Are You A Podcast Person?

International Podcast Day isn’t until September 30 (https://internationalpodcastday.com/podcasting-history); still, we can enjoy and celebrate how podcasts inform us, challenge us, delight and entertain us, and teach us. Are you a podcast person?  What are some of your favorites?

Here are a few facts about podcasts:

“ * The multi-billion dollar industry has millions of individual podcasts. And several million listeners.

* There are around 3 million active podcasts.

* Podcasts outnumber audiobooks by around 6:1.

* The number of podcasts grew year-over-year between 2009 and 2020.

*Almost 30 million podcast episodes were published last year [2023].

*Podcasts are available in more than 100 languages.

*As of February 2024, there are currently 3.2 million podcasts. That said, exact figures can vary significantly depending on several factors, most notably the inclusion of inactive podcasts. Podcast Index, for example, estimates the figure to be closer to 4.1 million.

*Of all podcast listeners, almost half (47%) are aged 12-34 years. 33% are 35 to 54-year-olds. And the remaining 20% are aged 55+ years. In terms of gender, men are more frequent podcast listeners, but not by much” (qtd. in https://explodingtopics.com).

I listen to a few podcasts; some are weekly, some monthly, some are produced every now and then.  Here’s the list of podcasts I regularly listen to and you may like too:

*Awaken, Heal, and Thrive with Benjamin Bernstein

*Oprah, Super Soul

*The British History Podcast with Jamie Jeffers

*The Minimalists Podcast with Joshua Fields Milburn, Ryan Nicodemus, and T.K. Coleman

*This Week in Astrology with Benjamin Bernstein

*This Jungian Life Podcast with Joseph Lee, Lisa Marchiano, and Deb Stewart

*Hay House Live Podcast

*When I was a college English professor, I listened to Teaching In Higher Ed. podcast with Dr. Bonni Stachowiak.

Political, mean-spirited, religious content and podcasts that are overly paid for by sponsors with messages that disrupt the content are options I stay away from.  There are other ways for podcasts to make money rather than with advertisements. The Minimalists have a saying that resonates with me and perhaps you too: “Advertisements suck” (qtd. in https://www.theminimalists.com).  If you’re new to podcast listening, I encourage you to search for podcasts that discuss your top interests, or, alternatively, check out new topics you’ve wanted to explore. Many of the books I’ve bought lately were purchased because the titles were mentioned on podcasts.  Some podcasts also have websites that have video and/or podcast show notes as downloads for more information.

If you’re already a podcast listener, please share what podcasts you listen to.  I’m always looking for new insights and teachers.  Where do you listen to podcasts? At home, in the car, working out, at work? Please share your thoughts and insights by either commenting below this post if you are reading this on social media, or, if you are reading this through your email subscription, please share, by emailing me, at reimaginelife22@gmail.com.

Thank you for reading and participating in this blog essay; I invite you to subscribe to my blog at www.reimaginelifecoach.com.