Podcasts, Feb 2024

Listened to 20 podcasts in Feb. This is one new year's resolution that is still going. I have started taking notes in a running list. I listen to podcasts during the morning walk/run, while doing some chores or during office commute. It is difficult to take notes while listening and I forget afterwards, so I started using speech to text. 

I had used an iPod, some other device in between, downloaded podcasts to my phone when mobile data was at premium, Spotify and Google Podcasts before. Now settled on the AntennaPod app on Android. It is mostly stable, has only podcasts, so no other distraction. I have subscribed to a few podcasts, check the episodes list a couple of times a week and add interesting looking ones to a queue. I pick only the ones that seem interesting and don’t worry about the huge number of unlistened ones in the feed. This keeps the queue ready to go before I step out of the house than trying to figure out what to listen, which kills off the routines otherwise. I had moved to AntennaPod only because it has a listening history and I can make lists like below without much effort, compared to Spotify or Google Podcasts. 

I am trying to learn more about Product Development, be in touch with Engineering and a bit of politics, history, psychology and personal development. Current favourites are Lenny’s Podcast (Product Management), Tim Ferris Show (personal development), Freakonomics Radio (Behavioral Economics), Seen and the Unseen (India, Politics, Behavioral Economics - too long though, beyond even my patience level), Radiolab (Science - All Time Favorite). I come back to KNowledge Project with Shane Parrish (older episodes were gems), Dwarkesh Podcast (newest rising star, just 23 years old), Invest Like the Best (not for investing, but to listen to some refreshing thoughts, good interviews), How I Write (writing tips), Design Matters with Debbie Millman (refreshing interviews with creators), Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History (whatever is available publicly, amazing stories about history) and Engineering Culture by InfoQ (Software Engineering).    

In Depth	The human side of world-class engineering leadership | Michael Lopp (Apple, Palantir, Slack)
Thoughtworks Technology Podcast	Beyond the DORA metrics: Measuring engineering excellence	Yet another framework for engineering measurements, not sure if that will help
Freakonomics Radio	The Curious Mr. Feynman	An insatiable genius, good to hear about his love story, his methods, going to first principles and building up all explanations from there, being curious, story telling
Radiolab	Stochasticity	I was smiling while listening to this. Old episode. Good stories.
Lenny's Podcast	Inside OpenAI | Logan Kilpatrick (head of developer relations)
Lenny's Podcast	Lessons from Atlassian: Launching new products, getting buy-in, and staying ahead of the competition | Megan Cook (head of product, Jira)
Freakonomics Radio	5 Psychology Terms You’re Probably Misusing
Knowledge Project	Dr. Julie Gurner (Part 2): Caring Deeply, Challenging Directly [The Knowledge Project Ep. #172]	I am trying to learn radical candor.
Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin	Robert Greene	Author of the evil book, but he is such a nice guy. Good listen.
Freakonomics Radio	The Brilliant Mr. Feynman	Continuing with Feynman, him going into rabbit holes, trying drugs, exploring boundary of everything including his mind
Freakonomics Radio	The Vanishing Mr. Feynman	Eccentricities. I was listening to a story of him spending most of the time thinking about a problem, then a solution and then coming up with a simple solution.
Tim Ferris Podcast	Master Negotiator William Ury — Proven Strategies and Amazing Stories from Warren Buffett, Nelson Mandela, Kim Jong Un, Hugo Chávez, and More (#721)	This was a classic. Negotiators had fascinating stories to tell. One of Hugo Chavez in this. I took a lot of notes from this.
NPR Throughline	Love, Throughline	How the concept of Romantic Love changed over the years, about classic romanticism, what gets depicted in movies. Modern Love series must make sense.
Brandwidth with Manu Prasad	EP 01 | Brandwidth With Manu Prasad | Fractional CMO & Gurudev Prasad | Co-founder BusyBeeBrands
Lenny's Podcast	How to discover your superpowers, own your story, and unlock personal growth | Donna Lichaw (author of The Leader’s Journey)	Good listen
Design Matters with Debbie Millman	Best of Design Matters: Aminatou Sow	Good listen. What kind of complex lives and stories people have.
How I write	I Met 20 of The World's Greatest Writers. Here's What I Learned.	Good listen, took notes.
Lenny's Podcast	Making time for what matters | Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky (authors of Sprint and Make Time, co-founders of Character Capital)
Dwarkesh Podcast	Patrick Collison (Stripe CEO) - Craft, Beauty, & The Future of Payments	Interesting to see the kind of impact beyond Stripe that its founders are having - into Science Research, Book publishing.
How I write	Amor Towles: The Secret to Telling a Great Story	What a time to be alive when one can listen to the authors we love, on how they go about their craft.