Should I start a podcast?

In some blogging communities, the chatter has been about whether Google, with its new updates, will kill organic traffic. I'm sharing this here purely because I'm trying to get my own thoughts on the matter in order before the member-only masterclass this month on SEO/GEO (register here). My own observations: - I still get traffic from Google. - Yes, it's lower now than in January/February, but that could just be because I have been publishing fewer and fewer blog posts (though I plan to rectify that starting NOW and will have more concrete data later this year) - But even with fewer new content, I still get traffic from Google, and daily new subscribers. So, unless that changes, everything else is just people pontificating and making predictions which we know are unreliable - Saw someone making a video about how Google's above-the-fold answers are totally different for different users. I replicated the same experiment, and while yes, the answers, at first glance, looked different, on closer inspection, they were actually very similar. The presentation and wording may have been different, but not the core concept. (I.e., be careful who you listen to.) I've been hearing that Google has killed bloggers for what... 5+ years now? And yet, that hasn't happened. So yeah... just a reminder to self that nothing is certain until we see some death certificates. Until then, the best thing to do for those of us who rely on content for affiliate sales, newsletter subscriber acquisition, etc., is to make sure we diversify just in case Google really kills blog traffic... but also, maybe not a good idea to ditch SEO entirely because again, we don't really know how things will change.

Many, many years ago, I was reading "Norwegian Wood" by Haruki Murakami, and in it, there's an exchange between our very average main character, Toru Watanabe, and his more dashing and charming friend, Nagasawa, that left a deep, deep impression on me. Both Watanabe and Nagasawa are loners, offbeat characters, who have little in common with their peers, including the books they read. When Watanabe comments on Nagasawa's favorite authors (Balzac, Dante, Joseph Conrad) not being very "fashionable," Nagasawa replies with: "That's why I read them! If you only read books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking. That's the world of hicks and slobs. Real people would be ashamed of themselves doing that. Haven't you noticed, Watanabe? You and I are the only real ones in the dorm. The other guys are crap." --- Of course, this is a work of fiction, and in the world of fiction, a character can be rude and declare the rest of the world crap... Even so, I think there's merit in reading things nobody else is reading. So, my question to you... let's maybe help each other find books that are not on Amazon's best-selling list or worse, on the New York Times' best-selling reads. And to keep things from going out of control, let's stick with books that taught you the most about marketing, selling, doing business, or writing in general. Even if the books weren't marketed as such. I'll start 👇

ALRIGHT FOLKS! Grab your shovels and pickaxes and spades (or just bring your claws if that's how you roll)... we're digging a hole in my landlord's backyard, under his hammock, for if and when this auction goes sideways, and I'm stuck with, say, a literal $3.56 solo bid... In any case... Whether I end up making $1 today or... $67 or $69... Let's try and have some fun :) Hole digging can be fun, no? Bidding starts at $1. You can bid any amount that's $1 or more than $1. Remember, the auction is for selling rights to my course, Side Income With Canva Templates: And also all of my Canva templates. You must sell the course for at least $149, or more (currently, I sell it for $199). And you keep all the money! You can also bundle this course with other courses or offers, as long as the entire bundle is worth $149 or more, you're good. You only need 5-6 sales to make an extra $1,000 per month, just sayin'. So... will you bid $1? Please bid $1... I'll have bonus! 🤑