The Best Inspirational Podcasts Showcasing Humanity’s Hope, Heart, and Courage

What truly makes us happy? What goes into living a good life? These are the big questions the Good Life Project seeks to answer. Host Jonathan Fields has probing conversations with some of the world's leading thinkers and creatives in science, health, art, literature, and culture, from Brené Brown and Glennon Doyle to Matthew McConaughey and Abby Wambach. They talk about all the complicated factors that influence building a good life, including work, love, friendship, race, privilege, gender, purpose, and more.

Dr. Laurie Santos has been studying what makes people happy for most of her career. On The Happiness Lab, which grew out of the popular psychology class she teaches at Yale, she delves into the science of happiness, including the latest research in the field. Even if you think you know what goes into living a happier life, the stories and insights she shares on this podcast will almost certainly surprise you (for one, being a fan of a TV show or a band is a spirit-booster) and definitely make you think about happiness in a whole new way.

Listeners looking for inspirational podcasts that blend thought-provoking discussion with practical advice will want to check out this upbeat, energetic show. Bestselling author Gretchen Rubin (The Happiness Project) has one goal: to help others live their happiest, most fulfilling life. In each episode, she offers lots of actionable advice about healthy habit-building and life design. She's joined by her younger sister and co-host Elizabeth Craft, and together, they journey through everything, big and small, that brings more joy into their lives.

Dr. Joy Harden Bradford is a psychologist based in Atlanta, and she brings her years of experience, as well as her kindness, humor, and compassion, to this podcast about mental health and personal growth. In each episode, she explores a theme in depth, centering the specific experiences and needs of Black women in all areas of life, from dating and family life to home buying, career-building and burn out, meditation, and the media. You can expect nuanced, informative, and inspiring conversations about everything from sexuality to communication skills to sources of joy.

When looking for a dose of inspiration, turning to one of the greats never hurts. Oprah Winfrey has been having vulnerable, honest, and inspiring conversations with people from all walks of life for decades. In her Super Soul podcast, she collects some of the best of those conversations, highlighting moving interviews with spiritual leaders, cultural critics, writers, artists, entrepreneurs, trauma survivors, and trailblazers. Together, Winfrey and her guests dig into life's biggest questions. No matter what situation you're in, each episode will leave you feeling a little less alone.

This is a great podcast to tune into if you're feeling overwhelmed by your to-do list. Sure, it's easy to resolve to be more productive, but it's certainly not easy to follow through. Host Erik Fisher knows how hard it can be to change habits around productivity. Each week, he chats with productivity experts in a range of fields to discuss their strategies for getting things done—and making space for the things that truly matter. You'll gain lots of useful action items from Beyond the To-Do List, but Fisher and his guests never stray far from the bigger picture: using productivity as a tool to build a more meaningful life.

There's no better way to figure out how to do something big than listening to the stories of the movements, communities, and businesses other people have built. In How I Built This, host Guy Raz interviews the founders of some of the world's most successful companies. They discuss their original inspirations, the challenges they faced, how their companies have grown and changed over the years, and so much more. Past guests on this NPR podcast include documentary master Ken Burns, Discord founder Jason Citron, and Kathleen King, owner of Tate's Bakeshop.

Money drives all of our lives, whether we like it or not, and yet it's often treated as something taboo and not to be talked about—especially if you're not a rich white man. With this podcast, money expert Tori Dunlap aims to change that and open up the conversation. In each episode, which alternate guest interviews with lessons from her own experiences, she digs into a specific money-related topic, from buying a home to managing finances with a partner and kids, and makes it easy to understand what's going on. Plus, Financial Feminist offers lots of tips, tricks, and ideas for increasing your income, saving and managing funds, and building financial independence.

This is another fantastic money podcast, aimed at the particular financial challenges LGBTQIA+ people face. Hosts David and John Auten-Schneider, aka the Debt Free Guys, cover lots of practical subjects, from navigating different incomes in relationships to crafting a budget. But Queer Money also devotes time to issues such as how changes in social security affect queer couples, the importance of supporting LGBTQIA-owned businesses, the intersections of activism and finance, and how to find affordable, queer-friendly retirement communities.

Looking for an inspiring wellness podcast that covers just about everything? You can't go wrong with iHeart Radio's The One You Feed. Weekly episodes feature open-minded conversations about religion and spirituality, philosophy and psychology, happiness and habits, mental and physical health, wisdom, success, and motivation. Guests include breathwork and meditation experts, life coaches, disability advocates, energy healers, and inspiring bestselling authors like Shauna Niequist and Steve Magness.

The wellness space is chock-full of people telling you what to do—what to eat, what not to eat, how to exercise, who to listen to, and who to ignore. As a result, it can be hard to figure out what's actually true, and even harder to figure out what wellness actually means for you. On Maintenance Phase, co-hosts Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes debunk some of the most pervasive myths around wellness, health, and nutrition. Their in-depth conversations about dieting, health fads, the body mass index, and more reveal the complex realities behind the seemingly simple stories we’ve been told time and again.

So many people have complicated and often harmful relationships with food, and it can be hard to find thoughtful, nonjudgmental advice about food-related health and habits. On Food Psych, host Christy Harrison, a certified intuitive eating counselor and registered dietitian nutritionist, offers compassionate, practical, body-positive strategies for building healthy, healing food habits. She answers listener questions and talks with guests about recovering from disordered eating, weight and body shame, the harm of diet culture, practicing intuitive eating, and more.

If you're experiencing a creative block, defocusing and decompressing is key. Maejor Frequency is a highly effective way to immerse yourself in music, science, and song while exploring specific frequencies that can help listeners connect to a higher sense of well-being. Over the course of 10 mellifluous episodes, music producer and performer Brandon Green, aka Maejor, guides listeners on his journey around the world as he speaks with experts in sound—a gong master, a psychedelic advocate, musicians, and more—to bring sound healing mainstream. Listen with headphones on to get the full effect.

