Guest prep
What a guest should expect, send ahead, and do to be at their best on air.
Welcome to Signals & Subtractions! The top of this page is what you have to do. Everything under it is reference: open a section when you want it.
If you are also one of our rotating cohosts, read https://sigsub.show/prep-cohost too.
The show in one paragraph
Signals & Subtractions is a weekly editorial show on applying AI and the recomposition of work. Usually three voices: host, a rotating cohost, and you. The cohost seat does not fill every week, and a host-and-guest episode means more airtime for you; your brief says which yours is.
Every episode puts one consequential AI decision at the center, backed by at least two signals worth watching and two subtractions worth making. Yours is one of each. Tight, playful, fast-paced. Be precise about what matters and ruthless about what does not. We are not the show where AI experts explain AI. We are the show for people AI-ing about AI: shipping it, buying it, governing it, breaking things, and working out what to stop.
Send us four things, 24 to 48 hours ahead
Send them to whoever reached out to you. Two sentences each on the first three. We want the kernel, not an essay.
- One signal. Something you are tracking now. Specific, recent, first-person. Not "AI agents are getting smarter." Yes "our estimators started pasting bids into ChatGPT and nobody decided they could."
- One subtraction. Something you stopped, killed, or refused. Already done, not planned. Not "stop doomscrolling." Yes "I killed the pilot our vendor wanted to expand, because nobody could tell me who was answerable when it got one wrong."
- One decision your experience can inform. A consequential AI decision someone could make better after hearing your story, or the evidence you would want first. We set the final question together.
- One link you want traffic on. Any platform. It goes on your episode page, in the descriptions, and in your on-air close. Add the exact handle to tag you with on that platform, and tell us whether you publish a newsletter or run a podcast, so the Friday share kit lands where your people are.
Your picture and your intro are ours to handle. We use your LinkedIn photo for the episode artwork unless you would rather send a different one, and we write the on-air intro from what is already public. Send a line if you want it said a particular way.
Stuck on the first two? The fifteen-minute method: https://sigsub.show/find-yours
The whole thing, in order
| When | What | Who does it |
|---|---|---|
| Now | Reply "agreed" to the guest terms, https://sigsub.show/guest-terms | You, once |
| 24 to 48 hours ahead | The four things above | You |
| 48 hours ahead | A check-in call or email on the episode decision and your material | Whoever booked you |
| Once the time is locked | One calendar invite from Riverside, carrying the session link | Sam |
| The day before | Post that you are on, one sentence plus https://sigsub.show | You, optional; we reciprocate |
| Session day | Join, warm up, record. On tape from the moment you join | Everyone |
| Thursday | You see the cut before release and flag anything wrong | Sam sends it |
| Friday | The episode publishes on YouTube, the podcast feeds, Substack, and sigsub.show; LinkedIn carries the release post. You get one email that morning with ready-to-post copy, your clip, and a quote card | Sam posts, you paste and reshare within 48 hours |
| Sunday | The newsletter goes out, usually with clips | Sam |
| Monday | A post of your own, or a reshare of the newsletter or the episode | You |
Two of those block the release if they do not happen: the terms reply, and the four things. Everything else moves.
More on the check-ins and the session link
- Terms. Read https://sigsub.show/guest-terms (about a minute) and reply "agreed" if you have not. Anything you want handled differently, raise it before the session.
- The 48-hour check-in confirms the episode decision, your signal and subtraction, and anything you want steered toward or away from. Surface concerns there, not on air.
- The session link is a browser link: nothing to install, no account. Open it once when it arrives, confirm camera and mic permission, close it. Flag problems while we can still fix them.
The day of
Thirty minutes before
- Strong internet. Wired if you can, tethering not advised. Any doubt: https://speedtest.net
- Lights and camera before action. No window or lamp behind you. Preview your camera; if a shadow makes you look haunted, fix it.
- Bathroom, clean glasses, change shirt if needed. We will see all of it.
Fifteen minutes before
- Water, tea, or coffee within reach. Whatever keeps your voice working.
- Headphones plugged in. Required, not optional. The show records multi-track and speaker bleed ruins it.
