At RedZed, we’re big fans of podcasts that are all about the lessons self-starters and those who own small businesses can teach each other. And one of our favourites is the How I Built This with Guy Raz.

We’re also big fans of the resilience small business owners and self-starters show every day – and we also know just how important that trait has been in the face of a turbulent 2020.

Guy Raz is a journalist, correspondent and radio host for NPR – and his podcasts, including How I Built This, are listened to by more than 14 million people a month. He’s been producing a special series of episodes of How I Built This since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, too, titled How I Built Resilience.

In the series, Guy talks – online, through phone or video chat, of course – with self-starters and entrepreneurs to learn how they’re navigating turbulent times, and how they’re making sure that resilience remains part of their game plan.

And just as Guy Raz has shifted his interviews online, many of his guests during the series have had to shift their business models – including Sadie Lincoln, the founder of exercise empire Barr3, and Julia Hartz, the founder of Eventbrite, one of the biggest sellers of live event tickets in the world.

There are interviews with businesspeople from a diverse range of industries included in the series – including author Simon Senek – who offers some important lessons not just about the importance of resilience, but how it can be cultivated.

To check out the How I Built Resilience series, and the entire How I Built This back catalogue – which features over 150 excellent episodes – click here to listen via the NPR website, or here to listen via Apple Podcasts.

One from the archives that is definitely well worth a listen is Guy’s 2019 interview with Australian entrepreneur Melanie Perkins.

When she was a university student, Melanie had a simple idea that she felt could help make graphic design tools and skills more accessible to everyone across the world. Today, her business Canva is valued at over US$6 billion.

The above information is a brief summary only and does not take into account your personal needs and is not a substitute for independent professional advice. We strongly recommend that you speak to your accountant as they will be able to provide you the most suitable advice for your individual circumstance and to ensure that you are also always receiving the most up to date information.