One thing that might strike you after reading this list is that there is only one fashion podcast on it. I read Women’s Wear Daily, the fashion industry newspaper (well, now online), daily. That’s enough for me. In my podcasts I want someone to tell me how to get stuff done more efficiently, make time for fun, be happier, be a better parent, and run my business more successfully. Hopefully these are things that interest you too! Below you will find a personal list of my favorite podcasts. If you live a relaxed life in LA, you might think I’m a crazy time-management, productivity freak. If you are a Type A, upper northwest DC Mom, you’ll thank me for the suggestions 🙂
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Best of Both Worlds
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This is the podcast every working mom should be listening to. I think the reason I am so addicted to all material produced by Laura Vanderkam is that not only does she teach us how to get things done more efficiently, but she also reminds us we need to make time to do the things we enjoy. The more efficient we are in all areas of our life, the more time we will have to do said things we enjoy. As someone who is a such a slave to the “to do” list that Mr. Real Life Style has nicknamed it “the sickness”, I need this constant reminder. And I do mean constant. The Best of Both Worlds Podcast, co-hosted with Sarah Hart-Unger, a physician, blogger, and mother-of-three, discusses work/life balance, career development, parenting, time management, productivity, and making time for fun. Tune in each week for strategies to help you thrive in all spheres of life, they say, and boy do I! This is the only podcast I listen to the day it is published. No matter what the subject, or who they are interviewing, I know I will learn something applicable to my own life.
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Before Breakfast with Laura Vanderkam
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Yep, Laura Vanderkam again. As I said above, there are certain things I need constant reminders about, and that is pretty much everything Laura espouses. How excited do you think I was when she came out with a daily podcast with her best tips and tricks? Each one is pretty short so I tend to let them stack up a little and then listen to them all in a row, but of course you can just listen to them 5 minutes a day when you have a few minutes to do so. See below this paragraph how Laura describes the podcast. I didn’t think I could do any better. I can tell you that after years of resisting, I recently took her advice to make lunches in the morning instead of the evening before, and yes, of course the quality of my life is so much better for it. As she explained in this podcast right after I had made the switch, almost as if she was saying “I told you so” in the nicest manner possible, if you make lunches at night, it delays your doing anything you enjoy, like reading, in the evening. Just make the lunches in the morning when you are already in the kitchen. This did result in my having to wake up earlier, but I am also now able to get to bed earlier, feeling less put upon. She was right!
“Start your morning with productivity advice that will take your day from great to awesome.
In each bite-sized, daily episode of Before Breakfast, I’ll share a time management strategy or an answer to a listener’s schedule question. I’ll help listeners make the most of their time, both at work and at home. The mission is to give listeners practical tools to feel less busy and get more done.”
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Oprah’s Super Soul Conversations
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I used to bemoan that I would catch a glimpse of an ad about another one of Oprah’s incredible Super Soul Conversations TV shows, but then of course would never get to watch it because I rarely ever make time for TV. Then I discovered that you can listen to all of them through her podcast!!! I am now an addict. Oprah interviews fiction and spiritual authors and teachers, as well as imparting wisdom on us from teachers past, such as Dr. Maya Angelou. Need some time to fill your own bucket while doing something mindless like putting away laundry or doing dishes? Listening to Oprah’s voice makes you feel like you are practicing self-care, not just sweeping up Cheerios.
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The Marie Forleo Podcast
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This podcast is for every entrepreneur. The Marie Forleo Podcast is the audio version of MarieTV, Ms. Forleo’s You Tube channel. I’m sure it is amazing and apparently millions of people watch it, but you know, in addition to not watching TV, I also don’t watch online videos. So how nice of Marie to realize there are people out there like me and put out the audio recording as a podcast. Ms. Forleo’s main product is B School, an 8-week online business school for modern entrepreneurs, which is supposed to be one of the best out there. What is amazing about her podcast though is that she not only gives good business advice, she focuses on making the world a better place and always living your values. On an episode I was listening to recently, she donated enough money to send 7 women from Africa to college for a year. She doesn’t teach you how to sell yourself, she teaches you how to share your unique gifts with the world. Both the Marie Forleo and Racheal Cook podcasts (see below) also have great material for me to share with our Stylist Studio trainees.
