Best Positive Podcasts: 15 Examples [2022]

Podcasts are an increasingly popular resource for personal development.

As of 2021, nearly half of all Americans tuned in to podcasts over a month, and many people are turning to podcasts to promote self-improvement.

Although podcast popularity is rising, many people need help finding suitable podcasts.

This guide features many of the best positive podcasts available, so you can find the one that works for you.

What is a Positive Podcast?

Positive podcasts offer positive information, self-development tools, and inspirational quotes to help listeners develop optimism in their lives.

The most popular podcasts offer insight, information, actionable tips, and exercises to improve well-being and mindset.

Some positive podcasts are comedic, while others are more spiritual.

The podcast you choose will depend entirely on your interests and goals.

What Does a Positive Podcaster Talk About?

Positive podcasters typically focus on lighthearted topics related to optimism, growth, self-improvement, and compassion for others.

Positive podcasters may also discuss avoiding disappointment, anger management, positive affirmations, meditation and mindfulness techniques, practicing kindness in relationships, and more.

Ultimately, each topic typically focuses on helping you live a better life.

What is Included in a Positive Podcast?

There are many things you might find on a positive podcast.

First, most positive podcasters share personal stories or conduct interviews, allowing you to gain insight from others’ experiences.

Additionally, many positive podcasters implement actionable techniques and behavioral strategies to help listeners help themselves.

Other Things You Can Find on a Positive Podcast

There are many valuable features of positive podcasts. Among the many things you may hear are the following:

• Positive Stories and Anecdotes: Hearing inspirational stories can help you practice optimism and restore your faith in humanity.
• Humor and Entertainment: Positive podcasts are often funny or entertaining. You may hear jokes, skits, or illustrative examples.
• Self-Help Lessons and Exercises: Self-help can be expensive, but positive podcasts are often low-cost or free. You may learn meditation techniques and affirmations or practice reframing negative beliefs.
• Optimism Techniques and Tips: Optimism is a state of mind, and many positive podcasts will teach you to cultivate that state of mind in your daily life.
• Additional Resources and Guidance: Many podcasts are an excellent starting point for identifying other helpful resources to allow you to develop optimism in your own life—and those of others.

Types of Positive Podcasts

There are many different sub-genres within the realm of positive podcasts.

While some podcasters cater to a broad audience, others are more specific and target particular populations.

• Positive Podcasts for Teens and Young Adults: Teens and young adults are particularly susceptible to negativity and depression so positive podcasts can make a real difference in a young person’s life.
• Positive Podcasts for Anxiety and Depression: Mental illness is endemic in our society, and positive podcasts offer a free and accessible way to develop healthy coping mechanisms.
• Positive Podcasts for Moms: Motherhood poses many challenges. Consider listening to a positive podcast for mothers to develop optimism and ease self-judgment.

Best Positive Podcasts: 15 Examples

The best positive podcasts offer a blend of stories, techniques, insider information, and healing modalities to help you develop positivity and exercise optimism.

The podcasts below represent what the optimistic podcasting industry has to offer.

How Many Positive Podcasts Are There?

There are hundreds—if not thousands—of positive podcasts available, but not all podcasts are equally helpful.

The steps to finding a podcast are simple: try as many as you can across different platforms and exercise your judgment—finding the right podcast takes time.

If you are wondering how to listen to a podcast, consider exploring platforms like Spotify, Apple Podcasts, SoundCloud, or YouTube for easy listening. You can also try listening on Android or iPhone.

Sometimes, podcasts are free, but if you need to pay for a subscription to Spotify or Apple Podcasts, it likely won’t cost more than $10 a month.

Positive Podcasts for Teens and Young Adults

Adolescence is a trying time for many.

We all remember what it was like to be young and impressionable, aching for acceptance.

Things are even harder for teens nowadays, as social media and globalization pose new and unprecedented problems.

The following podcasts will guide your teen through adolescence—with joy and a fresh outlook on life.

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos

Yale professor Dr. Laurie Santos noticed a trend among her students: they all appeared to struggle with anxiety, depression, and other related mental illnesses.

She launched her podcast, The Happiness Lab, to provide a space where students can learn to develop optimism—as they learn to do everything else.

