Rockin’ Libsyn Podcasts: I Have Cool Friends
This series is all about showcasing Libsyn podcasters. Its sole purpose is to introduce these awesome podcasts to the world as well as share their podcasting insight to empower the community!
Q & A with Samantha from I Have Cool Friends
When did you start podcasting?
I actually started podcasting about a month ago. It’s been on my career bucket list for over a year now and I finally launched it about a month ago.
Why did you start podcasting?
My career is in sports broadcasting, so I thought it was the perfect fit for me considering I’m a bit of a “chatty cathy” and I love getting to know people and hearing stories.
The part about my career I love the most is not the stats and how amazing they performed in their sport. As an Olympian and a former athlete, I appreciated when interviewers asked about me as a person in addition to me as an athlete.
I want to give that same platform to athletes. I think it’s important to recognize that they’re human… Yes, superhuman sometimes if we’re referring to the records they break, the scores they earn, or the flips that can successfully do, but nonetheless, they’re human. I love getting to know THAT side of an athlete.
What’s the name of your show about and what is it about?
My podcast is called, “I Have Cool Friends.” I thought about this name a year ago and assumed I would create something more clever when the time came.
Well, the time came and that was the best name I had, but I honestly loved it. I told one of my best friends, Jordyn Wieber, (2012 Olympic Gold Medalist) the name and her first response was, “You always say that.” It’s true.
I ALWAYS brag about how cool and awesome my friends are. Yes, a lot of them are successful and have done crazy cool things in their life, but it’s more about them as people. I have the most driven, ambitiously humble, GOOD hearted people that I get to call friends and I feel extremely lucky for that.
Instead of bragging about them to everyone I meet, I decided I would start a podcast and chat with them, so people would just “get it.”
The first season of my podcast is gymnastics themed, so I’m interviewing experts within the gymnastics world. We have Olympians, NCAA Championship coaches, Olympic coaches, college recruiting consultants, nutritionists, Sports Psychologists, etc.
Unfortunately, the gymnastics world is a tad behind because you can’t find this curated knowledge anywhere else. I know I’m biased, but I’m always happy to make the toughest sport just a litttttleeee bit easier for athletes, coaches, parents, and fans.
How have you promoted your podcast?
On my social channels: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn. I’d also be lying if I didn’t say I promoted by word of mouth. Did I mention I’ve got a big mouth and a lot of friends? 😉
What do you know now that you wish you knew when you started?
I feel comfortable now, but I wish I knew that I should just be authentic and totally myself. As a gymnast, I’m such a perfectionist, so everything in my mind must be perfect.
So, at the beginning, I was trying too hard to be the perfect version of myself and not enough of the real version of myself. I can tell a difference in the interviews for sure.
If you’re a gymnast, are interested in gymnastics or simply have a desire to know more about the human side of sports (and cool friends) you must subscribe to this podcast! You can also connect Samantha via Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!
If you are interested in starting a podcast because you simply must, we’ve got you covered! You can sign up for our FREE Podcasting QuickStart which we run every month, or if you are ready to go, we’ve got awesome podcast hosting plans!
ELSIE ESCOBAR (Community Manager at Libsyn, Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame, co-host of She Podcasts & The Feed: The Official Libsyn Podcast)
DAVE JACKSON (Support at Libsyn, Academy of Podcasters Hall of Fame Inductee, host and founder of The School of Podcasting, and a slew of other podcasts)
