The Journey So Far: Weatherproof's Reflections on 30 Episodes and More

Welcome to Weatherproof, the podcast where we explore the intersection of outdoor and adventure and personal growth. In this special episode, the first of 2024, co-hosts Hannah and Claudia dive into their experience of creating and nurturing a podcast. They reveal the real struggles and joys of producing 30 episodes, candidly discussing their commitment, challenges, and lessons learned along the way. Join them as they reflect on vulnerability, communication, partnership, and the impact of their podcast on their lives. From celebrating milestones to facing tough decisions, this episode is a deep dive into the heart and soul of Weatherproof. 

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Transcript

Claudia [00:00:00]:
As we kick off the new year, Hannah and I have been reflecting on our podcasting journey. We've been on this journey together since May 2023, And unlike the majority of our outdoor expeditions, this isn't your typical follow a bearing from point a to point b affair. Today, we're sharing what it's been like to navigate beyond the borders of our comfort zones to bring Weatherproof to life. If you've ever wondered what it's like to start a podcast, this episode is for you. Welcome to Weatherproof.

Hannah [00:00:26]:
We are your hosts, Hannah.

Claudia [00:00:28]:
And Claudia. Join us as we talk about the raw, real, and relatable elements of outdoor adventure. Before we get into that, we'd love to invite you to join our email list at weatherproofpodcast.com and to hit that follow button wherever you listen to podcasts. If you're watching us on YouTube, hit that like button and subscribe.

Hannah [00:00:47]:
We are recording on the unceded territory of the Squamish and Liluwat Nations. We acknowledge and honor the stewards of this land on which we live, work, and play. As someone who always strives some more and has a deep Seated feeling of never doing enough. Celebrating the wins is something I really have to force myself to do. So we're here to stop and celebrate publishing 30 episodes of The Weatherproof podcast, which is a pretty awesome milestone and kind of a little bit unbelievable, actually. And just to share some of the things we've learned and are very much still learning along the way.

Claudia [00:01:24]:
Yeah. This experience of podcasting has been Phenomenal. For sure challenging. And you and I, Hannah, have so many complementary skills that pair really well together. Celebrating our successes and our wins is something that neither one of us is particularly good at. And so it's nice to be here on the heels of our most recent planning session to really hold ourselves accountable to doing that, to to giving ourselves a big pat on the back. So listeners, if you're like, okay. Enough.

Claudia [00:02:01]:
We get it. You're amazing, and you're annoyed or over it. Just hang in there with us. Doesn't happen very often.

Hannah [00:02:09]:
It's funny. We started talking about this in middle of March last year, was the 1st conversation about podcasting, and then we started planning, and and our first episode launched on the 15th May. And we have published an episode every week since then other than A couple of planned breaks of 3 weeks each. So from the 15th May till now, we have published every week except for 6 weeks, which is Crazy. And it's funny how, obviously, when you're in things, it feels hard and you've got a lot to do and, like, it feels like a constant workload. But Sitting down and being like, we've published 30 episodes, I can't it doesn't feel like we've done 30 episodes worth of work even though It's felt like a lot of work at the time.

Claudia [00:02:56]:
Yeah. Yeah. And I think the reason it's such a big deal is that you and I both have full time jobs. We have relationships. We have deep rooted passions for outdoor pursuits that eat up a lot of our time, and podcasting It's a significant endeavor. Every episode takes somewhere in the vicinity of 10 hours to produce.

Hannah [00:03:21]:
Yeah. And that's, like, 10 hours each.

Claudia [00:03:23]:
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think, a, I didn't know that going into it, so that was a bit of a surprise. I also think that learning how to do something while you're doing it is a great way to make yourself crazy if you're someone who highly values efficiency, right, which you and I do. The fact that I was, like, learning how to navigate different kinds of software and editing and troubleshooting while I was trying to get, you know, something into what I you know, what I really wanted was to be, like, a perfect format before I put it out into the world was crazy making.

Hannah [00:04:04]:
And that's where we said right at the start the whole principle of show your work. Like, just put stuff out there and see what happens. And As a perfectionist, that's that's really hard to do when you're keeping to a to a schedule because it can't be perfect. You you do not have enough time to make it perfect. And so it's that, like, 80 20 rule. What's the what's the 20% I can do for the the 80% outcome? Or what's the What is 80% perfect? 80% good enough to put out into the world. And so starting to be realistic about like, yes. I want a Tim Ferriss level podcast, but I don't have the team or the funds.

Hannah [00:04:45]:
And so I think in today's world, we just get so much content from so many people. And so our expectation is that our content is gonna be as good as as other people, but what you're not seeing is the behind the scenes of how many people they have in their team to help them get it out there. So being okay with just publishing something that's maybe not perfect, maybe not as good as what you want it to be, but also respecting that that this is people's time. And And that's another thing for us to celebrate is our listeners. We have had a steady stream of listeners Since May. That listen to our episodes every week. And it's honestly wild to think about that people are choosing to spend their time with us because time is a finite resource, and the amount of things that you could listen to out there is Endless. And so for people to choose to spend their time listening to us and the things that we have to say and the things that we're wanting to share is It's freaking amazing, and we appreciate everyone so much because it makes this all worth it.

