My Favorite Podcasts

As I started ended 2015, I went on a reading binge.  I read some life changing books like Essentialism and Big Magic.  I love reading personal development books like this because they get me thinking and motivate me to evolve.  My husband is also a proponent of personal development, so it's fun to toss around ideas with him too when my brain is going.  I knew I wanted to incorporate personal development in my life on a regular basis, but I wasn't sure that I could succeed in reading books....after all I enjoy fiction as well.  So I got into the world of podcasts.  Let me tell you.  It has been life changing.  Podcasts have been such a positive addition to my life.  They are enjoyable and easy.  I listen to them when I'm cleaning the house, working out, cleaning the house, in my car, or walking the dog.  So easy!  And they make mundane tasks more fun.

The downside is that if you have the equipment and the knowledge, pretty much anyone can make a podcast.  This means that if you don't know what you're looking for, there is a lot to sift through.  I asked around, stumbled upon some, and listened to some really bad ones. At this point in the year, I have my favorites that I listen to on the regular.  I thought I'd put together this list in case anyone else is looking for podcast recommendations.  Happy Listening!



The Lively Show

A friend of mine recommended the Lively Show.  She sent me an blog article entitled something along the lines of "10 awe-inspiring Women."  I already knew and liked several of the personalities on the list, so I gave it a shot.  I'm SO glad I did.  The Lively Show is probably my most favorite and most listened-to podcast.  What I love about Jess (the host) although it's clear there's a big theme for the show (Living life with intention), she still explores a variety of topics and has a pretty diverse set of guests.  She talks about everything from intuition to eyelash extensions to meditation to her favorite teas.  Another thing I absolutely love about this show is that it has such a feminine energy.  The world of personal development seems to be pretty male dominated with male energy.  I love her energy.



The Tim Ferris Show

If you know anything about personal development, you've probably heard of Tim Ferris.  I find it interesting that a lot of females find him arrogant, but I really enjoy just about everything he's created and don't find him arrogant at all.  Some books he's written that you may have heard of include: The Four Hour Workweek, The 4 Hour Chef, and the 4 Hour Body.  His podcast is on par with his books. One of my favorite things about this podcast is the caliber of the interviews.  While I enjoy Jess and her template works well, she always asks the same questions to every guest for the most part.  Tim doesn't do this.  He is so great at asking super interesting questions based of the guests feedback and getting to the heart of the interesting stuff.  I haven't listened to every interview yet, but my favorite interviews so far (hands down) are the Jamie Foxx interview and the Seth Godin interview.



Happier with Gretchen Rubin

I have been a Gretchen Rubin fan for years.  I read her book The Happiness Project when it first came out and have read all her other books following that one.  When I discovered she also had a podcast, I had to give it a listen.  Gretchen and her sister Elizabeth co host the podcast and discuss happiness, personality types, happiness stumbling blocks and listener questions.  This podcast is on the light hearted side and I tend to listen to it when I'm getting ready in the morning or when working out in my garage.


The Unmistakable Creative

I totally stumbled upon this podcast, and it's become one of my favorites.  Srini Rao host this show where he interviews people who have written books, created art, become entrepreneurs and much much more.  I think Srini is an ok interviewer but his set of questions are interesting and he has awesome guests, each having their own spin on creativity and what makes someone "unmistakable."


Brooke Castillo

I found out about Brooke because I heard her on a Lively Show episode and my mind was blown.  I had to hear more.  Brook is a life coach and has work in weight loss coaching and expanded into the world of life coaching.  Her big mantra is "Your thoughts create your feelings, your feelings create your actions, and your actions created your reality/circumstances."  She has totally changed the way I think about the way I feel and my ability to change it and really...everything.  Her podcast is no fluff, but it's backed with mind blowing tidbits on the way the human brains works and our ability to change anything we want in our lives.

These are the main ones on my playlist now but some honorable mentions are:

Barbell Shrugged (I used to listen to this more when I was Crossfit crazy, but it's still an awesome and well produced podcast.  It's hilarious and the guys have tons of knowledge)

Robcast - I was skeptical about this one at first because I haven't been a huge Rob Bell fan in the past, but I've changed my tune.  I like his podcast.  It's a little inconsistent which is why I don't listen all the time, but he has had some great guests and I like listening to him when I want to think about love and Jesus.

Radiolab - Radiolab is so fun.  You never know what they're going to talk about, but I listed to it and I'm like, "I never knew the culture of Asian Pop was so interesting!"

Serial - This is everyone's favorite podcast.  I listen to this when I feel like being entertained, but don't want to watch TV.  I liked the first season the best.  This would be fun to listen to on a road trip.

Invisibilia  - This is another one of NPR's podcasts.  They talk about invisible things...not really sure how else to explain it, but it always gives me something to think about!