- Mic and camera connected and tested. Built-in is fine if it works; external is not required.
Ten minutes before
- Reboot. Even though we live in the future now and this sounds ridiculous, it still helps.
- Mute your phone. Mute desktop notifications. Close email. Close Slack. Close anything that dings or pings.
- Quick refresh on the episode decision, the evidence you want to add, and the signal, subtraction, and bio you sent us.
Five minutes before
- Open the session link Sam sent you. From the moment you join, you are on tape: the session records from join to disconnect and there is no "go-live" button on your end.
- Sam will be there, and the cohost will be there when your episode has one. Say hello. On a livestreamed session, we chat informally for a few minutes as people filter in. None of it gets edited into the episode, but the live audience sees and hears it.
- Just before the open, Sam names the guest terms and asks everyone to say yes. One word is all it needs. Doing it in the warmup keeps it out of the episode while still putting it on tape, so there is a timestamped record that you agreed.
On air: the running order and what to expect
The show targets 40 to 45 minutes on air, and runs shorter or longer as the conversation goes. Every episode carries at least two signals and two subtractions; below is the default, which assumes a cohost and a livestream. Without a cohost the host brings his own set back, and you get roughly double the airtime. Two common departures: some episodes are host plus guest with no cohost, in which case you get roughly double this airtime; and some sessions are recorded without being streamed, so there is no live audience, no chat, and nothing about the livestream applies. Your episode brief carries the real run of show and says which it is.
- Livestream banter. Sam opens, mentions the show is being livestreamed and recorded, intros the cohost and you to the live audience (not for recording).
- Show open. Theme music, host and cohost intros. You are off-screen but mentioned as special guest.
- Topic setup. Host and cohost frame the episode and hype you while you are off-screen. No news segment: anything about this week's headlines stays in the livestream banter and never reaches the episode.
- Signals
- Guest intro. They bring you on and read a short intro. A brief "great to be here, thanks" is good. Add anything to the topic setup if we left something out.
- Your signal. You go first. About a minute for the signal itself, then a few minutes of discussion.
- Cohost signal. About a minute, plus discussion. With a cohost in the room the host does not take a signal of his own: two sets, dug into, beats three mentioned in passing.
- Discussion and audience questions, aiming to conclude by half-past. Bring your opinions, experiences, wisdom, humor, and humility.
- Sponsor segment. Optional, and omitted when nothing fits; when it runs, short, about a minute. You are off camera but may not be muted.
- Subtractions
- Your subtraction. You go first again; about 4 minutes with discussion.
- Cohost subtraction. About 3 minutes with discussion.
- Host synthesis. Sam closes the editorial spine and ties the three threads.
- CTAs and outro. You get a short close: where to find you, one ask, one URL. Totally fine to pitch your service, product, or business here. Not fine to mention more than one.
A few things to keep in mind while the tape rolls:
- The conversation is dialogue, not a presentation. We will ask follow-up questions. Lean into them. Keep it fun, especially if the content is heavy.
- Concrete beats abstract. Examples beat principles. First-person beats third-person.
- You are welcome to disagree with the cohost or host. Playful and civil disagreement makes good show.
- Keep it SFW. No politics, no religion. Not because they don't matter, because they are not this show. We can't bleep you in the livestream.
- If something goes wrong (your mic glitches, you lose your train of thought, your dog walks in), do not apologize repeatedly. Mention it once, calmly, and keep going.
What NOT to do
- Do not pitch a product, book, or service outside your scheduled closing CTA. Mentioning "my book" generally is fine, plugging "my CAIO Playbook available on Amazon" is not.
- Do not bring a signal that is just "look at this cool tool." We have a higher bar: specific to your work, and recent.
- Do not bring a subtraction that is generic ("stop doomscrolling") or aspirational ("I am thinking about quitting Slack"). Make it real and made.
- Arrive on time. We go live early in the hour, with or without you.
After the show: what we ask
- Within 30 minutes: Sam posts a thank-you note with tags across LinkedIn and Substack. Reshare with a sentence of your own if it feels natural.
