Why I quit my Podcast, Secret Leaders after millions of downloads.

Read time: 5 minutes

Hey there, welcome back. Last week, we explored why you should always leave on time.

​You can read that (and all past issues, here).

By the way, if you're finding these insights helpful, I've started collecting all these tools, resources, and one-sheets in the ever-growing 'Science of Success' vault. Check it out here for additional materials on today's topic and more.

Today is a little different, as I've made a big decision, and life change - and I want to take you on the inside track of why.

I Quit

Big news from me… After 7 years, I quit podcasting this week.

Or, at least, maybe I have. I'm still working it out but I wanted to explain my decision for those that are interested.
If you don't know… I am the host of one of the UK's top business podcasts, Secret Leaders.

With millions of downloads, today, at episode 402…I record (probably) my last episode.

So… The big question is: why quit?

There are three really important reasons.

The first, short and most important honest answer is this:

When I started, there was nothing I cared more about than business and entrepreneurship.

Now, there's nothing I care more about than being an amazing, present dad.

I'm about to become a dad to another daughter this summer, and I want my little baby (Kaia) to get as much of me as she can, along with being there to support my 3 year old (Margot) through a strange transition where she has to share our attention, and for my wife Melissa to know she can count on me.

Honestly, in person high production podcasting with big important guests for YouTube is amazing for many things… But one thing it is at odds with is total freedom.

Baby up all night, wife needs support? Tough, you have a billion dollar founder to interview at 9am.

I took a lot of time to think about it and decided life is about priorities, and mine have changed.

I'll never ever look back and even remember (most of) these interviews but I'll always remember the time I was there and put my family first.

OK so for the slightly longer, grittier, more vulnerable answer behind reasons 2 and 3…let's rewind quickly.

The History

I started this podcast with my friend Rich in 2018 and timing is everything, we got to number 1 in business overtaking Tim Ferris and it was awesome.

Over time, Rich moved out of London and I ended up recording on my own which was OK but over time I fell out of love with. There were many cool things over time... for example:

1. We were the first podcast Steven Bartlett ever went on (listen here). He was kind enough to invite me back to be his first guest on Diary of a CEO. Fair exchange mate.
2. We did about 20 sold out live shows with 200 guests at a time
3. Favourite guest (cos I'm a fan boy) - Alain De Botton, (listen here)​
4. Most viral episode: Deborah Meaden (rarely does interviews, loves the show), (watch here)​
5. With almost 100 startup investments - I've been able to source and discover incredible opportunities because I was seen as 'value add'.
6. Met most of my business heroes, became friends with tons of them. Podcasting can be amazing for that - as it's so intimate.

And the live events - they can build real connection with your fans.

Meanwhile....

It's worth mentioning, in this time I failed a business, and started Heights which was far more aligned to my health interests and purpose and with Heights flying, time spent podcasting felt a bit… meh.

The flipside to this vibe is, Secret Leaders helped build Heights. Free ads when we launched, and literally over £5M of investment from my own guests… Not a bad return!

Anyway, last year, I was ready to quit but my friend Chris Donnelly who had been a long term listener convinced me to go at it again, in a partnership and we made a promise to each other: doing it had to be the most fun part of our week.

So, I bought the assets from my partner Rich (who hadnt been operational for a long time) and we started a new company together - Leaders Media was born.

We got to work, hired a team, built a studio, both invested money (which we are both losing with this decision, but that's always a strong sign you are making a values/principles based decision), and began recording.

Every week, it felt like fun. The most fun part of my week. As hoped and planned for. Some episodes even went viral. The team were buzzing, we were chilling, sponsors were thrilled, everyone was happy.

Then, end of January, whilst I was in Capetown on my annual month working from abroad trip, Chris dropped the bombshell that he wanted to leave - to focus on family, his other business and just not be quite so bloody… Busy.

It sucked. I felt like all the awesomeness was going away right when we were at an inflection point but… I respected his why.

I decided to crack on, and see how it felt going it alone.

At first, great, but quickly that faded..

So now, here's the number 2 reason I'm stopping:

I was reminded of one of my favourite quotes on earth.

It's by Naval Ravikant, and I come back to it often.

“Do what feels like play to you and work to others”.

I suddenly realised… This really felt like work now. 3 unicorn founders in a row and I noticed instead of the starry eyed excitement I once had over my luck… I was somewhat ambivalent, it felt like work, not play, like when I was with Chris.

In a competitive market, you need an edge. You can't fake interest. Theres a million creators on Youtube who would die to be in my seat and I was sitting there… Working, when I should be playing.

