ZigZag

As co-host of NPR’s Code Switch, Shereen Marisol Meraji combines groundbreaking reporting on race and culture with her own personal experience as a half-Puerto Rican, half-Persian American. On this episode, she and Manoush discuss why the push for inclusion makes some people uncomfortable and how the diversity discussion can get even more delicate when people don’t clearly identify as white or black—like Manoush, who only recently realized her co-workers considered her a woman of color. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @RadioMirage (Shereen Marisol Meraji, cohost of NPR’s Code Switch Podcast). ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, GooglePodcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

Valerie Jarrett‘s fascinating family defied racism to become some of the most influential African-Americans you’ve likely never heard of, including one of Louisiana’s first black legislators and MIT’s first black student. But Jarrett also shares how, despite a law degree and supportive parents, she struggled to find her own career path. Hear what jolted Jarrett out of a professional stupor to find work that mattered to her. Plus, the revolutionary ways she dealt with staffing and “women’s issues” in the White House, including making paternity leave mandatory and letting the President know when menopause was getting her down. Whatever your politics, this is an extremely inspiring listen. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @ValerieJarrett (Valerie Jarrett, former senior advisor to President Barack Obama and author of* Finding My Voice*) ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1.

For millions of us, air travel comes with the job. NASA physicist Peter Kalmus was no different; he frequently flew to prestigious conferences around the globe to present his research. But then, on a routine flight in 2012, Kalmus had a personal reckoning. Disgusted at how his travel contributed to global warming, he decided to quit airplanes, switch careers, and start an online community for people who’ve changed their flying habits. On this episode, Kalmus shares how he handles invitations to speak at far-flung conferences, why he thinks people deny climate change, and what we can do to slow global warming, whether we give up flying or not. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @ClimateHuman (Peter Kalmus, Climate Activist) ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, GooglePodcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

After an onerous cancer diagnosis, Kate Pickert nearly skipped an interview for a job she desperately wanted. Her husband encouraged her to go, saying, "You never know. Maybe you won't die!" Pickert got the job...and she lived. Now she's a journalism professor and author of Radical: The Science, Culture and History of Breast Cancer in America. On this episode, she tells Jen how investigating her diagnosis like a reporter helped her realize how little people know about the latest cancer treatment options...and that working (and keeping your hair) through chemotherapy is even possible. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @KatePickert (Kate Pickert, author of Radical: The Science, Culture and History of Breast Cancer in America) ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, GooglePodcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

Double-career couples are the norm these days. But when organizational behaviorist Jennifer Petriglieri looked for studies on how these couples manage their professional and personal responsibilities, she found little research. So Petriglieri did her own five-year study, talking to dozens of couples, and compiling what she learned into the book Couples That Work. On this episode, Petriglieri walks us through the three phases she discovered a couple must navigate to keep their relationship and career intact. Later, ZigZag’s own Jen Poyant shares how Petriglieri’s analysis helps her better understand why her own marriage failed. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), Jennifer Petriglieri, author of Couples That Work. ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

This week, we’re featuring an episode from the IRL podcast called “The Surveillance Economy.” Learn about the rise of surveillance capitalism, and hear from guests like Harvard Business School’s Shoshana Zuboff. She says that Big Tech uses our personal data to not only track, but also predict and even control our behavior. The culture of work and business has changed significantly due to surveillance capitalism. What have we gotten right, and where have we gone wrong?  IRL: Online Life is Real life is an original podcast from Firefox about online issues that affect us all. It’s hosted by ZigZag’s Manoush Zomorodi. Listen and subscribe to IRL on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more about the series at [irlpodcast.org] (hyperlink to: https://irlpodcast.org/).

If you live in Michigan or run your company with a bit of an anarchist bent, you've likely heard of the Zingerman's Community of Businesses, including a coffee roaster, creamery, and candy factory, all co-owned and operated. On this episode, co-founder Ari Weinzweig shares the story behind his alternative business empire, starting with a single deli in 1982 that grew into a collective making $60m a year in revenue. Plus, Manoush and Jen reveal their own attempts at business visioning as they try to take community, cash flow, and personal sanity into equal consideration at Stable Genius Productions. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), Ari Weinzweig, cofounder of @zingermans Community of Businesses ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

With her band Tsunami and record label Simple Machines, Jenny Toomey was a fixture on the '90s Washington, D.C. indie music scene. On this episode, Toomey shares her evolution from rocker to founder of the Future of Music Coalition to director at the Ford Foundation, one of the world's wealthiest philanthropies. Be prepared to hear a lot of amazing music...and an inspiring ideas about how youthful ideals can mature into pragmatic and powerful careers. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions) @jennytoomey (Jenny Toomey, Director of the Internet Freedom Unit at the Ford Foundation) ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