Claudia [00:05:50]:
Yeah. We're So so grateful to you, our listeners, for hanging in there and for spending a a portion of your your week every week with us. We think about you a lot. I think too, we have high expectations for ourselves and for this podcast in terms of, You know, it's metrics of success. And that also adds a certain amount of pressure, I think. You know, it's not like we're meeting weekly to just, like, shoot the shit and be like, oh, well, you know, whatever happens, happens. Like, we want this podcast, to be successful. We want it to go somewhere, and and we're having fun with it.

Claudia [00:06:31]:
But that also adds a a layer or a dynamic that means something that that has an impact. And you and I don't do anything without high expectations of ourselves. And I I wonder what it would be like. I wonder what this experience would be like if we We're able to abandon those expectations and just be in it. But we're not built that way. Right? So I can wonder all I want, but, like, that will remain a mystery.

Hannah [00:07:02]:
One of the interesting things about podcasting has been the commitment to weekly because it's So easy to, like, set targets for yourself. And I've talked about this before when talking about goal setting and planning of Building that trust with yourself of showing up for you when you've made a commitment. Like, deciding to go to the gym 3 times a week and waking up in the morning and being like, don't wanna go today. And one of the great things about a public commitment is that You have to show up. The amount of times that we have been editing and fixing issues and publishing at 1 AM On a Monday morning because we go live at 6 or generally around 8 AM, because you just have to get it done. And there's There's kind of a joy in that. Cody Sanchez said recently something about when was the last time that you stayed up and did an all nighter for something that you cared about. We all did it when we were at uni, high school, when you had an assignment due and you set up one night to get it done.

Hannah [00:08:04]:
But in an adult life, obviously, like, sleep's really important. But we often miss that that real passion for something where you're willing to put in the hours. And that's been something really cool is researching and planning and recording and then editing and doing some things at 1 AM because You really care about it and because you have to. I've learned so much because of the consistency, because I have to research. I have to do this stuff. I have to learn these things, and I have to think about it and talk about it because we've said that we're going to. And so If you really wanna learn something or do something, make some kind of public commitment where you have to publish or be there or whatever, and It really works.

Claudia [00:08:49]:
Yeah. I mean, this summer, I was at a wedding over the August long weekend on Vancouver Island. And we were camping at this wedding on our friend's beautiful property. But I was in my tent at 1 o'clock in the morning, praying for a strong enough signal to be able to upload an episode to Buzzsprout in order to get it published by our deadline. And he was lying there next to me soaring. Like, we'd had such a big weekend. We were riding this amazing high. And, like, the first question that popped into my head was, like, Claudia, could you not have made different decisions in order to get this up and off the ground.

Claudia [00:09:34]:
The the answer to that question is undoubtedly yes. But it it is so fun. There is an excitement and, I think a measure of of pride in just, like, doing what needs to get done in order to meet your commitments.

Hannah [00:09:50]:
One of the interesting things has been the the, like, standards that I feel like I now have to hold myself to in the outdoors. Because we do a podcast on outdoor adventure, and we talk about things like leave no trace and the best practices in the outdoors and caring about things and taking the time and intentionality to be the best outdoor steward that we can. The amount of times where I've been at doing something outdoorsy, And I'm like, I have to really make sure I'm doing this properly because I produce a podcast. So it's, like, holding me to a higher standard because of this public perception. Not that anyone knows who I am, but that feeling of, like, I I need to be I need to be holding myself to the standard that we've talked about. And it's not that I don't generally do that, but just that feeling of like, okay. I need to make sure that I'm doing this Right and proper, and that's been really interesting.

Claudia [00:10:47]:
Yeah. The idea that because we literally Talk the talk. We also have to walk it.

Hannah [00:10:55]:
Yes. Well said. Much much more concise.

Claudia [00:11:00]:
Well and because of the fact that, like, our listenership is primarily our friends, and our friends are who we recreate in the backcountry with, I do Agree there's a level of, like, okay. If someone so heard me say x y zed on the podcast, and I'm not doing x y zed when we're hanging out, like, What the hell?

Hannah [00:11:21]:
Yes. That.

Claudia [00:11:23]:
Yeah. I think it you know how when you're a kid, All the life lessons are like, you know, who are you? What do you do when no one is watching? That integrity piece. And when you publish a a podcast or or I think when you're a social media influencer, no one is never not watching.

Hannah [00:11:42]:
Mhmm.

Claudia [00:11:43]:
Yeah. And that's that's really interesting. Right? Like, that's a whole other episode, I think, on where our society has has got to with social media. But, yeah, it does feel like because we've put this podcast out into the world for anybody, Literally, anybody to stumble upon, there is a higher level of accountability for our actions in the outdoors and and ensuring that we're saying things that not only we believe in, but that we also practice. Mostly, I just complain about all of my judgments of people in the outdoors, so I'm fine.

