What It’s Like to Be…a Deli Owner
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.
July 01st, 2025
work
June 17th, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Massage Therapist
Choreographing massages to Mozart, enforcing cancellation policies with beloved clients, and shutting down callers seeking “undraped sessions” with Allissa Haines, a massage therapist.
June 15th, 2025
AI, Productivity, and Human Finitude: A Conversation With Oliver Burkeman
AI productivity tools promise to help us get things done today so we can enjoy tomorrow. But a laser focus on “tomorrow” can vacate meaning from today.
June 03rd, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Harbor Pilot
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.
May 22nd, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Hospice Nurse
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.
April 23rd, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Software Engineer
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.
April 21st, 2025
Event: 2025 Frontiers Conversation Series
We invite you to a new online conversation series, “Frontiers,” where we’ll host live conversations with people who are pushing the boundaries of behavioral science.
April 08th, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a City Manager
Mediating pickleball noise disputes, shepherding communities through thorny decisions, and practicing radical pragmatism with Martha Bennett, city manager of Lake Oswego, Oregon.
March 26th, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Barman
Pouring pints for thirsty tourists, defusing situations with drunk patrons, and finding flow in the Friday night rush with Brian Wynne, a barman in Dublin.
March 12th, 2025
What It’s Like to Be…a Brain Surgeon
Zapping parts of the brain to know where to cut, operating a mouth-controlled microscope that’s worth more than a house, and carrying the weight of life-or-death decisions with Dr. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa, a brain surgeon at the Mayo Clinic.
