Churning out creative possibilities on tight timelines, crafting bespoke stock images with help from AI, and pitching unique ideas to risk-averse clients with Jo Skillman , a creative director in Texas. Why do a lot of creative directors grind their teeth at night? And what is a "swoop and poop"? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only ...
May 21, 2024•27 min•Season 1Ep. 19
Reading canine body language, boarding dogs to teach them manners, and training the dogs' owners with Keely Korbel, a dog trainer. Is it a good idea to clone your dog? And what is a "marker word"? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean? 2. What’s a specific stor...
May 07, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 18
Unearthing ancient wine cellars, finding the right places to dig, and tracing the arc of lost civilizations with Eric Cline, an archaeologist. What's the difference between a shard and a sherd? And what will archaeologists of the future make of us? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to k...
Apr 23, 2024•31 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Building cases against MS-13 gang members, flipping a suspect in an interrogation, and writing countless subpoenas for phone records with Dan Brunner, a retired FBI Special Agent. What's the significance of the "1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle"? And what does it take to get a fugitive on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or ...
Apr 09, 2024•29 min•Season 1Ep. 16
Raising cattle in the high desert, hauling calves to auction, and protecting the herd from mountain lions with Chachi Hawkins, a cattle rancher in southwest Texas. How did she go from selling clothes to selling cattle? And does she ever get attached to particular calves? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your professi...
Mar 26, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 15
We've got a special bonus episode for you this week! Our friends over at Choiceology, the podcast hosted by Katy Milkman, explores the lessons that can be gleaned from behavioral economics. They tell true stories with high-stakes, sharing what the latest research tells us about making better decisions. In this episode, called “The Superforecasters” , they examine President Barack Obama’s decision to move forward with the raid on what was thought to be Osama bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan back ...
Mar 19, 2024•38 min
Diagnosing what ails struggling companies, choosing the "least crappy option", and managing constant stress with Jeff Vogelsang, a turnaround consultant. What kind of personality do you need to lead turnarounds? And what does it mean to make someone "available to industry”? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profe...
Mar 12, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 14
Caring for patients with serious burns, making sure the correct leg gets operated on, and working 24 hours straight with Teresa Shuster, a nurse in Florida. How did a patient change the trajectory of her career? And what's a "Code Brown"? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and wh...
Feb 27, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Crafting jokes that kill, hustling to find gigs, and improvising based on the audience's reaction with Chris Grace , a stand-up comedian. What's the worst he's ever bombed? And what is a "bringer" show? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean? 2. What’s a specifi...
Feb 13, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Cutting to accentuate the client's eyes and ears, plotting to tame Einstein's hair, and riding the ups and downs of entrepreneurship with Ona Diaz-Santin , a hair stylist and owner of 5 Salon & Spa in New Jersey. What's the most irritating way a client can respond to a haircut? And why was she christened "The Hair Saint"? Our show takes a lot of inspiration from Studs Terkel's classic book Working . It features interviews Terkel did with more than 100 different people from different jobs: po...
Jan 30, 2024•29 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Pushing perfectionism to its limits, suffering third degree burns from slag, and having your welds “shot” by X-rays with Matt "Lucky" Reed , a welder in Florida. What happens to welders' eyes if they don't wear protective hoods? And what's a time-tested way of trolling a fellow welder? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone fro...
Jan 16, 2024•30 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Delivering the perfect first lesson, working with 89-year-old students, and learning how to charge for your work with Christina Whitlock , a piano teacher in Indiana. How does she help students hear the "heartbeat of music"? And what is it like to teach a student from first grade through college? IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a creative director , a tennis coach , or a mystery novelist . Learn more about StoryCorps and the Story Preservation Initiative at their website...
Jan 02, 2024•28 min•Season 1Ep. 9
Refurbishing old sleighs, reviewing advance dossiers on kids, and going to “Santa School" with Larry Jefferson , a professional Santa Claus based in Dallas. How does he handle situations when kids ask for something Santa could never grant? And what would a kid have to do to get coal? Music credit: "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON...
Dec 20, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 8
Managing complaints from parents, handling the horrors of teenage social media, and serving as an emergency substitute teacher with Marcus Belin , a high school principal in Illinois. How does it feel for everyone in town to know him as The Principal? And what exactly is a “sandwich email”? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someon...
Dec 12, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 7
Scouting body disposal sites, investigating obscure poisons, and computing royalty payments with Donna Andrews , the mystery novelist behind the Meg Langslow series. How do you make a living as a mystery novelist? And could Tylenol be a murder weapon? Know someone who is a great storyteller that we should talk to about their job? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask...
Nov 28, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 6
Catching embezzling CFOs, sniffing out a corrupt private school headmaster, and sifting through fake invoices with Chris Ekimoff, a forensic accountant. What are his go-to moves to detect fraud? And who is the most famous forensic accountant (besides Ben Affleck)? GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession woul...
Nov 14, 2023•29 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Tracking a 2.5-mile-wide tornado, fretting over forecasts, and waking up at 2:30am with Lacey Swope, a TV meteorologist for News 9 in Oklahoma City. How does she deal with fans and stalkers? And what is the “deformation zone”? You can see Lacey's daily forecasts on the News 9 website . She's also on Instagram . Got thoughts on the show? Reach out to dan@whatitslike.com GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We...
Oct 31, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Defending a man prosecuted for breaking into his own house, carrying clients’ burdens, and dispelling a myth about Miranda rights with Mike Panella , a criminal defense attorney from Orlando. IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a homicide detective , an FBI special agent , or a secret service agent . GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a ...
Oct 15, 2023•28 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Mystery dates, adult playrooms, habit stacking, and the misuse of “narcissism” with Laura Heck , a virtual couples therapist. Laura is also a co-host of the podcast Marriage Therapy Radio . IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a hospice nurse . GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions: 1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession woul...
Oct 15, 2023•28 min•Season 1Ep. 2
Meeting Muhammad Ali, handling fans who are alcoholics, pouring with no foam, and dreaming about one last game with Howard Hart, who spent three decades as a stadium beer vendor. If you want to see Howard in action, The Washington Post put together a great video feature on him in 2014. IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a barman or an ice cream truck driver . GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) ...
Oct 15, 2023•28 min•Season 1Ep. 1
Curious what it would be like to walk in someone else’s (work) shoes? Join New York Times bestselling author Dan Heath as he explores the world of work, one profession at a time, and interviews people who love what they do. What does a couples therapist think when a friend asks for relationship advice? What happens if a welder fails to wear safety glasses? What can get a stadium beer vendor fired? If you’ve ever met someone whose work you were curious about, and you had 100 nosy questions but we...
Sep 18, 2023•2 min
