Me-time is podcast time. Although I couldn't imagine a train journey without music in my ears, I have a different need at home - especially when doing housework. If I'm not listening to an audiobook, you can bet there's a podcast blaring from the speakers while I'm cleaning the bathroom or cooking dinner.
For me, there is nothing more meditative than sitting in my kitchen with the window open, enjoying the evening sun, preparing dinner while listening to another voice and fully immersing myself in what is being said. Sometimes I crave something knowledgeable, but after a busy day at the office, I usually prefer to switch to storytelling elements. Which brings me to my top 8 podcast ranking:
For all my German-speaking readers: If you're as big of a true-crime fan as I am, you can't miss "Mord auf Ex"! It's the only podcast where I've binge-listened every single episode (worse than any Netflix series) and eagerly await the latest international case every Monday.
Linn and Leo manage to balance the fine line between cruelty and humour phenomenally - and believe me, you will laugh enough despite the atrocities. So, if you want to know more about Ted Bundy, BTK or the Zodiac Killer, you should definitely listen in. My tip: It's best to start at the beginning, then you'll always be up to date on what's going on in Linn and Leo's private lives 😊
Joe Rogan is a true luminary in podcast heaven. With a whopping 11 million listeners per episode, the former comedian topped the Spotify rankings in 2021. Personally, I find Joe Rogan to be an incredibly good host. He lets his guests have their say, asks critical questions and puts a lot of emphasis on fact checking. The guests' backgrounds are also very mixed, which I find very enjoyable.
My personal favourite episode is the one where he interviews author and professor Robert Epstein. He examines data around Google and other giants to show how we are influenced in our decisions. Oh yes, and that search engines know more about us than we do ourselves.
Canadian Harvard professor and clinical psychologist Jordan B. Peterson is known for one thing above all: His controversial views. However, I believe that the episodes can be of interest to anyone, regardless of political or cultural views. I even believe that it is essential to listen to other opinions.
The variety of topics in the episodes is huge, ranging from relationships, child rearing, religion, gender and politics to the Ukraine war, school rampages and racism, as well as personal insights into family dynamics and health hurdles. Jordan Peterson showed me that the path to health doesn't look the same for everyone and that we should also give empathy to those who reach it through different means than we would approve of.
I discovered Dr. Andrew Huberman's podcast by accident and was simultaneously excited. Andrew Huberman, Ph.D., is a neuroscientist and professor in the Department of Neurobiology at Stanford University School of Medicine. In his podcast, he discusses the science and science-based tools for everyday life.
The topics are incredibly diverse and range from interesting hands-on tips on sleep (my sleep has improved significantly since I started following his tips) and hypnosis to hormones and ageing to nutrition and gut health.
This podcast is again suitable for the German speakers among you. As the name suggests, it's all about (love) relationships. Psycho- and couples therapist Felizitas Ambauen and journalist Sabine Meyer talk every fortnight about the most burning relationship issues.
Jealousy, open relationships, narcissism or making love in long-term relationships: Countless questions are discussed in this podcast - not even necessarily with the aim of finding a universal answer. What I particularly like is that the two hosts are very open and surely a large part of the listeners can identify with the topics discussed.
And once again something for all the German experts among us 😊 Yavi Hameister is by far one of my favourite Instagrammers, bloggers and podcasters. Her topics are extremely deep and she's not afraid to be vulnerable in her episodes to give her listeners something important to take away.
One episode that particularly got to me and made tears well up in my eyes practically non-stop was the interview she did with Nadija, the woman from Ukraine who fled the country with her family. Nadija gives an extremely honest and deeply moving insight into the current events from the point of view of someone affected, which I found very difficult to hear but very important in order to be able to better understand the situation.
Lewis Howes is probably one of the best-known podcast hosts - from Paris Hilton to Tony Robbins to Jay Shetty, he has interviewed numerous personalities. The main question is always the same: How can we improve our lives? With inspiring stories from experts in their fields, Lewis Howes aims to show just that.
My favourite episode is No. 769, the interview with film producer DeVon Franklin on the topic of relationships, love and lust. Lewis Howes talks to him about discipline and why it is essential to a functioning love relationship.
For those of you who have a beginner to advanced level of Spanish and would like to deepen or refresh your knowledge: Españolistos is your podcast! Andrea is a Colombian teacher and married to Nate, an American from Texas. On Españolistos they talk about all kinds of current topics that are on their minds - in Spanish, of course. Andrea corrects any mistakes Nate makes while speaking and also explains the grammatical rules so that everyone can follow along.
The episodes are a pleasant 30 minutes long and give you the feeling that you are sitting in a Spanish conversation class. It definitely helped me improve my listening comprehension.