Over the last couple of years, I've gotten REALLY into podcasts! I used to listen to podcasts during my commute to work, but now that I work from home, I'm still able to get through an impressive number of podcasts every week. I listen while I walk Chloe, at the gym, cooking, cleaning, and sometimes I even use the "put your phone in a glass cup" trick so I can listen in the shower. (I should really just buy a waterproof bluetooth speaker already...) I've been meaning to share my favorite podcasts here on the blog for a while, and when I realized we're right at the end of NPR's #TryPod month, I knew I had to get on it!
If you are new to podcasts, or looking for shows to add to your listening list, this post is for you! I've divided up my 12 favorite shows into 3 categories: Creative Life & Business, Design and Educational. Nowadays, there are podcasts about pretty much every topic imaginable but these are the types of podcasts I come back to again and again!
Creative Life & Business
1. Shailey & Katie - This might be my very favorite podcast at the moment. I discovered it less than 3 weeks ago and already listened to all 38, 1-hour episodes. Their tag line is "Design Moms Finding the Happy Balance as Work-From-Home Entrepreneurs". Shailey is a new mom, interior designer and runs a video production company with her husband and Katie is mom of 3 who's also a photographer, graphic designer, improviser and comedy writer. Even though I'm not a mom yet, I really relate to these ladies and share their wacky, awkward sense of humor!
2. Happier with Gretchen Rubin - After reading Gretchen's book, The Happiness Project, I started listening to her podcast co-hosted by her younger sister, Elizabeth Craft, a TV writer based in LA. These bi-coastal sisters offer practical, manageable advice on happiness and good habits. I'm obsessed with Gretchen's Four Tendencies framework that breaks down personality types by how we respond to inner and outer expectations. If you love personality quizzes, you can take hers here. I'm a Questioner, through and through.
3. The Goal Digger Podcast - Jenna Kutcher is an uber successful wedding photographer, artist, educator and entrepreneur from Wisconsin. Her podcast offers smart, actionable tips and methodologies that can be applied to any creative business and shares interviews with experts in fields like photography, boutique retail, artisan goods, coaching, design, and more. I always take away so much good info and inspiration from her show, and many episodes have complementary worksheets or free guides that you can download on her website!
4. Being Boss - Hosted by Kathleen Shannon & Emily Thompson, Being Boss is an amazing podcast for creative entrepreneurs. Their podcast intro describes their mission perfectly, so I'll share it here: "Being Boss in business and life is being in it. It's being who we are, doing the work, breaking some rules, and even though we each have to do it on our own - knowing that we're in it together". With a mix of full-length and 10 minute "minisodes", Being Boss is a great addition to any small business owner's podcast queue.
5. Creative Pep Talk - This podcast was recommended to me by my friend Jamie! The host, Andy J. Miller (also known as Andy J. Pizza) is a full-time freelance illustrator based in Columbus, Ohio. The goal of CPT is to help artists and creatives "make a good living, making great art". While a lot of his episodes are more focused on the visual arts, Andy offers so many pearls of wisdom that can be applied to any creative business in any industry.
Design
1. Young House Love Has a Podcast - Sherry & John are two of the OG home & DIY bloggers, renovating three homes, writing three books and designing products sold by retailers like Home Depot & Target since starting Young House Love in 2007. Their podcast is a fun mix of interviews, fun game show style segments and updates on their home improvement adventures.
2. Chris Loves Julia - Another favorite husband-and-wife podcasting duo is Chris & Julia Marcum, DIY bloggers from Idaho. They're joined by their friend and host, Preston Pugmire to discuss all things about design, renovation and life at home. They are currently in Baltimore to renovate a reader's entire kitchen in just 4 days with Lowe's Home Improvement! Follow Julia on Instagram to follow this lightning speed renovation in real time.
3. Style Matters - A recent addition to my podcast repertoire is Style Matters by Zandra Zuraw and Karen June Grant of Little Yellow Couch. I wish I would have discovered them sooner because they've interviewed pretty much all of my favorite bloggers & designers over the years! I'm excited to dive into the backlog of episodes discussing the substance and meaning behind developing a personal style in your home.
4. Design Matters - Sense a theme here with titles? I would describe Design Matters as kind of the nerdy, bookish, older sister of Style Matters (although they are not affiliated). Where as Style Matters focuses on personal style and life at home, Design Matters by Debbie Millman tackles the world of creative culture with interviews from "designers, writers, artists, curators, musicians and other luminaries of contemporary thought". Debbie is a seriously good interviewer and all of her episodes are packed full of juicy brilliance and "aha!" moments.
Ok, side note: I just realized that all of the above podcasts can be described as educational. I listen to Design & Creative focused podcasts to improve my happiness and business mindset. The next category of podcasts are the ones I listen to just for fun. It just so happens that they are all also educational podcasts!
Educational
1. Myths & Legends - Anthony and I discovered this podcast on one of our last road trips to Pittsburgh. Every Wednesday, the host Jason dives into a new fairy tale or story from folklore, some well-known and some pretty obscure, retelling the original version in a hilariously approachable way for modern listeners. If you like stories like King Arthur, Pocohontas, Robin Hood or Aladdin and appreciate dry humor, this is the PERFECT podcast for you!
2. Surprisingly Awesome - This podcast takes topics we would typically assume to be boring and shows why there are in fact, surprisingly awesome. I actually heard about this show on an episode Young House Love Has a Podcast and it's now my go-to podcast while I'm cleaning or washing dishes. My favorite episode so far have been the ones on cardboard, adhesives, the circle of fifths in music theory and postal addresses. I know that sounds incredible boring, but this is one of those things where you just have to trust me! Give this podcast a listen next time you're doing housework and I promise you'll be telling everyone you know about why things like interest rates and pigeons are actually really interesting!
3. 99% Invisible - Anthony's uncle recently told me about this podcast, that dives into the unnoticed design and architecture that shape our world. Their show page asks "Have you ever wondered how inflatable men came to be regular fixtures at used car lots? Curious about the origin of the fortune cookie? Want to know why Sigmund Freud opted for a couch over an armchair?". If you love the study of "design thinking" or just enjoy learning interesting trivia and tidbits, this is a great podcast to try!
Honorable Mentions
There are a couple of podcasts that I no longer listen to everyday, but were my go-tos when I first got into podcasts a couple years ago! First off is The Dave Ramsey Show. I've talked a little about debt-free decorating and the approach Anthony and I take to personal finance in the past. His podcast is really a radio show, where he answers listener questions on topics ranging from budgeting, saving, investing, retirement, taxes, small business, and insurance. If you've heard about Dave Ramsey's book The Total Money Makeover or the Financial Peace class, but want know more about his methods before trying it yourself, his podcast is a great way to do that! I also used to listen to Build Your Tribe with Chalene Johnson everyday. She doesn't podcast as often as she used to, but she has a backlog of excellent episodes on entrepreneurship and social media marketing. If you only listen to one, I highly HIGHLY reccommend episode 101: Top 5 Millionaire Mantras. Whether you consider yourself as on the path to millionaire status or not, the 5 things she shares in this episode are really universal truths about taking ownership of your circumstances and living a happy and successful life, no matter what your career goals are.
What podcasts are you subscribed to? I'm always looking for new shows to listen to, so I would love to hear your recommendations!
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