Podcast Junky's Blog

I like to think that my podcasts cover a good range of not only subjects, but niche podcasts as well as more well-known podcasts in addition to spreading these reviews to both sides of the pond with US and UK podcasts too.

This review is of a well-known UK podcast and it’s the Podcast Paul podcast.

 

How I’ve missed reviewing this one I’ll never know… so here goes.

 

Paul describes his podcasts as, “… ramblings of a 39 year old bloke from Central England”.

 

I couldn’t put it better myself… but Paul’s “ramblings” are not only entertaining, but also very engaging as Paul has a “your best mate” type of soft voice that’s easy on the earbuds (or now in my case, headphones…) and Paul enthuses in a nice laid-back manner as he shares his feelings, interests and insights.

 

With interests ranging from music to carvanning to podcasting to whisky…

 

…ah yes… whisky…

 

If you haven’t listened to Podcast Paul, then I really recommend that the first podcast of Paul’s that you listen to is his podcast number 144 entitled “The famous Whisky tasting bonanza with Adam” which I consider to be a podcast classic.

 

I won’t ruin it for you, but if you’ve ever been to a cosy dinner party and had a few pre-meal drinks with a friend… and then continued the drinking after the meal, then this podcast number 144 will make you smile… to say the least.

 

Also check out Pauls recent “Live From The Caravan” podcast where he shares snippets from the recent Podcamp UK. Listen to these podcasts and you’ll find yourself subscribing to Podcast Paul’s rss feed in no time.

 

Whether Paul’s talking about some of the clients he’s dealt with or sharing a family get together on a caravanning holiday, then this podcast from Podcast Paul is bound to be in many people’s rss subscriptions.

 

So, what are you waiting for?

 

Head on over to Podcast Paul at
http://podcastpaul.blogspot.com

 

… and enjoy.

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Check Out My Other Blog At
www.solentdreams.co.uk

Visit my Tumblelog at
http://solentdreams.tumblr.com

Have you ever felt that you’ve had enough of the hustle and bustle of city life?

 

 

Ever felt that living in the country would appeal to you more?

Ever dabbled with the idea of downshifting?

 

Ever felt that taking a huge step like that would bring its own frustrations and difficulties..?

 

Well, AJ & Matt went through the same thing… and took the big and bold step of upping sticks from Leeds in the UK… and not just simply moving to the countryside somewhere in the UK… but to even further afield… to Nova Scotia to be precise…

 

… and they share the whole experience with us in their Downshiftme podcast.

I take my hat off to these guys… I really do.

 

This to me is a terrific podcast, particularly as I said earlier, My Lady Wife and I really relate to this.

 

AJ & Matt share their initial anxieties before they embark on their life-changing journey to a different life.

 

They share their concerns about how everything is going to be so different… about how much they’re going to have to learn… even about things we take for granted like simply walking into an electrical store and buying a telephone… different telephone system in Nova Scotia you see…

 

I remember when my Lady Wife and I first moved down here. We had to go everywhere with a map. My first trip to B&Q (… the equivalent being “Home Depot” in the US) was with a map. Our first trip to the local Tesco… with a map… and so on.

 

Then you start fitting in… finding shortcuts… discovering this… discovering that… and it’s this learning and constant discovery that AJ & Matt share so well and honestly in their podcast. Yes, it’s such an “honest” podcast.

Downshiftme is such a welcome podcast as it’s so intrinsically tied in with the lives of the people who produce it. It’s more than just a diary; it’s a total sharing of such a huge undertaking that has literally changed their lives and AJ & Matt allow us to be privy to that… and it’s almost a privilege…

 

Another I like about Downshiftme is the way its blog inherently ties in so well with the podcast. The Downshiftme blog nicely includes help for newbies to podcast listening with tips and tricks along the way together with interesting links.

 

Downshiftme isn’t just a podcast about a trip or a journey…

 

…. it’s not just a podcast sharing someone’s interest in all things geeky with gadgets and gizmos that’ll be out of date this time next year…

 

…no…

…. this is a podcast which shares the trials and tribulations of a major life-change and AJ & Matt don’t skip the emotions tied up in such an undertaking… and good… and the bad.

 

Don’t think that downshifting means chickens, total self-sufficiency and an outside wood toilet.

 

Downshifting also isn’t getting away from something… but more of a positive move towards something… and as AJ says, for him it’s “… a general sense of joy and contentment…”

 

Also don’t think that downshifting is stress-free. It comes with its own challenges and difficulties, believe me, it really does… and you really have to be confident that you’re making the right decision and that you know deep down what it is you really want to get out of such a new life.

