We’re Co-Hosts of “The Nod” by Brittany and Eric, and This Is How We Work
The Nod , the popular Gimlet Media podcast about black life and culture hosted by Brittany Luze and Eric Eddings, is back from summer vacation after completing its first year. Luce and Eddings have been podcasting for much longer, working on other Gimlet shows and creating their independent podcast For Colored Nerds , which ran for three years and 42 episodes. We talked to them about blocking time, forgiving yourself when you work hard, and editing meetings that can change an episode.
This issue of How I Work is full of practical ideas on how to lead a productive life and may be our favorite issue of the year. So, even if this is your first time hearing about The Nod , read on.
Location: Brooklyn, New York.
Current concert: Co-hosts of The Nod . Nod is a podcast that tells stories from black lives that are not told elsewhere. Our show ranges from explaining the purple drink’s connection to black culture to the story of an interracial drag troupe that traveled the country in the 1940s. We celebrate the genius, innovation, and resilience that characterize blacks in America and around the world.
One word that best describes how you work: Eric: Organized chaos Brittany: Anxious
Current mobile device: Eric: iPhone 8 Brittany: iPhone 7
Current computer: Eric and Brittany: Macbook Pro
First of all, tell us a little about your past and how you got where you are now.
Eric: Jesus, it’s a long story. But I’ve worked in MANY different industries as a digital strategist. But in 2014, Brittany and I started For Colored Nerds . The podcast we did on the side was a black cultural critic show, and it got us on the radar of Gimlet. I’ve worked on two of their shows, Mogul: The Life & Death of Chris Lighty and Undone . In 2017, Brittany and I introduced Gimlet The Nod, and the rest is history.
Brittany: I have a degree in cinematography from Howard University, graduated during the recession, and have been running around for years in literally any job that might keep me busy (city government, high school sports coach, public television archivist, nanny, low-profile salesman). linen at Nordstrom). passed the GMAT for no reason. Graduated in New York in 2012, worked at a car dealership for a year, was fired from there, had no job for 6 months, then worked in corporate marketing, founded the independent podcast For Colored Nerds with Eric in September 2014. Quit marketing to work at Gimlet in September 2015. I hosted a show called The Sampler . It ended in 2016, and in 2017 Eric and I presented the Gimlet show, which became The Nod, and here we are.
Tell us about a recent work day.
Brittany & Eric: Every day on our team is different, but most of it involves some combination of episode scripting, tracking recording (i.e. narration), or minor fixes and clarifications called re-tracks, interviews, research, cut ribbons. , writing presentations, or attending an editors meeting.
If our episodes are in some sense equivalent to a delicious burger, then edits are a special sauce, encounters that make the episode a real living thing. Editing is when the entire team sits in a room with the lead producer of an upcoming episode playing their latest project. While he’s playing, we all sit and furiously take notes, and then when that’s done, we all share our notes on what changes need to be made to move the episode to the finish line. They can be exhausting and sometimes harsh on the ego, but this is such a testament to how much team effort we have in our work. The edits were not only a key element of our show, but also made us the best producers and hosts.
What apps, gadgets or tools can’t you live without?
Brittany: I really don’t create apps for the sake of apps – I value practicality and minimalism. Most of the time I use Instagram for fun, Pocket for reading long articles, and Twitter to fuel anxiety. I am recording all my thoughts and feelings through the iPhone Notes app. Oh and I LOVE GOOGLE CALENDAR! Every time I close my eyes, I see a weekly view of Google Calendar, and I love that about myself.
I’m fixated on making lists on paper and pen outside of work, but at work I type everything in the MacBook Notes app. My handwriting is so ugly and illegible that it would be a waste of time if I had to write by hand as fast as our workflow required.
Eric: I love apps. The scraps have just changed my life. I used to use Evernote, but some of their recent changes made this unacceptable. Now I put episode ideas, our revision notes, cases and more in Apple Notes and it just works. I’m also a Google Sheets freak. No problem I couldn’t solve with a spreadsheet!
How is your workplace arranged?
Brittany: Everything is ergonomic. I have a laptop stand, a second monitor with its own stand, a wireless keyboard and mouse, and a footrest because my legs are shorter and when my seat is adjusted to the correct height, my feet do not touch the ground. If I don’t use this setup, I will have shooting pains in the right side of my neck.
Eric: My workplace can best be described as managed clutter + hot sauce headphones.
What’s your best shortcut or life hack (no matter how small or niche)?
Brittany: I try to save my time outside of meetings and leave it for the real work: cutting tape, writing scripts, generating ideas and calling out sources. Every Friday around 5:00 pm, I look at my schedule for the next week and put “Do not book” every gap in my schedule. It makes people think twice before inviting me to an unnecessary meeting and helps me manage my time and energy.
Eric: I never try to do multiple tasks at the same time under any circumstances. Multitasking is a lie. I’ve found that when I try to do two things at the same time, I’m more easily distracted and both things don’t work out well. When I complete an assignment, I try to focus on that one.
Tell us about an interesting, unusual, or challenging process you have at work.
Brittany: I’m not doing well on the script or cutting the interview tape after 3:00 pm, so when I have a big deadline or assignment, I don’t struggle with it. Instead, for weeks with a lot of deadlines, I plan to write / cut in large blocks in the morning and do it at home. My mind is so clear when I first get up. Thanks to him, work becomes a joy, not a routine. I get up around 5 or 6, eat a little, and then work straight until 10 or 11 in the morning when it’s time to head out for the first meeting of the day.
