10 Podcasts That Can Change How You Think About Life Challenging our assumptions is the beginning of growth.
By Cynthia Johnson •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
When it comes to the day to day schedules of people in the world, there is so much to get done and, seemingly, so little time. Sometimes we take any chance we can to escape the overwhelming amount of daily tasks on our to-do lists. While indulging in that plan to escape being overwhelmed can sometimes mean completely checking out and detoxing from all things "incoming" and tech-related, it can also mean using those very same thoughts and tasks to escape in a different way -- and still be using your mind.
Podcasts are one of the ways we can keep up with what's going on in the world. Whether your interests include politics and justice, travel and love, or anything and everything in between -- listening to podcasts can be relaxing and entertaining. Depending on how closely you pay attention to the content, may actually change the way you think about life.
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Here are 10 examples of podcasts that will make that change for you:
Go behind the scenes into the minds of prisoners.
You can take this journey with a closer look at a prisoners mindsets in Prison Letters with Dr. Mark Goulston. Dr. Goulston is a board-certified psychiatrist, hostage negotiator, and former team member of OJ Simpson's prosecuting team. He has become a bestselling author using his vast experience and the fact that Goulston has been receiving letters from prisoners -- some serving years, some lifetimes behind bars -- for decades.
What makes someone commit a crime? What makes them decide to harm, or even kill another human being? Through his podcast, he brings these stories to life, and to the listener, in a way that provokes thought, shock and, in some cases, sympathy.
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Understanding human behavior and the explanation for some of the reasoning.
They call it "a conversation about life's unseen patterns." This podcast, Hidden Brain: NPR helps people understand human behavior and the reasons for them. According to the synopsis about the show, "Using science and storytelling, Hidden Brain reveals the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior.
"There is the biases that shape our choices, and triggers that direct the course of our relationships." Merging the worlds of art, music and literature with the intricacies of psychology and neurobiology, Shankar Vedantam takes NPR listeners on a journey to discover more about themselves and others.
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Answers behind many questions.
Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman sheds some light on the psychology of the human experience in this podcast, The Psychology Podcast with Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman. With a guest on each episode, he aims to give listeners some answers to any questions they may surrounding the behavior, mind, brain and creativity. He takes it one step further, highlighting our endless potential and possibility.
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"Riddles of everyday life and the weird wrinkles of human nature."
What is more likely to change the way you think about life than a surprising conversation? This is a dialogue exploring the many facets of our lives and human nature. In the podcast, Freakonomics: NPR, Stephen J. Dubner makes you think about it while he talks about it with thought leaders -- including his Freakonomics co-author Steve Levitt.
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Do you know what moment changed your life?
Host Brian Koppelman drives this interview-focused podcast, The Moment (Slate). Here Koppleman talkes to his subjects about the pivotal moments that yielded various creative careers. Listeners are taken through a spectrum of stories, possibly being inspired to create dream careers in their own lives.
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Money troubles? Rich or poor, don't we all?
Dave Ramsey helps millions of listeners fight through their money troubles with his podcast, The Dave Ramsey Show Live. He helps them answer tough money questions for themselves and leads them on a better road towards financial freedom. Not only is he giving advice on money, he is, in turn, giving out advice on life.
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Marriage and relationships. Who knew?
Sometimes podcasts hold a mirror up to us. Sometimes things seem perfect -- and maybe they are perceived to be that way. But, there can always be an improvement. In this podcast, Confessions of a Terrible Husband - Lessons Learned from a Lumpy Couch, Nick Pavlidis provides a frank and open discussion about everything to do with marriage and life.
The result of his own seemingly perfect marriage making him think about whether something was missing? This one is a great listen for listeners who are ready to take personal responsibility for improving their relationships.
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No, I don't think I would ever bring that up in a conversation.
Anna Sale hosts this podcast, Death, Sex & Money with Anna Sale where she explores the deeper questions and unsaid truths that are sometimes left out of the polite conversations in life. Sale talks to celebrities and the not-so-famous about "relationships, money, family, work and making it all count while we're here."
Related: 4 TED Talks About Love, Sex and Desire
What do you really think about life? Can what you think change?
Patrick Wyman, Ph.D. hosts this podcast, Tides of History investigating the past and what it means for the present. Calling them "echoes of the past," the pieces of history revisited in this podcast become an influence on many of the things we deem important today, from how we pray to how we raise our kids. It truly may change the way you think about life.
Related: 3 Powerful Ways to Keep Your Past From Dictating Your Future
"Never felt better," and other lies.
This show is the answer to not always having to say you're fine -- out of formality -- when someone asks you how you are doing. Host and author Nora McInery speaks open and honestly about how pain can be addressed in some of the most effective ways. Terrible, Thanks for Asking, takes deep dive look at answers, whether or not it makes for an uncomfortable moment.
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To me, these are 10 of some of the most inspiring, frightening, and insightful podcasts out there. Their content surely give you something wonderful to think about, even if it's terrible. These may even change the way you think about life. With ideas and dialogue to spark an even deeper dialogue, they can't help but make you feel something and maybe choose to do something!
