8 of the Best Career Development Podcasts

So you are seeking career advice, but so far no book, article, or professional relationship has guided you to the promised land. If you’re grinding out long workdays in tandem with a search for professional guidance, you might not have enough time to juggle both demands simultaneously. So why not plug in your headphones and allow someone to deliver sage professional wisdom directly into your ears, even as you navigate your workday?

Seeking out a podcast might be an easier way to find the answers you seek anyway — and luckily, there are more than enough career development podcasts out there to answer most of your burning questions.

Accidental Creative

Aren’t we all looking for a creative spark? The Accidental Creative, hosted by Todd Henry (author of a book of the same name) probes for the lesser known insights into how people build their on-the-job creative sparks into a fire that will light their career paths. What does it take to jolt yourself out of a creative lull? Listen and find out.

Side Hustle School

I don’t recommend having a side hustle purely for the sake of having a side hustle. There’s no reason to work beyond the normal demands of your actual job; if you have to, that’s often an unfortunate symptom of the modern economy’s undervaluing of workers. But if want to do what you love and take your side hustle from an auxiliary passion to your primary means of bacon-winning, give this podcast a try. You’ll find it offers some pretty actionable advice, given that every episode features a chat between host Chris Guillebeau and an entrepreneur who has made their side hustle their primary vocation.

Dear Harvard Business Review

Wish you were a fly on the wall at The Harvard Business Review? The closest thing you’ll get to that level of professional voyeurism is via the magazine’s podcast, Dear Harvard Business Review. You’ll wade deep into issues that effect not only the corporate sector as a whole, but the worker-bees who comprise its rank and file. Moreover, you’ll find it super actionable, as longtime HBR editors Alison Beard and Dan McGinn co-host and share their hard-won insights in every episode.

The Twenty Minute VC

Some people — certainly not everyone — dream of wooing a room full of venture capitalists to make a lucrative investment in their business. Since most startups today rely on the well-heeled investor set to finance their dreams, the podcast The Twenty Minute VC, hosted by Harry Stebbings, walks listeners through the VC trenches, discussing what characteristics you need to become one of those compelling leaders who walks away with big checks.

Pivot

To use some annoyingly overwrought corporate-speak, if you’re yearning for a career change, you need to pivot. This podcast focuses on how to do exactly that, as host Jenny Blake discusses how to gather the inner strength, focus, and determination required to turn the daunting notion of a career transition into a reality.

Career Cloud Radio

If you want straight tips and advice from the pros, queue up Career Cloud Radio. This one is for prospective job-getters, so only tune in if you’re on the hunt for a new gig. You’ll hear all the latest nitty-gritty from seasoned recruiters, career coaches, and HR experts on how to land the job you want.

Squiggly Careers

Hosts Sarah Ellis and Helen Tupper, founders of the the career development company Amazing If, walk listeners through the ins and outs of maintaining focus and meeting career goals. It sounds like generic advice, but it definitely isn’t: The hosts interview tons of entrepreneurs to get their unique takes on what tools are helpful for carving out success, and which ones you can leave behind.

The School of Greatness

Sometimes you just need a pep talk, the career version of walking into a room with John Wooden or Vince Lombardi. The School of Greatness, hosted by former pro football player Lewis Holmes, will acquaint you with what it means to have a winning mentality (if you’re up for that kind of thing). The show touts high profile guests such as “Alanis Morissette, Scooter Braun, Julianne Hough, Jack Canfield, [and] Arianna Huffington,” per its website, all of whom share their thoughts on what it means to achieve in work and beyond.