Young And Profiting Podcast: A Blueprint For Success

 There are numerous podcast listener studies and rankings that all agree that the number of podcast listeners continues to grow at a rapid rate. The other area of agreement is that younger people -- Millennials and Gen Zers -- make up the bulk of existing and new listeners.

In effect, there's no podcasting equivalent to the audience that loves TV's NCIS and its too numerous iterations.

Therefore, it makes sense to target an audience that is comfortable listening to podcasts and enjoys its content.

That's exactly what Hala Taha, podcast host of the Young And Profiting podcast, has accomplished.

 Taha, a Palestinian-American born and raised in New Jersey, is that podcast entrepreneur who could out swim TV's Shark Tank celebrities. Hala started her career in radio production while in college at HOT97 on “The Angie Martinez Show.”

 Hala took a temporary exit from the entertainment industry to get an MBA. She has seven years of corporate marketing experience at HP and Disney Streaming Services. She started Young and Profiting Podcast and YAP Media as a side hustle, and now has several high-profile clients and over 40 employees.

 Hala's podcast strategy is to focus on her guests. She is careful to leave her personal life out of the conversations, which is a strategy honed from her life experience as a Palestinian.

“It’s a very fiery issue,” Hala explained in an interview with Podcast magazine. "I’ve interviewed people from Israel, and my family and I are very open. I just try to stay that way, so nobody can put me in any sort of box. I hope to make a difference by showing people that Palestinians exist… that we are capable… that we look just like them."

Here is the tagline from Young And Profiting: "Join Hala Taha as she interviews some of the brightest minds in the world―turning their wisdom into actionable advice you can use in your life no matter your age, profession, or industry. Our subject ranges from enhancing productivity, how to gain influence, the art of side hustles, and more! If you’re smart and like to continually improve yourself, hit the subscribe button, because you’ll love it here at Young and Profiting Podcast. Part of the YAP Media Network."

In every episode of Young And Profiting, Taha interviews a guest who offers a skill, an insight, advice, support, and guidance for young professionals. Taha insists that any advice or insights are actionable, and that demand makes her unique.

Too many of these "I can make you successful" podcasts (usually about marketing) offer advice that sounds energizing and erudite without a specific plan of action. Taha does not let her guests wade into ethereal posing but always returns to the interview to what's actionable for her listeners.

It's commendable, and her practicality illustrates how Taha doesn't want to sell her listeners something but wants to help her listeners be able to sell themselves. It's a distinction with a difference.

One of my favorite episodes is with Seth Godin on May 29th of this year. Godin, a successful author and an acknowledged marketing expert, discusses how our current work setup is more suited to the industrial age production standard than the knowledge work done today. In the ten episodes I've listened to, Taha is always well-prepared for her guests.

Although Godin can spit out marketing insights as fast as a laser printer, he can drift off into fuzzy, vaporous concepts that don't relate well to the everyday workplace. In the episode, it's Taha who grounds his concepts in the mechanics of the workplace, so they are understandable and actionable.

In an episode earlier this year with business leader and former tech exec Kim Scott, Taha teases out Scott's concept of radical candor in the workplace. Now, for everyone who has ever been in a workplace, candor is a rare quality in our business environs, unless it is accompanied by toxic tactics. Diplomacy, passive-aggressive behavior, and suppressed emotions typically define the human dynamics of a workplace.

As Scott unleashes her theories, Taha insists upon practical applications and examples. She connected with Scott because she was familiar with her background and concepts.

It's a familiar theme with Taha. She does her homework, and it shows. Taha is agreeable but never obsequious and unlike some hosts, like Joe Rogan, she doesn't leverage the guest as an avenue to espouse her own personal beliefs. For Taha, the guest and their insights deserve the spotlight.

Taha doesn't pander to her guests but works hard to make them comfortable. She connected especially well with therapist Marissa Peer when discussing negative self-talk. 

In the December 22nd episode, Taha spoke to Justin Bariso. When Bariso moved to Germany, he learned a popular phrase about German workplace culture: “no complaints is enough of a compliment.” Determined to make his office cultures more uplifting, he worked with German executives on their emotional intelligence, or EQ. In the process, he started writing about EQ for Inc.com, and his articles now draw in over a million readers each month. In this episode, Justin Bariso broke down everything you need to know about improving your EQ to achieve personal and professional success.

It's a fascinating episode because it discredits the myth that you can trounce all over employees for the sake of the business.

Hala Taha is one of those people whose career arc can make anyone feel like an underachiever. She lives her theories of life and demonstrates them in every episode.

While anyone can enjoy her podcast, I highly recommend it to young professionals who can listen to her podcast on their journey up the ladder to personal, financial, and professional success.

Finally, full disclosure that I am a Baby Boomer. Cranky, cantankerous Boomers tend to disdain the younger generations, tossing out words like entitled, lazy, and spoiled.

My take is a bit different. Like almost all generations, Baby Boomers own numerous accomplishments. Yet, I sense that Millennials and GenZers are committed to climate change, racial equality, LGBTQ+ acceptance, greater social interaction, and traditional values like hard work and financial discipline.

I think Hala Taha represents her generation with courage, commitment, and creativity. Check out her podcast, Young And Profiting.