Latest / Crafted Connections / EP 61: SOLO - Crafting Connection vs. Just Creating Content

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EP 61: SOLO - Crafting Connection vs. Just Creating Content · Crafted Connections

• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: Hello and welcome back to Crafted Connections.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Caitlin Calhoun, and on this podcast, I talk to people about their stories.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_00: I talk to people I'm connected with, and I have this deep, deep value/slash belief that everybody has an interesting story.
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: There are interesting stories everywhere, and every person has something interesting about them.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm kind of on a mission to prove that by talking to all the cool people in my community, telling their epic stories and sharing them on the interwebs.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: And it's really driven by story and how to share your story and how to find what's meaningful in your story.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: I do this by one, showing you all sorts of people across all walks of life and talking to them about what they love to do and what's interesting in their life and telling their stories.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: And then I also come on here and talk about like the practical tips on how to actually compose and share your story, how to put it all together.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: And this is all informed with this video production background that I have.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: So it's not just storytelling for the sake of standing in front of someone or one-on-one telling a story, but that's also like how do we visually enhance it as well.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's a lot of fun.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_00: So here we are again on the mic.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: I am putting together a solo episode for y'all.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: I really wanted to dig into connection today and how connection is absolutely a two-way street.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: And this is, we're talking by definition, connection as I see it, is intentional, purposeful, meaningful.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: And in order to have connection that fits all of those things, it's got to be a two-way street.
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: And that means a few things.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: What you're investing in the connection and also what's coming back to you.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: In high school, I did Lincoln Douglas debate, and a part of that format in debate is all about early on defining the terms of the debate in order to then ultimately lead to the best case for your argument.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: And so I think about that a lot when I'm talking about things on the podcast.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: When I'm leaning into the stories I'm creating, I'm like, what does this term mean in relation to the topic, the subject matter, the people featured, the characters of the story?
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: And I've never really sat down and been like, okay, this is what connection is.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so for our conversation today, I want to make that clear.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: When I think about connection, I think about something that is intentional, purposeful, and meaningful, hence calling it crafted connections.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_00: Hey y'all.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: You know I love telling stories, gathering stories, and finding a way to help people connect their story with the people that will get it.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what my story strategy sessions are all about.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: So over at Calhoun Creative Consulting, my strategic storytelling firm, we do one-on-one and or facilitated workshops in relation to really honing in the strategy around your story.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_00: It's a bit of messaging, meets content creation, meets storytelling, and then how do we put that out in the world?
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_00: How do we show up regularly?
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: There's a bit of mindset work around it, right?
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: To actually tell your story.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: Whether you're launching something new or trying to rework your brand or just feeling a little foggy on how to communicate with your people, this is how to get clear.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: We'll dig into things like your narrative, how to uncover what matters most, maybe map out a few content pillars while we're at it.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: You'll also get a recording of our session so you can revisit the conversation anytime you like.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Let's shape a story that actually feels like you.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: So book yours today.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: There is a link in the show notes.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: And hey, while you're at it, use the code podcast, all caps, P-O-D-C-A-S-T for 25% off your session.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: I would be honored to spend time with you and suss out your story.
• 3:57
  SPEAKER_00: Let's dive back into the episode, shall we?
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: I think a lot about how my freelance career was built on very few connections connecting me to more people, which then created this like massive network.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: It was just little micro introductions.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: And then you craft over time those relationships, those connections.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_00: You have conversation.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we're in a time where the definition of connection is getting very, very lost in the sauce.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: I personally have been posting on Instagram daily with little mini vlogs.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: I literally just hit the six-month mark this week, and it's feeling like slop.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: It's feeling very forced.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's feeling very little.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's lacking that connection.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: It is lacking actually having a conversation with my people.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: I think people are still consuming it.
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_00: There's definitely like a handful of people that still are talking to me about the sharing about the mini vlogs.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: And also the conversation piece, the back and forth, the like thinking about who I'm talking about, thinking about who who my audience is and who I'm having a conversation with needs to be brought into the picture.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know if I was doing it for an audience in the first place.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: When I started this mini vlog, the intention wasn't to create it for an audience.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_00: But as I've been continuing, people have started to converse with me about it.
• 5:32
  SPEAKER_00: Whether it was like day one or last week or even like a few days ago, someone was just like, I feel you, you got this, you know.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's like that's the conversation.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: And it's it's a it's a back and forth, it's a feeding each other kind of thing.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we we absolutely lose that.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm kind of setting my own intentions around that.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like, what does that look like?
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: How do I want to make it more meaningful?
