When my co-​host Audrey Strong and I embarked on our own podcast one year ago, we wanted to create something different — a fast-​paced, no B.S. podcast that helps managers and emerging leaders up and down the org chart. Based on the show's consistently growing number of listeners, we're off to a great start!

I can confidently state there's not a bad episode among our 50 weekly shows of season 1. But our listeners had their favorites. Here are the 10 most popular episodes of our first season based on downloads, iTunes popularity and your feedback:

The most popular episode of Season 1 was…

• Episode 32: "Ditching Drama and Entitlement" with Cy Wakeman - We love Cy's reality-​based approach to leadership and just about every manager these days is looking for ways to reduce drama in their workplace. We look forward to inviting her back in Season 2 to discuss how to achieve greater accountability from your team.

And here's the rest of the top 10 by episode number..

• Episode 5: "The Most Important Qualities Managers Must Have for Success" with Brian Tracy. If you read a fair amount of business and self-​improvement books, chances are you've read at least one of his. This was the interview that told us we had a hit on our hands. I still love listening to it!
• Episode 13: "Attitude Is Everything" with Jeffrey Gitomer. It was a treat to talk about something other than sales with my mentor. I highly recommend listening to this episode for starting off the new year with your best mindset.
• Episode 16: "Tips for Young and First-​time Managers" with Jennifer Gluckow. I'm not at all surprised at the popularity of this episode. Jennifer is brassy, energetic and street smart, but she's always very warm and pleasant. Her stories of making the transition into management are a must-​listen for all new managers.
  
• Episode 19: "The Excellence Dividend" with Tom Peters. He and Gitomer have been the biggest thought leaders impacting my professional career so far, so this show has special importance to me. We were delighted that he had so much fun he wants to come back and interview Audrey about her time at Ritz-Carlton!
• Episode 20: "Tips for the Conflict Averse Manager" with Steve Sisler. Every time I talk to Steve, I always learn something new about why employees behave they way they do.
• Episode 22: "Managing in Large Organizations" with Jon Zellner. Jon was a big influence on Audrey's career as they frequently inhabited the same buildings of Ohio University's main campus. His experience from moving up the ranks at iHeart Media provided some important tips for anyone navigating corporate management.
• Episode 24: "Building Confidence" with Heather Monahan.  This self-​proclaimed Boss in Heels is an up-​and-​comer on the speaking circuit. Her insights on building and maintaining self-​confidence, told from her personal stories, is a compelling listen.
• Episode 28: "Mastering Civility in Your Workplace" with Christine Porath. Civility is one thing that's glaringly lacking in how people sometimes interact with each other these days. I found Christine's insights so helpful, I've adopted some of them into my own company.
• Episode 43: "Rethinking Goal Setting" with Wil Pemble. It has always amazed me how many managers are deficient in goal setting. Wil turned this episode around and started interviewing ME. And of course, we had to ask about his backyard rollercoaster!

Audrey and I had some favorite episodes that didn't make this list. I'm sure many of you did too. So we encourage to check out the full catalog from Season 1.

Before we head into Season 2, we would be remiss if we didn't recognize some important people who influenced us on the start of our journey.

• Thank you Jeffrey Gitomer who really pushed us into creating our own podcast — you were right!
• Thank you Doug Sandler and Strickland Bonner at Turnkey Podcast who showed us the ropes and produced our show until we were ready to fly on our own. Nice Guys don't always finish last!
• Thanks to Mitchell Ohnstad, Director of Content at C‑Suite Radio, for helping to make us the most popular podcast on their network. This is a big deal because there are some other high quality shows on the C‑Suite Radio Network.
• Thank you to Richard Strong, the voice that opens and closes our podcast, who makes the audio sound as good as it can be. And if you're wondering, yes — he is also lucky enough to be Audrey's husband.

And most importantly, thanks to all of you who subscribe, rate, review and listen to each episode. We're looking forward to providing you with more ways to be successful in management and leadership in 2019!