Life is Too Short for Work to Suck: Podcasts for Workplace Survival
By: Aileen Merciel, co-host and executive producer of the Surfing Corporate podcast
It’s no secret that Corporate America can be a highly competitive, stressful, and cutthroat environment. Employees are expected to exceed expectations, work long hours, and deal with toxic environments. Because of this, they’re often stressed, anxious, burned out — and they’re seeking solutions to help them cope and/or rethink their relationship with work.
As a former corporate executive who lived this experience firsthand, I created Surfing Corporate, a brand and podcast that’s all about navigating turbulent corporate waters and learning to thrive in the “new normal” of Corporate America. The podcast, which I co-host with Glenda Pacanins, a veteran corporate surfer and my former corporate world colleague, is about making work more enjoyable and manageable through real-life work stories, research on the latest work trends, and advice from our insightful guests who have “been there, done that,” all tied in with our slightly evil sense of humor (critical for corporate survival).
Unless you are the heir of a vast fortune, work isn’t going away. Yes, it can be crazy, depressing, exhausting, and soul-crushing, but it can also be incredibly satisfying and meaningful if you play your cards correctly. Having the right tools at hand can make a huge difference. We see you. We hear you. And hopefully, you'll hear us too (new episodes drop Wednesdays).
But because not we’re as self-centered as some famous CEOs, in addition to shamelessly plugging Surfing Corporate, we also want to share other work-related podcasts that inspire us.
Podcasts For Workplace Survival
Click on the images to listen
Work Life
“The 4 Deadly Sins of Work Culture”
Our favorite nerdy professor and organizational psychologist, Adam Grant, talks about how to spot a toxic job or one of those cult-like work environments where people do weird work chants you only learn about later. It’s not always easy, but this episode gives a few pointers that may save you from being on a future controversial Netflix documentary.
A Bit of Optimism
“Gen Z in the Workplace with Jonah and David Stillman”
Understanding the “Slay queen!” generation that is now joining the workforce is crucial. This episode features a father and son research team (a Gen Xer and a Gen Zer), and with host Simon Sinek, they discuss conceptions and misconceptions about this generation that sees the world so differently than its preceding generations.
Hidden Brain
“How to Complain Productively”
We all complain. It’s cathartic and human but some people take it too far (like that one coworker that makes you want to scream into a pillow). Psychologists Robin Kowaski and Mike Bear offer ways we can give better feedback to colleagues or friends that come to us with complaints and bring out the best in them.
Dare to Lead
“Atomic Habits”
In this episode, the legendary Brené Brown talks with author James Clear about his best-selling book, Atomic Habits. They discuss developing identity-based habits and how to become the architects — not the victims — of those habits.
We Can Do Hard Things
“The Episode That Wasn’t”
This is a very atypical episode for this podcast because it’s about why the episode they were about to record didn’t happen. A little context, their scheduled guest was rude to the show’s producer, and the hosts talk openly about how they handled the whole incident. It’s an episode about leadership, values, and standing up for your team.
Smart People Podcast
“Bryan Adams - How Companies Find the Perfect Fit and How You Should Too”
Bryan Adams is the CEO and founder of Ph.Creative, one of the leading employer brand agencies in the world. Bryan works with top-tier companies (Apple, Microsoft, Ford, LinkedIn, Visa, Glassdoor, among others) to differentiate and strengthen their employer brand reputations so they attract the right type of candidates and make hiring processes more efficient. Fascinating conversation.
How to Be Awesome at Your Job
“How to Keep Calm and Defuse Tensions in Conflict with Hesha Abrams”
Hesha Abrams is an internationally acclaimed master attorney mediator, with a unique talent to manage big egos and strong personalities and a keen ability to create synergy amongst the most diverse personality types. Work can be a battlefield, so these insights will be quite useful the next time you have to deal with mean Greg from accounting.
People Problems Podcast
“It Could Be Worse (Toxic Positivity)”
Human Resources leaders Tyson MacKenzie and Alexa Baggio hold nothing back (per usual) while they explore the insidious effects of toxic positivity at work. Sometimes stuff just sucks. (But not this episode, so give it a go!)
Finding ways to make work a better experience isn’t a luxury, it’s critical. For better or for worse, we spend many more hours with coworkers and bosses than our families, so we might as well take an active role in making the most of it. Surfing Corporate episodes drop Wednesdays.
