Per My Last Email

Latest Episodes:

How to Handle Failure Like a Pro Jun 23, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle talk about their biggest work fails, a different way to think about failure beyond simply as a “learning opportunity,” and share tactics on how to best move through and recover from failures in both work and career.

00:00 Intro

00:40 Kaila’s biggest work failure

04:20 Kyle’s biggest work failure

09:34 The problem with “I don’t fail, I either win or I learn.”

17:46 An NIH study on career failure among nurses

21:05 How to change your perception of “failure”

22:33 The importance of “getting ahead of it”

24:28 “post traumatic growth”

29:01 Tactics

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Each week on Per My Last Email, Morning Brew’s resident career experts Kaila and Kyle – whose careers have collectively spanned the corporate, government, nonprofit and startup sectors – debate the trickiest challenges in work life, and share tactics on how to overcome them. Share the show with a friend, and leave us a review on your favorite podcast app!

Why “High Agency” Might Be the Secret to Growing Your Career Jun 16, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle discuss what having high agency at work really means, the problems having high agency poses in certain contexts, and how to cultivate more of it in order to help your career.

00:00 Intro

01:20 Defining what having “high agency” is

06:52 The elements of high agency

10:34 An important point about having agency

14:17 An important element of truly effective high agency

15:03 A time when Kaila demonstrated high agency in her career

17:46 A time when Kyle demonstrated high agency in his career

21:32 A debate on the merits of disagreeableness

30:22 Research on the “internal locus of control”

31:43 Tactics for developing more agency

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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On Steve Madden’s Viral Interview and Politics in the Workplace Jun 09, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle discuss the viral Steve Madden interview and debate whether CEOs and corporations should be expressing their political views, as well as how to navigate politics in the workplace.

00:00 Intro

01:24 Steve Madden’s viral Cutting Room Floor interview

06:26 Lulu Cheng Meservey on “going direct” as a business leader

07:29 Stats on how different generations feel about companies voicing their political beliefs

09:53 Ben & Jerry’s vs. Target

15:07 Brian Armstrong’s “mission-driven company” blog post

21:31 How should you as an employee react to your CEO’s public political statements?

27:23 Should you share your own political beliefs at work?

35:49 Kaila’s work rant

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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Is People Pleasing Holding Your Career Back? Jun 02, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle dive into the problems with being a “people pleaser”, and how to balance being agreeable enough while also being effective and impactful at work. Plus, Kaila introduces The Workplace People Pleasing Matrix.

00:00 Intro

00:44 Defining what “people pleasing” actually is

01:55 Why the term “people pleaser” is inflammatory

06:09 Stats on agreeableness and income

07:53 The Workplace People Pleasing Matrix

17:12 The importance of knowing when to be agreeable

19:28 The categories of people pleasers

28:38 Advice for getting into the Zone of Efficacy on the People Pleasing Matrix

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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TikTok: @permylastemailshow

Twitter: @permylast_email

Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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Everything You Know About Work Stress is Wrong May 26, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle discuss work stress and whether we’ve been thinking about it in the wrong way. There’s clearly such a thing as too much stress, but what about too little? And is there an ideal amount of stress we should be aiming for in order to be most successful at our jobs?

00:00 Intro

00:24 APA stats on stress and anxiety

02:53 Kaila’s relationship with work-related stress

06:57 Stats on workplace mental health

09:58 The Eustress Curve and how to rethink our relationship with stress

13:26 Findings by Hans Selye, the “Father of Stress”

15:47 A tip for turning negative stress into productive stress

23:00 Investing in recovery

24:54 What works for Kyle when it comes to managing work stress

30:28 Bonus segment

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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Busting Myths About the Most Common Career Cliches May 19, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle discuss common career tropes and debate whether or not the sayings hold up. Is HR really not your friend? Are your connections more important than your skills? Listen and find out.

00:00 Intro

00:36 Career myth #1 - “No one knows what they’re doing.”

07:35 Career myth #2 - “HR is not your friend.”

12:51 Career myth #3 - “It’s not WHAT you know, it’s WHO you know.”

19:11 Career myth #4 - “Follow your passion, and you’ll never work a day in your life.”

27:33 Career myth #5 - “You should do the responsibilities before you get the promotion.”

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

Follow Per My Last Email

Instagram: @permylastemailshow

TikTok: @permylastemailshow

Twitter: @permylast_email

Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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How to Be Happier at Work, with Dr. Laurie Santos May 12, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle are joined by Yale professor and host of The Happiness Lab podcast, Dr. Laurie Santos, to talk about the small ways you can find more meaning in your job, and the adjustments that help increase our happiness and well being at work.

00:00 Intro

00:44 Dr. Laurie Santos Intro

01:47 How much does your work factor into your overall happiness?

03:33 Dr. Santos’ take on the difference between how millennials and how Gen Z approach work

07:50 “Job crafting”

09:33 Remote vs in-office

12:30 How office perks impact happiness

14:46 How we can alter our relationship with time to increase our happiness

18:09 How “job crafting” is different from toxic positivity

22:47 The “GI Joe Fallacy”

25:50 Advice for working parents

30:05 Dr. Laurie Santos’s personal happiness habits

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Twitter: @permylast_email

Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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Why Is AI So Annoying? May 05, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle discuss the problems with the current conversation around AI, and debate the issues with and the benefits of the technology for the workforce, society, and individuals.

00:00 Intro

00:57 The problem with the discourse around AI

05:42 Why we’re not having good faith arguments around AI

09:43 The three use cases for AI that Kaila found helpful

17:28 Kaila’s concerns with AI

21:00 How Kyle uses AI in a way that’s additive and not a complete replacement of thinking

28:12 AI concerns speed round

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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We Made You a Report Card for Your Job – Here’s Why Apr 28, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle talk about the value of giving your job its own performance review, the most effective way to do it, and the lowest rated jobs from their own career experiences.

Get your copy of the Rate Your Job Template here!

00:00 Intro

06:46 The Rate Your Job Template

13:38 Explaining the template through an example

15:55 How Kaila used the Rate Your Job Template when choosing her current job

19:00 Using the template to rate your existing job

21:45 Why rating your job is an important thing to do every 6 months

25:42 Kyle’s worst job

26:55 Kaila’s worst job

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Instagram: @permylastemailshow

TikTok: @permylastemailshow

Twitter: @permylast_email

Have a question for us? Send us an email or voice note to permylastemail@morningbrew.com

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When A Side Hustle Is (and Isn’t) Worth It Apr 21, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, Kaila and Kyle dive into what exactly constitutes a “side hustle”, and the circumstances in which it IS and ISN’T worth having one. Not all side hustles are created equal.

00:00 Intro

03:11 Average income earned from a side hustle

05:11 The issue with the term “side hustle”

08:00 The most common types of side hustles

14:45 “Acceptable or Not?” game

20:46 Considering how a side hustle might be perceived at your job

21:48 Pros and cons of having a side hustle

Want to get all of Kaila & Kyle’s career resources? Subscribe to Per My Last Email: https://www.permylastemailshow.com/

Watch Per My Last Email on YouTube:

@PerMYLastEmailShow

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Instagram: @permylastemailshow