What It's Like To Be... with Dan Heath
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.
Episodes
78 episodes
An Airline Pilot
Shooting cat-three landings in the fog, using the “voice of God” on unruly passengers, and declaring Mayday after an engine fire with Paul Drusch, a commercial airline pilot. Why does the pilot’s paycheck start with the parking brake? And what ...
(Bonus) From StoryCorps: "Sideliners"
Athletes get all the glory, but there are countless people around them making the games happen - from referees making judgments, to vendors in the stands hawking snacks and beer. In this episode from Th...
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A Clinical Ethicist
Untangling who gets to speak for a dying patient, weighing a treatment's benefits against its burdens, and searching for clarity in the grayest corners of healthcare with Esther Berkowitz, a clinical ethicist. What is the "dignity of risk"? And...
A Correctional Officer
Grinding through 16-hour shifts, standing behind inmates (never in front), and trying to stay human in an inhuman environment with Bill Farrell, a correctional officer in Massachusetts. What happens when an officer gets "frozen"? And why does t...
A Custom Harvester
Harvesting five million bushels of wheat and corn from Texas to Montana, outrunning hailstorms that decimate a year's income in 20 minutes, and running a multimillion-dollar convoy of equipment down the highway with Josh Beckley, a third-genera...
A Funeral Director
Guiding grieving families through arrangement meetings, orchestrating meaningful memorial services within days, and preparing bodies for viewing with Heather Hill, a funeral director in North Carolina. What's different about doing makeup on a d...
An Aerospace Engineer
Landing the Perseverance rover on Mars, working in clean rooms to minimize the microbial bug count, and slogging through hundreds of engineering trade-offs with Swati Mohan, an aerospace engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. What are th...
A Diplomat
Defusing a crisis after an ambassador hinted at a preemptive strike on Russia, delivering demarches in multiple languages, and surviving the frantic evacuation of the Kabul embassy with John Johnson, a retired diplomat who spent more than twent...
A Lineman
Wiring a neighborhood back to life after a tornado, coveting the work of helicopter linemen in Faraday suits, and surviving the collapse of a rotten utility pole with Elden Rivas, a journeyman lineman in Houston, Texas. What is the one sound on...
A Health Inspector
Suspending the licenses of unsafe restaurant operators, hunting down the origins of foodborne illness outbreaks, and eliciting truthful answers from anxious managers with Justin Dwyer, a health inspector in Peoria, Illinois. What happens when a...
An Olympic Bobsledder (Replay)
Hurtling down an ice track at nearly 100mph, perfecting the practice of visualization, and shaving off hundredths of a second with Kaillie Humphries, an Olympic bobsledder. What's ...
A London Divorce Lawyer
Negotiating cases in which neither spouse wants custody of the cat, setting clients' expectations about what's legally possible (versus what feels "right"), and finding hope in people's ability to bounce back from dark times with Lucy Stewart-G...
A Baker
Tinkering with the recipe for gingerbread cake until it's right, adjusting to the variability of local grains, and cherishing the quiet mornings when the sun fills the bakery windows with Sophie Williams, a baker in Bellingham, Washington. What...
A Dog Groomer
Sculpting mullets on Havanese, enduring countless bites, and surviving level-five furnadoes with Aaron Williams, a dog groomer in Alabama. Why is the grooming table his most powerful psychological tool? And which part of the grooming process is...
A Marine Corps JAG
Judging the permissibility of real-time battle decisions, advising commanders how to handle soldier misconduct, and assessing "hostile acts" and "hostile intent" with Lieutenant Colonel Susan Upward, a Marine Corps JAG. What does "dispo" mean i...
An Elementary School Teacher
Weaving songs and dances into classroom lessons, having difficult conversations with parents, and navigating the second-day meltdowns of kindergarten students with Yaronda Kilgo, an elementary school teacher. What did a backpack full of snacks ...
A Humanitarian Worker
Managing Ebola treatment centers in Sierra Leone, coordinating with government officials and local leaders, and advocating for the radical simplicity of cash aid with Grace Jackson, a humanitarian worker. When low-income families are given mone...
A Conductor
Reinterpreting centuries-old classical music, marking up symphonies with notes on phrasing, and turning mid-performance disasters into unforgettable moments with Carlos Miguel Prieto, a music di...
A Master Electrician
Calculating electrical loads, getting zapped by 277 volts, and savoring the freedom of the skilled trades with Doug Powell, a master electrician. Why are blue-collar professions gro...
A Baseball Player
Scaling outfield walls to pick off home runs, bouncing between La Quinta hotels and sleeper buses, and chasing the dream of the majors with Trayvon Robinson, a professional baseball p...
A Seismologist
Monitoring global networks of seismometers, evangelizing for stronger buildings instead of better predictions, and measuring LA's slow crawl toward Alaska with Lucy Jones, a seismologist in Southern California. Why does she begin counting when ...
An Executive Chef
Butchering whole alligators, costing out every plate down to the garnish, and perfecting grilled sweetbreads with Cindy Wolf, an executive chef. What was it like to cook for Julia Child? ...
A Speechwriter
Writing for the ear rather than the eye, racing to meet teleprompter deadlines, and recasting lost memories as timeless advice with Stephen Krupin, a speechwriter. What was it like...