14 Podcasts That Will Make You a Better Leader

“Everyone wins when a leader gets better.” — Bill Hybels

Whether you are leading a multi-million dollar business, are part of team of five people, have a family, or coach your daughter’s soccer team — you have influence on the people around you. That makes you a leader. And one of the greatest investments you can make as a leader is in yourself.

So as a leader, how are you intentionally growing and learning right now? Like most people, you are busy from sunup to sundown (and beyond). You might be asking, “Where am I supposed to find time to think, to read, to learn, and to grow?”

Podcasts are an essential growth hack everyone should be using today.

There is an unbelievable amount of free, great content being created through podcasts. We really don’t have an excuse for not learning something new every single week.

Here are four ways you can make time for learning through podcasts:

• Redeem time: listen while you’re getting ready in the morning, washing dishes, during your commute, doing yard work, or while on a run
• Speed up time: set the playback speed to 1.5x or 2x and get more listening done in a shorter amount of time
• Block out time: put it on your calendar, make it an appointment, and give yourself permission to learn and reflect for at least an hour a week (a lot of smart people and lifelong learners actually dedicate 5 hours a week)
• Share time: ask a friend, co-worker, or boss to listen to a particular episode (or ask them to make a suggestion). Then, grab lunch, coffee, or meet in your office for 30 minutes and talk about your thoughts and takeaways. Sharing is caring.

Here are podcast that are helping me become a better leader through listening and learning.

In no particular order, some are directly aimed at leaders, while many are leadership-by-extension.

• The Craig Groeschel Leadership Podcast — conversations designed to help you make the most of your potential as you work to become the leader you were made to be. Actionable and practical wisdom every episode.
• Building a Story Brand — from Donald Miller, great interviews and practical wisdom to help you think and communicate clearly so you can have a greater impact
• Startup — from Gimlet Media, a candid series about what it’s really like to start a business
• The Distance — produced by Basecamp, intriguing stories with private companies that have been in business for over 25 years
• The Tim Ferriss Show — from the author of the The 4-Hour Workweek, deconstructing world-class performs in long form interviews (strong language warning)
• #AskGaryVee Podcast — a firehose of thoughts, ideas, and hustle from investor, entreprenuer, venture capitlast, and media powerhouse Gary Vaynerchuck (strong language warning)
• EntreLeadership — from Dave Ramsey Solutions, interviews and tips on leadership and business by some of the top minds in the business
• The Andy Stanley Leadership Podcast — conversations designed to help leaders go further, faster
• Unemployable with Brian Clark — actionable strategies for freelancers, consultants, coaches, and entrepreneurs
• Open for Business — from eBay and Gimlet media, a branded podcast about creating a business from the ground up
• TED Radio Hour — each episode focuses on a theme and weaves together talks and interviews with speakers from the renowned TED conferences held around the world

Have a podcast you would recommend? Let me know on Twitter — @AdamBouse.

FOR CHURCH LEADERS

• The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast — all about leadership, change and personal growth, to help you lead like never before — in your church or in your business.
• Brian Houston Leadership Podcast — a new podcast out from the leader of Hillsong Church

Bonus Podcast:

• Presidential — from The Washington Post, one episode for each of our 44 presidents who have held the highest leadership position in our nation. It would be nice to hear about some great presidents ahead of November, right?

You can also check out a list of my 30+ favorite podcast across genres.

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Adam Bouse Coaching offers personal and organizational development coaching. Emotional intelligence assessments, leadership coaching, and team training are just a few of the tools available. Find more info atwww.adambouse.co or send me an email — hello@adambouse.co