Hannah [00:12:24]:
One of the interesting balances has been the vulnerability piece. Like, Our whole tagline is raw, real, and relatable. So we're wanting to talk about the things that we struggle with and the maybe less talked about topics and Be genuinely real about things in our day to day lives, in our relationships, and in our outdoor adventures that We struggle with that might be vulnerabilities of ours and things that that we deal with on a day to day basis and Vulnerability for vulnerability's sake and and being careful about what you put out into the world because this is a public platform, and anyone can listen to it, and you don't necessarily wanna share your innermost demons and secrets. But also trying to be real and not just say what you think people want to hear or, you know, stay within the bounds of what you think is good and we'll we'll make sure that you belong with this group. Like, stepping out a little bit outside that comfort zone of, This is what I struggle with, and these are the the real things in my life. I don't know that we will ever figure that out or or know where the lines are. But Trying to be real whilst whilst not oversharing and not not kind of, I guess, putting yourself at risk of Of judgment of things that are too sensitive, maybe?

Claudia [00:13:52]:
Yeah. One of the lines that I heard a while back that's really stuck with me was sharing your scars, not your wounds.

Hannah [00:14:02]:
Yeah.

Claudia [00:14:03]:
So this idea that once you've had a chance to heal and process, then is the time to share. But while you're still healing, while you're still processing, while things are still maybe a little bit too raw, It's better to to hold off, and that's maybe where if you constantly find yourself sharing your wounds, then maybe you're tipping into vulnerability for vulnerability's sake. Maybe you wanna look at your boundaries a little bit or or or examine why it is you're feeling compelled to share those things when you haven't fully worked through them yourself. But One of the reasons I love the podcasting medium is that there's very little interaction with the public on the heels of our published episodes. So we can engage with the public via Instagram or our newsletter, but there's no feature for the public to comment on our podcast episodes individually from a strictly podcasting perspective. And that's what I think made me gravitate towards podcasting is there is a level of protection that I don't feel on YouTube or on Instagram. And I think that's a little bit different than what you're talking about. You know, you're talking about what it is that we're putting our what what it is that we're putting out there in our episodes, and I'm kind of referring to potential backlash from the public.

Claudia [00:15:37]:
But that is also the beauty of podcasting, is you can put whatever you want out there, and people can take it or leave it. They're not invited to share their judgments. They're not invited to share their comments. It's just consumption. And I think that's refreshing in today's day and age in regards to social media.

Hannah [00:15:57]:
The long form form of it is that people are less likely to consume at a rapid rate. Like, you know, you can scroll through Instagram and watch A 1,000 reels in an hour and comment on a bunch of them. Whereas there's a certain level of commitment to listening to an entire podcast episode, which is why we're so grateful that people do it. Because, you know, spending an hour of your time listening to something is is a decent investment. The thing for me, I think, is the pride piece. Like, I remember editing the Sober Curiosity episode. And at the end, I had mentioned about a friend pulling me up once for, like, pressuring them to drink. Like, you know, I never wanted the party to end, and so I would be We're like, no.

Hannah [00:16:40]:
No. I have another one. And then he was like, you're actually one of the people that that makes it hard not to drink as much.

Claudia [00:16:45]:
And I

Hannah [00:16:46]:
was like, oh god. That was such a, like, A confronting look in the mirror moment for me. And when I was editing, I almost took that out because I was like, That makes me sound really bad. And I don't I don't know that I'm ready to, like, share that because of the pride piece. Like, we're Talking this whole episode about sober curiosity, and then I'm admitting that that I used to maybe sometimes pressure people. And and that's, oh, that feels really Gross to me. And I left it in and had a couple of messages from people being like, oh, that was a really great point to share, and and that really helped me. And it's like, Okay.

Hannah [00:17:25]:
It's worth it.

Claudia [00:17:27]:
Yeah. And that's the that's the commitment that we made, you know, to each other and to our listeners when we started this podcast, was that we weren't going to shy away from those really sticky, shadowy parts of ourselves because we think that that's really what's important to be putting out there. But we have to feel some sort of resolution, I think, with our own experiences before we share them, and that is so tough. It's sometimes why I would rather you edit certain episodes than me because you're not as close as I am to some of those things that I share. Like, you Might recognize the value in them and not be all caught up in, you know, how does this make me look? And am I okay with putting this out into the Like, I said it. I said it on the podcast. So, you know, in the context of you and I having conversations, I'm I'm happy to entrust you with that information, knowing full well that anything we say on this is fair game. But being the one to Pull the trigger, so to speak, and put it out there.

Claudia [00:18:37]:
Sometimes it's just easier if you're the one who's editing.

Hannah [00:18:40]:
Yeah. That's why they say it's best to have Someone else edit your episodes because they are a little bit removed, and they can see it from from a listener's perspective rather than from you involved perspective. One day.

