I have to admit to a bit of a podcast addiction. They are perfect for busy people because you can listen to podcasts while you’re doing something else – like walking home after taking my son to school, or driving on my own, or even in the supermarket (I’m such a fan of self checkout at the supermarket because I can keep listening to my podcasts for longer!).
A couple of people have asked me lately for a few recommendations because they want to hop on the podcast train too, so here’s my answer. I definitely have cycles of loving particular podcasts and I need a decent amount of variety, but if you try a few of these you’re bound to find something you like.
(NB: If you’re not sure how to download and listen to podcasts, these instructions might help.)
My current always-listens
The Portfolio Life with Jeff Goins – he is truly a quality producer of content. This podcast is all about how to have a portfolio career – just like I do, for example, with income from my social media consulting business, my travel blog, my workshops at UWA Extension, some freelance writing … you get the drift. These podcasts are well thought-out and well produced, and always a pleasure to listen to.
Happier with Gretchen Rubin – it helps that Gretchen Rubin (of The Happiness Project and more) is a personal hero of mine, but also this podcast is produced very nicely with regular topics, a great co-host (Gretchen’s sister) and lots of practical, bite-sized ways to practice making your life happier.
Being Boss with Emily Thompson and Kathleen Shannon – these two fun American gals are all about helping creatives (designers, makers, etc) to run successful businesses and they have a lovely tone and great philosophy on life.
Social media podcasts
Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield – it was actually her podcast which first introduced me to Amy P – and I used to listen avidly every time. Then I was a bit over it (and it got less interesting for a while), but in the last few months it’s got really useful again and I very often listen. Lots of Facebook advice as that’s her specialty but definitely goes beyond that.
Social Media for Small Business from the Australian Businesswomen’s Network – it’s great to have an Australian podcast on this issue and Suzi Dafnis and Cat Matson have been doing this one for a few years. Good solid info and interesting interviews.
Social Media Marketing with Michael Stelzner – he gets the big guns in and has a lot of functional, practical advice. It’s a bit overproduced in a somewhat cheesy way but still worth the listen.
Solopreneur, small business and creatives inspiration
This Is Your Life with Michael Hyatt – he’s a real professional and has figured out everything about how to run a useful podcast. The topics are fairly wide-ranging and sometimes not relevant (eg they may be about leading an organisation sometimes) but skip those and listen to the rest.
Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn – of course you already know how much I love Pat Flynn. Some of the most interesting episodes of this podcast are when he interviews “normal people” – ones we’ve never heard of – who are running a successful online business.
Ask Pat, also with Pat Flynn – this is a kind of spin-off of Smart Passive Income and is kind of genius in its format – listeners/readers call up with a question and Pat spends about 10 minutes answering it, and that’s an episode – which means one’s released every week day. I don’t listen to all of them but pick the topics that are most relevant to me, and it’s handy to have a shorter podcast to listen to, especially on the 15-minute walk home from school each morning.
1 Day Business Breakthrough with Pat Flynn and Chris Ducker – a podcast version of the mastermind days these two fabulous guys run, so each episode has one listener in the hot-seat and Pat and Chris give them a tonne of advice on how to improve their site/business or solve a problem they have.
Natalie Sisson’s Suitcase Entrepreneur – Kiwi world traveller Natalie talks about building an online business so you can be location independent (and is an excellent example of doing this). I went through an utter addiction to this one but perhaps I overdosed as I don’t listen as often these days!
Business Addicts with Loren Bartley and Fiona Redding – two Aussies who launched this podcast earlier this year but have already had great interviews with big names like Chris Ducker and Darren Rowse.
Other random podcasts that I rather like
The Slow Home Podcast with Brooke McAlary – this launched just last month, from Aussie blogger Brooke of Slow Your Home. It’s all about slowing down and living more simply and includes interviews with some really inspiring people. I always end up feeling more relaxed after I listen to this.
Two Fat Expats with Kirsty Rice and Sarah Derrig – two Aussie ladies who have travelled the world living the expat life and are currently based in the middle east, they cover all kinds of fascinating topics and are just a really fun listen.
Thanks for posting this … I was really struggling with big lists of podcasts during my ironing time, and by the time I'd found something I liked I'd have finished the ironing! (We don't have so much these days!) But now I can download some useful stuff, hit play and get cracking immediately. Thank you so much for sharing your faves 🙂
See I should have read this before I asked you about the new ones I'd been listening to…so I love the Eventual Millionaire, Start Ups for the Rest of Us and Zenfounder has some pretty interesting ones!