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_00: So, my intention is to give more love to those conversations to be more thoughtful about who I'm actually speaking with.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: Because when it comes down to it, the online connections, it's two humans behind the screen.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, sometimes yes, AI comes in and you've got your automated bots, blah blah blah blah.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: But I'm talking about the people that I physically know that are also like the ones typing or the ones like sending voice notes or the ones responding.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like, how do I build a deeper connection with those folks?
• 6:29
  SPEAKER_00: A deeper, more purposeful, intentional thing.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_00: The funny thing is, I I'm a pretty introverted person.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: One of my sisters actually called me out when I first launched this podcast.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_00: She was like, hmm, you're not very good at answering your phone, but uh, we're making a podcast about crafted, you know, connections.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_00: And she's like, that feels like a little bit misaligned.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: And she was not wrong.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: That is a very honest, real thing.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_00: We all have work to do in every category, and even though I do pride myself in the ability to connect with people and the ability to know people and know their stories and share both my story and their story and and have good conversations, deep conversations.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: I cannot with a surface-level conversation.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_00: Even though that is all true, I also do have my weaknesses, not even weaknesses, areas where I do neglect that type of thing.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm I'm starting to feel that in what I'm creating.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: I feel like I'm really proud of how much creation is happening, but I feel like I am missing the conversation piece, the I suppose the crafted part of the connection.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: But also it's like that that's wrong too.
• 7:41
  SPEAKER_00: Because again, I go back to my definition of connection, which is intentional, purposeful, and meaningful, and I feel like I'm losing the connection.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: So we are kind of reconnecting.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_00: She can't stop saying connecting.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: We are reconnecting with that idea.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: How do we reconnect with having that two-way street, that actual conversation back and forth?
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_00: I have a whole framework around storytelling, around you know, approaching it if you don't feel that comfortable a story, and part of part of my framework includes that piece that do not lose the actual conversation part.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_00: It's not just about posting and ghosting, it is about showing up, connecting, making those feeling friendly connections and conversations where we're actually like understanding each other.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that is the most impactful thing.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_00: There are so many elements to marketing.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: I've talked about this in the past.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_00: There are so many elements.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: I believe that the element of storytelling is the most impactful.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_00: Story is so unforgettable, and connection is so unforgettable.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_00: It's like people remember how you make them feel.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like I think about all my different relationships, and like I don't think about specific instances of interactions with people, but I do think about like, ooh, I feel this way, I feel that way.
• 9:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's like when someone lights up on your phone, what is your gut reaction?
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: And it is, it's it is how you make them feel, and stories can make your people feel a kind of way.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_00: All to say, I'm exploring how to dig deeper, deeper, deeper into the actual interactions, the making sure that I'm not just like sharing, sharing, sharing, sharing, sharing and not responding, responding.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_00: So that's something that I'm I'm playing with recently.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm I'm wondering how you're doing out there.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_00: I think there's a lot to consume, and I think that's very overwhelming.
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh I have a lot of friends and family who are like, I'm trying to keep up with your podcast, and I'm like, I don't expect you to.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_00: I I put my best work into it that I can when I'm producing each episode, and also like I'm really chugging out a lot of information and a lot of content.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, I appreciate folks trying, giving love to it, and it's you know, there's so much, especially with like the resurgence of Substack.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_00: Like, there's so many podcasts, castes, there's so many podcasts, there's so many, you know, blogs, vlogs, social posts, like there's so much.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: How does one even stay up to it?
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I don't expect people to keep up with all the content, uh, whether it be mine or or others.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_00: That's why like repurposing and repeating yourself is a part of of this, and also something that I'm leaning into and I think is really important is to actually converse with who you're sharing everything with.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_00: It's not just to like share, share, share, share, share and not listen.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: So that's something I'm leaning into and and kind of trying to turn the dial up on.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_00: I I've always been aware of it, but I I'm excited to kind of reconnect with that.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: So haha.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: I'm excited to reconnect with it.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I I think uh a lot of fun's gonna come out of it.
• 10:58
  SPEAKER_00: But thank you so much for hitting play on this episode.
• 11:02
  SPEAKER_00: If anything I said uh made you think, oh, I want to share this with my friend, or oh, I know someone that this would benefit, please share this episode.
• 11:11
  SPEAKER_00: I would be so, so grateful.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: I'm already grateful that you pressed play today and made it to this portion of the episode.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you so much, and I hope that you have an excellent week.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: Crafted Connections is lovingly produced by Calhoun Creative Consulting, a strategic storytelling firm dedicated to helping people and brands tell their stories in a way that resonates.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_00: If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe and connect with us on Instagram at Crafted Connections Bot.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_00: Keep creating, keep connecting, until we meet again.