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Promote Yourself to CEO with Racheal Cook MBA
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This podcast is fantastic for all women entrepreneurs. Entrepreneur, mother, and MBA Racheal Cook is not going to let you sell yourself short. As a business coach she focuses on getting women to ask for what they are worth and make their business fit into the lives they have, families and all. I have learned so much from Racheal’s podcasts and webinars. I even went to one of her in person CEO retreats last year, which was as productive as it was delightful.
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Happier with Gretchen Rubin
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This blog is for everyone who wants to live better, and judging by the fact that it has over 70 million downloads and the hosts have been interviewed by Oprah, I would say that is most of us. Gretchen Rubin, author of The Happiness Project and other bestsellers, is endlessly fascinated with human nature and how we can all be happier. She even calls herself a happiness bully. Happier is a podcast she hosts with her sister, Elizabeth Craft, a TV producer in LA. Gretchen and Elizabeth interview different people, talk among themselves, and answer reader questions, all of it inspiring and useful. My only issue is that it is too much of a good thing. I get overwhelmed because I can’t keep up with listening and/or implementing their fabulous ideas. You will want to listen to every episode.
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Parents at Work
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This podcast is for all working parents, with a special shout out to Dads. Hosted by Lori Mihalich-Levin, who you might know from the joint Wear Your Power E-course we run every January on her Mindful Return platform, and Tom Spiggle, a fellow lawyer, Parents at Work boasts that they feature the best techniques for parents in cultivating a healthy work-life balance. Their unique concept presents two sides of the coin each month, a podcast featuring moms in an industry, followed by one featuring dads. Yes, they have featured parents in HR and Law, but they have also featured parents in Theatre! Do we think they should feature parents in fashion? Hmmm….Seriously though, it is so interesting how you can listen to parents in industries that have nothing to do with your own (or so you think) and learn something from how they have handled work and family situations.
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Circle Round
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I’ve always wanted the kids to listen to stories in the car instead of fighting with each other. Unfortunately, this only seems to work when we are driving back from somewhere around bedtime and they are too tired to engage. However, when they are alone they seem to be able to concentrate better. The Circle Round stories are a production of NPR (my favorite!) so of course this was my first choice. The stories are between 15-25 minutes, just right for a car ride, truly imaginative, and told well. My kids do enjoy them, as do I, when they acquiesce. A fellow mom recently told me about Goop Tales, which apparently all the kids are into these days. Again, my kids were too busy fighting in the back seat to concentrate but the story seemed good, so I am going to try again.
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Inner Style presented by Stellair
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Although this podcast is no longer being recorded, this is essential listening if you think you want to be a fashion stylist of any stripe. Allie talks to 13 different stylists over the 13 episodes, covering all different facets of the industry. Check out my episode here!
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The Child Repair Guide with Dr. Steven Silvestro
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Don’t have time to read another parenting book? All the issues you’ve ever wondered how to handle with kids, such as potty training and night terrors, before they even come up, can be found on The Child Repair Guide podcast. Have a new one come up, like your kid wants his own YouTube Channel or you aren’t sure how to deal with the recent measles outbreak? It’s in there. Dr. Steve’s patient voice doesn’t make you feel like a bad parent for not knowing all of this already, and as a pediatrician and a parent of young children himself, he is a trusted voice in parenting advice.
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Lani Inlander is a personal stylist who has been working with clients who want to feel their best and look put-together every day for over 15 years. You can find her in the Washington, D.C. and New York metropolitan areas. Learn how you can train with Lani to become a personal stylist at The Stylist Studio.
You can find Lani Inlander and Real Life Style on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.
