Three Cheers for Podcasts!

I love podcasts. As a busy mom, entrepreneur and someone who spends a great deal of their workday driving, I find it difficult to have time to sit down and search out written information that would be useful to me in my personal and professional life. I feel like podcasts have been a professional lifesaver. Podcasts are full of great information in audio form, so I can listen as I’m getting ready in the morning or while I’m on the road.

If you’re unfamiliar with podcasts, iTunes is a great place to start, and if you’re an iPhone or iPad user, there is a Podcast app built into the operating system. For Android, I really like to use an app called Stitcher.

  

  

Music Therapy Roundtable/MT Pro Podcast: Both of these podcasts are done by music therapists Michelle Erfurt, Kimberly Senna Moore, Rachel Rambach, and Matt Logan and cover a variety of different topics in the music therapy world, from advocacy to business to self care and beyond. New ones are recorded monthly with the discussion beginning in the MT Roundtable and then delving deeper for members of the MT Pro community in the MT Pro Podcast. I love this one because it provides perspectives from four music therapists all living in different parts of the country, and because it covers such a wide range of topics.

  

The Music Therapy Show: I believe this is the longest running music therapy podcast. This podcast is by Janice Lindstrom, owner of Heartbeat Music Therapy. Janice covers a wide range of music therapy topics and often has guests on her show who work in various settings, has a monthly (I think) show focused on parenting, and one on recent journal articles. For the journal articles, she is joined by Dr. Meganne Masko and they discuss the most recent research articles from Music Therapy Perspectives and the Journal of Music Therapy. I always get so much great information from this podcast, but am really enjoying the shows on the research articles the most right now because, even though I have all the journals, I rarely have time to sit down and really dig into them. This helps me keep up on the research and make mental notes on what articles apply to my current practice.

Guitars & Granola Bars: This is a relatively new podcast by Rachel Rambach. Rachel is another music therapy business owner (MTBO) who is the MT-BC behind Listen & Learn Music (another great online resource) and her private practice, Music Therapy Connections. As a new mom, I am loving this one, and I feel like the timing of it is perfect for me. In this podcast, Rachel interviews music therapists who are also moms and they share their experiences. It has been so encouraging to hear their stories and know that the struggles I have in trying to find that imaginary balance between motherhood and career are not unique to my situation. Kudos to Rachel for coming up with this great idea!

  

If you’re an entrepreneur or are interested in personal development, I suggest checking out the next three podcasts.  I think that to be a successful entrepreneur it’s important to be constantly looking for ways to better what it is you do. All three of these podcasts focus on effective leadership skills, platform development, personal growth, and general business topics, often including interviews with some of the big names in the business and leadership world.

  

Do you have a favorite podcast?

Share your thoughts in the comments below.