What’s Your Favorite Holiday Tradition? Season 1 Guests Share
As the year comes to a close, guests from Season 1 of Tell Me What It’s Like share the holiday traditions that matter most to them. From longtime family rituals to traditions shaped by loss, life season, culture, and even wildlife, this bonus episode reflects on how traditions evolve and how new ones are created along the way.Season 1 Guests Featured in this Episode:Keri NelsonMorton BarlazAlexis BrozBill HoranRich "Big Daddy" SalgadoCarol HoenigLinda StraderSarah TeresinskiMentioned in this episode:Midwinter DayFeast of the Seven FishesCardinali Bakery, Carle Place, NYSupport This Show:Follow Tell Me What It’s Like in your favorite podcast appLeave a rating & review — it helps others find the showShare the episode and tag @RaineMediaCo on social media
Sustainable Style: Sarah Teresinski on Upcycling for Stylish Home Decor
When Sarah Teresinski was a single mom, she couldn’t afford the beautiful little dresses she saw in stores for her daughter. So she decided to teach herself how to sew. That simple decision sparked a movement — and eventually, Redeux Style, where Sarah transforms old, unused items into something new and beautiful. Today, she helps people see the potential in what they already have or what they might find at the thrift stores — proving that sustainable can be stylish too. “If everyone who follows me did just one upcycle a year, we could keep 60,000 pounds of waste out of landfills — that’s 5,600 garbage trucks saved.”Hear Sarah talk about:How teaching herself to sew turned into a full-time creative businessWhat it was like to face criticism early on — and why it fueled her missionThe difference between fast fashion, fast furniture, and true sustainable styleHer viral ceiling fan upcycle that caught the attention of The Drew Barrymore Show and Architectural DigestHow small, beautiful changes can make a big impact — for your home and the planetMentioned in this episode:Find Sarah on TikTok, Instagram, and FacebookSee Sarah's appearance on The Drew Barrymore ShowUnited Nations Fashion & Lifestyle NetworkSarah's placemat upcycleSarah's fan blade upcycleFire starter upcycle15 ways to use silica packetsOrganizing a pantry on a budgetSarah's friend Dan the Organizer ManSupport This Show:Follow Tell Me What It’s Like in your favorite podcast appLeave a rating & review — it helps others find the showShare the episode and tag @RaineMediaCo on social media
The Woman Who Changed Chess: Susan Polgar on Becoming a Grandmaster
Susan Polgar’s father believed geniuses weren’t born, they were made. So when his three-year-old daughter found an old chess set in their Budapest apartment, he saw an opportunity to prove it. Susan quickly learned the game, but soon realized the real challenge: convincing the world that girls could play just as well as boys - which she did by becoming the first woman to earn the Grandmaster title under the same standards as men. In this episode, she shares how she rewrote the gender norms of chess, overcame deeply rooted sexism, and helped redefine what young girls believe they can achieve."You need to set a goal. And in this case, you need to set the highest goal possible. So even if we fall short somewhat, we still get further than if we set a lower goal."Hear Susan talk about:How, at six, she decided to specialize in chess (and not math)The sexism she faced as a young girl rising in a male-dominated fieldWhy her grandmother's words shaped her sense of perseveranceWhat came after winning world championshipsThe lessons chess teaches about focus, decision-making, and resilienceMentioned in this episode:Rebel Queen: The Cold War, Misogyny, and the Making of a Grandmaster by Susan PolgarThe Susan Polgar Foundation - scholarships, training, and outreach for young chess playersIntroduction: Learn Chess in 30 Minutes (first instructional video for beginners)Support This Show:Follow Tell Me What It’s Like in your favorite podcast appLeave a rating & review — it helps others find the showShare the episode and tag @RaineMediaCo on social media
Becoming Wise in the Age of AI: Jeff Burningham on What It Means to Be Human
After decades of chasing success as a tech entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and even a candidate for Utah governor, Jeff Burningham found himself questioning what it all meant.When the governor’s race ended in 2020, Jeff finally had space to pause—and that pause changed everything. It led him to write The Last Book Written by a Human, a deeply personal reflection on consciousness, connection, and wisdom in an age increasingly defined by artificial intelligence.“As our machines become smarter, we have to become wiser.”Hear Jeff talk about:What it was like to step back from chasing success and re-evaluate what mattersWhy he believes AI is a mirror showing us who we areThe four stages he sees as part of every human and technological evolution: disruption, reflection, transformation, and evolutionWhy slowing down might be the most human thing we can doMentioned in this episode:The Last Book Written by a Human by Jeff BurninghamRead more about JeffThe Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle Support This Show:Follow Tell Me What It’s Like in your favorite podcast appLeave a rating & review — it helps others find the showShare the episode and tag @RaineMediaCo on social media
Growing Up Millennial: Charlie Wells on What Shaped a Generation
Journalist Charlie Wells is a Millennial — and by now, something of an expert on the Millennial generation, too. In his debut book, What Happened to Millennials: In Defense of a Generation, he shares the stories of five people whose lives reveal what it’s really been like to grow up Millennial — through the early optimism, the crises that shaped us, and all the change we’ve weathered along the way."We're adults and we've overcome a lot of obstacles as this group of people. It's okay to celebrate that."Hear Charlie talk about:Why he wanted to explore what it’s really been like to grow up as a MillennialHow he chose the five people whose lives he shares in the bookHow major moments like 9/11 and the rise of the internet shaped Millennial identityThe nostalgia objects — from Tamagotchis to AIM screen names — that connect us across dividesWhy he feels proud of Millennials, and what he hopes we carry forward into the next chapter of adulthoodMentioned in this episode:What Happened to Millennials: In Defense of a Generation by Charlie WellsCharlie Wells on Instagram and X (Twitter)Support this show:Follow Tell Me What It’s Like in your favorite podcast appLeave a rating and reviewShare on social media and tag @rainemediaco