On her show, Santos hosts leading experts in positive psychology to provide crucial insights and resources to young people everywhere living with self-doubt and pessimism—and each episode is more enlightening than the last.

Life Kit

Life Kit is a podcast that offers tips and hacks for all areas of life: from relationships to setting healthy boundaries.

Think of it as a discussion with a gentle, kind parent, in which you and your teen will learn how to develop the coping skills and behavioral routines you need to thrive—in adolescence and beyond.

Teens learn essential lessons about maturity, self-respect, hard work, and dedication on this heartwarming podcast, empowering them to make better decisions.

Black Girl in Om

Lauren Ash wished for a podcast like this one when she was young, so she has dedicated her career to providing a safe space for young women of color to explore their identities and relationships with the world.

Black Girl in Om is a healing journey for Black girls and women.

It is an invaluable resource for young people of color seeking to find their way despite the many challenges of injustice and discrimination.

Ash discusses topics such as Black identity and girlhood, healing with other women, building communities, and more.

Let’s Be Real with Sammy Jaye

Sammy Jaye is a Gen-Z influencer with a lot of heart. She interviews celebrities, influencers, and change-makers on ambition, success, mental health, and political activism on her podcast.

Jaye’s podcast is a safe space for teens seeking to feel understood—and inspired.

Her conversations are candid and direct and address many of the issues adolescents struggle to discuss with parents and friends.

Because Jaye interviews the rich and famous, this podcast is ideal for those with celebrity idols and heroes.

The Socially Awkward Podcast

This podcast, hosted by the Weber brothers, focuses on heartfelt stories and issues of interest to teens and young people.

The podcast is uncut and unedited, and the brothers’ conversations offer an honest take on topics like sports, tattoos, finding one’s identity, and navigating the complex world of online—and offline—interactions.

This podcast is ideal for young men and offers a candid, safe environment for your adolescent to reflect on the dynamics of being a young adult in an increasingly complicated social sphere.

The Socially Awkward Podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more.

Positive Podcasts for Anxiety and Depression

Positive podcasts can dramatically help you improve your outlook on life.

Positive podcasts can offer crucial support and guidance for people with anxiety and depression—often without the medical and therapeutic resources to adequately treat their illnesses.

Happier with Gretchen Rubin

Gretchen Rubin is an award-winning writer and happiness expert.

Her podcast, Happier, covers topics like dealing with grief, the value of friendliness and civic gestures, and mining happy memories to cope with difficult situations.

Rubin is knowledgeable and well-informed, and each episode reflects her years of painstaking research to understand happiness and how to cultivate it.

Rubin’s podcast is a must-listen for those living with anxiety and depression.

Though it is no substitute for adequate care, this podcast can help you reframe a negative mindset and develop the coping skills you need to thrive—no matter what you are dealing with.

Unlocking Us with Brené Brown

Brené Brown is widely known for her research on guilt and shame—and how it affects women in particular.

This podcast represents what Brown offers: crucial research findings, enlightening insights, practical guidance, and more.

Brown interviews celebrities on topics such as depression, shame, and mental illness to help guide her readers through similar struggles—and safely out the other side.

This podcast is invaluable to your library, particularly if you wrestle with depression-related shame and guilt.

Not Another Anxiety Show

Kelli Walker is an anxiety coach—and her podcast aims to bring the best of her coaching methods to a broader audience.

Kelli’s podcast is for anyone struggling with anxiety—no experience in meditation or therapy necessary.

In her podcast, Kelli imparts practical knowledge, self-empowerment tips, and behavioral techniques to enable you to endure and overcome anxiety.

Kelli also welcomes questions on her website and addresses them on her podcast—a plus if you struggle with a unique issue.

Feeling Good

Feeling Good is a podcast specifically for people living with mental illness.

David discusses heavy topics with characteristic lightheartedness on his show, including depression, social anxiety, perfectionism, and more.

David aims to teach his listeners targeted coping skills to address the many symptoms of their mental illnesses.

He implements CBT methods, affirmations, visualization techniques, and more throughout his show.

This podcast is ideal for those seeking alternatives to traditional modalities—and those who wish to supplement therapy and medicine with holistic methods.

Ten Percent Happier with Dan Harris

Dan Harris’ story is an inspiring one.

