, then I've got no problem, I'll go ahead and maybe release some bonus episodes, which I haven't done yet but have wanted to do anyway.

And so for these two points that I've learned, I just want to point you back to Psalm 90:12, which just reminds us to number our days so that we remember our time on Earth is precious, and that we have to use it well for God. That is really what I wanna do, you know, I wanna be mindful of the influence that I am having with the work that I do, and I wanna make sure that I am trying to pay attention to wherever God might lead me. And one of the things that God is laying on my heart to do is to write a book around joy. I have been wanting to work on that for a long time now, but the only way that I'm going to be able to bring that message to you is if I don't go full steam in other areas. And hopefully, if I finish that project you will understand why I am drawn to switch the balance there, because it is a message that I believe we all can benefit from and that we need to hear as the world just keeps getting crazier. And I'll connect that, I think it was in Episode 47 about success, where I pointed out that successful people do quit or shift gears, they just do it for the right reasons. And I have to remember, too, that even Jesus took time to rest and pray. So as this year wraps up, I am just connecting with the sense that it is okay to slow down a little. And it is okay for you to do that, too. And I want to practice what I preach and let you see that you can still do enormous good even when you're not maxing yourself out. So just a little heads up that's why I am moving to the bi-weekly format going forward. But I certainly of course welcome your feedback on that change. And I wanna reassure you that even though we’re gonna slow down a bit, I have zero intention of stopping the show, OK? You’re safe there.

But one of the positive things that I learned from doing the show is to just be a little bit more flexible. Because I think, as any podcaster can tell you, things do not always go as planned. I mean, there was one episode where I had a massive case of the hiccups exactly when I had myself scheduled to record. Then there was another time when I went to record and I had my husband talking for work, my parakeets were squawking, a garbage truck plus a plane, and my neighbor was walking overhead, too. And, you know, sometimes my kids would have friends over when I was trying to edit, and so it was hard to focus. And sometimes when I would be doing some of the marketing things or putting things together for social media posts, you know, I'm a perfectionist if I'm not careful. And I had to just learn that, a lot of the time, it was better to just get the content out there then it was to worry about a bunch of little stuff on it. So I guess you could say that I am getting better about embracing the mess. And I think that's really important because I think one of the biggest sources of stress for people is unpredictability. I think people have an easier time knowing what's coming because it gives them that sense of control. But if you can just say to yourself, "Well, that's how it is!" and let that actually become the norm, you can still find a lotta peace, even as things are kind of all over the place.

And then the last thing that I want to mention is how good it can feel to get lost in the process of learning. Because keep in mind, when I started the show, I had never done anything like this before. I didn't know how to get music tracks or deal with copyright or how to try different things to engage with people. And I genuinely had a lot of reservations about my ability to make everything work. But now that I've done the show, I can see how I was able to gain those new skills, just like you might for any other job. And it's not like I didn't have my frustrations along the way. But I can look back and say that I am not in the same place that I was and that I have new tools that I can use going forward. And so my message on this is just don't be afraid to give something a shot. Because you might just surprise yourself with how good things turn out, and the things you learn very well could apply to tons of other areas in your life.

So those are the big things that I have learned, the big takeaways from the year. But as for goals for what's to come, over this next year, as I said, I will be moving to a bi-weekly format. But in addition to the joy book I mentioned and some other projects, my biggest goal for the show is to make connecting with people the priority. And that has always been important. But I don't want to just produce the content. I want to have real discussions about the content. And I want to take that extra time that I will gain from the new schedule to go talk to people who do the same kind of work who really can partner with me and who understand what I'm trying to do. And part of that is doing much more offline footwork, because I haven't been doing much of that at all and I feel like people need to hear about the podcast outside of social media. And I really want to figure out some ways to promote the podcast that will kind of snowball so that I don't have to do quite so much work. You know it's kind of that idea from finance that eventually your money should be working for you. And so I want to find ways to connect and promote that will be more self-sustaining. Because what's that gonna do? It's going to let me put out better shows and more content because I won't be spending all of the time on promotion.

So all that being said, let's just bow our heads, close your eyes, whatever you want to do, and let's wrap up with a prayer.

God, this has certainly been a year that has taught me all kinds of things about myself. And God I thank You for the opportunity that I have had to bring Your message to people who might be struggling because they don’t know how to balance their job and their relationship with You. And I just pray that You will continue to give me insights to pass along, that those insights will continue to be helpful to people, and that as I continue to produce shows, You will help me make the connections that we all need to feel secure in You and in what we're trying to achieve. I ask, God, that you bless everyone who has been listening to the show, and that you reveal to them how they can serve You no matter if they are in the office or not. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.

And that's it, everybody. We've officially done 52 episodes for 52 weeks straight. And I'm just going to tell you, I cannot wait to get started on the next set of 26, and maybe the next 26 after that, and you know how that goes. So next week, we’re gonna start strong and talk about how to relieve some of the anxiety around public speaking. But if you wanna celebrate the huge milestone of our year together, if you wanna show that you enjoy the podcast, become a supporting member at patreon.com/faithfulontheclock, and I’d love to have you join our email on our main page, faithfulontheclock.captivate.fm, as well. Tell everybody you know about the show, and as always, be blessed.