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Fresh podcast listens: Brené Brown

I’ve recently embarked on a small podcast adventure, with the aim to explore at least 10 new shows this month. I’m curious to learn more about podcasting, and broaden my horizons, and I am also keen to expand the types of podcasts I am listening to, all the while looking out for ideas and resources that I could use or share with colleagues and clients.

It’s been fun so far, to listen to something completely different as I walk the dogs or do incline intervals on the treadmill. If you are looking for inspiration and are curious to find out more, this post is for you.

What criteria did I apply to select these?

I chose podcasts that I had never listened to before, and started with the most popular ones. I vaguely tried to choose episodes/topics that seemed relevant to my current interests, but also added some that were completely unknown to me.

Podcasts, ideas and resources

The first group of podcasts I listened to are by or about the work of Brené Brown.

Dr. Brené Brown is a research professor at the University of Houston, where she holds the Huffington Foundation Endowed Chair at the Graduate College of Social Work. Brené is also a visiting professor in management at the University of Texas at Austin McCombs School of Business.

She has spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy. She is the author of six #1 New York Times best sellers and is the host of two award-winning Spotify podcasts, Unlocking Us and Dare to Lead.

https://brenebrown.com/media-kit/

I keep coming across the Dare to Lead podcast, most recently a couple of episodes about adopting a digital mindset, which I was curious about as it related to my interest in leading virtual teams. However, up to recently I hadn’t made the time to really explore the podcast itself.

What I found particularly helpful is that you can search all of her podcasts by topic, so you can focus on a particular topic like work culture, leadership or midlife, and easily access related resources and references. There is also a handy guide for everyone who is just discovering Brené Brown, so if you are new to her work, head straight there.

Related podcasts

I also explored a couple of podcasts new to me that explore this topic from different perspectives:

A conversation about Trust from Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead

This is an episode from May 2021 of the Podcast series Write your OWN story, by Rebecca Fleetwood Hession, founder of the Badass Women’s Council, which is focused on Brené Brown‘s concept of BRAVING from the book Dare to Lead. Looking at what it means to set boundaries, how to lead with reliability and integrity from a business perspective provided an interesting contrast to my usual education/academic viewpoint.

Brené Brown: What to Say to Get What You Need

Dated March 2022, this episode of We Can Do Hard Things, with hosts Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach and Amanda Doyle features Brené Brown as a guest and dives into a wide-ranging discussion about connection, fear, navigating personal and professional relationships and the book/TV series Atlas of the Heart.

All the podcasts introduced me to new ideas for things to read, listen to and watch – so I headed to the library and got ordering.