 

AJ & Matt truly know that not only have they found a new life which suits them… but that they’ve made the right decision…

 

… and as I said earlier… it’s a privilege for us listeners to share their continuing journey with both AJ & Matt.

 

Go on, head on over to Downshiftme and check out AJ & Matt’s podcast…

 

… and tell ‘em I sent you!

 

Thanks guys - great podcast!

Welcome back.

 

See? I told you I’d still be here…

 

So? What did you think?

 

Distinctive isn’t it?

 

Totally recognisable from now on whenever you ever hear a podcast from Clarence… am I right?

 

Clarence’s podcasts have a totally individual style… a certain format… and (Clarence will be happy with this…) a totally recognisable “brand” about it.

 

Of course, this is what Clarence set out to do…

 

… to brand himself…

 

…and that’s exactly what he’s managed to achieve with a relatively few podcasts…

 

… and even by podfading for quite a while!

 

Clarence’s voice has a lot to do with this with its timbre, rhythm and syncopations…

 

…it’s a conversational rap…

 

…it’s verbal music…

 

…hes has catchphrases…

 

… his verbiage…

 

… a podcast with a beginning that hints of what’s to come in the podcast…

 

… a definite beginning, a middle (… as opposed to a “muddle” that some podcasts have…)… and an end…

 

… and as I mentioned earlier, they’re relatively short podcasts too.

Neat packages of a pure branded product.

 

In one of Clarence’s podcasts he mentions that he’s not sure which direction to take his brand and how to develop it…

 

My suggestion to Clarence is not to worry “which directions” to take it…

 

Take Apple for instance… there’s a whole generation of young people growing up in whose minds Apple is a music company…

 

Me?

 

Damn it I’m old enough to remember Apple being a computer company

 

… and now Apple is almost a ‘phone company…

 

Madonna’s a brand…

 

… but is her brand music… or an author… or an actress?

Who cares?

 

… and I bet Madonna doesn’t care…

 

No, it’s the brand that matters.

 

Clarence… some branches of your brand will wither and die while other branches make sprout new shoots… it’s the trunk of the tree… “the brand” that matters…

 

… and as I say, Clarence’s doyouknowclarence.com has “brandness” by the truckload.

 

Sorry Clarence… but you might have to be what some people might “want you to be”…

 

… especially when those VCs come knocking at your door…

 

“DYKC?™”…?

 

“DYKC?™ fashion”… “DYKC?™ Music”… “DYKC?™ promotions”… DYKC?™

Keep an eye on this cat Clarence, because he has the right idea… the right formula… and right vibe… and the right brand…

 

… and where that brand is going to lead?

 

… the possibilities are endless…

 

… and all starting with a chat with Uncle C.C.

 

… heck… maybe I need to chat with uncle C.C. Chapman…

 

So what are you waiting for?

 

Go on, check out Clarence’s doyouknowclarence.com podcast…

 

… and enjoy!

 

Oh… and don’t forget…

 

Peeeeeeeeace!

 

Postscript: While I’ve been writing this review I’ve just seen a tweet by Chris Brogan mentiong his latest blog post at http://chrisbrogan.com/elements-of-a-personal-brand - worth a look.

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Check Out My Other Blog At
www.solentdreams.co.uk

 

Visit my Tumblelog at
http://solentdreams.tumblr.com

This review is slightly different to my usual reviews in as much as you’re going to need to do some work to get the full gist of this review.

This review is also different to my usual reviews as it’s the quickest that I’ve ever reviewed a podcast from first hearing it.

Yesterday evening I was on Twitter and saw C.C. Chapman’s tweet:
“VERY very happy that Clarence is back to podcasting…” he tweeted.

… so I went to Clarence’s podcast / blog over at http://doyouknowclarence.com

As usual, I intended to listen to 3 podcasts before making up my mind… this time I didn’t have to…

After listening to just one podcast at doyouknowclarence.com I was hooked.

So I immediately subscribed via iTtunes…downloaded all of Clarence’s podcasts… squirted them to my Sansa MP3 player… and listened to each and every podcast of Clarence’s all in one session.

Remember at the beginning of this post I said that you’re going to need to do some work to get the full gist of this review?

Well, here it comes…

Nip over to http://doyouknowclarence.com, listen to at least 2 of Clarence’s podcasts… making sure that you listen to podcast 1, as Clarence mentions uncle C.C. Chapman and how he gave him the idea to produce a podcast…

… they’re all relatively short podcasts…and then come back and read the rest of this review…

… don’t worry… I’ll still be here waiting for you…

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