I’m always looking to learn about new podcasts and so I wanted to share six of my favorites. In general, I like podcasts that teach me things I didn’t know or help me see things I thought I knew but really didn’t. Here they are in alphabetical order with a little about why I love them.
This podcast has helped me appreciate some of the thoughtful decision making that I take for granted in our world and be more intentional about the choices I make when creating something.
It has helped me to appreciate what prisoners go through, how they’re treated, how they are supported and given other opportunities, and what comes next.
A really interesting plot twist has been that after 21 years Earlonne Woods had his sentence commuted towards the end of season 3. He’s continuing with the show by talking about the challenging transition after prison.
One episode that still sticks with me is called The Upside of Quitting. The episode’s premise is that as a society, we stigmatize the idea of giving up on something. In reality, we all have to decide when it’s time to quit something. It could be a relationship, a job, a hobby, a lifestyle choice, or more. Saying no to the right things is often more challenging and important than saying yes to everything else. This has been something I’ve struggled with as I want to please everyone and sometimes get overcommitted. I enjoyed this economic take on quitting.
Again, I’m super interested in rethinking things I thought I knew and seeing what else could be learned.
For example, when he interviews John Zimmer, the co-founder of Lyft, you have to realize that the idea of the company goes against everything your parents told you as children: never get in cars with strangers. If you had invited me to invest in Lyft early on, I would have said that the business idea was crazy and would never work. Yet, here we are.
As a business owner myself, with Grassroots Workshops, I find inspiration from this show because I also hope that one day we’ll help so many people that the idea of allowing educators to learn from the educators they love will also seem obvious in retrospect.
Some memorable episodes include Free Brian Williams where he examines how fallible our memory is and why Brian Williams’ recollection of what happened in his reporting may not have been lying (SPOILER: what happened to Brian Williams happens to all of us, just much less publicly). I also enjoyed Puzzle Rush where he shows how the LSAT and law school are intended to help find the best potential lawyers but instead seem to act as gatekeepers that prevent people who could be amazing from having the chance. It’s bad because we’re probably turning away thousands of great lawyers.
I have learned soooo much from him.
Personally, I have a lot of trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. My biggest problem with falling asleep is that my mind races, replaying events from the day, thinking about what’s going on the next day, and pondering the future. Before this podcast, I might be up for an hour or more before falling asleep. Now, I pop this on and soon enough I’m listening to stories that crowd out my thoughts. Soon, I am drowsy, turn it off, and fall asleep.
I should say that it took me four or five listens to go from “What the heck is this guy talking about?!” to “Oh, I get it. This could work.” Now it triggers a Pavlovian response where as soon as I think about listening to it, I get drowsy.
Do you like any of these podcasts? Are there any that you think I should check out that are similar to these? Any tips you’d recommend? Please let me know in the comments.
some other must-listen to : Heavyweight and reply all.
GREAT PODCASTS!
Thanks Tehila! I’ll put them on my list to check out.
Those are some of my favorites! I second Heavyweight and think you would also like The Allusionist, Ologies and The Anthropocene Reviewed. Common theme: a balance of thoughtful storytelling, interesting information, and moments of humor.
Well now that’s two for Heavyweight. I’m sure it’s great. I love all the attributes you mentioned.
As a plus, the latest Heavyweight has a math ed. connection.
I started listening to Heavyweight. Enjoyed the first three episodes. Which one is the one with the math ed connection?
If I remember correctly it’s episode 31. Glad you’re enjoying it!
I am a TV fanatic on my time off, especially reality TV. I love the strategy and thinking about different scenarios. My favorite reality TV podcast is robhasapodcast.com
He has everything from Survivor to Big Brother to Bacherlor/Bachelorette… anything you can imagine, especially if you are a reality TV buff who loves the strategy!
I like The Rewatchables podcast on The Ringer.
Thanks Joe. What do you like about it?
I am a TV fanatic on my time off, especially reality TV. I love the strategy and thinking about different scenarios. My favorite reality TV podcast is robhasapodcast.com
He has everything from Survivor to Big Brother to Bacherlor/Bachelorette… anything you can imagine, especially if you are a reality TV buff who loves the strategy!
Ha! That sounds awesome. Ever since we stopped with DirecTV, I pretty much only do streaming so no reality TV for me these days.
I’m a huge fan of Dateline/true crime type shows…so along that type of style: 1) Dr. Death 2) Dirty John 3) Cold 4) The Drop Out 5) Up and Vanished. Not true crime but just for fun: RadioLab, Missing Richard Simmons, and Running From Cops.
Thanks Karen. These sound like fun!
Some great recommendations! My favorite is Against the Rules with Michael Lewis.
Awesome, Brandi. I’ll have to check it out.
13 Minutes to the Moon!!! Sooooo good about Apollo 11 and 13 and just restores your faith in “look at what we can do.”
If you like How I Built This, you may also like Land of the Giants which looks at the rise of big tech companies, one per season.
If you end up liking Heavyweight, try Mystery Show as well (only 6 episodes and yes we’re all still bitter about it).
Also I’m required to recommend In The Dark and Running from Cops, even though it seems like they’re not your genres.
And The Rewatchables is always good for a laugh or two if you’ve seen the movie (I think 20 episodes are available everywhere, full back catalog on Spotify).
Hey Meg! Hope you’ve been well. These are really tailored suggestions. I appreciate it. I’ll check them out. I got a few episodes into Heavyweight but stopped soon after. Thanks.
My son loves Radio Lab, and I do the dishes every night listening to The Moth. Can’t wait to add yours to my list!
Great. Hope you love them.
I highly recommend No Such Thing as a Fish. The four hosts are researchers in the British quiz/comedy show QI and every week they each share an interesting fact they learned that week. They are witty and hilarious and I have learned so much. I also highly recommend QI- especially the earlier years when Stephen Frye was the host.
This sounds really cool. Love mixtures of learning and humor. Thanks Kiana.
Cautionary Tales, Tim Harford. It’s educational in the style of Aesop’s fables but based on real human history!
Thanks Darren. I feel like I may have listened to one or two of those but I’ll check it out.
You might try Invisibilia – it sounds a lot like your 99% Invisible.
Thanks Letitia. I’ll add it to my list.
I love “Ologies” with Alie Ward. Engaging, entertaining, intriguing, inspiring and enlightening science themed podcast. She has conversations with “ologists” across the science spectrum. Love to listen to her.
Duo Lingo Spanish podcast. If you are learning Spanish or want to brush up, in this intermediate level podcast people from across Latin America share there stories. I learned about a woman in Peru using indigenous knowledge to solve a water issue, a dog that became a symbol of resistance in Chile and so much more. An unexpected gem.
This is great. Thanks Laurie. I always need to keep my Spanish polished and this sounds super useful. I’ll go download it now.