Formerly a newscaster, Harris had a panic attack on the air and chose to pivot his focus.

Now, he teaches his listeners to cultivate the small behaviors and habits that add to significant changes.

Ten Percent Happier operates from the premise that if you aren’t implementing small changes in your physical and mental health, you are unlikely to feel better on a larger scale.

Thankfully, Harris will teach you to do that on this actionable, resource-packed podcast.

Check out Harris’ book by the same name for the full story—and even more helpful tips and hacks.

Positive Podcasts for Moms

Motherhood is undoubtedly one of the most challenging—and rewarding—experiences a person can have.

Many mothers are overwhelmed with tasks and responsibilities, and our social expectations of women can quickly lead to depression and self-judgment.

Consider listening to one of the following positive podcasts for moms to improve their relationship with themselves—and their child.

Motherhood Sessions

Dr. Alexandra Sacks is a reproductive psychiatrist who works with many women suffering from postpartum depression and other mental illnesses.

On her podcast, Sacks delves beyond the superficial topics of diapers and sleep schedules and explores the profound implications of motherhood.

She interviews struggling mothers, offering guidance and support, and the healing effect is audible.

Sacks’ podcast is a lesson in grace and self-compassion, and listening to just one episode will revolutionize your approach to motherhood as an identity.

The Self-Love Fix Podcast

Beatrice Kamau is an embodiment coach, teacher, and mentor who heads the Self Love Over Codependency Program.

This organization aims to help women nurture positive self-regard and detach from toxic relationships.

On her podcast, Kamau addresses making friends in adulthood, finding time for yourself, and setting appropriate boundaries—as a woman and mother.

For women who often develop codependent attachments to their children, this podcast changes the name of the game.

Nurture a healthy relationship with your child—and with yourself.

The Minimalists

Minimalism is in—from TikTok to Instagram, social media is replete with examples of families living—and thriving—on simple, humble means.

As a mother, your life is likely crowded with objects, tasks, responsibilities, and worries—but this podcast will empower you to shed the clutter and focus on what matters most: family.

Join anti-consumerists Joshua Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus as they teach you exactly how to pare your life down to the essentials, leaving you with more room to enjoy the present.

Optimal Living Daily

Most moms don’t have time to read self-help books or blogs—and even less time to attend wellness groups or therapy.

Justin Malik’s podcast, Optimal Living Daily, aims to bring the best excerpts and articles from the fields of positive psychology so you don’t have to expend precious time better spent with your family.

You’ll hear from top industry experts like Tony Robbins, Oprah, and Brené Brown on this quality show, amassing all the information you need to live optimally—without wasting your time looking for it.

The Mom Hour

The Mom Hour is a podcast brought to you by moms Meagan and Sarah, who have eight kids.

This podcast focuses on the positive aspects of motherhood—and how you can cultivate more of them in your journey as a parent.

Although Meagan and Sarah spare nothing in their candid discussions of motherhood, they always aim to bring listeners back to a place of gratitude and mindfulness, empowering them to enjoy the wonderful experience of being a mother.

This podcast is excellent for busy mothers and those seeking to re-introduce a little peace and serenity into their busy schedules.

Similar Podcast Types to Check Out

If you enjoyed this article, consider checking out our other guides to the best podcast types.

The following cover everything you need to know to leverage podcasts as a mental health resource, from motivational shows to uplifting podcasts.

• Motivational Podcasts: Motivational podcasts typically provide motivational anecdotes, stories, and guidance. Consider checking out our list of the best motivational podcasts to find one that fits your needs.
• Self-Help Podcasts: Self-help podcasts provide actionable knowledge and insight that can empower you to help yourself through life’s most challenging moments. Use this list to find the right self-help podcast for you.
• Uplifting Podcasts: Uplifting podcasts are an excellent source of optimism for many listeners. Consider checking out our list of the best uplifting podcast to find yours today.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you are still determining which podcast to choose, consider checking out the answers to our most frequently asked questions.

Wrapping Up

The best positive podcast fits your needs and brings you the joy and optimism you crave.

Consider choosing from one of the podcasts on this list to find a supportive resource that fits your needs and introduces positivity into your life.

Even a podcast like Dan Harris’ Ten Percent Happier can make significant changes.