The Long and The Short Of It

Bonus Episode - Big Ideas Lab

Transcript:

Jen: Hello, listeners. Welcome to this very special bonus episode of The Long and The Short Of It. Pete and I are here to talk to you about the Big Ideas Lab to answer your questions, and to share with you some experiences from last year's cohort of big ideas changemakers.

Pete: Welcome, welcome friends. This is our very first, I believe-

Jen: Yeah.

Pete: -bonus episode. We're very excited.

Jen: Yeah, it almost feels like sort of naughty to be recording in between episodes.

Pete: Are we allowed to release this on a Friday, is this allowed?

Jen: Oh my goodness.

Pete: It's not a Tuesday. [laughter]

Jen: So let's start by answering the most obvious question, what is the Big Ideas Lab?

Pete: I mean, at its core, the Big Ideas Lab is an intensive six-week workshop for people out there with changemaking ideas (like our listeners) who are seeking to learn skills, techniques, resources, tools, confidence, for creating and delivering high-impact content. And that might come in the form of a keynote, that might come in the form of a workshop, that might come in the form of a class, or it might come in the form of a TEDx-style talk. All of them could be remote, or online, or they could be in-person.

Jen: So let's talk a bit about who specifically the Big Ideas Lab is for. Because you, our listeners, know that we love to answer the question who it's for. It's for people who want to share their big idea publicly. So as Pete mentioned, we're talking keynotes, TEDx-style talks, or TED-style talks, workshops, courses. We're looking to help people who have ideas that would be helpful to others, to share it publicly using very specific formats and structures to get those ideas out there. If you listen to this podcast (which you clearly do, because, hello, meta, you're listening right now), you know that we are obsessed with technique. We are obsessed with technique. And so, this is for someone who wants to learn craft, and structure, and technique around content creation and delivery.

Pete: And I guess what we've learned over the journey, Jen, in terms of our who's it for, in terms of who is listening to this podcast is...you listening to this are the kinds of people with changemaking ideas. The reason you're drawn to this is because you're seeking some more techniques, some more skills, some more ideas on contributing your idea to the world. So it feels like it's for people listening to this podcast because we know people listening to this podcast have really generous, changemaking ideas.

Jen: Exactly. And let's, let's do a little turning back the clock.

Pete: Oh, throwback.

Jen: Well, let's talk about the origin story, and why we even felt the need to create this in the first place. I mean, we both come at this from sort of different angles. So we might even have two different origin stories. So, do you want to go first, Pete? Why did you create the Big Ideas Lab?

Pete: I want to say there's a few reasons. One is, I've been very...I mean, one is the reason I wanted to create it with you (to get meta) is I've been very fortunate enough to receive coaching, feedback, technique, hard skills, and soft skills from yourself, as it relates to some of the keynotes that I've delivered, whether they be at conferences, or organizations, or at TEDx. And the same is true with the workshops that I run. I've been very lucky to have you as a teacher, as a coach, as a friend, as a collaborator to help me shape those talks, those workshops, those classes into something that is even more impactful. And so part of me is like, I see the value in other people learning from you. So, I want to help with that. So I think that's like, I'm a living, breathing example of why it's important to have technique and receive such technique from someone like Jen Waldman. And then the other thing I think is, I mean, honestly, I've just sat through so many keynotes, workshops, classes that have the potential to be really, really good and really, really high-impact and just because of a lack of technique, I would say, or a lack of understanding of structure or whatever it is, they've just kind of fallen flat. And I feel like all of us have probably sat in a keynote, or a workshop, or a class where we're like, "Wow, this is just not landing." And so I, like, you know, in a way want to help all of us make workshops, make keynotes, make classes more interesting, more impactful for those that are taking part in them.

Jen: Yes, yes, yes. My origin story is a little different, but it arrives at the same point. Which is why it's always so fun to hear your side of the story, then hear the other side of the story. Obviously, listeners know, I come from an arts background, specifically a theatre background. So I've spent my entire life analyzing stories, and understanding how to get on a stage and communicate effectively with an audience. So, that part is included in the Big Ideas Lab. But the reason I felt so strongly about creating this is that I was teaching some public-speaking workshops, and I also had a bunch of public-speaking clients who I worked with privately. And I was simultaneously working with very creative people who were not doing the public speaking. And I was seeing this like major delta between the possibilities of the ideas that the creative souls I was working with were having and their lack of a platform to share them, and then the abundance of platform for some of the public speakers but the lack of creative ideas.