I also learned that when I have a very busy deadline, it’s better to just lean on it. I just agree that late weeks are weeks when I eat a little more outside the house, take a taxi and skip the gym. I used to be afraid to get out of my routine, but now I just accept it. My hair may be a little damaged for a few days, but I will not miss this period.
Who are the people who help you achieve results, and how do you rely on them?
Brittany & Eric: Our show couldn’t have happened without everyone at Gimlet, but much of the credit goes to our great team: Senior Producer Sarah Abdurrahman, Editors Emanuel Berry and Jorge Just, and Producers Keith Parkinson-Morgan and Wallace Mack. They produce and shorten our interviews, guest books, collect Pro Tools sessions, get our story structures on check, co-write with us, record our narrative to keep us from sounding Gogo, write to our mailing list, choose soundtracks, and manage Social Networks Noda . We are also working with engineer Cedric Wilson. He is uniquely responsible for mixing the show and giving it a rich and flawless sound.
They are the smartest, kind, hardworking and funniest people we could ever hope to work with.
How do you keep track of what you need to do?
Brittany: I use the MacBook Notes app to keep track of every meeting I attend and use its checklist feature to keep my daily to-do lists. I break down all of my work tasks by type and then prioritize them, then determine how long it takes to complete each required task, and then I schedule those tasks around my meetings. I take great pleasure in checking them every day. This is the source of real joy in my life.
Eric: I am very distracted and very easily distracted by a lot of things and meetings. Therefore, I usually try to keep them focused on a few tasks that need to be done each day. In between, I can let my mind wander through the million little tasks that go through my brain. This is a very imperfect system.
How to recharge or relax?
Brittany: I go for a walk and call my parents who are already retired and are probably tired of calling them too. I’ll do it, or I’ll crawl into the bathroom and scroll through Instagram. Right now, I’m obsessed with spying on my stylist Illeisha Lussiano, aka @thehairartiste , as well as @blackgirlinom and @brownkids lifestyle accounts. I also find that shopping on Amazon is really calming. Something about stocking up on 3 bags of liquid hand soap makes me feel healthy.
Eric: I like walking too, and I will sit and watch Instagram stories as if they were on TV. Plus I watch a bunch of real TV shows and movies. I get lost in stories, and when they run out, I usually have interesting ideas to try or new topics to explore. Finally, nothing beats hanging out with my 3 year old. I’m always more physically tired, but playing with someone who only cares about entertainment will immediately save you from your daily hassle.
What’s your favorite side project?
Brittany: I don’t really have a side project right now. We put For Colored Nerds to bed last summer, and now I’m enjoying my weekend after three years without them. The only other thing I do now besides work is hanging out with my little niece and cooking from my cookbooks. Right now, I love Kelis’s My Life on a Plate , Alison Roman’s Dinner in a Restaurant, and Melissa Clarke’s Dinner : A Game Change .
Eric: I’m also on hiatus from side projects. But I did try a hobby that I always thought was funny (note: I was wrong most (all) of the time) and it was really fun. Plant care, home decoration, yoga. It was great to step out of my comfort zone. My hip position has never felt better!
What are you reading now or what do you recommend?
Brittany: I have to read so much for work that I mostly read cookbooks or Bon Appetit (THE ONLY MAGAZINE I SUBSCRIBE – PLEASE INVITE ME TO YOUR TEST KITCHEN !!!) when I’m not working. Also, I read Sing Unburied Sing by Jasmine Ward and I Can’t Date Jesus by Michael Arseneau.
Eric: I read more articles than books and I really like long journalism. Longreads is one of my favorite sites. It’s awesome and curated extensively, and I always find new writers that I can get hung up on.
Also, I REALLY love movie and TV show reviews and criticism. Some of my favorite TV writers are Angelica Jade Bastien, Alanna Bennett, Alan Sepinwall, and Ali Bartwell.
Who else would you like to see to answer these questions?
Brittany: Mike Teale, CEO and Founder of CurlBox. She does a great job at everything she does, she’s honest and fun, she’s eager to lead a private life outside of work, and she’s the new mom.
Eric: Mike Schur, creator of The Good Place , Parks and Rec and Brooklyn Nine-Nine . No one more accurately conveys the type of humor that I love. I need the process that he has.
What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?
Brittany: Observe the HALT check while working: Try not to talk, do, or deal with anything long-term, permanent, or important if you feel hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. Do a quick self-assessment and then determine which of your needs can be met before doing anything. As the great Cathy Tu ofNancy always said, “There are no podcast emergencies.” So give yourself a break and the opportunity to do your best.
Eric: Stay low and build. We’ve seen a really crazy amount of positive change over the past few years when we’ve been podcasting. But throughout all this, we tried to focus on the next episode, perfecting it, and then moving on to the next. It made me better at my craft and made me stay here so as not to get too carried away with what’s ahead because every episode is important if we want people to come back week after week.
What problem are you still trying to solve?
Brittany: I’m awful at taking time to relax and have fun, or just doing nothing. Most of the days of my life are devoted to being active. It is difficult to get rid of this habit, and it is difficult to keep the harmful one, but I try.
Eric: I’m good at organizing things, but between my child, work and social life, I really don’t have the best time management skills. I try a lot of different systems, but when things get crazy, they all break down. One day.