What It's Like To Be... with Dan Heath

Latest Episodes:

A Stadium Beer Vendor (With an Update) Nov 08, 2026

Show notes

This episode originally aired on October 15, 2023. We've got an update at the end!

Meeting Muhammad Ali, handling fans who are alcoholics, pouring with no foam, and dreaming about one last game with Howard Hart, who spent three decades as a stadium beer vendor.
If you want to see Howard in action, The Washington Post put together a great video feature on him in 2014.

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1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Choreographer Nov 01, 2026

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Sketching choreography in airport bathroom stalls, coaching Usher on exactly how to hold a strawberry, and fighting for fair pay for dancers and choreographers with Galen Hooks, a commercial dance choreographer in Los Angeles. Can you copyright a dance routine? And what does "body conscious" mean at an audition?

LINKS & REFERENCES

Galen's website, Instagram, and YouTube channel
Watch "River" here
Usher's "Ruin" video, choreographed by Galen
Galen was nominated for a VMA for choreography for Camila Cabello's "Havana" video.

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Piano Tuner Oct 25, 2026

Show notes

Listening for harmonics inside a note, dealing with awkward situations in people's homes, and chasing down nearly imperceptible flaws for world-class pianists with Peter Stumpf, a piano tuner in Pittsburgh. Why does he bite his tuning fork like a cigar? And what does it mean to "stretch an octave"?

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Contortionist Oct 18, 2026

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Contorting inside a floating pool bubble, overriding her body’s false alarms while bending backward, and stretching and strengthening six days a week for a four-minute act with Lisbeth Mikoleit, a contortionist in Las Vegas. Why does she train with a mouth guard? And what’s a “triple fold”?

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GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Big Announcement Oct 13, 2026

Show notes

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FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Forensic Architect Oct 06, 2026

Show notes

Poking a finger through rotted structural columns, hunting down the water leaks behind construction defects, and keeping cool under hostile cross-examination with Jorge McCormack, a forensic architect in Florida. Why do forensic architects avoid saying the word "mold"? And what's a "Daubert motion"?

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Special Ed Teacher Sep 22, 2026

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Sprawling on the floor like a starfish beside an overwhelmed teen, staging Friday prank calls to fellow teachers, and orchestrating the chaos of a self-contained classroom with Sierra Patrick, a special ed teacher in South Carolina. What does she wish people understood about nonverbal students? And what's the most valuable piece of technology in her classroom?

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

An Auctioneer Sep 08, 2026

Show notes

Chanting bids to whip up a bidding war, shipping $750,000 of Magic: The Gathering cards by armored car, and knowing exactly when to bring the gavel down with Joe Bodnar, an auctioneer in New Jersey. How does he separate junk from treasure? And what does it mean to "break up the pool"?

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

An Infectious Disease Doctor Aug 25, 2026

Show notes

Sleuthing through patient histories for the clue everyone else missed, asking patients about caves, scorpions, and shaman retreats, and sounding the alarm on a potential Ebola case with Dr. Boghuma Titanji, an infectious disease doctor. What annoys ID doctors about the TV show House? And which infections can she diagnose by smell?

LINKS & REFERENCES

Psittacosis is a rare bacterial infection spread from birds, explained on the CDC's psittacosis page
A 2026 hantavirus outbreak on a cruise ship killed three passengers, per this CDC health advisory.
APOPO trains rats to sniff out tuberculosis in sputum samples. See how it works.
Listen to Death, Sex, and Money

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

A Mail Carrier Aug 11, 2026

Show notes

Loading the mail truck before the day begins, dealing with aggressive dogs and bad weather, and keeping a neighborhood connected by showing up every day with John Ayala, a retired mail carrier in Los Angeles. How did a golf club help him deliver packages? And what does a mail carrier learn about us from our mail?

Thanks to Mike, one of our listeners, who reached out to suggest we talk with John after reading a profile of him in the LA Times.

GOT A COMMENT OR SUGGESTION? Email us at jobs@whatitslike.com

FOR SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: Email us at partnerships@whatitslike.com

WANT TO BE ON THE SHOW? Leave us a voicemail at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:

1. What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?

2. What’s a specific story you tell your friends that happened on the job? It could be funny, sad, anxiety-making, pride-inducing or otherwise.

We can’t respond to every message, but we do listen to all of them! We’ll follow up if it's a good fit.

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