The Task

Luxy Hair’s 30 Day Self Care Challenge, Day 2: Listen to a Podcast

Read more about this journey in my introductory post and the previous acts of self-love.

The Start

I’ve been listening to podcasts on and off for a little over a year. It was my cousin Michael who first suggested I listen to podcasts in the car when I was complaining about my long drive home from staying with extended family for the weekend.

“You have an AUX cord. Just listen to a podcast.”

If you don’t know, a podcast is pre-recorded, internet talk radio, only much more fun. There is a podcast for every interest, and several celebrities and YouTube stars have their own podcasts, as well. Podcasts can be found on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, SoundCloud, and more. Most are free. You have no excuse not to.

The challenge and the day lined up perfectly for me, as I had a long drive ahead of me. For the three-hour round trip, I spent one half of the outing listening to music and the other half listening to a podcast. Guess which I found more enjoyable?

So, without further ado, here are…

5 Reasons Why Listening to Podcasts While Driving is the Superior Option

1. There’s a podcast out there for everyone. Seriously. When I first started driving and listening, I had no idea where to start. I eventually went with a podcast of one of my favorite YouTubers, but that’s not what everyone is into.

   Luckily, Qzzr has a quiz you can take to find out what genre of podcast is best suited for your listening and then check out Buzzfeed’s categorized 25 Podcasts You Need To Listen To In 2018 for some ideas.

2. It keeps your brain active. Have you ever noticed that when the music is playing in the car, you escape into the tune, but if the music is off, you get too lost in your own thoughts? Then, suddenly, you’re drifting lanes because you’re spending too much time figuring out how you’re going to structure a full blog post about the act of listening to a podcast.

   Even if you’re not listening to some Serious In Depth Stuff, you are listening to a discussion. New ideas are presented. There are even fiction podcasts, where you can listen to an original, unpublished story. If you zone out, you might miss an important plot point! There is engagement besides the drone of a song you’ve heard three dozen times.

3. You’re not going to belt out and boogie to your current favorite bop. Sometimes I get a little too passionate while singing and driving and my eyes might slip closed when I go to hit that power note. ‘Nuff said.
4. You could gain a new interest and learn about new things. A concept might be mentioned in a perfect-for-you podcast that peaks your interest. When you get home, you hit up Google. Learn about a task, item, or event that you never thought of before. Bam. Horizons broadened.
5. You can sound smarter. In a discussion, if someone brings up a topic you’ve heard about recently through your favorite podcast, you can jump in with something witty like, “Ah, yes, I was listening to a podcast on this topic and I think ___”

   Then you can take your glasses off and put the arm in your mouth and say “hmm.” Bam. Instant pretentiously smart person. And you didn’t even have to take a special time out of your day–you already had to go wherever it is you were going!

Question of the Day

Comment your answer down below

Q: What podcasts, if any, do you listen to? What’s your favorite genre?

A: I really like the JennaJulien podcast.