In 2015, Katharine Zaleski wrote an op-ed for Fortune that went viral called I’m Sorry to All the Mothers I Worked With. In it, the former media exec apologized for “a long list of infractions against mothers,” whom she’d assumed couldn’t handle long hours or weren’t committed to their career because of parenting duties. One of those mothers was ZigZag host Manoush Zomorodi. On this episode, she and Katharine make amends and track Katharine’s metamorphosis from a childless boss at the Huffington Post to a mother-of-two and gender-equity advocate as co-founder of the recruiting platform Power to Fly. Katharine also shares her company’s surprising research on why highly-skilled women decide to quit jobs they love or don’t apply for positions in the first place. It’s NOT, she says, because women lack confidence. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions) @kzaleski (Katharine Zaleski, cofounder of Power to Fly.) ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies. If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker. CREDITS: Matt Boynton, Audio Engineer and Sound Designer Ania Grzesik, Audio Engineer David Herman, Composer Marcy Thompson, Producer Maria Wurttele, Production Coordinator

We're excited that Manoush is guest hosting the Ted Radio Hour! To celebrate, we're bringing you her 2017 TED Talk. It's all about our relationship to technology, and how it sometimes helps us to avoid some very human states of mind, like boredom. It’s an inspiring 14 minutes, meant to help you recharge.

Dan Price, the founder of Gravity Payments, became a media darling in 2015 after announcing that every employee would be paid a minimum of $70k. (Those salaries have consistently risen since then.) For most of his staff, the increase was dramatic (the median income in the U.S. is about $60k.) Now, four years later, Dan tells Manoush how an ex-girlfriend woke him up to Seattle’s high cost of living, what equal pay has done to his company’s bottom line, and what he thinks could rehabilitate other corporations and *their *overpaid CEOs. Plus, Manoush and Jen debate whether Dan’s pay strategy is replicable for their company. ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @DanPriceSeattle (Dan Price, CEO of Gravity Payments) Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker. CREDITS: Matt Boynton, Audio Engineer and Sound Designer Ania Grzesik, Audio Engineer David Herman, Composer Marcy Thompson, Producer Maria Wurttele, Production Coordinator

ZigZag is back after a brief hiatus and kicking off a series of shows investigating how people are rethinking the notion of “success.” On this episode, listeners share their frustrations with an economy structured to thrive at the cost of the planet, communities, and their mental health. Plus, an analysis of their responses to the question: how do you measure and define success in your life and work? The data reveal 5 main goals listeners are striving for…and some intriguing tactics they’re using to align work and values. Manoush and Jen discuss how the ZigZag community may be at the forefront of a culture shift. They also have a frank conversation about the future of their company, Stable Genius Productions, in light of Manoush’s tough summer. ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), ZigZag Listeners! Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker. Here are this week's special offer codesfrom our sponsors. We're grateful when you use them and try to vet the products as best we can.

Bonus: Black.af

Two years ago, Helen Zaltzman and her husband, Martin Austwick, gave up their London apartment to travel the world. She paid the bills by continuing to produce her two podcasts, The Allusionist and Answer Me This, from the road. Things were going well until a visit to Tasmania, when Helen got a serious infection in her neck and had to be hospitalized. After nearly a month in intensive care, she was finally released. Helen was, of course, relieved to be alive. But she soon discovered that her brain no longer functioned the same way…and her work habits needed to change. ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @HelenZaltzman (Helen Zaltzman, Host and Creator of the Answer Me This and The Allusionist Podcasts) Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker.

Eighteen months. That's how long Khe Hy (pronounced Kay Hee) gave himself to figure out his life after quitting his extremely well-paid job at Blackrock Financials. His friends called him nuts. His immigrant parents thought they'd failed him. But his wife was supportive. She and Khe set some ground rules ("no stressing over little luxuries like ordering wine") and then embarked on an adventure to discover if he could make enough money to support his family, feel intellectually satisfied, and NOT check email when his kids are around. Hear what he found...plus, Manoush and Jen take Khe's quiz to better understand their own relationship to money. ZigZag is the business show about being human. Join a community of listeners riding the twists and turns of late-capitalism, searching for a kinder, more sustainable way. Manoush Zomorodi and Jen Poyant investigate how work and business impact our wellbeing and the planet we live on. On Seasons 4 and 5, hear from rebels and visionaries with radical ideas on how we can build stable lives, careers, and companies.  If you’re also interested in Jen and Manoush’s personal story and their adventures in starting their own business with a little help from blockchain technology, listen to the first three seasons, starting with Season 1, Chapter 1. **Who You’ll Hear: **@manoushz (Manoush Zomorodi, host of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @jpoyant (Jen Poyant, cohost of ZigZag and cofounder of Stable Genius Productions), @khemaridh (Khe Hy, Contributing Editor at Quartz and Creator of Rad Reads) Thank you for supporting us by using special offer codes from our sponsors, signing up for our free newsletter, and subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Overcast, Spotify, or Breaker. CREDITS: Matt Boynton, Audio Engineer and Sound Designer Ania Grzesik, Audio Engineer David Herman, Composer Maria Wurttele, Production Coordinator