It's definitely very important to find that work life balance. And at first it wasn't easy again, you know, you said having a spouse and then giving up this time, but I just kept telling her, I said, Honey, I know something good is gonna come from this. I know something good is gonna happen from this. And there's been a lot of good things that have happened because of this. And she sees it now and she's like, Hey, do your thing, own it, keep going, and the sky's the limit.
Dylan Schmidt:This is the show for creative entrepreneurs who have a message to share and want to live a life of freedom. Learn how to grow your network and net worth. Hear from exciting guests and more. My name is Dylan Schmidt and Welcome to Digital Podcaster. My guest today is Fonz. Mendoza, Fonz is the host of his own show called my Ed Tech life. And font is an instructional technologist and a Google innovator from South Texas. He's got 15 years of experience in education. He's got a master's in educational technology, along with a graduate certificate in elearning. And graduates, oh my gosh, FOSS has got so many credentials, it's ridiculous. He also has a graduate certificate in technology, leadership and education. Fonz is a true professional around a lot of things. And one of those being live streaming. And I don't know a lot about live streaming. So I wanted to have him on to be able to have him share with us things he's learned because I was a guest on his show. And the man runs his production tightly and professionally. And I was like, this is goals right here. So in this episode, the three main questions I'm asking Fonz is number one, some unexpected benefits that he's picked up from live streaming. Number two, how he manages his life, like having a day job, a spouse working on his doctoral and still manages to live stream every week, sometimes every day of the week. Also, if you could go back in time and talk to himself on day one of live streaming, what would he tell himself? What would he need to know? Or what does he wish he knew at that time? Please enjoy my conversation with Fonz, Mendoza. Welcome to Digital Podcaster.
Fonz Mendoza:Hey, thank you so much for the invite, though. And I really appreciate it.
Dylan Schmidt:And nice microphone, by the way, we are both rockin the Shure white, limited edition, m v seven. How are you liking that microphone,
Fonz Mendoza:by the way? Oh, well, my research is going so well on this, like I have been researching the sound. And I'm really enjoying it. And of course the colorway is amazing. And it just looks so clean and crisp. And I absolutely love it.
Dylan Schmidt:It's great. Um, so what I wanted to chat with you about is you have been live streaming for a while. I really don't know much about live streaming. I'm curious on your process, how you do it, because you do it consistently. And you do it? Well, I was a guest not? Well, you do exceptionally great. I was a guest on your show you communicated so well, every step of the way was so professional when I was thinking, you know, oh, I want to have Fonz on. But I really wanted to figure out what we talked about, like, oh, live streaming, what have been some of the unexpected benefits that you didn't expect with live streaming that you've gained from having your show?
Fonz Mendoza:Geez, well, you know, some of the unexpected benefits, but the thing is, is the show's called my Ed Tech life. And really, sometimes we don't even talk about tech at all whatsoever. But I have to explain to people why I call it my tech life because it's me, it's a hashtag that I started using. When I first got this position six years ago, my life is all Ed Tech, I do these things for work. But, you know, for fun, I love to amplify teacher stories. So you know, the the unexpected benefits, though, of that have been that now I'm actually getting like about maybe two to three emails per day of people that are like, Hey, we saw your show. And we have so and so who would love to be on your show, or we see would be a great fit. And sometimes the names on some of these invitations. I'm like, what like that person like I can't believe it, you know, somebody of that stature or somebody that I look up to in the education community, you know, I asking, Hey, can I be on your show to share? So the benefits from just being very consistent and having a workflow that allows users to feel comfortable, my style of interviewing, also, a lot of people have commented on how I just really put them at ease. And when I'm asking questions and really just not trying to be controversial or anything. It's just really just letting them expand and expound on their stories has been great guests. Word gets around. And now just this morning alone before 6am I have three emails from companies that are like hey, we see that you have an interest in augmented reality virtual reality. Our CEO of this company would be interested on being a guest On your show, I had another company also that I used a lot when I was a science teacher. And they're like, Hey, we're coming up with a new product. And it's something that might be, you know, an interesting conversation, would there be a possibility to get our CEO and and not just like a representative there, like our CEO would love to be on your show before? Asking people continually, Hey, you want to be on the show? You want to be on the show? And now it's turning around to where it's like, can I be on your show? Can I be on your show? And that as you know, Dylan, yourself as a podcaster really makes things a lot easier sometimes because it helps us not to stress about who the next guest may be, or, or who else I can get when they're asking to be on your show. It's just like, I kind of sigh and I'm like, Oh, thank you. And then I'll send out my Calendly and be like, Okay, here you go. Pick a day, this is what we have available. And we can go ahead and make that happen.
Dylan Schmidt:Incredible. And I'm gonna highlight something. So what you do so well, that I just think is a great lesson for everybody. Listening is Fonz. I don't know if you picked it up. But Fonz is got a lot going on. Like my Ed Tech life isn't his main source of income at the moment, hopefully one day, but you've got a lot going on. You've got a day job. You've got a spouse, you've got a doctorate?
Fonz Mendoza:Oh, yeah, I'm working on my doctoral courses right now doctoral current
Dylan Schmidt:courses right now. And you're live streaming, which live streaming is one of the more demanding things on the schedule, because you can't just like fake that it's live. So I just want to point out one thing that you do exceptionally well, which is boundaries around navigating all these things, because I speak with a lot of people. And you don't even have to speak with people to know that there's a lot of reasons why people can't do something, whether it's live streaming, whether it's podcasting, or just making content in general. And you're doing these things. And you know, we all hear Yeah, easy for them easy for them make it look so easy. Like, yes, I will not argue with you that Fonz makes it look easy, he does make it look easy. But he's also got it dialed in.
