Favorite Podcasts : November

Yes, the Open Office Is Terrible — But It Doesn’t Have to Be (Ep. 358) : by Freakonomics

It began as a post-war dream for a more collaborative and egalitarian workplace. It has evolved into a nightmare of noise and discomfort. Can the open office be saved, or should we all just be working from home?

The concept of productivity and efficiency is always on my mind, especially when it comes to schools and cultures and how best to make an impact. This episode helped clarify some of my thoughts and struggles and encouraged me to get out more, engage in conversation, and to sacrifice productivity for side chats and unplanned encounters.

The Difference Between Fixing and Healing : by On Being

We thought we could cure everything, but it turns out we can only cure a small amount of human suffering. The rest of it needs to be healed, and that’s different.

Perhaps my favorite of the group, this podcast is slow and beautiful and just about perfect. I’m often inspired by podcasts, but this is one of the few that truly heal. Just brilliant.

Episode 311 – James Clear – The Laws of Behavior Change : by Smart People Podcast

If you are in any way an entrepreneur or artist or person wanting to branch out with new ideas, this podcast is perfect. In it, James Clear discusses:

• How to overcome the fear of rejection

• James Clear’s book ‘Atomic Habits’ which I’ve already ordered. If you want to borrow it when I’m done, let me know and I’ll send it your way!

• Where do you find a ‘vision’ falling in the realm of habit creation?

And so much more. It’s crazy good.

Before the Next One : by This American Life

There’s no rulebook on how to handle a school shooting. And no real way to prepare for one. This week, people take what they’ve learned from these tragedies and try to use that knowledge to save others.

I listened to this shortly after reading Columbine and writing Mass Shootings : We Are Responsible. It is a pretty powerful episode as it interviews the teachers of Stoneman Douglas HS and parents who have lost their children but are refusing to give up hope in humanity. It is not for the faint of heart, but if you can stomach it, it is also encouraging.

#20 Soraya : Heavyweight

When Soraya was in college, her favorite professor hired her to help research a book she was writing. But when she fell into a deep depression and dropped out of school, she abandoned both the book and the professor who’d shown her so much kindness. Now, with Jonathan’s help, Soraya wants to make things right—with a grand gesture.

Along with productivity and efficiency, I am also constantly wrestling with the concept of memory. I’ve posted other podcasts on this issue (Malcolm Gladwell and Invisibilia being some of the best), but this episode brought a bit of a different flavor because it deals with depression and the devastating effects it can have on perception vs reality. Not only did it question my understanding of reality, it soothed my soul. It’s a good piece to end on. Trust me.

EXTRAS:

Chanel just called, to say . . . by Heavyweight

Six Who Sat : Why six women had to sit, so that they could run. by ESPN 30 for 30

Favorite Podcasts : August

1. The True Hard Work of Love and Relationships, by On Being

I'll admit it, without shame, that this podcast was by far my favorite from this past week. It's fantastically convicting and encouraging, and it's also deeply human. 

Here's the summary as written by On Being:

What if the first question we asked on a date were, "How are you crazy? I'm crazy like this"? Philosopher and writer Alain de Botton's essay "Why You Will Marry the Wrong Person" was one of the most-read articles in The New York Times in recent years. As people and as a culture, he says, we would be much saner and happier if we reexamined our very view of love. Nowhere do we realistically teach ourselves and our children how love deepens and stumbles, survives and evolves over time, and how that process has much more to do with ourselves than with what is right or wrong about our partner. The real work of love is not in the falling, but in what comes after. 

Whether you're married, dating, single, or a combination of them all, check this podcast out. It's a keeper. 

 

2. Life, Interrupted, by Hidden Brain

- This one came to me from my sister, thanks Jenna! - 

"The human brain has become one of the main capitol resources in our economy", yet our understanding of attention and multitasking - of the impacts of text messages and emails - is extremely limited (Did you know it takes your brain, roughly, 20 minutes to switch from task to task? I didn't).

After listening to this podcast, I have a lot of simple (yet profound) changes to make. And not just for productivity sake, but for life and happiness and for cultivating deep relationships (coincided with The True Hard Work of Love and Relationships, the practicality of this podcast increases significantly). 

: Habits of Systematic Mindfulness :

1. No social media

2. Organize time

   1. Set strict hours of work

   2. Plan out day

   3. Don't let mood dictate how the day will go

3. Get comfortable with annoying people

   1. Set expectations of availability

   2. No quick answers

4. Tally hours of "deep work"

   1. Block out "deep work hours" well in advance

5. Create a Shutting Down ritual 

   1. Leave nothing hanging

   2. Say a mantra out loud, something like, "Schedule shutdown complete."

3. Declutter, by The Minimalists

They don't like advertisements. But really, they don't need them, because they do enough of it themselves.

To get to the sauce of this podcast, you'll have to endure more then enough self-promotions, casual links to their books, essays, and ways you can support them, but in the end, it's all worth it. And by end I mean the first 20 minutes or so because that's where they wrestle with and answer some pretty great questions. Questions like:

• What is one thing you always thought you wanted, but then, once you got it, you no longer wanted it? 
• How do you gradually declutter your home?
• How do you explain greed in our society?

You can stop listening after these, if you're stretched for time, it does get a bit too preachy. But there's still good stuff in there.

4. Has Lance Finally Come Clean, by Freakonomics

I've never been a huge Lance or Tour de France fan, but I am a fan of this podcast mainly because it wrestles with the process of reconciliation, personally, relationally, and (for those unfortunate few) publicly. 

At the time I listened to this I was dealing with a difficult relationship, still am actually, but at that particular time it was a very broken relationship (no, I won't tell you who it is) and Lance's journey, his thought process and his full circle of understanding hit home. 

Here's an excerpt from my favorite section, where Lance is describing why he finally took ownership of what he did and stopped trying to convince everyone (and himself) why he was being seen and treated unfairly.

Look, “betrayal” is a terrible word. It’s a word that nobody wants, a child to their parent or friend to another friend, a spouse to a spouse, a C.E.O. to — whatever. It’s a very heavy word. Complicit is 100x. For me, I had already started to get my mind and my heart around the fact that people had suffered this tremendous amount of betrayal, and then I was hit with complicit. And it just — it rocked me to the core. But it was, I tell you, it was the greatest — her name is Melissa — it was the greatest gift that anybody has given me the last six years.

And the story he tells after this, the one where a guy is standing on a bar balcony yelling, "F*** you!" is just beautiful.

5. Grass is Greener, by the Moth 

Okay, I'll be honest. I listened to this podcast over a year ago, but I've thought about it a lot recently, and many times in-between. Not only is she a great storyteller, but her conclusion of happiness (for her it's marriage but really, it can be anything - job, community, kids, whatever) is spot-on. 

"The grass isn't greener on the other side, the grass is greener where you water it." 

Sheesh, that's good. And so, so right.

I hope you enjoy!  If you have any favorites, send em along! I'm sure I'll listen to them at one point or another. 

If you want more, check out these top five favorites or peruse over here to your heart's content.

Thanks for reading!