If you’re like me, then you are always looking for new ways to stimulate your creativity, stoke your curiosity and suggest new avenues for thought and personal inquiry. If you’re not like that you may still like some of the same stuff I do. After all, along the way to personal enlightenment, I also demand to be entertained or at least distracted by something to keep my mind busy during car trips, runs and long training rides on my bicycle.
So I thought I’d share some of my current favorite audio obsessions with you. Check them out and you may find you can stay on the StairMaster a bit longer because your brain is whirling away on these new ideas instead of watching the clock!
I am a very auditory type person, so I love to listen to new information. You may be more comfortable absorbing new information visually , through reading or images. In that case podcasts may not be your jam; but I suggest giving one or more of them a try anyway, if only as an experiment. In another post I’ll share some of the written and illustrated subscriptions that I get. But today, it’s just podcasts.
- EconTalk: This is a weekly interview with leading economists on different issues in economics. I like it because it provides non-political thought on various themes that are often related to both business decision-making and current political issues. It’s a bit academic, but always has a few nuggets that intrigue me.
- Rationally Speaking: Its tagline was enough hook me, and if you are, like me, a devout skeptic, it will hook you too. It is: Exploring the borderlands between reason and nonsense. !! This is the official podcast of the New York City Skeptics, a group dedicated to unmasking cons and revealing truth. The topics range from the realms of logical consistency to how con-men trick you.
- Freakonomics Radio: You read the book by Steve Leavitt and Stephen Dubner, now subscribe to the podcast. Same type of approach. They choose a seemingly intuitive “truth” and then deconstruct and analyze it. Hilarity and enlightenment ensues!
- The Moth: This one is just riveting, but in a different vein. The Moth producers go all over the place and give people a forum to tell their own stories. The origin of the title is this: A person stands on the a stage in a spotlight… like a moth to a light bulb. And that person tells a story. No bells or whistles. It is unfailingly great entertainment, not to mention usually funny or moving or informative or heart-wrenching.
- The Art of Charm: This one is a bit hit or miss. But when it hits it has interesting experts talking about the “soft skills” that we all know are what really matters in business, work, life and romance. It’s sort of a spoon-fed MBA on social skills, something that I often find myself desperately needing!
Well, that’s plenty for now. I hope that one or more of them appeals to you. Watch this space for more My Favorite Things posts, and send me your favorites too. For me, the great thing about sharing, is that I don’t lose a thing — and someone else will get my references!
If you are interested in training your brain and imagination to innovate and problem-solve, life and executive coaching make a HUGE difference! Contact me for a complimentary initial consultation!
