How do you cultivate the art of conversation as a podcaster?

Someone once observed that if Howard Stern and Krista Tippett had a love child, it would be Scott Jones. Scott liked that.

As host of the podcast, Give and Take, Scott Jones talks with artists, authors, theologians, and political pundits about the lens through which they experience life. Past interviewees include Mark Oppenheimer, Melissa Febos, David French, Miroslav Volf, Dan Savage, Nadia Bolz-Weber, Rob Bell, and (yes) Krista Tippett.

Scott is also the former host and producer of the popular Mockingcast podcast (https://themockingcast.fireside.fm) and the co-host of New Persuasive Words (https://npw.fireside.fm). Scott is a prolific writer, a frequent conference speaker, a PhD candidate in Theology, and an ordained minister.

In today’s conversation, Scott shares his experience interviewing people from a wide variety of backgrounds, engaging them in refreshingly authentic conversations. Scott has made it his business to know what works and what doesn’t work when it comes to podcasting, which has lead to him consulting for organizations who want to start their own podcast. With that experience in mind, he outlines for us the difference between microcasting and broadcasting, short form and long form interviews, and the elements of good conversation.

Thoughtful, articulate, and empathetic, we finish up our chat with Scott with him sharing his perspective on tribalism and it’s detriment to society, the beauty of one-way love with no strings attached, and the importance of self acceptance in cultivating meaningful conversations.

Key Takeaways

1. When booking guests for your show, choose people you are truly interested in. Don’t simply go for the ‘good-get’.
2. Develop an ‘I, Thou’ perspective (vs an ‘I, It’) where you and your guest are both subjects in the conversation.
3. Try not to censor your thoughts. Trust yourself and your intuition.
4. Build warm relationships with publicists. Take good care of the guests they send you, and they will likely send you more.
5. To gain mastery, listen to different types of podcasts, have your ears open, and be a student of other people.

Resources 

• Give And Take Podcast: https://giveandtake.fireside.fm
• New Persuasive Words Podcast: http://npw.fireside.fm

Connect With Scott Jones

For Consulting: scottkentjones @ gmail.com

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