You're probably here because I've asked you to come on The Reality Exchange, or you've heard about it and want the full picture before you say yes. Either way, welcome. Here's everything in one place, so you're not chasing emails and DMs to find it.
Haven't heard from me yet, but fancy being a guest? Skip to the bottom of the page.
What The Reality Exchange actually is
It's a proper long-form conversation, not a scripted panel and not a pitch dressed up as an interview. Each episode is one guest, one chat, around 35 to 40 minutes, covering how you got here, what you believe about your work, and a real moment that didn't go to plan. No autocue, no list of questions read off a page.
I'll also ask about the nuts and bolts of how you run your business day to day: how new clients find you, what happens once they do, and what you've tried that worked (or spectacularly didn't). It's the part most interviews skip, and it's often the bit people watching find most useful.
To finish, there's The Reality Checkers: three quick-fire questions picked at random from a spinner wheel. There's nothing to prepare, and since the wheel decides rather than me, I'm as much in the dark as you are. First answer that comes into your head is the right one.
Then there's one last question every guest gets asked, a reflective one about what would happen to your business if you had to step away from it for 30 days. I ask everyone the same thing, which is rather the point. Over time, it builds a proper picture of how much businesses lean on the people running them.
Recording's already underway, so you'll be joining a series that's coming together nicely rather than a first-ever attempt with nothing behind it.
Why I started it
Here's the honest version. These days I spend most of my time helping founders, experts, coaches and consultants build the systems, automation and AI that stop their business depending on them for every little thing. And in all those conversations, one pattern kept showing up. The good stuff, the real decisions, the mistakes, the moments that actually taught someone something, rarely makes it onto LinkedIn. What does make it on is the tidy version, the one with all the corners rounded off.
The Reality Exchange is my attempt at getting the untidy version on record instead. Partly because I think it's more useful to whoever's watching, and partly because putting myself in front of a camera regularly is something I've been putting off for years. Doing it alongside brilliant guests felt like a far better way to finally get on with it than just deciding one morning to start posting video.
How you'll join the call
Once your date's in the diary, you'll get an email confirmation from Riverside, the platform I record on, with your own private link. It's unique to you, so hang onto that email.
On the day, click your link and open it in a Chromium browser. Chrome, Edge and Brave all work fine. If you'd rather join from your phone or tablet, download the free Riverside app first (search the App Store for iPhone and iPad, or the Play Store for Android) and join from there instead.
Riverside works a bit differently to Zoom or Teams. Rather than recording whatever makes it down your internet connection, it records you directly on your own device while we're chatting, then uploads that recording in the background. It's how I get the best possible video and sound from you, however wobbly your wifi is on the day.
The one thing to remember: when I stop recording, please keep your browser tab or app open until the upload has finished. Riverside shows the progress on screen, and I'll give you the nod once it's safe to close. Shut it too early and part of your recording can go missing, which would be a shame after all that good chat.
Just so it's not a surprise, Riverside records both video and audio, so joining the link means you're happy for that to happen.
Looking and sounding great
Nothing here is complicated, and none of it requires buying anything. It just makes a real difference to how the finished episode looks and sounds.
Lighting
- Face a window or a light source rather than have it behind you. Strong sunlight straight into the camera washes you out, so soft, indirect light works best.
- If it's dark or you're recording in the evening, a desk lamp pointed at you, not the camera, does the job nicely.
Sound
- Use headphones during the call if you can. It stops the echo you get when a laptop's speakers and mic pick each other up.
- A USB mic beats a laptop's built-in one every time. If you've got one lying around, plug it in.
- Connect your mic and headphones before you open the Riverside link, rather than after.
- A quiet room helps more than expensive kit. A room with carpet, curtains, and a bit of furniture in it will sound noticeably better than a bare-walled kitchen or office.
- Set your phone to silent and mute notifications on your laptop, so nothing pings mid-answer.
Camera and connection
- Sit at roughly eye level with the camera rather than looking down at it. A couple of books under a laptop works a treat.
- Your built-in webcam is perfectly fine. If you want to go one better, your phone's camera usually looks sharper than most laptop webcams, and Riverside's mobile app is there for exactly that reason.
- Wired internet is the gold standard, but wifi works absolutely fine too. Just close down anything else that might be streaming or downloading in the background.
Before the call
- Grab a glass of water and keep it nearby.
- There's nothing to prepare, no script, no trick questions, just a proper conversation. That said, it's always worth having a real story or two in mind: a decision that paid off, a mistake that taught you something, a moment that changed how you work. A specific story always lands better than a general opinion.
Fancy being a guest?
If you've landed here without hearing from me first, hello. If you're a founder, expert, coach or consultant with real stories about how you run your business, I'd love to hear from you. Drop me a line with a bit about what you do and a link to your website or LinkedIn, and I'll get back to you.
Email AndrewThat's everything. See you on the call, I'm looking forward to it.
Andrew