Collect & Construct

        To be successful in life, it's always best to be prepared.  When my children were babies, it was extremely important to be prepared.  You had to have diapers, wipes, extra clothes, etc.  In my professional life as a videographer, you have to be ready for any situation so having extra memory cards, cords, etc. is vital to a successful shooting day.  The same goes with podcasting.

        Being prepared is vital to the success of a podcast.  Lisa and I soon found out that we were never prepared for the subjects we would discuss but one thing we were prepared for was the quality of our podcast.  Since I had the knowledge of video production, I was able to produce a professional sounding podcast right from the get go.

        Early on in my videography career, I put so much emphasis on expensive equipment that I didn't do enough research on how to use it correctly.  I thought that if I had an expensive camera that somehow my videos would turn out like a major motion picture.  I was sorely mistaken.  

        It took awhile to realize that it's not always the highest quality products that produce the best result, but it's the person who is using it.  Once I took the time to truly learn how to use my equipment, I found out that as long as I had the skills, I could make anything look good.  

        This knowledge benefitted me when we started this podcast.  I didn't go out and get the best podcasting microphones and spend a ton of money.  I simply took the microphones that I already had for video and clipped them to boom arms.  We eventually created a studio type space but, before doing that, we used my dining room.  The main problem with using an open concept dining room was the echo.  To alleviate some of the echo we draped blankets around the room to absorb it.  Ideally though, it is best to record in a small space.  Some podcasters even record in their walk-in closets.  

        My point is, use what you already have.  This can relate to anything in life.  Do some research, hone your craft, and perfect yourself.  The person who is behind the "camera" (or whatever you're using) is more important than the quality of the "camera".  If you know what you're doing, you can create top notch quality work no matter what.