311: Results of the New Podcast Survey

Check it Out!  The September, 2022 Podcast Survey  Dear Podcast fans. Thank you for your responses to our podcast survey yesterday, asking about your likes and dislikes, as well as your suggestions for the future of our podcast. The following report is based on 355 responses we received the first day of the survey. A link to the survey report will be included in spots so you can examine it for more information! LINK TO SURVEY RESULTS Thanks So much! Rhonda and David PS Rhonda is now our official Host and Producer! Demographics Gender: 58 / 42 = female / male Age: 21 to >70. None under 21. Education

• Grad school: 64%
• College: 29%
• High school, grammar school, other: the rest

Comment: high average education level is likely due to high number of therapists Therapist

• No 56%
• Yes 33%

TEAM certified therapist

• Yes 15%
• No 85%

Podcast Interests Listen to improve your therapy skills?

• Yes 47%
• No 53%

Listen for personal healing?

• Yes 90%
• No 10%

How many episodes have you listened to?

• All 26%
• A lot 37%
• About half 16%
• Just a few 21%

What elements do you value the most?

• Teaching Therapy Techniques 86%
• Live Work 72%
• Story Telling 58%
• Critical Thinking 57%
• Inspiration 54%
• Warmth 46%
• Laughter 42%
• Guest Interviews (36%)
• Under 30%: Tears (23%), Banter (29%), Controversy (17%),

What types of podcasts appeal to you the most?

• Therapy Methods 194
• Live work 184
• Anxiety Help  168
• Ask David 163
• Self-Help  158
• Depression Help 156
• Relationship Problems 154
• TEAM Training 126
• Habits and Addictions 107
• Procrastination  94
• Guest Experts 88
• Weight Loss 51

Other What do you think about paid ads?

• Hate it 28%
• Love it 20%
• Unsure 52%

Would you recommend the podcast to a friend?

• Yes 96%
• No 4%

What grade would you give the podcast?

• A 77%
• B 20%
• C 3%
• D 0%
• F 0%

Written Responses Elements you like the best (selections 356 responses)

• Learning about techniques to help patients from experts in the field! Realistic and humorous portrayals and disclosure
• Always pick up a new concept
• Brilliant teaching and great techniques
• The idea that long- lasting change can happen quickly
• The use of Paradox
• There is done sort of therapy by proxy that seems to happen during live therapy work. Even when situations are different, amazingly meaningful.
• I enjoy the Q&A podcasts where you cover 4 to 5 great questions. Having Rhonda and Matt (and, of course, Dr. Burns!) give their viewpoints on topics that can be helpful to everyone is very useful.
• Learning how to retool my brain.
• I love the feeling of comfort I get from hearing your stories, both personal and from guests. I was particularly touched by Rhonda’s openness when she first joined the podcast and worked through her feelings of inadequacy. I think about those episodes a lot because I relate to them.
• Feel less alone
• The live therapy sessions. Hearing Dr. Burns, Jill, Rhonda and others do externalization of voices, positive reframing, and other techniques is SO incredibly powerful.
• Hundreds more! (link)

Elements you like the least (selections 356 responses)

• The long intros sometimes before the topic gets started
• Boasting, rambling on and on.
• Sometimes the attitude towards other practices and theories is condescending and fails to appreciate the contributions different approaches make to understand and alleviate suffering.
• endorsement emails
• Something I've noticed in live coaching is that there seems to be a strong focus on externalization of voices as a method. In Feeling Great, I love your 50 methods - but I wonder why it feels like 80% of the time you focus on externalization of voices vs other methods.
• Honestly, that's super nit-picky. But I felt like I had to include something in the "liked least" section. Otherwise, I think the Feeling Good podcast is A+++
• Not a fan of the hokey -- the weird Hello Rhondas, etc. Ditto for the four letter words. IMO these detract from the content, dumb down/lessen the credibility of the presenters and content. Distracting and make me cringe. I won't quit listening... just unprofessional and low class.
• Hard to complain about something this good
• Hundreds more (link)

What other topics might interest you?

