• What It's Like To Be...

  • Written by: Dan Heath
  • Podcast

What It's Like To Be...

Written by: Dan Heath
  • Summary

  • 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 were too polite to ask … well, this is the show for you.

    © 2025 What It's Like To Be...
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Episodes
  • A Daycare Owner
    Feb 11 2025

    Singing cleanup songs, tiring out kids before naptime, and battling the "babysitter" stereotype with Brenda Hawkins, a daycare owner in Maryland. How has childcare changed over the years? And what is a "dope and drop"?

    NEW BOOK ALERT!
    You may be aware that I’ve written or co-written five business books, including The Power of Moments and Made to Stick. I’ve got a sixth book out now called RESET: How to Change What’s Not Working. It’s a book intended to help you and your team get unstuck, to overcome the gravity of the way things have always worked. Learn more about the book and order it here.

    Got a comment or suggestion for us? You can reach us via email at jobs@whatitslike.com

    Want to be on the show? Leave a message on our voice mailbox at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

    • What do people think your job is like and what is it actually like?
    • What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?
    Show more Show less
    28 mins
  • An Audiobook Narrator
    Jan 28 2025

    Fine-tuning the perfect accent for a character, recording for hours in a sound-insulated booth, and tracking down obscure pronunciations with Sean Pratt, an audiobook narrator. What is "punch and roll"? And what kind of voice do you need to be a great narrator?

    EXTRA
    We spoke with Sean about his work narrating the David Foster Wallace literary behemoth Infinite Jest. That part of the interview didn’t fit into this episode, but you can listen to it here!

    NEW BOOK ALERT!
    You may be aware that I’ve written or co-written five business books, including The Power of Moments and Made to Stick. I’ve got a sixth book out now called RESET: How to Change What’s Not Working. It’s a book intended to help you and your team get unstuck, to overcome the gravity of the way things have always worked. Learn more about the book and order it here.

    Got a comment or suggestion for us? You can reach us via email at jobs@whatitslike.com

    Want to be on the show? Leave a message on our voice mailbox at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

    • What do people think your job is like and what is it actually like?
    • What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?
    Show more Show less
    38 mins
  • RESET: How To Change What's Not Working
    Jan 21 2025

    We've got something a little different and special for you this week! The day this is dropping, January 21st, is the launch day for my new book, called RESET: How to Change What’s Not Working. We’re running an excerpt (a whole chapter!) from the audiobook on this podcast.

    You can buy the full audiobook, hardcover, or Kindle version here!

    We’ll be back next week with a new episode of the show, talking with a professional audiobook narrator!

    NEW BOOK ALERT!
    You may be aware that I’ve written or co-written five business books, including The Power of Moments and Made to Stick. I’ve got a sixth book out now called RESET: How to Change What’s Not Working. It’s a book intended to help you and your team get unstuck, to overcome the gravity of the way things have always worked. Learn more about the book and order it here.

    Got a comment or suggestion for us? You can reach us via email at jobs@whatitslike.com

    Want to be on the show? Leave a message on our voice mailbox at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

    • What do people think your job is like and what is it actually like?
    • What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?
    Show more Show less
    27 mins

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