Why you need a podcast pre-flight checklist

How to make sure you get a great interview every time

Where the heck do we put the key in this thing?

I’ve been an indie podcaster for just under a year now. I started my podcast, One Knight in Product, as an experiment to see if I would be any good at it, to play with content ideas, and of course to build my profile and network. So far, it’s exceeded all expectations.

I have no plans to monetise my content ever, but that doesn’t mean everything has to be a shambles. I’m 70 episodes in and counting — you don’t get to do that without a plan! As a product manager I don’t like timelines and checklists, but as a podcast host I absolutely do. And remember: Highly trained airline pilots use a checklist before every take off and landing.

There’s a whole other side of to interviewing, which is the booking and guest preparation. We can talk about that some other day, but for now here’s the checklist I use with my guests and I’m going to put down words on why I think these things are important.

Fan off, window & curtains closed

I have a lovely tower fan in my room to keep me cool in the summer (my office room is a furnace in the summer, an ice box in the winter — thanks, British construction!). I also live quite close to a main road and the room’s a funny shape. Basically, I need as much…