Did you know listening to podcasts can help improve your overall cognitive skills and your mental health? According to experts, consuming information switches on the “reward pathway,” releases dopamine throughout the brain. The reward pathway of the brain is connected to areas of the brain that control behaviour and memory. This feel-good hormone lightens up your mood and activates your mind’s reward centres.
A 2016 study by UC Berkeley found that listening to narrative stories (very much similar to podcasts) stimulated numerous areas of the brain. Read on to know why you should listen to podcasts and how you can start reaping the benefits right now!
You can listen to a podcast anywhere
Podcasts are, by and large, offered for free, which you can access anywhere and at anytime! You probably can’t watch a Netflix show while you’re driving or cycling, nor can you play a video game while grocery shopping. But you can easily listen to podcasts if you just have a listening device and some earbuds with you.
Doesn’t matter whether you’re at home, on a run, in your car, at a café, or at any other place for that matter. It is really easy to put in your headphones and listen to a brand new episode of your favourite podcast.
Here is a list of the most interesting podcasts to listen to in 2020 (Credit: https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/).
Podcasts are conversations instead of stories
Typical podcast episodes generally consist of conversations between two or more individuals, unlike audiobooks. It is mostly a two-way street and has its own unique advantages over the usual solitary narration found in books or tape. Often, a conversation feels more natural than listening to just a story being dictated by a person.
A podcast is very unpredictable and not as structured as a book. You get more opportunities for interesting tangents like building off of what the others said and so on. The flow of content is more organic hence making it more relatable, initiating various intriguing thought processes on your part.
Listen to a meditation podcast for a change
In stressful times like these, listening to meditation podcasts can help you power down your mind, as meditation has a calming effect and activates your brain. It eventually lets the brain release a chemical called oxytocin, also known as the “love hormone”, which is secreted by the pituitary gland, and is often linked to empathy, hope, and helps build meaningful relationships. Studies have shown that oxytocin can reduce stress and anxiety to a great extent. Ideally, meditation podcasts are perfect for unwinding with the relaxing sounds helping you increase focus and productivity.
They’re perfect for mundane chores
There are a number of tasks in our daily life that don’t require a lot of thinking, such as driving to the office or cleaning the house. Podcasts are an effective way to help pass the time, especially during mindless activities, by providing enlightening conversations over the airwaves even though in real life, you just might be washing the sink or setting up the table. You can also listen to it while exercising or while tidying up the room.
Learn about a niche market, an industry and lots more
Podcasts are not only just good entertainment but also impart an abundance of information and knowledge. The productivity and technology-centred podcasts enlighten you about specific fields of study and career choices. Supercharged and Back to Work, both on the 5by5 network are a successful example of this. Almost every subject you can think of has been covered by them and might interest you as well.
With a plethora of topics and content available on podcasts, the learning never ends. The more you learn, the more you’ll discover your thirst to know more. Whether you want to learn about the entertainment industry, science & technology, inspiring stories, lifestyle hacks, or any other thing, there’s always a podcast out there that will help you explore your topic of interest to your heart’s content.
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