If you're looking for a way to stoke your creativity and inspire your next work, then illustrator Andy J. Pizza is exactly the accountability buddy you need. His podcast Creative Pep Talk serves as a weekly check-in for artists, with engaging storytelling, self-esteem boosts, and tips and tricks for rekindling your creative spark and getting back into the groove of making work you love. Every few weeks, Pizza welcomes various creatives—poet Morgan Harper Nichols and comedian Abbi Jacobson among them—to join him and share their own processes and advice for thinking outside the box.

For creative professionals seeking inspiration and reassurance, The Accidental Creative is another must-listen, go-to podcast. Host Todd Henry, author of The Accidental Creative and The Motivation Code, discusses how to stay focused and productive under pressure and amid everyday challenges. His conversations with artists, entrepreneurs, and writers provide insight into how creative people balance the demands of life and work, all while coming up with—and executing—brilliant ideas.

In his interviews with leaders in an array of creative fields, poet and creative coach Mark McGuinness shares insights into every aspect of creative work, including how to market your ideas and make a living. Guests include authors, musicians, crafters, graphic designers, marketing experts, screenwriters, consultants, and actors. Every episode of The 21st Century Creative ends with a Creative Challenge for listeners. Set by the guest based on that week's theme, these challenges offer concrete, actionable ways to apply lessons from the podcast in your daily life.

How do we go about changing our lives? What challenges hold us back from connecting deeply with our inner selves and the world around us? There's no one more qualified to ponder these questions than spiritual leader and bestselling author Deepak Chopra. In this thought-provoking Audible Original podcast, he speaks with a range of extraordinary guests, including journalist Soledad O'Brien and Oprah Winfrey, about the role of transcendence and transformation in their lives. Accompanying each of Mind Body Zone's 12 episodes is a short guided meditation, designed and led by Chopra, that reflects on the ideas explored during the conversation.

Eckhart Tolle is one of the most well-respected contemporary spiritual thinkers. This podcast, presented by Oprah Winfrey, collects his most essential teachings on mindfulness, inner growth, and enlightenment. Each episode focuses on a different aspect of personal transformation, addressing the challenges and possibilities that arise on the journey toward a more fully realized self. Anyone seeking a bit of quiet reflection to counteract the noise the world throws at them every day will benefit from Tolle’s calming, grounded wisdom.

If you're someone who likes to dig deep into the biggest of life's big questions, from whether to believe in miracles to what happens after death, On Being is a must-listen. Host Krista Tippett and her wide-ranging guests have conversations that go far beyond the surface, delving into some of the most interesting and important topics that affect our lives. These thoughtful and surprising interviews have been inspiring and challenging listeners for nearly 20 years. It's one of those magical listens that you'll still be thinking about long after the weekly episode ends.

Author Glennon Doyle published her bestselling book Untamed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. In the midst of such a global crisis, one particular line resonated with millions of people: “We can do hard things.” In this podcast, Doyle explores that idea in greater depth. Along with her sister Amanda, she talks with guests about the hardest things they've ever done—and what got them through. Whether she's talking about sex, divorce, childhood trauma, depression, menopause, or the importance of humor in challenging moments, Doyle brings her unflinching honesty and compassion to every conversation.

Bestselling author Cheryl Strayed's beloved "Dear Sugar" column ran in the online literary mag The Rumpus for years. Her remarkable blend of compassionate, honest responses to letter writers and moving personal stories from her own life endeared her to millions and proved that advice writing can be a beautiful form of literary expression. In this new podcast, which she co-hosts with Steve Almond, Strayed is back with the same mix of wisdom, humor, heart, and unforgettable stories.

Anyone going through a rough patch in a relationship will find comfort in the stories shared on Committed. Host Jo Piazza sits down with couples who have weathered the hardest circumstances and stayed together, coming out stronger on the other side. One couple talks about the impact of a life-changing accident on their third date. Another discusses the ups and downs of foster parenting. And these are just two of the inspiring stories you'll hear about what it takes to make relationships last even when the going gets tough.

Learning about what inspires others is a surefire way to reignite your own inspiration. That's exactly what author Alex Elle hopes to do with The Hey Girl Podcast, which she created with storytelling and sisterhood in mind. In each episode, she has a heartfelt, uplifting conversation with someone amazing who inspires her. Guests include her own friends and family members, as well as authors, activists, artists, musicians, and business owners.

In this wellness-focused podcast, host Emily Abbate interviews athletes, entrepreneurs, creative professionals, and scientists about their biggest accomplishments and their biggest hurdles. It's a great mix of inspiring stories about people doing incredible things and real talk about just how hard it is to do those things—whether it's running a marathon, starting a new job, or learning to pay attention to your body when it comes to food and exercise. New episodes air on Mondays and Wednesdays, and each Friday, Abbate puts out a shorter 10-minute episode featuring a bit of inspiration from what's been happening in her own life.

In one of the year’s most anticipated new podcasts, Michelle Obama brings listeners deeper into the world of her bestselling memoir, The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times. Where the audiobook initiated a dialogue with listeners on some of life’s biggest challenges—from building lasting relationships and meaningful success to overcoming obstacles and navigating identity—the podcast will explore these themes and more with an esteemed selection of friends and luminaries. In intimate recordings from her star-studded book tour, the former First Lady draws on her trademark humor, warmth, and compassion to elicit moments of startling insight and vulnerability from guests including Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, Tyler Perry, and Conan O’Brien. The result is a series of searching conversations that will leave you feeling smarter, inspired, and, yes, lighter.