Influence Anyone

Influence Anyone

100 Episodes Later: "The Power Lies in the Pause" and 11 Other Lessons from Influence Anyone Guests

Oct 6, 2026 · 40 min · 10 segments

After 100 episodes, Howie Chan finally says the thing most podcasters won't say out loud. In this season one finale, he gets honest about the money, the growth, and the grind behind Influence Anyone…

After 100 episodes, Howie Chan finally says the thing most podcasters won't say out loud. In this season one finale, he gets honest about the money, the growth, and the grind behind Influence Anyone. He pulls back the curtain on a question every creator eventually faces, then he turns to the 12 guests who most influenced him and how he thinks about influence, from Robert Cialdini and a $700,000 thank-you note to Navy SEAL Rich Diviney and a lesson on fear learned during Hell Week. **Chapters** 00:00:00 The Honest Truth About Influence Anyone 00:10:39 Robert Cialdini: The $700K Note 00:13:00 Scott Walker: Why Am I Talking? 00:14:34 Henna Pryor: The Fast Comeback Rate 00:16:07 Nir Eyal: Beliefs Are Tools 00:18:30 Melina Palmer: Do It Now, Not Monday 00:20:00 Phill Agnew: The Effort Effect 00:22:16 Nancy Harhut: People Don't Think the Way You Think 00:24:57 Brian Ahearn: Set Up the Ask Before the Ask 00:27:44 Owen Fitzpatrick: We Sell Ourselves Stories 00:30:09 Kwame Christian: Acknowledge Before You Ask 00:31:26 Rich Diviney: Moving Horizons 00:33:27 Sam Horn: The Hook and the Hinge 00:35:19 What Every Guest Had in Common 00:37:06 What's Next in Season Two **The Behavioring Lab** Howie is launching a membership at howiechan.com/lab to help experienced professionals close the gap between what they know and how people perceive them, using behavioral science and influence psychology. → howiechan.com/lab **Guest Episodes Mentioned:** Robert Cialdini: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/robertcialdini Scott Walker: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/scottwalker Henna Pryor: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/hennapryor Nir Eyal: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/nireyalbelief Melina Palmer: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/melinapalmer Phill Agnew: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/phillagnew Nancy Harhut: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/nancyharhut Brian Ahearn: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/brianahearn Owen Fitzpatrick: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/owenfitzpatrick Kwame Christian: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/kwamechristian Rich Diviney: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/richdiviney Sam Horn: https://www.howiechan.com/podcast/samhorn — *Produced by Ideablossoms (*https://ideablossoms.com/*)*

After 100 episodes, Howie Chan finally says the thing most podcasters won't say out loud. In this season one finale, he gets honest about the money, the growth, and the grind behind Influence Anyone…

The Real Economics of Podcasting1:39 – 9:45

1:39

Making a good podcast is really hard.

1:44

There are a lot of podcasts out there that has a huge team behind it, you know, a lot of money behind, incredible production, screenwriters, scriptwriters, video editors, audio editors, engineers.

1:59

I mean, they have big teams, and a lot of companies have sort of started the podcast game.

2:07

I'm but one person.

2:08

Sure, I have a producer helping me out.

2:11

I have editors helping me out, but in the end, it's mostly me.

2:16

So making a podcast is really hard, and episode requires research, outreach, scheduling, different time zones, prep, the recording part, the editing, and all that that comes after, promotion.

2:33

And the thing about podcasts is that they're not intrinsically good at getting new audiences, so you really have to fight to get more people to listen to it.

2:44

And I've recently gone onto YouTube as well.

2:47

I mean, it's opening another can of worms.

2:50

It's a lot of work, and you are trying to do all of that while making money from a different job.

3:00

For the longest time, I didn't stop to ask the basic questions, because when I first started this journey, it was about meeting people.

3:08

It was about learning.

3:11

It was mostly about my own growth.

3:16

So I'm gonna answer or ask some of the questions that I should ask and have been asking myself, but let's do it together here.

3:25

So first of all, should a podcast make money? And for a long time, I've been telling myself it is not about the money.

3:34

It is about the conversations.

3:35

It's about the network.

3:36

It's about learning from world experts, and boy, have I learned from the greatest and biggest and smartest people on the planet about influence, and there's more to go and more people to talk to.

3:49

And it has all been worth it.

3:52

But it's also something that needs to fund itself, and that's hard to say and hard to admit.

4:00

So just like I will never tell a client of mine to keep pouring money and time into something that doesn't have a financial return, I need to face that myself.

4:14

And so the next season is gonna come back different, but in a way that's gonna be good for everyone, including for the show, because I want to actually put more resources and money into the show, and the only way to do that is if the podcast itself is a business.

4:38

Secondly, how much do I care about audience growth? And at the beginning, I also didn't care about that.

4:46

[chuckles] It was about me getting better as an interviewer, getting better as a conversationalist, learning how to weave a story arc, doing the research, forming a bond with someone very quickly.

The Real Economics of Podcasting1:39 – 9:45

1:39

Making a good podcast is really hard.

1:44

There are a lot of podcasts out there that has a huge team behind it, you know, a lot of money behind, incredible production, screenwriters, scriptwriters, video editors, audio editors, engineers.

1:59

I mean, they have big teams, and a lot of companies have sort of started the podcast game.

2:07

I'm but one person.

2:08

Sure, I have a producer helping me out.

2:11

I have editors helping me out, but in the end, it's mostly me.

2:16

So making a podcast is really hard, and episode requires research, outreach, scheduling, different time zones, prep, the recording part, the editing, and all that that comes after, promotion.

2:33

And the thing about podcasts is that they're not intrinsically good at getting new audiences, so you really have to fight to get more people to listen to it.

2:44

And I've recently gone onto YouTube as well.

2:47

I mean, it's opening another can of worms.

2:50

It's a lot of work, and you are trying to do all of that while making money from a different job.

3:00

For the longest time, I didn't stop to ask the basic questions, because when I first started this journey, it was about meeting people.

3:08

It was about learning.

3:11

It was mostly about my own growth.

3:16

So I'm gonna answer or ask some of the questions that I should ask and have been asking myself, but let's do it together here.

3:25

So first of all, should a podcast make money? And for a long time, I've been telling myself it is not about the money.

3:34

It is about the conversations.

3:35

It's about the network.

3:36

It's about learning from world experts, and boy, have I learned from the greatest and biggest and smartest people on the planet about influence, and there's more to go and more people to talk to.

3:49

And it has all been worth it.

3:52

But it's also something that needs to fund itself, and that's hard to say and hard to admit.

4:00

So just like I will never tell a client of mine to keep pouring money and time into something that doesn't have a financial return, I need to face that myself.

4:14

And so the next season is gonna come back different, but in a way that's gonna be good for everyone, including for the show, because I want to actually put more resources and money into the show, and the only way to do that is if the podcast itself is a business.

4:38

Secondly, how much do I care about audience growth? And at the beginning, I also didn't care about that.

4:46

[chuckles] It was about me getting better as an interviewer, getting better as a conversationalist, learning how to weave a story arc, doing the research, forming a bond with someone very quickly.