Small Talk: A Gen X Podcast

For much of the 1990s and early 2000s, I was tapped by women's magazines to explain what guys think and why they do the things they do. I wasn't alone. There's a small fraternity who share this odd magazine DNA — men who got paid, often under fake names, to translate men for an audience of women. I caught up with two of them,  Ky Henderson  (my editor and successor as the Guy Guru at Cosmo) and  A...

Many midlife Americans fantasize about living abroad—especially when the Orange Monster dominates our thoughts and our country seems to be going the way of the Handmaid's Tale. But what does it  actually  take to uproot your life and make the leap? To help us unpack the realities of expat life, I spoke to  Sacha Cohen , a Gen X writer, journalist, and former public relations executive who recently...

Career coach Colleen Paulson (founder of Ageless Careers, 100K LinkedIn followers) breaks down the brutal reality facing Gen X job seekers — and what we can do about it. The average search now takes 12-18 months. Portfolio careers aren't optional anymore. Smaller companies are hiring 50x faster than corporations. And our Gen X humility is killing us on LinkedIn. Sobering, frustrating, but ultimate...

The 90s usually get called hip hop's golden era. But the foundation was crafted in the 80s. I went live with journalist and cultural critic Jeff Chang, author of  Can't Stop Won't Stop , to talk about the records that changed the game — from Blondie's "Rapture" to  It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back , from Run-DMC to Eric B. & Rakim. Then we talk about the greatest Gen X rappers of all...

MTV was the center of the pop cultural universe in the '80s and '90s. Then, just like that, it wasn't. Dave Holmes had a front-row seat to both the meteoric rise and shocking fall of the network that defined Gen X. As an MTV VJ from 1998 to 2003, Holmes hosted iconic shows like "TRL" and "120 Minutes," interviewing everyone from Tom Cruise to Joe Strummer during the channel's peak years. But Dave...

Andy Buckley never expected to become David Wallace, one of television's most recognizable bosses. But a chance encounter at a farmer's market changed everything. In this Small Talk conversation, the Gen X actor tells the story of his surprising second act from a financial advisor in corporate America to CFO of Dunder Mifflin on  The Office . He also shares stories from the set working with Steve...

Alison Tatlock , executive producer and writer on the hit TV show Pluribus , breaks down why the show resonates so strongly, especially with Gen X viewers raised to question authority, resist groupthink, and trust their own instincts.  We talk about: Why Pluribus sparks debate instead of offering answers How Gen X distrust shapes the show's central character The fear of being left behind by "progr...

Here's a shocking revelation: You know Norm and Cliff from Cheers? They were 37 and 38 years old at the height of that show's popularity. The old dudes in Cocoon were in their 40s! Why did men look so much older back in the day? Investigative reporter Steven Greenstreet , host of the Make This Make Sense at the New York Post , joins the show to explain why men from earlier generations aged so diff...

Author Max Brooks grew up surrounded by Hollywood royalty, but he never felt like he fit the part. Before  World War Z and before he advised the U.S. military on disaster planning, he was the child of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft, who obsessed over niche interests and tried to survive school one awkward lunch at a time. In this episode, Max explains why being an outsider became his greatest advant...

More than three in five Gen Xers are not confident in their ability to achieve a dream retirement and nearly half think they'll outlive their savings. We have far less confidence in our futures than generations before us. Kerry Hannon and Janna Herron, co-authors of Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future, explain how we got here and what we can do about it. They offer so...

Former Hollywood TV writer Amy Suto walked away from her dream job to build a seven-figure writing business. She has a new book out called Write for Money and Power: The Anti-Starving Artist's Guide to Becoming a Seven-Figure Writer, which argues that writers need to stop romanticizing poverty and start building sustainable businesses. In this conversation, she reveals the three pillars creatives...

Lili Zarghami spent decades working in women's magazines before realizing none of them were speaking to women like her anymore. After turning 40 and getting laid off, she decided to create Jenny Mag—a digital magazine for Gen X women who don't fit the cookie-cutter mold of traditional women's media. In this conversation, we discuss why dating stories outperform health content, the complicated rela...

One minute you're helicoptering your kid to games and recitals, nagging them about their messy room. Then they're gone. An empty bedroom. An empty chair at the dinner table. You know this is a healthy part of their development, but it still feels like a piece of your own life just vanished. Some feel sadness. Some feel empty. Some even feel relief. But nobody really tells you how to navigate this....