What's Your "And"?

Jackie Meyer shares her love for world travel, describing how exploring new cultures, especially in Costa Rica, has become a core part of her family's life. She talks about the importance of prioritizing personal passions and time with loved ones, even making major career decisions to support these experiences. Jackie highlights how travel has helped her prevent burnout, encouraging boundaries and planning to maintain a healthy work-life balance. She also discusses how pursuing her "And" connects her more deeply with family, friends, and colleagues, fostering creativity and well-being. Jackie is a strong advocate for blending professional life with personal interests, believing that nurturing multiple sides of oneself leads to fulfillment. Her journey and insights inspire others to reflect on their own passions and find ways to bring them into daily life. Episode Highlights · Jackie emphasizes planning the year with travel and family time as a top priority, restructuring her life to avoid burnout and ensure joy outside work. · She stresses the importance of setting boundaries and recommends putting personal plans first to prevent work from overtaking all aspects of life. · Her journey from workaholism and burnout led her to realize the necessity of "finding herself" and nurturing her passions outside professional obligations. · Jackie encourages setting small, achievable goals in different areas of life (like travel, health, etc.), instead of trying to optimize everything at once, using her balance wheel methodology.

Dan McMahon shares his journey from being a CPA to embracing improvisational and stand-up comedy as powerful hobbies that helped him become more confident, authentic, and fulfilled outside of work. Dan talks about how he started improv as a way to break out of old routines and found that it made him a better listener, collaborator, and public speaker. He also describes how performing stand-up, despite its nerve-wracking moments, became an exhilarating way to push himself outside his comfort zone. Dan credits improv and stand-up for giving him new depth, helping him build stronger relationships with clients, and encouraging those around him to be more authentic. He discusses the importance of finding passions that bring joy and insists that sharing those interests makes everyone better professionals. Dan encourages listeners to focus on what completes them as individuals, suggesting that authenticity and personal passions enrich both life and work. Episode Highlights · Dan credits his years in improv and dabbling in stand-up comedy with making him more confident, a better listener, and more collaborative, ultimately improving his personal and professional life. · He intentionally steps outside his comfort zone (like performing stand-up) to demonstrate the importance of courage. Not just for his own growth, but to inspire his clients to do the same. · Dan emphasizes the value of being authentic with clients and colleagues, sharing his passions and hobbies openly. He notes that this authenticity has made client relationships more natural and rewarding. · He stresses that focusing solely on the technical side of the job is not enough. Having passions and interests outside of work makes us more complete and enjoyable to be around. · His advice for others is to pursue what makes you happy, even if it seems like no one cares. Over time, you'll attract the right people who appreciate your depth and individuality.

Marc Mandell shares his lifelong passion for cars, tracing it back to a childhood experience seeing a classic Corvette for the first time, which sparked his journey into car restoration and customization. He discusses memorable projects, including working on a '63 Corvette split-window and building a GTM supercar from scratch, and emphasizes the satisfaction of rebuilding something from the ground up. Marc highlights how his appreciation for process and order with cars led him to a career in construction, where similar skills apply. He reflects on how people often see cars as just a mode of transportation, while he still finds each vehicle has its own personality and story. Marc also talks about the importance of embracing and sharing your personal passions, encouraging listeners to enjoy what makes them unique. He reminds us that "long days, short years" is a reality, so it's important to be true to what you love and let it show. Episode Highlights · Marc encourages people to enjoy what they're about and not to hide their passions, even if they don't directly relate to their job. He believes we should embrace our interests and bring them into our lives. · Whether it's working on cars or working in construction, Marc values the structured process of building and creating, from breaking things down to putting them back together. The sequence and satisfaction of the work is as important as the end result. · He talks about the importance of leading with empathy, meeting people where they're at, and holding space to understand others' perspectives. For Marc, these qualities help foster better communication and connection in both work and life. · Marc notes that many people put off their passions or hobbies until retirement, which can lead to regret. He urges listeners not to wait because life moves quickly, and it's important to spend time on what makes you happy now. · He makes the point that while family and work matter, they aren't the only defining elements of who you are. Everyone has many facets, including hobbies, passions, and interests, that make up their full identity.

Joe Pope shares his passion for home brewing beer and smoking meats, revealing how his science background and connections with the craft beer community sparked his brewing journey. He talks about experimenting with different styles, giving his beers creative names, and the fun of sharing these creations with friends and colleagues. Joe emphasizes the importance of genuine relationships and how hobbies outside work foster those connections, especially in his role as a business development leader. He also discusses Hinge's unique "Hinge Has Your Back Day," encouraging employees to celebrate their interests and build a positive culture. Joe believes that embracing one's "And" makes professionals more relatable and successful. Episode Highlights · Sharing your personal "And"—your hobbies or passions outside work—can help build better relationships and make you more successful professionally. · Joe found more success when he embraced who he really is and shared that openly, even on platforms like LinkedIn. · He believes understanding clients' and colleagues' interests outside of work leads to stronger connections and better business outcomes. · Creating a supportive, human-centric environment starts at the top and is essential for a positive agency culture. · At his company, they have an annual "Hinge Has Your Back Day," encouraging employees to step away from work and do what they love, reinforcing the value of having interests beyond just the job title.

Catherine Mattis shares her journey from overcoming a fear of public speaking to performing stand-up comedy across the New York. She explains how comedy has helped her find her voice, improve her resiliency, and become a more confident communicator, all skills she uses daily as a public accountant. Catherine emphasizes the importance of having passions outside of work, ensuring she avoids an identity crisis as work changes happen. She also discusses her positive workplace culture at LVBW, where differences are celebrated and personal interests are openly embraced. Catherine keeps her workplace humor appropriate and finds that clients and colleagues are genuinely curious about her comedy background. Her biggest advice: your hobbies matter and the right environment will appreciate and support who you truly are. Episode Highlights · Catherine emphasizes the importance of having something outside of work to avoid an identity crisis. Comedy helped her discover who she truly is. · Performing comedy, especially dealing with tough crowds and bombed sets, has helped her develop resilience that translates directly into handling feedback and challenges at work. · She points out that being "naturally funny" is just a starting point. Consistent practice, writing, and effort are what make someone good at comedy, or any skill. · Catherine stresses how a supportive and human-focused work environment makes it easier (and more motivating) to bring your whole self to work and build real relationships. · She encourages listeners not to hide their passions and hobbies, as sharing them openly leads to authenticity, better energy, and sometimes even helps you find the right people and organizations to surround yourself with.