The How To Podcast Series - Revolving Co-Hosts, Actionable Tips, And A Community for Podcasters · Dave Campbell, Ontario Canada

E638 - How To Keep From Talking Over Others on Your Podcast - Behind The Mic Series

·26 min·1 clip

“Master the power of the pause” and count “one Mississippi, two Mississippi.”

1. The How To Podcast Series episode on talking over guests and co-hosts focuses on how overlap disrupts conversation flow. 2. Dave hosts the show and uses a recent episode from unnamed “experts in podcasting” as the trigger for his advice. 3. The episode asks how podcasters can stop stepping on guests’ and co-hosts’ words while still keeping the conversation natural. 4. Dave says listeners tune out when hosts talk over each other and when awkward “you go, no, you go” loops keep repeating. 5. He argues that guests “cliam right up” and that the back-and-forth wastes time and creates a communication problem. 6. The first fix is a pre-recording brief with ground rules like “finish your thought fully” and “I’ll jump in after you’re done.” 7. He suggests discussing styles up front, including “I listen first, chime in second,” and using a raise-hand emoji or other remote cue. 8. Dave says these expectations should be refreshed often, not only discussed once before a show starts. 9. The second fix is to “master the power of the pause” and wait a couple seconds after someone finishes speaking. 10. He recommends counting silently, “one Mississippi, two Mississippi,” to break the interrupter impulse. 11. Dave describes the example show as one where hosts were excited to speak, jokes were “falling through the cracks,” and the guest looked confused by multiple questions. 12. He also calls out a host who asked “seven questions in one” and quotes the guest asking, “Which one do you want me to answer?” 13. Another solution is non-verbal coordination, such as nodding, pointing to the next speaker, or using a Zoom chat message like “Bob, we’re coming to you next.” 14. Dave says someone has to be in charge of the conversation because conversations do not organize themselves. 15. He also recommends debriefing after an episode with direct feedback like “Love the energy. Next time, one breath, please.” 16. The editing section says to cut out overlaps, stitch together clean audio, and use separate tracks for each voice in Zoom or similar tools. 17. Dave’s tone is corrective and practical, with repeated examples, imitation of awkward talkovers, and direct advice for podcast hosts. 18. The format is a solo teaching segment with a closing reminder, a support message, and a bonus discussion about downloads and time spent listening. 19. Listeners who host interviews or co-host shows with multiple voices will get the most value from this advice. 20. People looking for storytelling, guest biography, or a short entertainment segment may skip this one.

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