Claudia [00:18:52]:
Yeah. One day when we have our team. I think one of the the really amazing things that I've learned through this podcasting experience is how important it is to cultivate experiences where you're a beginner again. You know, especially as adults where we have the ultimate freedom to choose how we spend our time. If you don't love being a beginner like me, then It can be easy to forego any opportunity to to put yourself in that position. But being a beginner It's so vulnerable. It's so uncomfortable. But it, I think, is one of those unique experiences where all of your brain synapses are firing.

Claudia [00:19:42]:
And you're really in a position to rethink who you are and what you stand for and what you wanna be in this world and to kind of flex your creativity muscles in a way that I think we sometimes forget to in our day to day lives. You get on your career track. You, you know, find a great partner. You your life kind of and end up on autopilot if you're not careful. And I think being a beginner is a way to kinda check yourself and say, you know, what else is out there in the world? What do I wanna do? What could I do?

Hannah [00:20:18]:
And it's that comfort zone stretch kind of thing of it's really easy just to choose things that we're comfortable with because that's literally how we're wired. Like, our brain wants comfort because it's safe and it feels good. And doing things that are uncomfortable obviously don't feel good. And so making that conscious choice to be like, I'm gonna go outside of my comfort zone and do something that is Scary that I don't know the outcome of, that I don't know if I'm gonna belong or fit in or look like an idiot or be able to do, and I'm just gonna give it a go. And we talk about it in the realm of of outdoor adventure a lot. Like, learning to ski and bike as an adult has been A really interesting experience. And it's actually been so fun because you put yourself In these uncomfortable positions. And you try things that you don't know if you're gonna succeed at or not.

Hannah [00:21:12]:
And when you do, you, like, feel I don't know. It's like a you feel so powerful and, like, you can do anything. And and in that physical realm Is is really fun. And, again, it's something we don't play much outside as adults. And so getting into those sports allows you to play outside and and Feel that confidence boost of being able to do things you didn't think you could do. And then podcasting has been that, but on the, like, more intellectual level of Trying things and seeing how it goes and being uncomfortable. And and the vulnerability in podcasting is in, like, what you're sharing and And if people are gonna judge what you say, whereas the vulnerability in, like, learning how to mountain bike is, like, are you gonna look like an idiot? Are you gonna fall off your bike? You

Claudia [00:22:00]:
Yeah. I think the vulnerability too is in our relationship. Right? Like, how we communicate with each other, how we navigate diverging visions of this shared project in real time, you know, while we're creating it. It's being able to have really honest conversations with each other when we don't Really know how to approach them or or each other in those moments. And to me, it was really interesting to walk the line between letting this project take shape in a way that was organic and natural, but then also trying to steer it in a direction when I didn't know, like, where we wanted to go. And that kind of ties back to What I was saying at the beginning, podcasting is brand new for both of us. Neither one of us had any experience in podcasting when we launched the project. So we didn't really know what that journey was gonna look like.

Claudia [00:23:00]:
We didn't have a map. We're kinda, like, drawing the map as we went, but also having really clear ideas of what we did and didn't want and just being able to work through those things together knowing that we were always gonna have kind of separate, distinct, unique desires, being able to Find some common ground somewhere so that we could move forward together was scary.

Hannah [00:23:26]:
Yeah. I think, As adults, unless you have a business partner, obviously, you have people that you work with, but there's there's, like, some removal there because it's your job. Like, Unless you own the company, you know, some things don't matter quite as much. And so other than your actual life partner, which has different Different, like, boundaries and and things that you're dealing with. You don't do many things in partnership with people. And so Deciding to go on a venture and do a project with someone brings up So many challenges in terms of communication and and working things out and and, yeah, expectations and trying to communicate clearly and have your boundaries and respect the other person, but also respect yourself. And and I think that's been some of the biggest learnings of the last Of the last year or so has has been how to how to communicate in something that you're You've both got dreams and plans and ideas of what you want it to look like. You're both invested, but sometimes it's it's different.

Claudia [00:24:38]:
Yeah. And that level of investment is sometimes not recognized. It's not what we want it to be, or it doesn't look like what we think it should be. And, I mean yeah. It's it's tricky. I think one of the things that I've really appreciated is, You know, anytime I was struggling and I did reach out to you for support, you were always incredibly kind and caring and supportive and understanding. And that really reinforces that if something's not working for me, like, I can turn to you and, you know, explain it. Where we got into trouble was when I wasn't communicating those things, and you were, like, dude, what the hell? And not that you used those words at all, but I think business partner, life partner, team at work, We're constantly engaged with other people that have different ideas of what and that There are infinite opportunities to screw up communication or to abstain from sharing what it is that you need in order to, you know, make it through the day or accomplish the task.

Claudia [00:25:54]:
And the more we practice spitting out where it is that we're at with or without a plan, and we are reminded that the people around us care about us and want us to succeed, the better off we are all going to be. And when I think about, you know, how hard podcasting has been, I also think about all of the amazing things I've learned about, you know, working with other people and being a beginner and doing hard things. And, yeah, that to me is a major win.

