7 Podcasts You Might Not Know About -- But Should

John Hall Contributor

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I love getting asked which podcasts I listen to regularly. If you’re into reverse engineering entrepreneurial and life success, then chances are you’ve heard larger-than-life successes like Mark Cuban, Ramit Sethi, Tim Ferriss, Ryan Holiday, and Lewis Howes being interviewed on top podcasts like “Self Made Man,” “Entrepreneur on Fire,” “The Foundation,” and “Eventual Millionaire.” Big-name podcasts often land big-name guests, and that is awesome.

But what about the lesser-known entrepreneurs who are on the climb and making airwaves in the process? The ones working day in and day out to achieve success who haven’t yet made the cover of Forbes but still have expertise to share?

To find the stories of these lesser-known entrepreneurs, you’ve got to look to lesser-known sources. I’ve searched the web for the best of these podcasts, which feature phenomenal concepts, interviews, CEOs, creators, and rising-star entrepreneurs. These are the seven podcasts you might not know about — but totally should:

1. “The Hustle Sold Separately” by Case Kenny and Matt Gottesman

Hosted by Case Kenny of PRSUIT and Matt Gottesman of Hustle & Deal Flow, this show is dedicated to documenting the hustle. These two have carved out a niche for themselves by focusing on their guests’ journeys, not just their highlight reels, and that’s what I like about it. They discuss stumbles, pivots, and obstacles throughout their own entrepreneurial journeys.

They’ve featured a few big names like Elite Daily co-founder Gerard Adams, The League CEO and founder Amanda Bradford, and Infusionsoft CEO Clate Mask, but what’s great is that the show features men and women in the midst of building their empires. Whether these guests are first-time or serial entrepreneurs, “The Hustle Sold Separately” showcases the grit over the glamour.

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As they say every week on the show, “It’s all about the journey,” and these guys make sure you hear the story.

2. “GSD Mode” by Joshua Smith

GSD stands for “get sh*t done,” and Joshua Smith features guests doing exactly that. Joshua is a Realtor, entrepreneur, and coach, and his podcast features a wide variety of guests who are really putting in the time and dedication to hone their skills and build their businesses.

His show is for those who “do not accept mediocrity but instead choose to dominate their space.” Fittingly, Joshua’s guests are crushing it in real estate, fitness, software, digital marketing, social media, and more, and have included mega-consultant Alex Charfen. “GSD Mode” is a must-listen.

3. “Your Big Break” by Gwen Elliot

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Just getting your name out there and earning press can be one of the most difficult obstacles in an entrepreneur’s journey. This podcast by Gwen Elliot features experts, producers, and media professionals who share their behind-the-scenes tips and strategies to help you grow your business using social media, PR, cross-promotion, community building, and more.

Even more fun is that Gwen’s guests reflect on their first “big breaks” and the results those breaks had on their successes, all the way to where they are today.

4. “Traction: How Startups Start” By NextView Ventures

This weekly podcast is great for several reasons, including that NextView Ventures shines a light directly on the steps of successful entrepreneurship you don’t often see. As the show describes itself, it’s about “all the creative, clever, unusual, and downright brilliant ways entrepreneurs scrap their way to early results.”

Similar to a few others on this list, “Traction” focuses on the journey. With a spotlight on original stories by entrepreneurs, how they got started, and how they solved problems within their niches, “Traction” gets gritty in the details.

5. “The Growth Show” by HubSpot

Hosted by HubSpot Vice President of Marketing Meghan Keaney Anderson and CMO Kipp Bodnar, this is a show I’m surprised more people don’t know about. “The Growth Show” is a podcast for “executives and entrepreneurs that shares stories on what it’s really like to grow a business, a movement, an idea, or a team.”

“The Growth Show” heavily focuses on tactics for growth, including generating awareness, increasing reach, and going viral. It has aired features on Zappos, Medium, Google, Ghostery, Blue Bottle Coffee Company, Sophia Amoruso of Nasty Gal, Jonah Peretti of BuzzFeed, and more.

6. “Explain Like I’m 20” by Rinaldo Ugrina

This one is especially great for Millennial entrepreneurs. Rinaldo Ugrina’s podcast “Explain Like I’m 20” draws attention to the opportunities entrepreneurship offers to college students and young adults in an effort to help them understand the ups and downs of pursuing a path like this.

Centered on its mission to inspire young adults to make their dreams a reality, Rinaldo’s show encourages listeners to not suppress their goals and ambition but to realize those dreams.

Rinaldo has featured guests such as “2 Billion Under 20” co-author Jared Kleinert, Usspire founder Mina Salib, InspireBeats CMO Alex Berman, and “The Voice of Your Dreams” author Aaron Anastasi. In addition, Rinaldo welcomes guests who tackle subjects like crowdfunding, personal branding, goal-setting, finding meaning and purpose, and more.

7. “The Side Hustle Show” by Nick Loper

Host Nick Loper says it well when he says, “Your 9-to-5 may make you a living, but your 5-9 makes you alive.” If you’re a part-time entrepreneur who’s between leaving a 9-to-5 job that pays your bills and a side project you love, then look no further than “The Side Hustle Show.”

I like Nick’s approach for a lot of reasons. His show exemplifies building something of your own, and he uses his platform to tackle topics ranging from attracting website visitors and acquiring customers to building passive income streams and self-publishing. And while you may not have heard of some of his guests, they represent real, hard-working entrepreneurs earning a living by following their passions.

It’s always interesting to hear how hugely successful leaders and entrepreneurs got to where they are. But honestly, the stories of people at your same place in the journey are pretty inspiring. Podcasts like these make those stories front and center, and if you’re working to build your business, you should absolutely know about them.

John Hall is the CEO and co-founder of Influence & Co. Influence & Co. helps companies position key individuals as industry influencers and thought leaders. The company focuses on creating high-quality content, coming from its clients, that reaches their target audience online. His clients range from startups to fast-growing companies on the Inc. 500 to Fortune 500 companies.

I am currently the Cofounder and CEO of Influence & Co. - We help companies position key individuals as industry influencers and thought leaders. We focus on creating high-quality content, coming from our clients, that reaches their target audience online. Our clients ra...