My Favourite Podcasts For Self-Development
Podcasts have taken off and are becoming more popular than ever. The fact that we can listen to them whilst doing other things makes it an extremely convenient way to consume information. We can pop a podcast on in the car, at the gym or whilst walking to/from work. It’s such an effective way to optimise our time and feed our brains interesting information.
There are so many podcasts to choose from that it can often be overwhelming. If you’re anything like me, you might face paralysis from too many options. You end up not knowing what to go for and waste a lot of time searching rather than listening. The purpose of this post is to share with you my favourite podcasts and help cut down your searching time.
The podcasts I tend to listen to are information-led rather than stories and series. There are a lot of interviews with different people and this is something that I find particularly interesting. So, here they are:
Making Sense with Sam Harris - This is one of my absolute favourite podcasts. Sam always has a fascinating selection of guests lined up and covers many topics that include Philosophy, Religion, Science, Artificial Intelligence and Politics. It can be academic at times and the podcast can discuss heavy and controversial ideas. Sam is very focused on logic and reasoning so everything discussed is always viewed from this angle.
The Tim Ferriss Show - The purpose of this podcast is to talk to top performers in a variety of different fields and figure out what makes them tick. It’s filled with tips and tricks that we can take away and plenty of recommendations for various things (books, movies, products etc). Tim always has fascinating questions that he asks his guests and this often makes for interesting conversations.
The Joe Rogan Experience - Joe Rogan’s podcast is excellent. He has such a comprehensive list of guests on his show that you’re bound to find people you’re interested in. From Elon Musk to Mike Tyson you won’t have to search far for an entertaining guest. There are constantly new episodes coming out so you’ll have plenty of content to explore.
The Gary Vee Audio Experience - If you don’t know who Gary Vaynerchuck is, search him up now. You won’t regret it. His positivity is infectious and his hard-hitting New Jersey delivery is like being punched in the face (in a good way). A lot of these podcasts are taken from various keynote speeches that Gary has given and focus on a mix of life advice, marketing strategy for entrepreneurs and cultivating a positive attitude.
Audible - Audible is Amazon’s audiobook app. This isn’t a podcast but I wanted to include it in my list as it allows me to consume fascinating content whilst on the go. It’s the only paid content that I’ve suggested but as you are essentially paying for books in audio format, I feel it’s worth the cost. There are thousands of books to choose from so you’ll be spoilt for choice.
What we feed our minds is massively important. If we only eat pizza and ice-cream, we’re going to get fat and sick. I believe the same is true for what our minds consume. If we only read negative news stories, watch zombie movies and binge on trash TV, our minds and attitudes will start to reflect this. By feeding our minds interesting, stimulating and positive content, our thoughts will start to mirror this. We are what we eat and we are also what we read/consume.
I recently heard an incredible story about a woman who lost her husband in a horrific motorcycle accident and how she dealt with it. After losing her husband, she became extremely depressed and struggled with adjusting to her new life. To try and counteract this darkness, she began listening to Gary Vee on repeat in the background when alone in her house. She bombarded her mind with positivity for a year to help fight all of the negativity that had entered her life. She credits this relentless positivity and optimism as one of the main reasons for eventually escaping her depression and coming to terms with her husband’s death. It’s amazing what positivity can do for people. Choosing to consume this type of content can be truly life changing. What could it do for you?
I’d love to know what podcasts you listen to and what you think about my recommendations. Let me know in the comments section below.
“The mind is just like a muscle - the more you exercise it, the stronger it gets and the more it can expand.”