- Thursday, the cut. We send a preview link before anything goes public, plus the takeaway if your episode has one. Look at it same-day if you can, since Friday is the release. Flag anything wrong, unclear, or worse than you meant it. Courtesy review, not approval: the final edit is Sam's call, factual errors get fixed, reasonable asks usually get honored.
- Friday, release. The episode goes out on YouTube, the podcast feeds, Substack, and sigsub.show; LinkedIn carries the release post. We post first and tag you everywhere we post, so a reshare is one tap from wherever you are. That morning we send you one email: the episode link, where we've tagged you, and one link to a folder with your clips and images, yours to post however you like. If resharing takes more than a tap, we got it wrong. We'd love the reshare within 48 hours. If the session was livestreamed, that recording is retired, so the episode is the link to share from then on.
- Monday. One more touch: a post of your own about the conversation, or a reshare of the newsletter or the episode. Friday is the audience already watching; Monday is the one who missed it.
- Later: if a clip from your episode lands and feels right to share, share it. We tag you whenever we post your moments.
FAQ
What if something goes wrong on air? Don't panic. Mention it calmly. You are likely still being seen, heard, and recorded even if it doesn't feel that way.
What if I get kicked out of the session? Rejoin at the same link Sam sent. Apologize once if you like, then pick up where you left off.
Why do I hear an echo? Plug in your headphones. Turn off any other speakers connected to your device. If you've done that and still hear echo, stop talking for a few seconds and let the platform's echo cancellation catch up.
Do I have to wear headphones? No, but you have to have them ready to use within :30sec. The show is recorded with multi-track audio and speaker bleed ruins it.
What kind of camera, mic, or gear do I need? Anything that works. Built-in laptop camera and mic is fine if your environment is quiet. External gear is welcome but not required.
What browser? Recent Chrome-based browsers, whichever platform we are on. Safari, Firefox, and other non-Chromium browsers are less preferred.
What about clothes or appearance? Comfortable but professional. Whatever you would wear to a conference panel.
Will this be edited? Yes. The episode releases Friday on YouTube. It is cut to land where the argument ends rather than to hit a length, so nothing gets trimmed to make a number. The cuts typically preserve all signals, all subtractions, the sponsor read, and the synthesis. We may trim filler, tangents, or moments where the audio glitched. We will not put words in your mouth.
Do I get to see it first? Do I get approval? You see it first, yes. Sam sends you the cut on Thursday, before release. Approval, no. The final edit is the host's call, the same as it is on any show. What you get instead is a real hearing: tell us what is wrong, unclear, or lands harder than you meant, and we will look at it. Factual errors get fixed. If something genuinely damages you or breaches a confidence, say so and it comes out. What we will not do is re-cut the episode to a different argument because you thought of a better answer afterward.
What if I notice something wrong after it's published? Email hey@sigsub.show. We fix factual errors and anything that misrepresents you, and we do it as soon as we can, including on the published page and description where that applies. What we will not do is re-cut or re-argue the episode because you thought of a better answer after the fact; that review window was the Thursday cut, before release.
How long is the livestream up? The recording is shared until the Friday episode is released, and then the episode replaces it. Nothing gets deleted, but people browsing YouTube, Substack, or LinkedIn after Friday find the episode, not the livestream. Practical upshot: if you want your network to see the unedited thing, point them at Wednesday. If you want them to see the version that lasts, point them at Friday.
Where will this be shared? Live on YouTube, and on Substack and LinkedIn as available. The episode Friday on YouTube. Sunday newsletter on Substack and LinkedIn, along with social clips. The episode is also an audio podcast, listed on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, plus a video podcast on YouTube; every listen link is on https://sigsub.show. The podcast carries the episode, not the full livestream.
Can I get the raw recording? Yes. Ask Sam after the show.
Can you help me with my tech setup? Yes, but please ask before the morning of the show. If your episode is on Riverside, it has its own help docs: https://riverside.fm/support
Questions?
Email hey@sigsub.show. We respond quickly because we want you to look good and feel good when you come on air. If something is broken the morning of the show, text or email Sam directly rather than emailing the show.