?? 8 podcasts to inspire you

Welcome back! I’m sure you’re all feeling the pressures of the looming financial year end so this week’s is short, sweet and (hopefully) inspiring! ?

Like you all I’m sure, podcasts are part of my daily life. I spend a fair bit of time commuting from Cronulla to the city three times a week and try to force myself to put away the laptop and get lost in a podcast ??

Below I’ve pulled together my top picks, a real diverse mix and not all directly related to the purpose of this newsletter - Talent. However, I genuinely feel there are takeaways and strategies to support you attract, hire & retain talent, as well as looking after the most important person in your life - yourself! ????

So here goes...?? my top 8 favourite podcasts

1. High performance Jake Humphrey & Damian Hughes

This podcast delivers relevance across all spheres of life and for me, has shared so many invaluable takeaways.Their official spiel;

“It doesn’t matter where our guest has excelled - in sport, music, business, arts or entertainment – they all have first-hand experiences and lessons to share. On The High Performance Podcast we find out what non-negotiable behaviours they employed to get them to the top and keep them there”

I really couldn't pick one favourite (I tried, promise) so here’s a few:

Jo Malone: Finding your own superpower

Matthew McConaughey: It's hard to know what to commit to

E59 - Grace Beverley: How to make your side hustle a success

2. The Diary of a CEO - Steven Bartlett

Entrepreneur and now Dragons Den host Steven Bartlett?hosts this one and has had some pretty incredible guests including:

Karen Brady - what a woman, not only was she the youngest person running a football club, but she was also one of the first women to be leaders in the industry. In this pod she is so humble, brave and authentic, hope you enjoy this one as much as I did!

Dr Mindy Pelz - EVERYONE should start fasting - a more recent one from Dr Pelz, I was familiar with her work before but she’s very practical in this about the implications to everyday life and how small things can make a big difference for women AND men!

3. Feel Better, Live more ?- Dr Dr Chatterjee

This is a staple for me, I also get his Friday FIVE email with quick tips to improve health. He’s such a genuine and intelligent man which is soothing in itself, but he really takes the time to breakdown complex scientific theories for the non-scientists (like me).

Top recommendation - How your Brain Work - I’m sure you’ve all heard of him - Dr. Andrew Huberman is a professor of neuroscience at Stanford University and has made numerous contributions to the fields of brain development, brain function and neuroplasticity. In this pod he’s discussing why exposure to morning light is key to optimum human functioning among many other health hacks.

5. Future Women Leadership series by Helen McCabe

My incredible mentor Sarah French got me onto this one. Each episode, typically under 30 minutes, features diverse women who share their personal stories and skills with vulnerability and honesty about the complex challenges faced by women on the path to senior leadership.

Start with Melanie Silva Managing Director of Google ANZ - on?being the most productive leader, not the busiest what a woman! (I know I’ve said this already but she is) - she emphasises the importance of being a productive leader. The episode reveals her secrets to optimal productivity, such as making space for 'big thinking' days and time to find her 'flow'.

6. Danny in the Valley - The Sunday Times

This one is from my partner Jack, he got me into it during the pandemic - a weekly podcast from behind the scenes and inside the minds of the top people in tech. After more than a decade in London, Danny Fortson returns to Silicon Valley to meet the techies trying to change the world - and make loads of money while doing it.?

Top pick, Yelp's Jeremy Stoppelman: "15 years battling Google" -? founder of Yelp, to talk about the early days of user-generated content and more insights around the evolution of the internet with these two power players.?

7. Unlocking us - Brene Brown

An oldie but a goodie. What a podcast, I believe it’s finished now but if you haven’t been there, lucky you!

The one that stayed with me was her first one - Brené Brown on FFTs - where she talks about strategies for staying in tough first times versus tapping out and shutting down.

She coined the term FFTs; “(effing first times): how hard it is to be new at things – from small things to global pandemics. When we have no relevant experience or expertise, the vulnerability, uncertainty, and fear of these firsts can be overwhelming. Yet, showing up and pushing ourselves past the awkward, learner stage is how we get braver.”

8. How to fail - Elizabeth Day

Firstly, she has a lovely queen's English accent, she’s also warm, empathetic and vulnerable when exploring a lot of her own issues. This podcast (which is now also a book) celebrates the things that haven't gone right and every week a new guest explores what their failures taught them about how to succeed better.

A stand out for me would be Mo Gawdat, the world-renowned happiness expert on how to manage stress, how to live with grief and how to be happy . Gawdat is the former chief business officer at Google X (there’s a Google theme here, you wouldn't think I worked at LinkedIn haha) but for a long time in his life, despite having professional, personal and material success, he realised he wasn't happy. After 12 years, he developed an algorithm for happiness, eventually arriving at an equation which states simply that happiness is greater than, or equal to, your perception of the events in your life minus your expectation of how life should be. He wrote a book about it, Solve For Happy, which became an international bestseller.

That’s all from TalentBites this week, I will be taking a break in July, back mid-August with more short & relevant Talent Insights.

See you then & enjoy some rest too (hopefully!) ????♀?

*all pods above available on Spotify, Apple etc.? ??