OK, so yes, I’m writing a blog about podcasts. For the past two years, alongside Joan Garry, I have hosted our podcast “Nonprofits Are Messy,” and I co-write this blog.
I was thrilled about both opportunities. On the blog side, I have a platform to share my expertise as a nonprofit leader with our readers and offer what I hope is actionable advice. On the podcast side, I have the privilege of meeting remarkable people who share their insights not just with all of you but with me as well. Win-win.
Remember Venn Diagrams from high school? This is a Venn Diagram blog post. I am writing a blog post with actionable advice for you about podcasts.
But first, a confession. If someone asks me if I would rather read a blog or listen to a podcast? No contest. I’ve been a podcast fan for over a decade. Like many people, when “Serial” premiered, I was hooked.
Today, I want to make the case for nonprofit leaders to find a really good podcast – or two – and add it to their list for inspiration, motivation, laughs, and entertainment. I want to help you navigate through the 4.5 million podcasts worldwide – ok, let’s narrow it down to the 350,000 “active” ones that publish regularly. I want to give you two good reasons to listen to them, and then my top two go-to podcasts based on those reasons.
Spoiler alert, I love my podcast, but it’s not one of my recommendations below.
So, why listen?
First, because it’s so easy and energizing. Podcasts are free, widely available, and you can adjust the listening speed if your brain needs a different speed than that of the speaker. For me specifically, I have hearing aids, which I wear most of the time, unless I’m swimming, showering, or sleeping, and which allow me to, well, hear. So having a device where I can listen to something directly so seamlessly works really well for me.
Second, you can accomplish multiple things at the same time. As a former nonprofit leader and now CEO of a company exclusively serving non-profits, I do not have a lot of time. I need to be efficient, and sometimes I need to be doing two or three things at once. So being able to use my body to fold laundry, go for a walk, pick up my kid from school *and* listening to something at the same time, is perfect for me. Both/and. Most mornings, I am drinking coffee, making Frankie breakfast, and listening to “The Headlines” or “The Daily” from The NY Times, so I know what’s going on before the day even starts.
Now on to my favorite podcasts…
I listen to different podcasts for very different reasons. Hands down, my favorite podcast, the one I go to when I need a lift, some hope, a laugh, and some perspective, is “We Can Do Hard Things,” Hosted by Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, and Amanda Doyle.
I have been a part of this “pod squad” from the very beginning. It’s hard to find an episode I did not love and forward enthusiastically to a friend or colleague. These women are real, they are talking about the things that matter to me, and they keep showing up imperfectly and authentically week after week.
Okay, so the truth is, Glennon and Abby are queer women and are married to each other. That is not the only reason I like the show. I love Amanda (sister) just as much for the record. I always leave that podcast feeling affirmed, challenged, and motivated to keep going.
Whether it’s the episode with Britanney Packnett Cunningham teaching me “How We All Become Minnesota” and prompting me to join my own local mutual aid group, or the one about “How to Stay Sane and Useful in Chaos.” Check out this episode description and see if it resonates with you like it resonated with me.
“Everything is chaotic and overwhelming. The news is relentless. So we did the only thing that felt honest: we showed up, unprepared, and talked about how we’re actually feeling-and what helps us stay engaged, grounded, and human in this moment.
In this conversation, we talk about why overwhelm is a strategy, how to stop spiraling in fear, and why real change doesn’t come from doomscrolling or waiting for a government hero-but from finding grounded leaders in our communities, organizing locally, and trusting ourselves to respond to what today is asking of us.
If you’re exhausted, scared, angry or unsure of what to do next-this episode is for you.”
Get out of my head! How do they know me so well, and exactly what I need to hear that I don’t even know I need to hear?! I also love that they are white cisgender women who are trying, publicly and consistently, to challenge male dominance and white supremacy in a country that was built on these things. I’m trying to do that also, and so it helps me feel less alone in that pursuit.
Bottom line: Find one that lifts you up and makes you feel better after listening.
Now, before you go thinking that I am a relentless advocate and social justice warrior who is serious all the time, please allow me to introduce my other podcast obsession…true crime. But, not just any old true crime. There is more than enough of that in the world. What I love is true crime, mixed with a clever, empathetic heaping of comedy.
I know, I know this sounds crazy. Give me a second here to explain. It all started with “My Favorite Murder,” hosted by Georgia Hardstark and Karen Kilgariff. Two smart, sassy women – my favorite kind of women, by the way – who would share stories of actual crimes and somehow manage to make it…educational, relatable, and funny.
Growing up, I was scared of anything even close to crime, violence, or blood, anything bad, really. I couldn’t even see it, or I would “have bad dreams.” But as I grew up, I became fascinated with this genre, and it turns out I’m not alone. It’s estimated that 60-80% of true crime fans are women.
There is a lot of commentary on this if you are interested. Theories about it being the stories we are drawn to, maybe; we’re at such greater risk of violence that we’re trying to learn so we can avoid falling victim, possibly; and/or we love solving problems, and “who dun it?” is one of the best, probable.
Karen and Georgia, as my first guides into this world, would share stories weekly that hooked me completely, had me laughing out loud, and were somehow empowering, even though, true to reality, most of the victims were women and the perpetrators, men. They did not ignore the bigger context and issues, and in fact are vocal advocates for survivors, women, and all marginalized, overlooked folks. It takes real storytelling skill to do what they do. I still consider myself a member of the fan cult.
From there, I went on to listen to “True Crime Obsessed,” hosted by a flaming homosexual man (I mean that as the biggest compliment) – Patrick Hinds, and a bisexual woman – Gillian Pensavale. Here I go, back to my LGBT community. They cover true crime documentaries, and this works even better for me, because it’s almost like I still get to watch those shows, because they talk you through them, but with humor, suspense, and a ton of color commentary.
It’s escapism, yes, but it’s also outstanding storytelling, real learning, and a reclamation of power in a world that feels like we don’t have enough. They have catch phrases about the perpetrators, like “Stay stupid!” as they usually are so incompetent, narcissistic, or both that they are, in fact, their own undoing. Keeping the receipt for the gun you bought to kill someone? “Stay stupid!”
Bottom line: Find one that allows you to escape into something else when you need a break.
Rarely does a day go by that I have not listened to a podcast. If we’re friends, you have heard me talk about “We Can Do Hard Things,” and I have probably sent you an episode to listen to. Maybe podcasts are not your thing, and that’s okay. The point is, find something that fuels you, even if, or maybe especially if, other people don’t get it. For me, it’s podcasts, and I suggest you try them if you haven’t already.
Happy listening!