Hannah [00:26:30]:
Yeah. One of the things I've discovered Kind of through therapy and and just life in general is like this obviously, naturally, we have this need for belonging. Like, as humans, that's part of basic survival. We need to be in groups. Otherwise, you know, we wouldn't survive in the wild. So our need for belonging is very innate. But, Like, learning that there is an acceptance through being yourself. Like, I don't have to be a cookie cutter of Everybody else, I don't have to do the things that everybody else expects me to do.

Hannah [00:27:03]:
Like, I can just be me, and and that is enough. And and that's like a that is a constant lesson for me at the moment that I'm trying to trying to get get really into my into my bones. And And podcasting has been an interesting journey in that both in just, you know, the things that we share and having the feedback from the audience has been Honestly, mind blowing, the things that you hear back when people the amount of times I've had messages from listeners that are saying how, Oh my god. Yes. I experienced that too, or that made me really feel feel really seen or, you know, these things that I'm sharing that feel kind of vulnerable and and they're resonating with people. It's like, oh, okay. I'm not the only one. That's really nice.

Hannah [00:27:45]:
But the other thing has been, yeah, learning how to communicate and and learning how to have boundaries and have clearly communicated expectations instead of, Oh, just don't say anything because you don't wanna upset anyone, and you, you know, you don't wanna rock the boat. Like, just everything's fine. Everything always has to be fine because then that's how we keep things Safe and keep you accepted and, like, shut up, sit down, just say yes. And Yeah. And that's been a really interesting journey along this of Being in a team where we didn't start out as super close friends. Like, we knew each other, but it was through through my partner. And and so Learning how each other works and and learning to, like, stay true to myself and ask for what I need and Be okay to say that things aren't okay instead of just sitting down and shutting up and pretending everything's okay.

Claudia [00:28:41]:
I think on that note, It's interesting to see what happens with a project and people's investment in that project when it no longer is purely Fun, kind of when the when the shine of newness has worn off, and it It's tipping dangerously close to feeling like a chore. Like, when we started, It was pure fun. I was so excited. It was, like, this really shiny goal that I'd, you know, been thinking about for a really long time. And then we started before I started this new job in September. And so The podcast was kind of something that was getting me through a period in my career that I, like, wasn't really excited about. And then I started this new job. And so I I got to this place where I, like, actually didn't have the same amount of time to dedicate to the podcast, as I wanted, and, like, was just drowning in my other responsibilities.

Claudia [00:29:46]:
And That felt like a me problem. And so rather than being able to communicate in that moment where I was, like, so in it that I I didn't have enough perspective, I just, like, lost the joy for it. But that's the thing that I constantly struggle with, is thinking that everything is a me problem and then I have to, like, go it alone, and I have to figure it out. And I'm the only one who's gonna be able to, like, get myself out of this situation because I got myself into this situation. And That internalizing of struggle rather than reaching out to my support network is something that I've, like, That's a that's a pattern of mine. That's something that I have, like, struggled with my whole life. And so I think 2 things. In in reflecting on this, like, I think about, One, how frustrating it is to be reminded that your patterns are your patterns no matter how self aware you are and no matter how many times you encounter them.

Claudia [00:30:40]:
And then, Two, life is just an endless opportunity to come up against the things that challenge us and to find ways to overcome them and dwelling on, oh, I I should have done this, and I wish I'd done this and whatever. Like, yeah, give it its moment. And then and then move on to looking for the joy in things. Go back to, you know, planning. Go back to the things that you know you need in order to Find that joy. Find that fun. Or or walk away. Right? I think sometimes we think that well, I'll speak for myself.

Claudia [00:31:16]:
I know that sometimes I think that if I just worked a little bit harder, I'd be successful. If I just put a little bit more time in, I'd be successful. And I don't wanna walk away from anything in which I think I could be successful because that, to me, is like giving up. That's, you know, not okay. We talk all the time about how it's okay to walk away from things that, You know, we're always in a position where we need to evaluate what's important to us and put our time and energy into that. And Yeah. This podcast has been such an amazing opportunity for me to to, you know, again, recognize my patterns, think about what I wanna do, and then do it. I've been monologuing.

Hannah [00:31:59]:
There's such a wrestle with Or like a a juxtaposition of this idea of putting early and sticking through. Like, I think we sometimes put so much value in picking through something. Like, stay with it. Do it even if it's hard. Keep going. And there can be so much value in taking on the the idea of quitting early. Like, give something a go, and if it's not working out, quit. Move on to the next thing.

Hannah [00:32:32]:
There are so many thousands of things in the world that we could be spending our time on or people that we could be spending our time with. If it's not working out, go find someone new. Quit. Do do something else that you wanna that you wanna work on Rather than staying in jobs that you hate or doing things that you don't enjoy or spending time with people that you don't enjoy spending time with because you have to stick it out because that shows your, you know, value in your character as a person. But at the same time, with something like the podcast, skiing through has taught us things and opened more opportunities. And There is so much value in staying with something even when it's gritty, even when it's hard, and and getting through the other side. And I I think it's almost an impossible thing to to figure out, but I like to be aware of both of those ideas. Like, is this a moment where I just need to quit sooner and just walk away and let go and try something else? Or is this a moment where, really, I think I just need to stick with this because so often, the the true joy or success or growth Is just on the other side of that thing that you that you stick through.