Pete: Yeah.

Jen: And I thought, "Well, which one of those is going to be the easier fix? Oh, take the people with the great ideas and give them the skills to get on stages and share them." So, the Big Ideas Lab really satisfies this need for a system or a structure to get an idea from its inception through all of the phases of the process to the point of being able to deliver it confidently to an audience, an audience of whatever size.

Pete: Yeah. Yeah, I love it. Okay, I feel like we should talk about how it works. How does it work, Jen Waldman?

Jen: Well, it's a six-week workshop. And the classes happen once a week. The learning groups also happen once a week. So, there are twice a week meetings. But in-between the meetings, every single day, the community of changemakers who are moving through the Big Ideas Lab are connected to each other and to us through Slack. We have a Slack channel where Pete and I are staying in constant touch with everyone. We're providing feedback, we're providing resources, prompts, so it's really like six weeks where if you wanted to engage every single day for six weeks, that opportunity is there.

Pete: Mmm, mmm. Yeah. And I mean, I guess the other thing about that is it's 24/7, in a sense. Because when you go to bed, I'm just waking up and starting my day, and vice versa. So you can stay connected, if you really want to, for twenty-four hours a day. [laughter]

Jen: It's so true. This is the benefit of having one of us above the equator and one of us below the equator, and one on one side of the world and one on the other. Is that, you know, one of us is always awake.

Pete: Totally. Yeah.

Jen: And on Slack. Let's talk a little bit about, what do you walk away with?

Pete: Hmm. Yeah, this is a question that I think we get asked quite a bit. Is, "Am I going to walk away with an outline? Or am I going to walk away with a fully-fledged keynote, or workshop, or class?" And I think the answer is both. That in the Big Ideas Lab, you will learn a repeatable process that will take you from...I think you like to call it soup to nuts. Is that the right expression, Jen?

Jen: That's right. That's the right expression.

Pete: I did it. The first time I've ever used that expression, and I'm feeling good about it. We will take you from soup to nuts. Meaning, you will walk away with a completed keynote, a completed workshop, or completed class for your big idea. And the benefit is you will walk away with, like I mentioned, a process that you can repeat again and again and again, beyond the six-week lab, to bring future big ideas that you might have to life. So, I think that is like really ultimately what you'll walk away with.

Jen: Yeah, the process is the meat and potatoes. The finished keynote is the icing on the cake. [laughter]

Pete: Meat, potatoes, and cake, and soup, and nuts. It's all a delicious meal.

Jen: It is a delicious meal. I do want to speak to why the obsession with keynotes, workshops, and classes. And the truth is that it's not really about the keynote, or the workshop, or the class. It's about the process by which one creates a keynote, or a workshop, or a class. Contained within that process are so many sub-processes, and techniques, and frameworks. And the truth is our last cohort, many of them went on to deliver keynotes, workshops, and classes. And some of them applied the techniques and skills in different ways and created businesses, created consultancies, podcasts, digital platforms. So, there are so many ways to apply the techniques. But the reason we focus on those particular forms is that every big idea can be worked into those forms. And then from there, the possibilities are endless.

Pete: Yes. Yes, yes, yes. So I guess that leads to one of the other questions to unpack a little. As a Questioner, Jen, I know you're thinking it, or you would be thinking it if you weren't running the workshop. And that is, where's the proof? Where's the case studies? Where's the examples of the change that people have made through the Big Ideas Lab?

Jen: Well, Pete, I'm really glad you asked that because as we were getting stuff together to hit publish on the website, we realized that it would be interesting to check in with last year's group now. Because we have gathered their stories over time, but it's been almost a year to the day that we did the first cohort of Big Ideas Lab. So, I did reach out to them to ask how the Big Ideas Lab has impacted them a year later. And I would be delighted to read some of these answers, and maybe you'd like to chime in too, Pete.

Pete: Mm-hmm.

