Do you like to take photos of your kids? Or knit and crochet? Or design and sew quilts and clothes? I think all of us have a creative aspect to ourselves, and it’s really important to tap into that when we can, even if it’s not a business (I still take tons of personal photos, and I make memory/scrapbook albums too. I recently read this article and think it’s great: Why Creativity Matters to Motherhood.) So listening to other people talk about their passions makes me happy and psyched up to develop my own creative work, both professional and personal.
I love podcasts because I feel inspired and entertained, but also because it gives my mind something to focus on while driving or going on a walk. 🙂 These are my favorite podcasts because they’re all about creative people, small business/entrepreneurship, and inspiration/motivation. (Strangely, I generally don’t listen to photography podcasts, since I already spend a lot of time thinking about and reading about and working on photography.) One of my favorite things in life is hearing about peoples’ stories, and all of these podcasts do just that – the different things people do, how they do them, and how they got to where they are now.
Grace Bonney is the founder of Design*Sponge, which is a beautiful site that I can’t keep up with, but I’ve listened to all of her podcast episodes, and man, she really knows her stuff! Many of her shows are the traditional interview format, and generally focus on designers, naturally. Which of course are interesting (especially because I’ve never heard of many of them! Who knew that ceramicists were a thing, or that people are still designing wallpaper?!). But many of the shows also focus on business or some aspect of the creative life *other* than the actual creating. Sometimes it’s a solo monologue on things like the best social media apps or finding your voice online, or sometimes it’s a panel show discussing things like the future of print media. So to me, this show is the business school of creativity podcasts. Grace is an incredibly savvy businesswoman, and it’s a privilege to learn from her. The show is on hiatus right now, but I have several of the past episodes saved in iTunes so I can revisit them, and I am really looking forward to listening and learning more in future episodes.
After the Jump on Design*Sponge
This is always an enjoyable podcast. Jess Lively’s Big Thing is intention–figuring out what you want out of life and then creating an intentional life from that. It’s not woo-woo, though it could be if Jess weren’t so careful and precise to keep it away from that. She doesn’t focus on being spiritual, it’s about being true to yourself, and how sometimes that can be really difficult, but that’s really the only way anyone can find true meaning in life.This show is still the regular interview format, talking about guests’ pasts and how they ended up in their career, but sort of always with that lens of intention. The guests come from a much wider pool of creative people–writers, bloggers, designers, entrepreneurs. I particularly liked the Mrs Lilien episode and the episode titled Stopping the Glorification of Busy. As she says, the episodes “feature a guest interview designed to uplift, inspire, or help you add a little extra intention to your everyday.”
This is my favorite creativity podcast! Elise is a well-established blogger and maker, and she’s just so full of zest and passion and amazing ideas. Her podcast is also generally interviews with creative people, from a variety of fields. The podcast itself is a little less polished than the others, but I actually like that–it’s a little more homey and realistic. She’s also very savvy with her multi-faceted business, and one reason I love her podcast is that she’s completely transparent about that. She also discusses some of the nitty-gritty with her guests and listeners–there was an episode about selling wholesale, and she asked about what exactly wholesale meant and the difference between retail and wholesale discounts, and that kind of detail that normally gets glossed over. Oh, and she did a great solo episode about what to do when you have too many ideas. She says, “My goal is to introduce you to smart, interesting people who are good at what they do and willing to share their expertise. I hope you find the episodes fun, inspiring and thought-provoking.” I sure do!
Other similar podcasts I sometimes listen to are Raise Your Hand Say Yes and Creative Start. My favorite non-creative podcast is Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.
Do you listen to podcasts about creativity and inspiration? Leave a comment sharing your favorites; I’m always looking for more good listening material!