Claudia [00:33:48]:
Yeah. I think the important caveat to that is what are you doing in the meantime to make things different. If you hate something and you're finding yourself avoiding it or complaining about it and you're not actively doing anything to change it. That's different than if you're like, okay. I don't like this. Why don't I like this? Why is this so hard? Why why am I complaining so much about this? And what is within my control to change? What do I need to communicate? What do I need to do differently? And and if I feel satisfied that I've done all of those things, then I can walk away. Then I can hopefully give myself permission to walk away. If I'm actually just, like, hating things and complaining about them and not doing anything, and there are things in my power to change, then then that is a meat problem.

Claudia [00:34:48]:
That is like, you know, me just choosing to wallow in misery. And maybe I don't have the energy, and that's okay. But that's, again, just something to think about.

Hannah [00:34:59]:
I think we always have more choices than than we like to face.

Claudia [00:35:04]:
Yeah.

Hannah [00:35:04]:
When you are struggling with something or complaining about things, and it's not there. And this person did this, and I'm upset, and my job sucks. And it's like, what could you do about that? And you're like, I can't. It's not within my control. And you're like, yeah. But it is.

Claudia [00:35:19]:
Yeah. And that's why we go to therapy. I mean, In terms of podcasting, a number of really great conversations. I think we're also still in the process of figuring out what works for us and what doesn't. And what I really came to understand is that I need a higher degree of planning and scheduling in order to keep me on track. I'm so excited for what we have in the pipeline between now and May 15th, which will be our year mark, which is mind blowing. But being able to stick with it long enough to come to that realization, to come to that understanding, and then be able to implement those things that I now know I need in the context of this specific project. It is worth all of the struggle and the hardship and the challenge and is the payoff, I think, of our time investment, Our creative investment in this thing that, like, is not making us money, is not gonna replace our full time jobs anytime soon, but that is really important to us.

Claudia [00:36:31]:
And that feels good. Like, that's a win for me.

Hannah [00:36:34]:
And that's what you were saying earlier about everything in life is a chance to to learn something. And you come up against, sometimes, themes where the same thing keeps happening, and you keep facing the same thing. And that's Because there's something in that for you to learn. Like, when when it's the same problem coming up again and again, it's like, okay. What is it that I'm ignoring in this because something is is clearly happening here that I'm not figuring out. And part of that is the discomfort. If you Putting yourself outside your comfort zone and and trying new things and doing that beginner thing, that's when you do get the opportunity to just, like, learn Learn new stuff. Because if you're doing the same thing all the time, it's easy.

Hannah [00:37:20]:
It's comfortable. You're not growing. You're not stretching. Whereas when you When you try those new things and you come up against the same like, I often come up against the the belonging thing, wanting to fit Fit in and wanting to do it the right way and wanting to be accepted. And it's like reminding myself over and over again that that doesn't matter and that the people that are in my life that really care about me. They accept me for who I am. And so it doesn't matter what all these other random people think. So, you know, just be okay with who you are.

Hannah [00:37:49]:
Like, that's That's enough. And sometimes I feel like that's my lesson.

Claudia [00:37:54]:
I think sometimes my lesson is, what is it that I actually want? Because, like you said, there are infinite ways in which we can spend our time. And A major theme in my life has been learning about what I want by figuring out what I don't want.

Hannah [00:38:13]:
Mhmm. Mhmm.

Claudia [00:38:15]:
And that that can be frustrating. Right? Because it means walking away from a lot of things. I think it means saying no to a lot of things, neither of which I'm good at. And really drilling down to what is it that I want to do Takes a lot more time and energy, I think, than just sticking it out in other things.

Hannah [00:38:35]:
I like the idea that goal setting is Almost more about what you're saying no to than is about what you're saying yes to. At this time of year, if you're a goal setter and you're planning out your year, If you're choosing those couple of things to focus on, it's it's blocking everything else out. And because I know for me, I wanna do so many things, and I wanna do it all. And I wanna do it all really, really well. And being out and be like, that's not possible. So what am I gonna say no to so that I have the time and energy to focus on the things that I really wanna say yes to Yeah. I've been doing a kinda half ass job at Wolfbit.

Claudia [00:39:12]:
I've said this before. We're taught, I think, that we can do it all if we work hard enough. And, I mean, we all know on a certain level that that is bullshit and then it's really unhealthy. And I I really would love to get to a point where I just Can enjoy downtime without it having to be scheduled or without it having to be guilt ridden, Feeling like, oh, I could be using this time for so many other things.

Hannah [00:39:43]:
It's like there was a meme that I sent to my sister this week. It was like, Did you did you do all the things that you wanted to do today? No. Did you did you relax and not feel guilty about it? No. Did you not beat yourself about it? Also also no. Having downtime not doing all the things on your list, but not feeling bad about it and just enjoying that It was like can be a struggle.