Jen: Okay. So this one's from Alie B. Gorrie, changemaker extraordinare. "The Big Ideas Lab helped me step into the work I was put on this earth to do. It's been one year since the lab and I've delivered six keynotes, have taught eight workshops, both in-person and virtually. Not only that, but I've gotten to serve as a disability inclusion consultant with eleven different organizations. The Big Ideas Lab equipped me with a skill set of tools to activate my why. I no longer wait on anyone to give me permission to make change. I now participate in changemaking work daily."

Pete: Snap. Alie B. Gorrie.

Jen: Okay, here's another one from rockstar Carly Valancy, the CEO of Valence & Co. "In the month after the Big Ideas Lab, I delivered an interactive keynote on my idea. A year later, that idea has turned into a business with an awesome team, new collaborators, and multiple streams of income. None of this would be made possible without the repeatable and transferable frameworks I learned here. In a time of full transition, I owe every successful pivot to this experience. Big Ideas Lab is a gift that keeps on giving. It will equip you with the tools to actualize your dreams, and empower you with a belief in yourself that is truly invaluable."

Pete: Mmm. I like that it speaks to what you talked about. Which is, the keynote might be the cake.

Jen: Yeah.

Pete: But it's really, all we're talking about is the process. And that can manifest itself in forms that, honestly, you and I could not even have predicted a year ago. Like, all of a sudden there are businesses and consultancies, and we're like, "Oh, okay, that's pretty cool."

Jen: Yeah, it's very cool. Pete, why don't you read the one from Jenna Pastuszek?

Pete: I would love to. So, Jenna said, "Since the workshop, I've shipped two brand new keynotes, applied to TEDx, turned one of my keynotes into an interactive workshop, created and shipped four other interactive workshops, am currently in the process of developing five more, and I'm now expanding my coaching business from teaching voice lessons to artists to helping corporate america fight Zoom and working from home fatigue. Shipping my big idea after taking the lab has helped me expand my network and promote my mission in podcast chats, Facebook Live conversations, and panel discussions. I've shown up more consistently and more bravely with my blog, and I am more confident in spruiking my work to potential collaborators." Mmm.

Jen: Wow. So I guess what we're saying, listeners, is that if you are someone with a changemaking idea, and you've been sitting in the fear that you don't know how to put it together and get it out there in the world, we have got you. We have the tools, and the skill set, and the techniques to share with you so that you can actually make the change you seek to make in the world by bringing your big idea to life. And the bonus is that keynotes, workshops, classes, courses, they all have an audience that ultimately will pay you for your services.

Pete: Mm-hmm.

Jen: So yes, there is so much work to be done, and you do not have to choose to give all of your work away for free. People will pay you for your big ideas, if those ideas will help to make their lives better.

Pete: Mmm. I think that's one thing worth calling out too, Jen. Is, yes, there is an investment in taking something like the Big Ideas Lab. And our intention is in coming out the other side, you're able to make that investment back and then some in the form of delivering your keynote, or your workshop, or, as some of those testimonials suggested, building a business, or like creating a podcast that leads to more conversations which creates more coaching opportunities. Whatever that may be. So we intend to deliver on the investment, and then some.

Jen: Which is why we actually guarantee the Big Ideas Lab. If you come and you take the lab, and you go through all of the steps, and you do all of the work, and you do not emerge on the other side with a shippable keynote, workshop, or class, we will happily give you your money back.

Pete: Alright. Jennifer, is there anything we need to close with for our first ever bonus episode? This has been quite a joy.

Jen: Yeah, because you know what we forgot to do, Pete? We forgot to say where to go to find out about the Big Ideas Lab.

Pete: Of course we did, of course. And I'm assuming that'll be left to me, because I'm the details guy, apparently. So if you want to learn more about this Big Ideas Lab, if you want to ask us any questions, if you want to read more about what we've talked about, or watch more (there's a video), the website is thelongandtheshortpodcast.com/bigideaslab. Applications are open until the 1st of October, or until the class is full. So, it's really a "please apply as soon as possible" situation.

Jen: Yeah, because we have very, very limited seating for this particular one. So, hope to see you there. We are so ready to help you get your ideas out of your head and into the world so that you can make the change you seek to make. And that is this bonus episode of The Long and The Short Of It.