My 75,000th listen contest is now live!

On April 24th, my Blogtalkradio show, Coaches’ Corner (www.blogtalkradio.com/coachandrew) surpassed 75,000 total listens!  That means the contest I announced on April 10th is LIVE!  I’ll reiterate the salient points here:

Qualified entries only!  To win, follow me on Twitter (www.twitter.com/coachandrew), then send an email (coach @ andrewporetz .com) with the subject line “Put me in, Coach!” In the body, tell me that you believe you’re the 75,000th listener, your Twitter name, and tell me the name of the guest and something you learned from any show of mine that you listened to. 

The second and third persons to write in will each win a one-month coaching package.  But wait, there’s more!  I will also choose the person who writes the most insightful response to what they learned from the show for a one-month coaching package!

All others will receive an initial assessment and free one-hour coaching session and a 10% discount on all coaching services just for participating! The three winners also qualify for a 20% discount on all future coaching services.

Coaches’ Corner about to hit 75,000 total downloads!

Back in 2010, I had a contest for my online radio show, Coaches’ Corner on BlogTalkRadio, when I was about to reach 10,000 downloads and nearly 50 shows.  At the time, my average listenership was 213, and my biggest show (with the late Naava Piatka) was just over 700, which number was a seemingly impossible number to break.  I took a hiatus for nearly a year while enrolled in classes, then came back better than ever.  Now, approaching 100 shows, I’m about to have my 75,000th download, with half of those coming in the past six months!  (Prior to the night of Hurricane Sandy, I had just hit 40,000.  My show with Peter Shankman of HARO garnered over 800 live listeners and over 10,000 downloads.)  Now, it’s rare for my show not to break 1,000 downloads, and my top ten shows all exceed 2,000!  I’ve opened up the show to many people who touch, move and inspire people to action in their lives, and have had several terrific singer-songwriter musicians.  (And the leadership coach David Brownstein, who bridged both worlds by sharing his original music with my audience.) 

To find my show on iTunes, you might use this handy short URL: www.bit.ly/coachescorner, and you’ll be taken right to the page.

To celebrate my imminent 75,000th download, I also have a contest going. The first person to write to me (at coach @ andrewporetz.com) and say “I’m your 75,000th listener” (along with the guidelines below) will win a full three-month telephone coaching package and assessment valued at up to $1,497!

Qualified entries only!  To win, follow me on Twitter (www.twitter.com/coachandrew) and check for my announcement that I’ve surpassed 75,000 listeners, then send an e-mail with the subject line “Put me in, Coach!” In the body, tell me that you believe you’re the 75,000th listener, and tell me the name of my guest and a short description of the show you listened to.  Most importantly, tell me something you learned from listening to the show. 

The second and third persons to write in will each win a one-month coaching package.  But wait, there’s more!  I will also choose a random person who wrote the most insightful response to what they learned from the show for a one-month coaching package!

All others will receive an initial assessment and free one-hour coaching session and a 10% discount on all coaching services just for participating! The three winners also qualify for a 20% discount on all future coaching services.

The clock starts the moment my show reaches 75,000 listens (as of April 10th I’m at 73,653, so it can happen in the next day or so) and ends when I have my first three winners, though any qualified entry before Memorial Day will qualify for the free coaching session and discount.  Good luck!

Blog Talk Radio

We all know about podcasting.  BlogTalkRadio (www.blogtalkradio.com) takes podcasting a step further by creating a virtual radio station for all to use.  On April 12th, my first show, “Coaches’ Corner,” will be live, at 11 p.m. EST.  Callers are welcome. [Call in number: (646) 929-2893]

Coach's Corner with Coach Andrew

There’s some history here, and I thought I’d share my story.

In 1992, I was exploring my life’s purpose.  I’d dabbled in writing, comedy and music.  I’d just taken a “men’s weekend,” and was looking at what might be next.  One night, I had an epiphany:  I should be on the radio!  All of a sudden I had my life’s purpose.  I’d be the next Howard Stern.  I
felt the most powerful surge through my entire body with this epiphany. Why hadn’t I thought of this sooner? Of course! It was so obvious! I was delirious with joy at this newfound understanding of my life’s purpose. The next day I called the Columbia School of Broadcasting and set up an audition and interview. I journeyed deep into Bergen County, New Jersey to the school. I was soon sitting behind the kind of radio console you would see in a full-fledged studio, following a script to read a commercial and a news flash, and then dashed back to Manhattan to go to work. The admissions director called me later that day to tell me the good news. I was accepted, and had a partial scholarship. My future was here!

That evening, I excitedly sent an e-mail to a friend of mine, Tracy Carman, who was a “radio buff” who was involved to a great extent with radio archiving. Tracy told me I needed to talk to a professional in the business, and gave me the name and number of a former on-air talent who was now a professor, but whose name is long gone to my memory. I called the fellow the next day and told him my big dream. He asked, “How old are you?” “Thirty-five,” I replied. “Thirty-five? You’re too old! You should have thought of this years ago. You don’t have a chance! I mean, sure, if your dream in life is to make $15-20,000 a year working for some 5-watt station in the middle of nowhere, then by all means, go for it. I’d just stick with whatever I was doing if I were you.”

I felt like a giant prick had just deflated my balloon. I totally bought into this “dream stealer’s” advice, and in an instant, my dream was over. That was it. Finito. Of course, I know now that this was a test, and I had not passed it. I quit at the very first bump in the road.

Seventeen years later, a fellow coach, Crystal Williamson, e-mailed me asking if I’d like to be a guest on her BlogTalkRadio show. I responded, “Your what?” Crystal then explained to me that BlogTalkRadio is a website where anyone could create their own virtual radio show. You needed no experience or very much in the way of technical skills. They provide a virtual switchboard, and if you have a computer and a phone, you’re in. I quickly accepted her offer, and the next week called into the show as her special guest.

It was a great experience, and I was reminded of my old dream. I realized that an opportunity was here – perhaps a small version of the original dream, yet an opportunity to realize it. I signed up for an account. Last week, I did a test show, just to get a feel for what it would be like. I did this on the spur of the moment, signing up for the next available slot, at 11 p.m. I took a 15-minute segment, and went on Facebook to let my world know what I was up to, inviting people to call in. One friend, Debbie, posted, “I’m staying up late for this!”

The show was strictly a test. I had no guest, and I had trouble finding the switchboard at first. I fumbled around, struggling to find something to talk about. The feeling was like being on the phone and leaving a message on an answering machine – there was nobody there to respond. Eventually, a topic came into my mind, and I just went with it.

I ended the test two minutes early. A few minutes later, my phone rang. It was Debbie. “I listened! You were good.” I thought she was joking, and asked her to tell me what I was talking about on the air. She gave me a pretty good recap. My first listener!