What I've Learned About Communication From My Favorite Sports Podcasts

Leadership isn't sports talk, but that doesn't mean we can't learn from what makes it good

Photo by Austin Distel on Unsplash

I grew up listening to sports radio. After school or basketball practice, I’d do my homework in my room and listen to WMVP or WSCR in Chicago. If there wasn’t a game being broadcast, there was a sports talk radio show. I’d also listen in the morning before school and, when I started driving on my own, I’d listen in the car on the way to work or school. In college, I listened to sports talk radio and today, when I’m not listening to an audiobook or making phone calls, I’m listening to a sports podcast.

For me, sports has always been a welcome respite from the other topics I’m regularly engaging in, such as theology, politics, or the news. Don’t get me wrong. I love those areas of study and enjoy my reading. But paying attention to sports is a way to rest and relax my mind and soul. Most of this listening is during the fall and spring seasons when the NFL and college football and the NBA are in full swing. In the summers, I’m mostly listening to audiobooks.

There are four sports talkers I enjoy and what I have learned from them about leadership and communication: