Behind the episode
What 148 episodes taught us about good conversations
Five lessons from three years of recording — about silence, follow-up questions and why the best answers come after the official end.
We recorded our first episode in a borrowed room with a microphone we didn’t really know how to use. 148 episodes later, here’s what we’ve learned.
1. Silence is a question
When a guest finishes an answer, the most useful thing we can do is often nothing. Three seconds of silence invites the second, more honest version of the answer.
2. “What happened next?” beats a clever question
Our most-shared moments rarely come from our most-prepared questions. They come from simple follow-ups: what happened next, how did that feel, what did you do on Monday?
3. Specific beats general
“Tell me about a Tuesday in that first year” gets a better answer than “What was the first year like?” Specific questions invite stories; general questions invite summaries.
4. The best material arrives after “thank you”
Some of our favourite moments happened after we’d thanked the guest and they relaxed. Now we keep recording for a few minutes, and always ask permission before using anything from that part.
5. Listeners want the reasoning, not the result
Reviews rarely mention a guest’s success. They mention the moment someone explained how they decided. That’s what we try to give every guest an hour to talk about.
Jordan spent eight years as a radio journalist before founding two startups — one that failed loudly and one that sold quietly. He started Podcast to have the conversations he wishes someone had recorded for him when he was 25 and unsure what to do next.
