Whether you’re transitioning in your career, unlearning mindsets that are holding you back or hoping to take control of your physical and mental health, the journey to becoming the best version of yourself can be both exciting and challenging. The road toward personal development is long and winding, and it typically includes an uncomfortable amount of bumps and potholes. But before you ditch your daydream or spend all your coins on a class or coach you can’t afford (yet!), consider subscribing to empowering podcasts that feature the expert advice, professional blueprints and inspiring stories you need to help you along your trek.
There are hundreds of thousands of podcasts covering a range of topics—from careers and finance to wellness and relationships—that are available for free in English, Spanish, Portuguese and a myriad other languages. The audio format means you can receive the good vibes or valuable insight while enjoying a day at the beach, working out at the gym, commuting to and from your job or completing mindless tasks like laundry or dishes. Depending on the show, you can get hundreds of dollars worth of instruction or motivation in your pocket, wherever you go.
So, if you’re looking for resources from trained professionals or are just in need of some creative inspiration, it’s time to add podcasts to your toolbox. Here is a short but mighty list of empowering shows by Latines that are geared toward self-help and personal growth:
Feminist Wellness
Hosted by nurse practitioner, life coach and breath-work healer Victoria Albino, Feminist Wellness is a podcast that merges functional medicine with intersectional feminism to help listeners take control of their health and wellness. Pairing practical and ancestral medicine with psychology and life coaching advice, Albina, who is of Argentine descent, teaches listeners who might feel frustrated, scared or anxious about their health to listen to their body, trust their intuition and nurture themselves wholly. Previous episodes have focused on topics like conquering anxiety, intuitive eating, setting boundaries, sleep, somatics and self-talk, to name a few.
Latinx Therapy
One of the most challenging yet important life journeys is that of our mental health. Through Latinx Therapy, Mexican-Guatemalan host and trauma therapist Adriana Alejandre, LMFT, discusses mental health topics like sexual violence, eating disorders and substance abuse, as it relates to Latine individuals. Through bilingual and culturally-competent discussions with Latine mental health professionals, psychiatrists, doctors, bloggers, TV personalities, social media influencers and entrepreneurs, Latinx Therapy both provides real-life accounts that powerfully help to break stigmas and also offers resources that can affirm, change and save lives.
Latina to Latina
Latina to Latina is an interview series hosted by Cuban-American journalist Alicia Menendez, highlighting the stories of Latinas who have made it in their careers. Combining humor and inspiration, the show touches on the challenges guests encounter in their professional and personal lives, how they break down systemic and mental barriers and what they’re doing to thrive in their careers. Regardless of whether Menendez is speaking with celebrities, entrepreneurs, artists, doctors, athletes or activists, each episode is like a feel-good conversation between friends who happen to have a lot of wisdom to share.
Desde El Avión
Whether you’re building a business with a partner or are working through the ups and downs that come with any relationship, you might enjoy and learn from Desde El Avión. In this Spanish-language podcast, Venezuelan power couple Michelle Poler, an author, speaker and professional fear facer, and Adam Stramwasser, a financial coach and life hacker, take listeners into their lives as they do life together as lovers, entrepreneurs and, most recently, parents. Considering each co-host is an in-demand speaker in their respective fields, you’ll gain a lot of life tips and inspiration that can help you grow both individually and as a couple.
Heroine
Majo Molfino’s Heroine podcast is like listening to the entire self-development section of your local bookstore over tea with your bestie on a warm, comfy sofa. Whether the Argentine host, author and leadership coach is speaking with an award-winning artist, best-selling author, CEO or exec, she fosters intimate conversations where guests get vulnerable about the mental and emotional obstacles they had to overcome in order to design purposeful lives. Through guests’ personal stories, they provide illuminating advice to listeners on all things from breaking free from self-sabotage to unlearning good girl myths and cultivating creative confidence.