Claudia [00:40:08]:
Yeah. Gone pretty far from reflecting on our podcast. But I wanted to chat with you a little bit about this idea of working with somebody else and, like, being in a position where As a result, you have to relinquish a certain amount of control.

Hannah [00:40:26]:
Yeah. As as someone that is such a Perfectionist, recovering perfectionist. I have such high standards for myself, which often leaks into having really high standards for Other people or for the people around me. And so a I am a scheduler, and I do plan things out, and I expect things to be of a certain caliber. And the thing about being a perfectionist is, like, control freak as well can go into that of Wanting things done the way that you do them because you think that you do it the right way in every other way is obviously inferior. And that comes out in so many different ways. But what I've been learning in the last years is, like, Things like it's not your life. It's someone else's life.

Hannah [00:41:15]:
Let them live it however they want. It might be different to what you think they should do, but that's irrelevant because it's not your life. Or when, you know, when it comes to podcasting, like, you do things in a different way to what I would do them. And and It's valuing equally different ideas. And I might have a certain vision for it or a certain thing that I think we should talk about or a way that we should do things. And letting go and being, like, there is another way to do it. And that way might be different or you might not think it's the best, but that's okay. And repeatedly, it's been the reminder of, like you know, when we're having conversations recording an episode, you'll say something that is different to how I maybe imagined us talking about a topic.

Hannah [00:42:01]:
And sometimes I can sit there being like, no. That's not that's not where I wanted this to go. And often when I'm listening back and editing, I'm like, oh, that's such a great point. And so it's it's relinquishing control And being able to see things from a different perspective and, like, valuing difference. This idea that things that are the same are good and things that are different are bad And being like, no. The beauty of life is the different flavor and the different things that we all bring into the world and the different interests and perspectives that we have. And in In a general life life thing, I totally believe in that. I totally believe in difference and and all of those things.

Hannah [00:42:41]:
But when it comes to, like, working on a project when I have my high expectations and a vision of how I want something to look. It's like, no. You're stepping outside of the of the square that I made. Get back in your box.

Claudia [00:42:53]:
My immediate thought is, like, okay. What can we do to, you know, communicate more about our visions for these things. And just because we communicate our about our visions doesn't mean that either one of them is going to win out over the other. But what I love doing on this podcast with you is figuring out how we meld our visions so that We come up with the best version of this thing that we can produce together. And, you know, we talked about this again. Like, For us, that really comes down to prioritizing planning sessions where we get to Dedicate time to having those conversations rather than feeling like we're on this hamster wheel of publishing.

Hannah [00:43:43]:
Yeah. Totally.

Claudia [00:43:44]:
And so the other thing that's gonna be new for our podcast moving forward is that we're changing our publishing schedule. We are going to be publishing every second Monday moving forward. So to our loyal audience, hope we're not letting you down. I Hope you'll stick with us. I hope you'll remember to tune in every 2nd Monday. Your presence means So much to us. And yet, for our sanity and for the good of our mental health, we're dropping down to 2 weeks.

Hannah [00:44:18]:
And the other reason for that is a choice in quality. Like, it's been really fun doing the push of producing every week. It's Really forced us to learn a lot, and I don't think we would have learned the same amount if we were publishing every 2 weeks from the start. By having that Really tight time frame and turnaround has meant we've had to produce and research and edit constantly. And so we've got 30 episodes out in the matter of months, and that's been really great. But what we've noticed a little bit more recently is maybe a bit of a drop in quality of the episodes that we're producing just because we're just running around trying to get this thing out there. And while that has been great, we wanna make sure that we're putting the best thing out Into the world that we can within the the constraints that we have of, you know, full time jobs and all that kind of stuff. But talking about things that we're really passionate about, putting things out there that we've really thought about and planned out so that they're Really great nuggets of episodes that you're listening to and spending your time with us for that hour or so Every couple of weeks instead of being on that hamster wheel of publishing for publishing's sake.

Claudia [00:45:30]:
Well said. Do you regret launching a podcast?

Hannah [00:45:34]:
No. Absolutely not. It's been such a wild ride. I'll never forget the moment of publishing our 1st episode. And For me, the scariest moment was putting it out on Whistler Winter. So Whistler has this Facebook group, which has, like, 25,000 people in it, and it can be, like, the judgiest place on the Internet. And so when we published our 1st episode, I put it up on Whistletoe and was like, Hey, everyone. Give us a listen.

Hannah [00:46:02]:
And that whole, like, week was so scary to Put this thing out there, those feelings of, like, who am I to be doing this? Why should anyone listen to me? You know, all the classic imposter syndrome stuff. And It's been really interesting that I don't really feel like that anymore. I do often still feel like, why should anyone listen to us? Or why should anyone listen to me? But publishing is no longer scary. There's obviously those little moments when I'm like, oh, do I really wanna put this out into the world? But it's just become this thing that we do. We search and talk about these subjects and and put them out to the world. And it's funny how quickly We just adapt to whatever new thing that we do. When you start something new or you're going through a really hard time, even, like, with with you when work was really Stressful when you were balancing the podcast. Like, you're all in, and it's taking and consuming, like, everything that that you are in those moments.

