DEAR HARRIETTE: I am working on starting a podcast targeted specifically to STEM majors. The podcast began as an extra credit project for school, but all my friends and peers suggested taking the show public. I’ve prerecorded the first few episodes with my co-host, who is also a STEM major. My non-STEM friends are begging me to interview them as well. How do I tell them that they can’t be on my show unless they are in the same field of study? I don't want them to feel left out, and I don’t want them to feel like I don’t value them. -- Aerospace Engineer
DEAR AEROSPACE ENGINEER: Thank your friends for their support of your podcast. Invite them to take a listen so that they get a sense of what you are doing. Feel free to tell them that, at least for now as you are developing your podcast, that the type of guest you are looking to interview is someone specifically interested in science, technology, engineering and math. Be sure to acknowledge that this doesn’t mean that other areas of interest aren’t good. It just means that your show's focus is limited to these categories.
(Harriette Cole is a lifestylist and founder of DREAMLEAPERS, an initiative to help people access and activate their dreams. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)