Podcast Roundup: Improving Your Mindset

Podcast Roundup

Podcasts are a great way to learn on the go. Just plug in those earbuds and listen away. But, there are sooo many great podcasts out there, I know it can be challenging to tell the gems from the diamonds in the rough. So, I thought I would periodically put together a list of podcasts focussed on a particular topic. In this “podcast roundup,” we focus on improving your mindset. Because let’s face it, this is an area where many of us struggle. Whether we grew up in a fixed mindset home or we’ve had struggles as an adult that lead to self-doubt, mindset is always something that can be improved upon.

Achieve Your Goals With Hal Elrod

Hal Elrod is a remarkable human who has accomplished extraordinary things. His books “The Miracle Morning” and “The Miracle Equation” have each made a significant impact on my life as well as the lives of millions of others. His Miracle Morning Community free Facebook group has over 298,000 members. Every time I hear from Hal Elrod I am struck by how much of a master he is at mindset. For example, I am currently listening to the episode titled “How to Take Action When You Don’t Feel Like It” and he’s sharing about how when he had cancer, he would say this mantra to himself every day, “My life is perfect.” Yes, he had cancer, but he would tell himself his life was perfect. That is some real mindset mastery if you ask me. I think you could literally listen to any one of his podcast episodes for immediately improving your mindset.

You can learn more about Hal’s podcast by visiting www.halelrod.com/podcast

The Tony Robbins Podcast

First I must admit that Tony Robbins is a hero of mine. I’ve been following him, reading his books, and attending his events for many years. So the fact that he has a podcast from which to soak up his insights is very exciting to me. Tony’s podcast covers a wide variety of topics from pursuing your why, achieving ultimate health, how to. be happy and more. He also takes on topics like justice, healing, and unity. These episodes go deeeeeppp and are typically over an hour long. So when you decide to sample this podcast, be sure to sit back and prepare for the depth and breadth of conversation that Tony and his guests bring to every episode.

Tony Robbins is, of course, a master at improving your mindset and this podcast really delivers!

You can listen to this podcast on all the major podcast platforms or head over to his website at www.tonyrobbins.com/podcasts

Under The Skin With Russell Brand

I’ve become quite a Russell Brand fan since I read his book, “Recovery: Freedom From Our Addictions”.  I hadn’t watched any of his movies, nor had I seen his comedy.  I just knew him as a rock-star-esque celebrity that Katie Perry had a romance with.  

Then I find out he’s sixteen years sober from drugs and alcohol.

Then I find out he practices Transcendental Meditation.

Then I find out he practices yoga.

And now Brazilian Ju-Jitsu.

Who is this guy???

I’ve read three of his books now and listened to many interviews where he is the interviewer and many where he is the interviewee.  He’s one well-educated and self-aware man at this point of his journey.  

This is why I love his podcast, “Under the Skin.”  He goes DEEP on a topic with a recognized thought leader and by the end of the journey, I’ve learned quite a lot about a specific topic.  He is insanely curious by nature, so his interviewing skills are almost child-like in his wonder of it all.  However, don’t mistake the child-like wonder for immaturity or lack of deep intellectual, spiritual, or philosophical understanding.  He can go toe to toe with anyone in any of those arenas… not in a competitive way, but in a way that brings the best out of the guest.  

Some guests include David Lynch, Byron Katie, Brene Brown, Tony Robbins, Wim Hof, and many more.  You can listen to the entire catalog on his website (www.russellbrand.com) or on whatever app you use, but new episodes will be under Luminary Podcasts (luminarypodcasts.com), which is a subscription platform i.e. commercial-free for podcasts. 

The Tim Ferriss Show

Tim Ferriss is famous for his book, “The 4 Hour Work Week” and has been referred to as a “human guinea pig.” Meaning, it seems this guy will try just about anything. This is why I chose his podcast for thisi list. He truly conducts mind-expanding conversations that will often have you hitting the “back 30-sec” button to do a double-take.

There are three things I really like about this podcast. First, he only interviews world-class experts on their topic. So, you’re getting some of the best minds in deep conversation. Second, Tim likes a. long-form podcast. The episodes can go an hour or two, easily. This allows the conversation to really unfold organically and reach some really poignant deep places. Third, Tim has deconstructed skills throughout his own life – how to become a tango dancer, a mixed martial artist, or a cook. So, the way he thinks about interviewing his experts is unique. He is able to pull out of them and deconstruct their genius and expertise in a way that the average person can then distill something for their own life, and actually act on it.

Tim chooses guests that really do challenge one to expand one’s mind, by covering topics such as bitcoin, NFTs, lucid dreaming, ethnobotany, ayahuasca and so much more. So, if improving your mindset is important to you, this podcast does a great job of opening up and going deep on topics that will truly leave you thinking differently.

You can learn more by visiting tim.blog/podcast

Hidden Brain: NPR

This podcast, hosted by Shankar Vedantum may not be an obvious choice for a podcast about mindset. But I chose it for this list because Hidden Brain is all about exploring the unknown and understanding the world through a combination of storytelling and science. It goes about improving your mindset by exploring many of the unconscious decisions and behaviors we experience in everyday life.

I’m super interested in social and positive psychology, and this podcast almost always has something interesting, insightful, or even transformational for me. The topics are always relevant, so I have a hard time resisting them when they pop up in my podcast app. What I appreciate about the content is that it is often things we don’t consciously uncover in our lived experience. Often times, it takes a researcher with a really great quality problem or question to unearth the subtleties of why we do what we do.

Like the episode about the presence or absence of trees in our neighborhoods, and the implications this has on crime. FASCINATING research that discovered that the mere presence of trees decreases the incidence of crime in a neighborhood, which was totally contrary to popular thought and wisdom. In that same episode, they discussed the impact of looking up in to trees while walking instead of at the ground on happiness and depression. You probably guessed which one leads to which. You may have intuited that one once you reflected on it, but I’ll tell you that even though I walk among trees every day when I walk my dog, I now consciously look up at the trees during the walk because I know it’s good medicine to battle depression, which is something I struggle with.

Human nature is sometimes intuitive, and sometimes the opposite. Hidden Brain does a great job highlighting the times when it’s not.

Lastly, it’s a really, REALLY professionally made podcast. They add A LOT of audio elements, including original music for every episode, to bring you right into the world of the topic of the day. Sound effects, interviews, re-enactments, whatever is necessary to tell the story and keep you engaged. Well, IT WORKS.

You can learn more by visiting www.npr.org