One of the biggest challenges I see women entrepreneurs face these days is burnout.
To create your best work and stand out online, you have got to protect your creative edge.
When you are creating, you have to refuel your brain with innovative thoughts and ideas, so that you can produce your own innovation thoughts and ideas.
As my mom always says “garbage in, garbage out.”
It’s a simple equation of input/output. If I am not ingesting new information, my brain stalls and I find it very difficult to create.
So, while the latest episodes of the Bachelorette or even watching the Olympics may be fun and entertaining, they’re maybe not directly feeding your entrepreneurial creativity.
That is why, in addition to reading at least 3 pages of a book each day, I make sure to listen to business podcasts.
I’m listing my top five favorite podcasts below — and if you want the other five on my list, you can click here to access my complete Podcast Playlist!
My Personal Podcast Process
Podcasts are a fantastic way to fit education and inspiration into the “in-between” times in your day. Some are as little as 5, 10, or 15 minutes, while others can go an hour or more. But just like your handy DVR, you can pause and come back to them in the middle.
If you have iTunes, you already have a podcast player, and you can search iTunes and subscribe to your favorites. But there are other apps as well including Overcast for iOS, and BeyondPod for Android.
I like to listen to podcasts while I’m out and about. I either listen to them while I’m on a walk, working out, or in a cab. But they’re perfect to fit into your day at any point when you are doing a task that doesn’t require your full attention, such as:
- Working out
- Doing makeup or getting ready
- Commuting
- Taking a walk
- Cooking
- Cleaning
(P.S. This is called “double tasking” which is very different from multitasking. Multi-tasking is trying to do two things that require your brain power at once, like talking on the phone and answering email; double tasking is when one task doesn’t require your full attention, like walking or dusting.)
I take notes and capture ideas using the dictation option on my phone inside of Evernote so that it syncs to my computer. That way, I don’t have to worry about stopping whatever else I’m doing (walking, working out, etc.) to jot down a note or aha moment.
What To Look For In a Good Postcast
For me, a great podcast should hit most, if not all, of the following: they should be
- Inspiring
- Actionable
- Informational
- Interesting
I’ve chosen my top podcasts based on the fact that they hit all of these criteria: they inspire me to do and be more in my life and business, they include actionable tips and information I can actually put to use, they share valuable information I might have to pay for somewhere else, and (most importantly) they’re interesting enough to hold my attention over the long term.
My 5 Favorite Podcasts
Frequently ranked the No. 1 business podcast on iTunes, each episode finds Tim interviewing world-class performers from all different niches about their tactics, tools, and routines for success.
Why: Fascinating BIG name guests sharing their secrets to high performance. It’s always interesting and inspiring to hear the tools and techniques high achievers in a variety of industries — business, arts, sports and more — use to achieve and systematize their success.
Fav episode: Ramit Sethi on Persuasion and Turning a Blog Into a Multi-Million-Dollar Business
Produced by the people behind LeadPages, ConversionCast bills itself as “the only podcast that gets to the heart of the metrics.”
Why: Women especially need to realize the power of metrics and use them more in their businesses. This show breaks it down in terms anyone can understand and really demonstrates the power of knowing your metrics.
Fav episode: My interview on list building!
Topics include how to monetize your online marketing and blogging efforts using tested, ACTIONABLE lead generation strategies and how to rock your social media and content marketing.
Why: Amy is an amazing teacher and she shares extremely actionable, step-by-step strategies. (Plus I think that she has such an enjoyable voice to listen to a big plus for any podcast!)
Fav episodes: How to Build a Dream Team with Melanie Duncan and How to Use Pinterest to Increase Traffic and Grow Your List with Melanie Duncan
One of the only podcasts to focus on interviewing leaders of companies with seven figures or more in revenue.
Why: My personal mission is to get more women past the million dollar mark in their businesses. Casey Graham is a personal friend of mine, and I love the way that he operates his businesses. In this podcast, Casey shares (and invites his guests to share) the nut’s and bolts of building a 7 figure business. His “no theory” and extremely practical advice shows you how to scale your business beyond your wildest dreams.
Fav Episode: How to Drive Sales and Grow Your Business With Devin Duncan
This podcast is basically getting to listen to a Stanford class that Sam Altman and others from Y Combinator teach called “How To Start A Startup.” Y Combinator provides seed money and strategy for startups, acting as a sort of high level coach/mastermind and investor.
Why: We need to get more women in the tech space, and although women are starting a lot of businesses, we need more women to start BIG businesses — and that means understanding how to play the investor game. According to Fast Company, women start more than twice as many businesses as men, but men-owned businesses are 3.5 times more likely to break the million dollar mark — and that’s just not acceptable!
Growing and scaling your business alone just isn’t possible. Once your business is ready, hiring the right team is key to taking your business to the next level. This episode dives deep not only into creating a hiring strategy, but also, creating a culture that’s a match for your ideal employees.
Fav Episode: Lecture 11 – Hiring and Culture, Part 2 (Patrick and John Collison, Ben Silbermann)
These are just the first five podcasts on my business lady playlist — want the rest? Get the full list by clicking here.
Love a podcast I missed? Share it! Tag me @melanieduncan77 on social and let me know your faves.
