Meet Benen Dykstra

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Benen Dykstra. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Benen, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.

I would say that I get my optimism from my mother Connie. I was born with Cerebral Palsy in Cayuga Ontario Canada a small town which as of this writing has a population of around 1700 people. Cerebral Palsy has presented a lot of challenges from trying to get expensive bathroom renovations done to the emotional challenges of trying to be my own independent person but, no matter how many times i’ve felt down about myself or my situation my mom has always reminded me to appreciate the small things like going out for ice cream, strolls in the park, and reminding me that my situation could have been much worse. Living in small towns my whole life has at times made finding friends difficult but my mom has always shown me that there is someone out there who is willing to help or, just say hello. You can choose to focus on the negatives in your life but that will only make you and those around you feel negative so try to look on the lighter side of life.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Professionally I’ve been focusing on my self-improvement podcast The Sit Down Stand Out Show Podcast since October of 2022. I produce 20-30 minute weekly episodes focusing on individuals with disabilities, mental health challenges, or difficult circumstances. The focus of my show is to educate people on the challenges people like myself face and how you can overcome them. I want to inspire people who are struggling everyday with their own challenges to not give up on learning about themselves and trying to find a way to make their lives easier. I’ve also been working as a freelance voiceover artist and audiobook narrator since 2019. I will admit I haven’t gotten a lot of opportunities in the industry so far, however if it was an easy profession everyone would be in it and it would be very boring that way.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
If I had to choose three qualities, areas of knowledge, or skills that have been helpful along my journey I think the first skill that you need to have is patience. I have been working on the Sit Down Stand Out Show podcast since October of 2022 and the numbers of downloads and subscribers are not what I would like them to be. Content creators of any kind need to have patience when growing their audience as new content is being created and deleted every day. The second area of knowledge that I believe is the knowledge that I need to find ways to make my content stand out from others. I focus my podcast episodes on my guest’s journey dealing with a disability but I also ask their opinion on what needs to be done to Improve accessibility standards where they live. Lastly I think an important quality that you need to have is the ability to not take feedback too personally. Knowing the difference between someone offering you feedback and someone personally attacking you is vital for not only your mental health but also for determining the type of content your audience wants to see going forward.

Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
Two people have been the most helpful in teaching me the essential skills I needed to help my broadcasting career succeed. Chris Koppin whom I met in college in my final year apprenticeship taught me the importance of really taking time to research, show topics and find interesting subjects that were current but not largely talked about. By learning this skill whether you produce a podcast, radio show, documentary, or something like that you can make content that stands out from others, and the experience is more fun because you’re learning at the same time.
The second individual who has been helpful in my broadcasting career is Sean Picard, my teacher during an online broadcasting program I took during the pandemic. I think the important lesson that Sean taught me was to just keep going because there are millions of podcasts that start and stop for many reasons. Sean also taught me the importance of using my own experience as a disabled person to add credibility to my shows when I speak to my guests.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Benen Dykstra Brian Rizzo William McGinn

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