The Pit and Pod is the weekly blog of the Archaeology Podcast Network full of updates, news and opinion. Written by co-founder Tristan Boyle and special guest writers.

I have a blog and a podcast. And if AgentPalmer.com and ThePalmerFiles.com were all I had going for me, that would be a handful alone. But I also co-host podcasts Our Liner Notes and The Podcast Digest. I help behind the scenes on The Wicked Theory Podcast and do other shadow work behind the scenes for podcasts and blogs and networks that I don’t necessarily share publicly.

Plus, there’s the day job. And while that is a lot, it’s also the norm. Or maybe it’s more than the norm, but it’s not uncommon. Perhaps I have more than the average, but if you have a blog OR a podcast and aren’t independently wealthy, then you have a job and a blog, or a job and a podcast.

And while at times, it does feel overwhelming to have so much to do, I’m not the masochist it would seem, because I do love everything about all of my passion projects.

Blog, podcast, youtuber, helping friends with their thing, if you’re a part of any piece of the process then it’s a passion project for you, because on the most basic level, the overwhelming majority of content creators have at least the dichotomy between their regular “day job” and their passion project.

Otherwise, you would be casually reading a book or streaming a show or listening to a podcast instead of creating something for yourself.

But you have chosen to be a creator. First off, good for you. Second, it’s not easy. Third, seriously good for you.

With the most common creators having a full time job, even having one project is hard to stay engaged with because the full time job, obviously takes up a good portion of the day for your time, but also your mental and emotional energies as well. Which means coming home to a project isn’t easy.

But we do it. Why do we do it? Because it is a passion project. We have reason to believe that creating is not only good for our souls, but can be entertaining or of interest to others. You want to know the secret to my engagement with more passion projects than hours in the day?

I am fulfilled by the process. That’s my secret to being engaged. Having a meeting to throw ideas around is fun for me. Following up with people is enjoyable. Going over notes, doing research, learning new things about what I’m working on or about myself throughout, all of it is great fun to me.

They say if you find a job you love, you’ll never work a day in your life. Well, even if we can’t make a dime, these passion projects are not work to me, nor should they be for you, and that is the secret to staying engaged.

Sure it’s not ALL great. Yes, promotion of the completed project, either weekly with a blog, or regularly with a podcast (depending on your release schedule) is a long drag, but in 2020 if you’re cultivating a digital social circle the promotion can turn to discussion very quickly, which makes each promo tweet or status update a potential discussion among friends.

Ok, I’ll admit sometimes editing an audio or video project isn’t exciting. Sometimes editing a piece of writing is downright painful. But on the other side of that editing, no matter how soulsucking it may seem during the process, is the fantastic rush of hitting “publish.”

About the guest blogger: Agent Palmer is Jason Stershic, a mild mannered geek and nerd, who started a blog called AgentPalmer.com about “all things geek.” Then, through the magic of Twitter (@AgentPalmer) and consuming podcasts he found a circle of friends and started guesting on all of their shows (and he’s still available to guest on podcasts when asked). Then he became a producer and co-host on shows such as The Wicked Theory Podcast, Our Liner Notes, and The Podcast Digest, before finally launching his own show The Palmer Files Podcast.

Follow the 5th Year Celebration on #APN5 on Twitter

Please contact tristan@archaeologypodcastnetwork.com for more information