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Who is Jackie?
Jackie Pelegrin is an instructional designer, author, college professor, and podcast host with nearly two decades of experience in higher education and instructional design. She hosts “Designing with Love,” a weekly podcast that shares practical strategies, tools, and stories to help educators and professionals create engaging and effective learning experiences. Jackie is the author of the forthcoming book, “Designing with Love: The Essential Instructional Design Handbook,” inspired by one of her most popular podcast episodes. Her insights help audiences simplify the learning design process, spark creativity, and make education more accessible and impactful. This is especially valuable for educators, business professionals, and lifelong learners.
One of the things I love most about podcasting is how often it overlaps with other disciplines in ways we don’t always name. Teaching. Coaching. Storytelling. Even design.
That’s exactly what came up in my recent conversation with Jackie Pelegrin, instructional designer, college professor, author, and host of the Designing With Love podcast. On the surface, we were talking about instructional design and podcasting. But underneath it all, we were really talking about something deeper:
How do we design creative work with intention, humanity, and care—without burning ourselves out or losing our voice?
If you’ve ever felt stretched thin as a podcaster, unsure how to stay consistent without hustling, or curious about how tools like AI fit into a values-driven creative process, this conversation is for you.
From “Accidental” Instructional Designer to Intentional Creator
Jackie describes herself as what’s often called an accidental instructional designer. Her background started in business and marketing—she earned both her bachelor’s degree and MBA from the University of Phoenix—and originally thought she’d go into market research.
But life had other plans.
While working in higher education, she stumbled across a master’s program in instructional design. As she read through the course descriptions, something clicked. Instructional design combined everything she was already interested in: psychology, decision-making, learning, and human behavior.
That curiosity turned into a second master’s degree, followed by roles in both corporate learning and higher education curriculum development. Over time, Jackie realized that instructional design wasn’t just about creating courses—it was about taking an idea and intentionally shaping it into an experience that helps people learn and grow.
And if that sounds familiar to podcasters… it should.
Podcasting Is Instructional Design (Even If You Don’t Call It That)
One of my favorite parts of this conversation was naming something many podcasters feel intuitively but don’t always articulate:
Podcasting is a form of instructional design.
When you think about it, podcasters do many of the same things instructional designers do:
- We start with an idea or message
- We think about the audience and what they need
- We structure content for clarity and flow
- We decide what’s essential and what can be left out
- We design experiences that work for real people with real lives
Jackie’s podcast, Designing With Love, actually grew out of her desire to create better learning experiences for her online students. She teaches asynchronous courses, which means students don’t get the same real-time interaction or guest speakers that in-person students do.
Her solution? A podcast.
Podcasting allowed her to bring in experts, share bite-sized insights, and extend learning beyond the classroom in a format students could engage with while commuting, doing housework, or living their lives.
That’s instructional design in action.
Why “Designing With Love” Isn’t Just a Catchy Name
The name Designing With Love wasn’t chosen randomly—and it’s not about being sentimental or soft.
For Jackie, “love” represents care, intention, and respect for the learner. It’s about designing experiences that don’t just check boxes, but actually serve people.
That same philosophy applies beautifully to podcasting.
Designing your podcast with love means:
- Thinking about your listener’s time and attention
- Creating content that’s evergreen and useful
- Letting go of perfection in favor of connection
- Designing systems that support you, not exhaust you
It also means loving yourself as a creator—something we don’t talk about enough.
Creativity + Practicality: You Don’t Have to Choose
A big theme in our conversation was the balance between creativity and practicality. Jackie doesn’t see them as opposites. In fact, she believes they work best together.
Creativity shows up in:
- Storytelling
- Metaphors (like her road-trip-style episode with “mile markers”)
- Visual elements and infographics
- Naming, framing, and tone
Practicality shows up in:
- Evergreen content
- Clear episode structures
- Consistent release schedules
- Systems and workflows
The magic happens when creativity is supported by structure—not restricted by it.
This is especially important for podcasters who want longevity. Creativity without systems leads to burnout. Systems without creativity lead to boredom. You need both.
Using AI Without Losing Your Voice
We also spent time talking about AI—because let’s be honest, it’s part of the landscape now.
What I appreciated about Jackie’s approach is how grounded it is. She doesn’t see AI as something to fear or blindly adopt. She sees it as a collaborative partner, not the creative lead.
She uses AI to:
- Brainstorm episode ideas
- Explore new series concepts
- Refine outlines
- Prepare interview questions
But the final voice? That’s always hers.
AI helps streamline the process, but it doesn’t replace judgment, intuition, or lived experience. And that’s the key distinction. When AI supports your process instead of replacing your thinking, it can actually free up more energy for creativity.
Consistency Without Burnout
One of the most practical parts of our conversation was around consistency and sustainability.
Jackie releases:
- Interview episodes on Sundays
- Solo episodes on Wednesdays
That rhythm works for her and her audience. She also batches content, uses Trello to manage workflows, and stays months ahead on her production schedule.
But what stood out most wasn’t the tools—it was the boundaries.
Jackie has a non-negotiable day of rest each week. No podcast work. No appointments. Minimal work checking. That space allows her to show up creatively without resentment or exhaustion.
She also talked openly about letting go of perfection. Not every episode needs ten takes. Not every mistake needs editing out. Sometimes the most human moments are the ones listeners connect with most.
Grace Is Part of the Design Process
This might be my favorite takeaway from the entire conversation:
Grace is part of the design.
Grace looks like:
- Accepting that some days you won’t get everything done
- Letting episodes be good, not perfect
- Designing systems that allow for rest
- Giving yourself permission to evolve
As solopreneurs and creatives, we’re often harder on ourselves than anyone else. We put pressure on our podcasts to carry our message, our business, our identity—and sometimes our worth.
This conversation was a reminder that sustainable creativity isn’t about doing more. It’s about designing smarter, kinder systems that allow you to keep going.
Favorite Episodes to Check Out
If you’re curious to hear Jackie in her element, she shared a couple of favorite episodes from Designing With Love that we talked about during the interview:
- 🎧 Episode 1:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2146456/episodes/17975491 - 🎧 Episode 2:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2146456/episodes/17993136
Both episodes reflect her thoughtful, human-centered approach to design and learning.
Where to Find Jackie
You can learn more about Jackie, listen to her podcast, and explore her blog at:
👉 https://www.designingwithloveblog.com/
She’s also active on LinkedIn and deeply engaged in conversations around instructional design, learning, and intentional creativity.
Also, check out her
Final Thoughts
This conversation reminded me why I care so much about how we podcast—not just that we podcast.
Designing your podcast with love means:
- Designing for real people
- Designing for real life
- Designing for sustainability
- Designing with care for yourself and your audience
It’s not about hustling harder. It’s about designing smarter—and more human.
And honestly? That’s the kind of podcasting that lasts.
If this conversation resonated with you, I hope it encourages you to pause, reflect, and ask yourself:
What would it look like to design my podcast with love?
That question alone can change everything. 💛
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