Life is busy; whether you run your business around your family, or around other external commitments, it’s easy to feel as though you are running at 100mph from one activity to another most days! As a result, it’s difficult to find time for certain activities – like catching up with reading the latest news and views from thought leaders within your industry.
There’s always something else that needs to be done instead, whether that is billable hours for clients or a mass tidy up of expenses or marketing materials. And outside of work hours, it’s perfectly reasonable (and highly recommended) to want to ‘switch off’ and enjoy non-business related activities in the evenings and at weekends.
I feel your pain – I’m trying to establish a more reasonable work-life balance too, and with every hour of my working day dedicated to the running of VIP VA, I haven’t got time to plough through numerous entrepreneurial ‘thought leadership’ articles every day. However, I have found something that does fit in with my day-to-day life simply and easily AND that can really help me to develop my business and professional skills. My new secret weapon is… podcasts.
Driving to a client meeting? Enjoying an hour at the gym or stretching your legs with a lunchtime walk? Podcasts are the perfect accompaniment! Obviously, there are some days when I just NEED the VIP VA #timetoeleVAte playlist to motivate and inspire me, but there are also plenty of occasions when I’m ready and willing to absorb new thinking and innovative strategies and processes ‘on the go’. It has taken a while to find podcasts that I find relevant and interesting, but I’ve got 10 ‘go-to’ podcasts that I regularly listen to now, and can highly recommend each and every one!
So here are my ‘top ten’ Podcast recommendations!
1.) The Andrew & Pete Show: https://www.andrewandpete.com/show/ – a fun and engaging podcast that features interviews with some of the most inspiring and knowledgeable Marketers and Entrepreneurs in the world. (They are also headlining our upcoming Virtual Summit in June – learn more here: https://apva.org.uk/elevate-virtual-summit-2018/)
2.) Mr LinkedIn (Mark Williams): http://linkedinformed.com/ – a ‘weekly show designed to inspire, challenge and educate LinkedIn users’, and winner of a 2015 Podcast of the year award!
3.) Soulful PR with Janet Murray: https://www.janetmurray.co.uk/category/podcast/ – Janet has spent the last 17 years writing and editing for national newspapers, and shares her incredible skills and experiences with listeners in this great podcast.
4.) Marketing and Finance Podcast with Roger Edwards: https://rogeredwards.co.uk/maf/ – a podcast filled with ideas and inspiration on marketing and growing your business, as well as a great platform for discussing all things finance.
5.) Desert Island Disks: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/5qhJd1byxhTBYbSCFmw580y/desert-island-discs-podcasts – not strictly business related, but inspirational nonetheless! For those of you unfamiliar with the Radio 4 show, famous ‘castaways’ are given the opportunity to share music and personal stories that are important to them.
6.) The Business Hacker Podcasts: https://ecommerceguider.com/businesshacker/ – learn from the mistakes and successes of other business owners in this interesting podcast series from David De Souza.
7.) ‘The Guide to Growth’ with Helena Murphy: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-guide-to-growth-podcast/id1262899576?mt=2 – if you’re looking for practical tips to help you grow a sustainable and profitable business, this is the podcast for you!
8.) She Means Business: https://femaleentrepreneurassociation.com/the-blog/ – another great resource if you’re looking for top tips and inspiration to help with every aspect of your business, from productivity to marketing.
9.) One Girl Band: https://www.onegirlband.co.uk/podcast/ – Hosted by One Girl Band’s founder, Lola, this podcast is for female entrepreneurs and is full of inspiring words of wisdom and practical advice.
10.) The GaryVee Audio Experience (with Gary Vaynerchuk): https://www.garyvaynerchuk.com/podcast/ – this series of podcasts provides some great marketing and business tips and inspiration, and also features some excellent guests.
Do you have a favourite Podcast? Whether it’s for business and professional development, health and wellbeing or just because it is REALLY entertaining, we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Let us know via one of our Social Media channels.