023 Coach Radio: Your Story – Cliff Ravenscraft

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023 Coach Radio – Your Story: Cliff Ravenscraft

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Cliff Ravenscraft is a full time podcaster.  That’s right, he gets paid to talk about his life. He’s produced more than 2,000 episodes and 24 individual shows over the past few years.

“Find something that you love so much that you would do it for free and then find a way to make money doing it.” Cliff found this idea from Dan Miller’s 48 Days to the Work You Love.

He was an insurance agent with a stay-at-home mom as a wife.

Podcasting for two years before making the decision to go full time.  When he and his wife Stephanie decided to go full time they gave their company a 90 day notice.

Cliff’s biggest challenge: how to charge doing something he loves.

When he was growing his business on the side he put in 20 hours on average per week outside of his normal job.  Some weeks he worked an additional 40-60 hours per week.

Revenue streams:

  • subscribers to his podcasts ($10 / month)
  • sponsorships (a minimum of $800 / month)
  • consulting (building websites and helping others start their own podcasts)
  • equipment sales

Cliff had a board of advisers whom he could trust to provide feedback and motivation as he started and grew his business.

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Posted on April 12, 2010

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  • Ivan Bickett

    How awesome was this interview!!! VERY awesome.

    I’ve heard Cliff’s name time and time again. Dan Miller RAVES about cliff in his podcast and how much he’s helped Dan. Listening to this interview makes me want to search him out (although I have no interest in tv shows) and get to know him better.

    Cliff’s story rang so true to my life. He’s very good at something, but it’s not what’s he’s supposed to be doing in life. He had a wife that was willing to support him even through getting rid of the house if necessary (Skye is adamant that I could bankrupt us (in case I totally screwed up) and she wouldn’t love me any less). He has a work ethic that affected his current position (happening to me). And he put a 90 day notice out (Skye and I have talked about me doing this and I even vaguely referenced it as a “plan” I have in an earlier comment). Even his worry / concern about the future and if he can make it.

    BUT HE DID IT. He went out and made it happen.

    And here’s where the wind got sucked out of my sails. He did it for two years prior to trying to turn it into a business. This is a recurring theme for the successful people I’ve heard you interview. AND IT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE.

    But what do you do if you don’t have 2 years? I don’t think I have a year left if things stay the way they are. My job affects my health, it drains my life, and even Skye says I’m like a shell of a person very frequently b/c I’m shutting down on the inside to cope with doing what I despise (Cliff mentioned despising insurance before he left) day in and day out.

    And I’m not in a virtually debt free situation. Life kicked our teeth in last year. Left a job when asked to commit fraud and Skye had MAJOR medical issues. Debt is the 400 pound gorilla waiting in the other room to pounce.

    I’ve GOT to make something happen quicker. And I don’t know how.

    I will figure this out. Life will be different.

  • http://coachradio.tv/ Justin Lukasavige

    I know you will, Ivan. I left my job earlier than I had planned, too. I
    couldn’t take it any longer. I didn’t know how I was going to make it work
    at the time but just like you, I needed to do it and find a way.