Fonz Mendoza:When I first started, I was actually doing one show every two weeks. And that was enough for me because I mean, I was still learning. I was like, I still didn't know how to repurpose. I didn't know how uploading into anchor, I was like, What am I going to do. The first thing that I did tell myself though, is I'm not going to worry about editing. And I talked to you and I don't know, that makes me kind of unique in that way that I do not edit any of my episodes, what you see is what you get. So as soon as I'm done, I just download that audio, and I upload it to anchor and then it goes to all my podcasts, my pod page to all the major podcast players. And that's it because my thing is, I want people to understand that this is authentic, this is genuine, it's not going to be, you know, post processed, and not that there's anything wrong with it. But because like you mentioned, I don't have the time, I don't have the time to do that. So that actually is what helps me become a better host, and a better interviewer because I need to make sure that I get those clear, concise answers, and that I can dig in deeper and highlight some of the work that the educators or guests that are on the show are bringing and try to draw out the best that I can from them. So that way that one and only take is all that we need. And then after that, it just goes up. And that's it. So that's one thing that I learned real quick.
Dylan Schmidt:Hey there ever notice how I don't run any ads on Digital Podcaster. It's because I want you to have a great listening experience. No sponsors, this is completely self funded to do want to ask for one thing, though, if you know anybody who could benefit from listening to the show, please please share it with them, message them, tag them in a post, take a screenshot of this, put it in your stories, wherever you share your stuff with the world with people that you care about. I want to provide as much value as possible to as many podcasts as possible. So your recommendations go a long way in helping other people become better podcasters as well, which is the only reason I do this. All right. So appreciate you. And let's get back to the show.
Fonz Mendoza:But going back to the schedules, it's definitely very important to find that work life balance. And at first it wasn't easy again, you know, you said having a spouse and then giving up this time, but I just kept telling her I said Honey, I know something good is gonna come from this. I know something good is gonna happen from this. And there's been a lot of good things that have happened because of this. And she sees it now. And she's like, Hey, do your thing, own it, keep going and the sky's the limit. And so she's on board and that makes things so much easier. And again that support but yeah, having boundaries is definitely very important.
Dylan Schmidt:If you could go back to like day one Fonz. If you could tell him anything when he did no 145 or 146 146 episodes.
Fonz Mendoza:So the first day thing that I would probably tell funds like, starting off is start off with a better mic. I started off with the Blue Yeti.
Dylan Schmidt:Oh, that's like you're supposed I think you're supposed to, I think the average, you know, the podcasting, content gods they got a, you got to start with this one. And that's your initiation after that.
Fonz Mendoza:Yeah, that's our initiation with that. So yeah, I would learn a little bit more about that. And just for anybody else, you know, what I would just tell you is, number one, get yourself a really good mic, that would be number one. And number two, just click record, click Record, don't be scared. Because again, like Dylan said, you're gonna get the what ifs whatnots, and people that are going to be like, Oh, you could do this better, and so on? Well, you know what, you're the one that's doing it, and they aren't. So you know, oftentimes, two people are going to come at you, but it's because they probably wish that they could be doing what you're doing. But they're not and you are, so just keep doing it. And don't be afraid to just be yourself on the podcast. Don't worry about numbers. Don't worry about niches. Don't worry, I will, I mean, think about your niche. But don't, don't get too hyper focused on those things. Because once you start going on your podcasting, you're gonna see that your identity will come out, your personality will come out. And the people that you want to target will slowly find you, once you start putting yourself out there and putting your content out there and what you're about. And then all of a sudden, you're gonna have downloads like you, like, don't worry about the numbers, eventually, in a couple of years, you'll see like, wow, like, I didn't know that I was even doing that well. And one thing that I will be honest with you, I don't look at numbers at all whatsoever. Because I do what I do, because I love what I do. I do have some friends that are hyper focused on analytics. They're hyper focused on their numbers. And some of them have even quit live streaming, because it's like, well, I don't get enough views, or, well, I don't get enough this. And oh, I'm thinking about sunsetting, my podcast and doing this, and you have your reasons. But again, consistency. And if you really have a passion and love for what you do, and your craft, you just go for it. And for myself, it's this is my get away from work. This is my my space, this is my way to relax. And most importantly, this is my way of learning. I'm learning from every guest. And then I'm learning from digital content creators like yourself, and others that are out there. And it's all about getting 1% better every day. So yeah. So again, going back, let me reiterate, number one, get yourself a good mic first. Then after that, don't be afraid to click Record. After that, just keep putting yourself out there. Don't worry about analytics, and just truly be yourself and just go for it. Just continue doing it and be consistent. So those are the five things. I would tell myself, I just
Dylan Schmidt:love it. You just casually dropped five like it's nothing that's like incredible. Okay, so that is all incredible. Last question for now, because I know I could ask you a lot more. So question is this who should listen in watch your live stream? Who
Fonz Mendoza:should listen to watch my live stream? Well, let me tell you something, first and foremost, the mission and my vision. And my passion for my podcast is to connect educators, education professionals, and creators one show at a time. Yes, I am an educator by profession. I love my profession. But at the same time, also, I consider myself a Creator as well. Because I do create content, not just around education, but just around things that I love, which is the podcast and live streaming. So why not try and build a bridge between those two worlds? So for myself, if you want to see or interested in somebody doing a one man show and how to livestream and interview and do all these things, and you're interested in that well, yeah, and I would love for any creator that's interested in live streaming to definitely catch our show. And again, also if you have a wonderful story, reach out and I would love to share your story to me just amplifying people's stories is really the end all mission for my tech life
Dylan Schmidt:as beautiful. Thank you so much for coming on the podcast today. Fonz. It's been a pleasure.
Fonz Mendoza:Awesome. It's been a great thank you so much for the invite.