Hannah [00:47:01]:
And it's So scary, and it's so big, or it's so stressful. And then in a matter of not that much time later, it's It's just not taking out that much space in your brain anymore. It's just this thing that you do or the stressful time has passed, and you're now on to the the next thing. And That's really interesting to observe.

Claudia [00:47:20]:
Yeah. And then we're posting to YouTube, and then we're thinking about marketing strategies, and then we have a team.

Hannah [00:47:28]:
Yeah. And, like, that was the next thing that was kind of nerve wracking was, like, the first time we recorded a video episode. And we, like, took, like, 20 minutes to kind of actually get into the flow of the episode because it was awkward and we were on camera and that was so weird. And you could See yourself and, like, people are gonna watch this. And then, again, that's just something that is now just what we do. I don't really care about the camera. I no longer really care about what I look like on camera. It's just it's funny how Just getting in and doing the thing, it just becomes normal to you.

Hannah [00:48:01]:
It's it's like your baseline your new baseline becomes a baseline so so quickly.

Claudia [00:48:07]:
Yeah. And I am so proud of the way in which we have explored all sorts of different options for creating the best possible product that we can within the time frame that we have. And so I think of us exploring the use of the sound booth at the Whistler library and challenging ourselves to use a whole different technological and software setup within the space of a week. And remember that time that the sound booth totally lost our entire episode?

Hannah [00:48:43]:
There's nothing quite like the moment of being, like, 45 minutes into recording an episode that you were, like, not feeling a 100% about, but then you get into and you're, like, Vibing, and it's gonna be so good. And you're so excited to get this out into the world, and then the computer deletes the entire thing. Heartbreaking.

Claudia [00:49:00]:
Yeah. And all of that hard work has literally just evaporated into the ether as a result of a technological glitch. Yep. Infuriating. But, yeah, we, You know, are not ones to settle on our laurels. Right? Like, we are constantly setting the bar higher and higher for ourselves. And I love that about how we work together. And I think we're just gonna get better and better at checking in with each other about what we can handle and what we need and where we wanna go.

Claudia [00:49:41]:
And that's so exciting, you know, to be to be doing something where the future is unknown and exciting is such a cool way to spend our time.

Hannah [00:49:54]:
The fun thing as well has been exploring different topics and different subjects. We've gone through a whole range of different things, Leaning more towards, like, really practical outdoor stuff and then going all the way down into talking way more about things like Perfectionism and Procrastination, which was one of our really well received episodes. And so thank you to our audience for allowing us The breadth to just kind of explore all these different topics. We're obviously trying to relate everything back to the outdoor adventure lifestyle that we that we lead and that our audience is interested in. But It's fun to get real about life and to not be too pigeonholed into into 1 area And just seeing the different things that are received and going down a a nerdy research episode where we're talking all about ski injuries and and that kind of stuff to some of our more broad conceptual episodes where we just discuss life. And it's been fun to see what we both individually vibe with and What we both enjoy searching and talking about and also what our audience enjoys.

Claudia [00:51:09]:
I'm really excited for are upcoming topics, because I think we'll continue to be a good mix of those things. But we're also looking at branching out and doing some other new things. And so hopefully, they're just as well received. So When we think about our wins and celebrating the things that we are stoked about in the context of this project, 30 episodes. That feels like a huge accomplishment to me. Having a regular listenership and audience who tunes in week after week after week, like, That feels like a huge win to me. You and I getting an opportunity to develop our Friendship and coworking relationship feels like a huge win to me. What are some of the wins that you wanna celebrate.

Hannah [00:52:06]:
We get a little, like, stats summary from Bud Sprout, who's our podcast host provider. And It's kind of like your Spotify unwrapped yearly thing. And a couple of things that were really fun to To look at, we're we're in the top 50% of podcasts on Buzzsprout. And We we we've published 1570 minutes of podcast episodes. And we're in 29 countries, Which is pretty wild. So it's fun to just sit back and and see that and think of This time last year, podcasting was not even something I was working towards. And now we've Been out in the world since May and published all this stuff and learned all these lessons along the way, and that's pretty pretty rad.

Claudia [00:53:00]:
And so once again, thank you all so much for being on this journey with us and for giving us your heartfelt feedback. We love hearing from you. We love receiving messages and and having conversations about what you think of our episodes. And as per usual, we'd love for you to reach out. Let us know what you think of today's episode. Share all of your adventure stories with us. If anything comes to mind in terms of your own creative outlets or even projects that you walked away from. Message us at weatherproofpodcast on Instagram.

Hannah [00:53:40]:
And if you loved today's episode, if you have any friends that are thinking about starting a podcast? Please share it and follow the show wherever you listen to podcasts. Happy adventuring.