Episodios

  • A Chief Financial Officer
    Jul 15 2025

    Forecasting what a business will earn and spend, allocating resources among teams clamoring for more, and practicing professional skepticism without killing the vibe with Steve Love, a chief financial officer. What does it feel like to confess to a board of directors that you've made a potentially catastrophic error? And what happens when business leaders accidentally release non-public information?

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a turnaround consultant, a forensic accountant, or a life insurance salesman.

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    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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    37 m
  • A Deli Owner
    Jul 1 2025

    Boiling briskets for five hours, escorting obnoxious customers to the door, and preserving the ritual of saying "hello" with Steven Peljovich, who runs Michael's Deli in Boston. What makes a deli different from a sandwich shop? And, until recently, why did he resist taking orders online?

    Read The Boston Globe story that Steven mentioned about longtime customer Rita Manor.

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a stadium beer vendor, a barman, or an ice cream truck driver.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    30 m
  • A Massage Therapist
    Jun 17 2025

    Choreographing massages to Mozart, enforcing cancellation policies with beloved clients, and shutting down callers seeking "undraped sessions" with Allissa Haines, a massage therapist. What made her cry in her car after one particular house call? And what is "effleurage”?

    In this episode, Dan recommended The Work of Art by Adam Moss, a book about how artists make their work. Check it out here.

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a couples therapist, a hair stylist, or a piano teacher.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    34 m
  • A Harbor Pilot
    Jun 3 2025

    Scaling three-story rope ladders up the sides of ships, memorizing every rock and current in a harbor, and narrowly avoiding catastrophic collisions with Captain Grant Livingstone, a retired harbor pilot. What do you do when your engine and anchors fail in heavy fog? And how do you dock a ship the size of the Empire State Building?

    Grant and his twin brother Captain George Livingstone co-authored the recent book Shiphandling, The Beautiful Game.

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a long-haul trucker, an ocean lifeguard, or a London cabbie.

    Learn more about StoryCorps and the Story Preservation Initiative at their websites.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    38 m
  • A Hospice Nurse
    May 20 2025

    Comforting patients as they prepare to transition, navigating end-of-life regrets and frayed relationships, and providing support and advice for fearful families with Heather Meyerend, a retired hospice nurse. How does she know when the end is imminent? And what has the work taught her about the different ways we deal with death?

    Heather is a contributing author to the book Resilient Faith: Dare To Believe. She was also profiled in The New Yorker in 2016: "A Tender Hand in the Presence of Death".

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a nurse, a brain surgeon, or a veterinarian.

    Learn more about StoryCorps and the Story Preservation Initiative at their websites.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    39 m
  • A Veterinarian
    May 6 2025

    Calming scared cats with pheromone sprays, advising families how to balance their pet's well-being with budget realities, and diagnosing mysterious animal maladies with Dr. Hindatu Mohammed, a veterinarian in Austin, TX. What breed of dog, when having its nails clipped, responds as though it's being murdered? And how did an injured ant shape her career choice?

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a dog trainer, a nurse, or a brain surgeon.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    37 m
  • A Software Engineer
    Apr 22 2025

    Tracing mysterious errors to their source, jousting with product managers, and rolling out new features (without breaking the old ones) with Taylor Hughes, a software engineer. How did one failed software fix ruin Christmas for kids around the country? And what is "spaghetti code"?

    Taylor is currently a co-founder and the CTO at Hypernatural.ai.

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a forensic accountant, a creative director, or a brain surgeon.

    Learn more about StoryCorps and the Story Preservation Initiative at their websites.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    31 m
  • A City Manager
    Apr 8 2025

    Mediating pickleball noise disputes, shepherding communities through thorny decisions, and practicing radical pragmatism with Martha Bennett, city manager of Lake Oswego, Oregon. What is it that makes public hearings so noxious? And what's the difference between "Big P" and "Little P" politics?

    IF YOU LIKE THIS EPISODE: Check out what it's like to be a high school principal, a PR crisis manager, or a turnaround consultant.

    GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

    FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@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 story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

    We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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    35 m