Have you been sitting on an idea for a podcast for a while? Would you like to come up with an idea for a podcast and not quite sure where to look? Do you just need someone to say, “Give it a shot and see how it goes”? I have felt that way for a few years, and Carolyn Kiel, the creator and host of the Beyond 6 Seconds podcast, is one of my inspirations to give this medium a shot. After publishing over 150 episodes, she has a lot of wisdom to share. A master interviewer and creative force, Carolyn tells me how she got started podcasting, how her podcast has grown and evolved over the past four years, and how the conversations she had with people who are autistic and neurodivergent changed her life.

In this episode, we talk about:

- The motivation that led Carolyn to start Beyond 6 Seconds

- How she chose the name

- How she chose the topic and format of her podcast

- How she got her first guests

- The parts of the podcasting process that give her the most joy

- Why neurodivergent stories became her focus

- How learning about and meeting people in the neurodivergent community changed her life

- Carolyn’s autism diagnosis that she received as an adult

- Debunking outdated stereotypes of people who are autistic and neurodivergent

- How the biases in women’s healthcare also impact the biases faced by women and girls who are neurodivergent and autistic

- Interviews she’s done on Beyond 6 Seconds with journalist and author Eric Garcia and The Life Autistic YouTuber Hunter Hansen

- At the end of the episode, I share some (mostly free) tools I use to create this podcast

Links to resources:

https://www.beyond6seconds.net/

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Beyond 6 Seconds on Twitter - @Beyond6S

Beyond 6 Seconds on Instagram - @Beyond6Seconds

Beyond 6 Seconds on Facebook - @Beyond6Seconds

YouTube: Beyond 6 Seconds

LinkedIn: Beyond 6 Seconds

Christa on Twitter – @christanyc

Christa on Instagram – @christarosenyc

Christa’s website – ChristaAvampato.com

Eric Garcia’s website - http://www.ericmgarcia.net/about.html

Hunter Hansen’s website - https://thelifeautistic.com/

Podcasting tools:

Zencastr for interview recording

Twisted Wave for audio editing

All about audiograms for marketing

Otter.ai for episode transcripts

Canva for digital quote posters on social media

Anchor for hosting and distribution

Wordpress for the website

Unsplash for images

#podcast #joy #stories #storytelling