It hit me hard.

So, that drove me to start really thinking about priorities, about what I really want, what my values are now I'm a dad, and most importantly, who I want to become.

I took myself to a solo retreat at an Unplugged cabin in the woods for 3 days. Silence in the forest with no phone, and thought a lot about these questions.

Losing an identity

To most people who know me, I'm an OG podcaster. It's very much part of my identity. I was super early to it and reaped those rewards. Both in terms of audience capture, and financially. People always ask me - how do you get those amazing guests? Over 50 unicorn founders, etc. The truth is, they were all listeners. Always inbound. It also meant I built a pretty premium incredible close knit network - as people perceived me as important by nature of who I'm talking to.

Time in the forest helped me answer this question:

How much does status matter to me?

The best thing about being alone is you can be honest with yourself.

It used to matter a lot. Now? Really not so much. In fact, I almost feel an inverse correlation - the more interested I am to be a great dad to amazing daughters, the more money does enable of course but status and notoriety/fame - doesn't. In fact, it becomes a threat.

So, I'm leaving behind my identity of 'podcaster'

Fully embracing my identity of double girl dad 💅.

Honestly, it fits me better...I'm even starting to know Taylor Swift lyrics.

Calling it

When it comes to big decisions like this, I find it useful not to be overly conclusive.

I've been using the 'Quit' framework I wrote about here to help guide my decisions, and so… There are some “unless” exclusions in my thinking.

Maybe I'll miss it. Maybe I'll find thousands of people asking me to return. Who knows?

For now, I'm calling it an extended break. What matters most is… Not being locked into a recording schedule that frankly is at odds with one of my most important values - freedom.

Entrepreneurship can create an incredible life of freedom - but it can also create accidental traps, and at worst; cages.

There are very few successful podcasters and/or Youtubers who aren't total slaves to the algorithm, obsessing over views, desperate for attention - and that means showing up, physically, all the time - and when your product involves guests - the treadmill can never end.

It was time to step off it and take some time to think about how that time investment could be better served to my interests.

So, on that note - I'd be honoured if you do pick an episode from our back catalogue to listen to, for nostalgia sake if you've been around a while or to see what I'm even talking about leaving behind here...

My faves:

1. Alain De Botton (Spotify) (iTunes)
2. Matthew Poulson - Omaze (Spotify) (iTunes) (Youtube)
3. Nicola Kilner - DECIEM/The Ordinary (Spotify) (iTunes)
4. Hermann Hauser - ARM (Spotify) (iTunes) (Youtube)
5. Daniel Priestley - Dent (Spotify) (iTunes) (Youtube)

One final thought:

If you are grappling with a tough decision, working away at something that no longer sits at the top of your priority list - maybe it's time to ask yourself why you are still doing it too.

Remember, quitting is for winners.

Life is short, spend your time where it matters most.

With love,
Dan

In this shorter episode, I do a quick sign off, Chris comes back to chat with me about some of our favourite moments and I wrap it up in a bow. It's 10 minutes, I hope its worth your time. If not, well, this newsletter was probably 10 minutes to this point so I appreciate you investing that time in this - it's been a tough decision!

​Listen now ​

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1-1 Coaching with Dan

In my goal to help more entrepreneurs/people who are looking to level up their careers, I've just started taking 1-1 consulting calls (only 1 a week)

Why book a call? Some of my expertise/success:

I've built 5 startups. 1 win, 1 fail, and 3 still going.

E-Commerce: Heights — with revenue over $20M a year.

Community: Foundrs, one of the UK's top founder communities

Podcasting: Secret Leaders. Millions of downloads.

Health/Mental Health: Managed to overcome burnout, insomnia, depression & anxiety in pursuit of success as I talk about in my interview with Steven Bartlett on Diary of a CEO​

Angel Investing: I've invested in over 90 startups

Coached & Mentored: Certified coach & done lots of mentoring

Personal Brand: Have grown to 350k+ on LinkedIn and X (Twitter) in the past 12 months

So if you're interested in booking a session with me to talk all things business or building a personal brand, book for 30-minutes or 45-minutes. (limited spots).

Science of Success Vault

I'm building a vault of valuable tools, resources, and one sheets that I hope help you succeed.

These will be stored in the ever-growing 'Science of Success' vault — you can always access that here

Want to take your success (even more) seriously? 👇​
🧠 Fuel your brain and feed your gut, try Heights here (use code 'SOSDMS' for 15% off your first month of any subscription

🎧 Check out my podcast Secret Leaders here​

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