• Trauma work. Meaning - I find that MANY people are talking about "Childhood Trauma" as if it's a separate thing. "Trauma-Informed Therapy" seems to be a new hot topic. Wondering what you feel about trauma and this seeming growth in trauma-focus.
• Use 5 secrets in relationship with someone with borderline personality disorder
• 5 secrets training
• How to make friends
• How TEAM principles can help you raise happy/healthy kids!
• Discussion of how to manage anxiety when it’s hard to pinpoint the direct cause, making it hard to challenge our thoughts. Also topics on panic attacks.
• integrating the buddha dharma with cbt
• Definitely PTSD (I have PTSD from finding my partner dead after a suicide), body image, more about dating and relationships.
• How to treat low self esteem.
• How to increase happiness. How to make touch decisions about careers or other things that have pros and cons. For example, doing the decision making form and having the scores be around 0 or both negative scores.
• How to heal after a break up and how to manage rejection while dating (e.g., someone rejects you after a few dates)
• I would love to see more episodes on habits and addictions and also a life episode on shame attacking exercises!
• Hundreds more (link)

Comment: Some of these excellent suggestions have been covered already, and you can find them on my website by using the search function and / or the list of podcasts with links. For example, we’ve already had a five part series on boosting happiness (link) as well as boosting self-esteem (link) and how to use each of the 5 secrets (link), and much more. Take a look! (link to list of podcasts) What other topics might interest you the least?

• Anything related to organized religion. (Disorganized religion, I'm okay with!) lol) ;)
• Weight loss/eating disorders
• promoting other therapists
• "worried well" privileged patients.
• Anxiety and phobias
• Can’t think of any
• Why TEAM CBT is superior to all other forms of therapies.
• Nothing it is all helpful to make me realize I am not alone and we all have our own internal struggles
• I love it all
• Therapist workshop announcements
• Hundreds more (link)

Suggestions for improving the podcast (194 responses)

• Keep doing listener questions and answers and case examples.. the Buddhist perspective of not having a self and bigger picture etc
• Hidden emotion technique examples ongoing as I think that helps to know what common pressures people have experienced in Davids practice that we might also see etc.
• Maybe fewer judgy comments, including more guest speakers, more inclusivity. Always love the live work
• Keep bringing in therapist from around the country in the world to talk about what they do with team
• No, just please keep making it.
• DON'T CHANGE A THING!
• I mention above but I think getting David out to more of the enormous self-help podcasts would really help spread the word and open a lot of people’s eyes. A big one that I think would be a great fit is the Tim Ferriss podcast

Comment: Thanks. I’d love to be on any podcasts with large audiences. Please contact them and tell them to invite me! I’m not comfortable and don’t have the time to do this or the resources to hire a PR / marketing person, but they might respond to suggestions from listeners.

• It seems like a majority of the live therapy patients are TEAM CBT therapists so sometimes that can make me wonder if the techniques are as helpful to someone who doesn't already believe in the efficacy of the treatment. I'd like to see more treatment with people who are unfamiliar with TEAM CBT, although I realize that may not be possible.

Comment: I do not generally work with the general public because that would be tantamount to entering into a therapeutic relationship and would expose me to liability issues. Since I work for free, I cannot and will not take this chance, and liability insurance is costly. When I work with therapists, it is personal work in the context of their training, and is not construed as the start of a therapeutic relationship.

• I have done extensive research with large numbers of people, comparing the ease and nature of treating shrinks vs the general public, and there is absolutely no difference in the types of problems they have, the intensity, or the speed of recovery.
• If anyone would like to volunteer to indemnify me, which would be immensely costly for you, I’ll happily work with anyone!
• Hundreds more (link)

Why would you or wouldn’t you recommend it to a friend?

• I already have multiple times. Because the advice is different to what I hear elsewhere, it’s compassionate, blunt, and takes an inward look with a huge dose of kindness.
• It can change the way you live life
• Rhonda and David are so genuine together, smart, funny and informative
• It would help them, especially friends with depression or anxiety
• It is the highest quality methodology delivered by the highest quality therapists!!
• It helped and encouraged me
• too much advertising and plugging
• Because it offers real practical information that could be useful to anyone
• It helped me get out of a black hole
• It’s entertaining and informative.
• Life skills everyone should learn!
• Read both Feeling Good and Feeling Great. Dr. Burns’ content has saved my life! The five secrets has rewired my brain and helped me save my relationship, too! And Dr. Burns’ personality and sense of humor is just the icing on the cake.
• Hundreds more (link)

Thank you to all who responded!  We appreciate you!

David and Rhonda