Our 15 favorite business podcasts to keep you motivated while you work from home
Still working from home? Remote life has its perks (yay for sweatpants!), but it can also be lonely. If you feel like your business instincts are getting a little rusty, we’ve got the solution for you. Business podcasts!
Business podcasts will keep your leadership mindset as sharp as a scalpel while also helping you stay connected to the latest business trends and innovations. Podcasts can even help make your work-from-home situation feel a little less isolating. After all, your good friends Tim Ferris, Tony Robbins, Marc Andreessen, and Sophia Amoruso are just a finger tap away from keeping you company and pouring some sweet, sweet business advice into your ear.
Here are 15 of our very favorite business podcasts. (Hint: You don’t have to work from home to enjoy these snackable business lessons. If you’re heading to the office again, you’ll need something to listen to on your commute.)
Inspirational business podcasts
1. Tony Robbins Podcast
Why not start with the master of inspiration and personal development himself? The Tony Robbins Podcast doesn’t exclusively focus on the business space, but many of his individual podcast episodes do. You’ll learn about the art of productivity, how to future-proof your career, and how to think big and scale quickly, among many other powerful lessons.
2. How I Built This
Podcast host Guy Raz sits down for in-depth interviews with some of the world’s leading business titans to dig into the nitty-gritty of how they built their powerhouse companies. Listeners will hear from a wide range of business leaders and entrepreneurs, including Slack co-founder Steward Butterfield, Pat Brown from Impossible Burger, and Tobias Lutke of Shopify.
3. GirlBoss
This one is for the ladies. Sophia Amoruso, the founder of Nasty Gal, conducts no-holds-bar interviews with boundary-pushing women to learn their secrets of success. Past guests have included Amy Pascal, Mia Khalifa, Saweetie, and Tulsi Gabbard.
Entrepreneurial/startup podcasts
4. The Pitch
Do you need some serious capital to get your startup off the ground or to the next stage of development? Before you start approaching investors, sit down and binge The Pitch. This podcast records entrepreneurs pitching investors in real-live sessions. Best of all, you’ll hear direct feedback from the investors.
5. a16z
Dive into the heart of Silicon Valley with mega-investors Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. The two hosts chat about tech trends while interviewing some of the world’s foremost industry experts and business leaders.
6. The $100MBA
You don’t have to have a fancy Harvard business degree or a few million dollars in investment capital to start a successful business. Omar Zenhom gives you “real business lessons from real entrepreneurs in the real world.” You’ll hear the stories of entrepreneurs who went from zero to business hero. No fancy MBA required.
Business leadership podcasts
7. The Tim Ferriss Show
Tim Ferriss interviews groundbreaking individuals from every walk of life, including many of the world’s top CEOs and business leaders. Episodes contain valuable and inspirational lessons on overcoming adversity, thinking outside the box, and keeping your eye on the prize. Ferriss is a deft interviewer with plenty of experience in business success himself.
8. HBR Ideacast
If you know you definitely should be reading The Harvard Business Review but can never seem to get around to it, then take a listen to HBR Ideacast. Host Sarah Green Carmichael interviews business legends, offering up highly informative lessons on business management, innovation, mindset, and more.
9. Lead to Win
Host Michael Hyatt gives listeners valuable insight and actionable advice on how to develop as a leader in an uncertain world. The podcast delves into topics such as effective communication, leading in a crisis, working with a business coach, and much more. This is a must-listen for anyone on the management track.
Sales and marketing podcasts
10. Dear BAMf
“We are all BAMf (badass motherf*ckers) according to us, but sometimes even BAMfs need help.” This is the opening description for the Dear BAMf podcast, which features the hosts and guests answering anonymously submitted marketing and public relations questions. If you want to get the real scoop on big marketing challenges, listen in. Better yet, submit a question!
11. Duct Tape Marketing
Geared toward entrepreneurs and business leaders working on a shoestring budget, Duct Tape Marketing explores ways innovators can stretch their marketing and sales dollars. Learn about the newest trends and how to get more visibility for less.
12. Make It Happen Mondays
Consultant John Barrows shares his B2B sales expertise with listeners and even takes listener questions. If you want to learn the finer points of cold calling, negotiating, and – of course – closing, then subscribe to this weekly motivational podcast.
Just for fun business podcasts
13. Planet Money
Take a step back and learn about larger economic trends in this enjoyable, easy-to-listen-to podcast. Each week brings new, bite-sized stories that explore everything from the dangerous world of wild ginseng, to the future of restaurants, and the story of a small town that tried to start its own internet company.
14. Business Wars
Two companies enter the Thunderdome, one company leaves. We’re kidding, of course, but this wildly popular podcast dives into the stories of some of the world’s biggest businesses as they duke it out against their most dangerous competitors. You’ll learn about Nike vs. Adidas, Netflix vs. HBO, Uber vs. Lyft, and more.
15. Weird Work
After a stressful day of work when your brain can’t absorb one more drop of serious information, it’s time to start an episode of Weird Work. Journey into the lives of people who do seriously interesting (some may say “weird”) jobs. Ever wondered what it takes to be a professional cuddler? How about a pet influencer agent? Now you can find out with Weird Work.
Work from home just got more entertaining
We hope that this list of our 15 favorite business podcasts will help you stay entertained while you work from home. To get even more out of your favorite podcasts, listen to them with your coworkers and then discuss on your next remote call. Instead of a weekly book club, you can host a weekly podcast club.
You can even use Poll Everywhere to choose a group podcast to listen to. Your workmates can also vote on questions and topics to discuss from each podcast. Just one more way that Poll Everywhere can help you learn more and better respond to your work team! Happy listening!