In this episode, I chat with Sam Bolter, host of the Weird Work podcast, known for its engaging conversations with individuals who have unconventional careers. From professional mermaids to international pizza consultants, Sam shares insights into the joy and challenges of these unique jobs. We talk about his four categories of 'weird work' and discuss the significance of passion and hard work in finding job satisfaction. Listen in for inspiring stories and advice on how to dream bigger and find more joy in your professional life.

Speaker Links:

Weird Work Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/weird-work/id1281393532

Learn More:

If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy my Life Satisfaction Assessment. It's a 30-minute program where I guide you through a deep dive into 10 areas of your life to assess what's bringing you joy and what's bringing you down. I call it Derailed and it's a fabulous place to begin a joy-at-work redesign.

https://www.midlifeunstuck.com/derailed

I'm Lucia and I'm a podcast addict.

If the Weird Work podcast had a fan club, I'd be there with bells on.

Our next guest, Sam Bolter, host of the Weird Work podcast, which is beautifully

produced by Matt Brown, has interviewed 54 people who do weird work that they love.

What do I mean by weird?

Professional mermaid.

Wingman, Cuddler, International Pizza Consultant, Bridesmaid, ASM Video Maker,

Medieval Knight, the list goes on.

If you're sitting there thinking, I'm not experiencing enough joy at work,

keep listening to hear Sam's insights.

I promise you, you'll dream bigger afterwards.

Let's dive in.

this bit out, but the reason I love your show is because I

started my business in 2017.

And at that time, nobody did the work that I do.

Nobody at all.

I had no idea.

I went back, retrained as a psychologist and had no idea what to do.

So I was walking, hiking for hours and hours on end, listening to podcasts and

I came across yours and it was joyful and it was people doing work that they loved.

And that's what I help people do.

None of them are weird like yours.

None of them.

They think they're weird, but really they're just off the path a little bit.

Yours are crazy, but it helps possibility thinking.

So I share it all the time with potential clients or anybody.

And it just, you go from, I can't do this work anymore too.

I don't know what I'm going to do.

And then I show them your podcast and they go, We could do anything.

If people are making money out of being a mermaid, I can make money

out of being an accountant or a lawyer in a slightly different way.

So that's what I

funny.

It's funny.

You mentioned that too.

And just in the general context of this, cause like we have a we have

a hierarchy or not, I don't know if hierarchy is the right way to

say it, but there's like guidelines for weird work based on the job.

So like there's four categories we have.

That's like corporate weird job, regular job in weird context, weird, but common

ish job and then unique job that is weird.

So it's like a corporate weird job is like obituary writer for the

economist, crossword puzzle, editor, SNL band leader, space psychologist.

Like you work at a large company, but you are the one weird person at that.

Then there's like regular job at a weird context.

So that's like.

TV repair man, but for modern art museums or laundry person for touring musicians,

or like barber for famous people.

So normal job, weird context, then there's like weird, but common ish.

And in that one, we need to find the right person where it's okay.

You might be like a professional cuddler or a location scout or

a dramaturge where it's that's actually a relatively common job.

There are lots of location scouts, but then it's which location scout do we find?

And then the last one is just like one that like is crazy.

It's like you put ashes into vital records or you wrote 25, 000 songs.

There's just, it's not a job that anybody knows.

So it's I think, yeah, it is like a very fun thing to hear, like how

you're using it and helping people.

And it'd be like, Oh yeah.

Doing a weird job as a lawyer in a different context.

It's makes a ton of sense for us because it's one of those things where

you're like, yeah, there's a ton.

That There is somebody who finds like the they like being a lawyer,

they just fucking hate law firms.

And so they find this bizarre edge, unique area, they get to

work it, and then that's great.

And that excites them and off they go, but oh my

God, there's four categories.

Oh, I feel like an insider now.

And have you learned, I think, I think I've counted it.

There's 54 interviews, I think, but over those 54, what have you

learned about joy at work, apart that others might need to hear?

I think the first thing that I think is super important and key to

the show is even if something sounds so fun and so amazing, It's still work.

Like the people, like there is people say, Oh, do what you love.

And you'll never work a day in your life.

No people do what they love and they still work.

It's still hard.

It's they're still putting in the time to be a successful YouTuber Twitch streamer.

They're still putting in the hours.

Even though it looks fun, all work that you care about is difficult.

And I think for a lot of people, like they're searching for this job.

That's like this amazing thing that will solve and find all of their joy.

Yeah, that's out there, but you're never going to escape

just like actually working.

And I think the thing that for me after talking with so

many people is are you proud?

Of the work that you're putting out and are you excited

about the work in the future?

And if you're excited about your work, and if you're proud of what you're doing

It's going to motivate you to keep getting better at and put in the actual work to

get better And so like for me, I think it's just hugely inspiring to see how

people have navigated that in their life

Oh my god, absolutely.

And I hate that phrase.

I can't bear that phrase.

Find the job that you love and you never

Yeah, sure.

Great.

Yeah.

The job.

Yeah.

That job would be like, be a trust fund child.

That would be a great, that's how I would never work and love that.

But it's not available to all of us.

Do you have one favourite weird worker?

I do not have a favorite.

Like I don't have a favorite.

They change all of the time for me.

I think to me, There's ones that really stand out that I

just resonate more with me.

I think the owner of Yume Wokatare, the ramen restaurant, where it's

about finding your dreams, I think that one is really special because

it takes this kind of innocuous, like small place that's next to a Dunkin

Donuts on the side of a major street.

And it's this incredible story of what he built and why he built it.

I think a lot about honestly, like Lenny Pickett, who's the

Saturday Night Live band leader.

He's the guy who plays the saxophone.

And it's like, you see this, this man who's found this way into this incredible

job where he gets to play music.

Every night he's around the biggest celebrities in the world and he like

loves it and it's his he's such a core and integral part of this show does

nobody really gets to see as much and so I think like those are ones that I

really think about a lot and I think probably the show the episode I had some

of the most fun making those would might be the international pizza consultant

because I got to eat a lot of pizza that day that was really exciting and

then Controversially but it was really fun to make, was YouTube Camp for Kids.

People have a lot of opinions about that episode.

But honestly, just seeing the joy of small kids making funny YouTube

videos is so much fun for me to work.

Absolute heaven.

And if you were, if you could give one piece of advice to a mid career

professional who is thinking, I need at least 10 percent more joy

in my work, what would you say?

Okay.

Dream bigger than 10%.

If you're looking for 10 percent more joy in your life, you should be,

like, looking for bigger than that.

I think Optimistically, you can have a lot of joy in your life at work.

And I think for a lot of people you can have a lot of joy in life, so

you should dream bigger in that area.

And I think for one of the things that you should think is like, that

I, I try and think it's like, yes, you like, if you're thinking about

something that you want and you're like doubting yourself, am I qualified?

Do I have the things?

It's you good.

You're good.

You're good.

You'll be fine.

There are people who have done way more ambitious things with way less

who are way less prepared than you are.

My 99 percent of the time.

And if there is something that you feel you want to go after, but you need

something else, you need more training.

You need this.

You need approval.

No, you don't.

Just go for the things that matter in your life, go for the things that

you want in your life, because there isn't going to be this magical moment

where it's just passed down to you and you're totally ready for it.

If you enjoyed this, you might also enjoy my

Life Satisfaction Assessment.

It's a 30 minute program where I guide you through a deep dive into 10 areas

of your life to assess what's bringing you joy and what's bringing you time.

I call it D.

It's a fabulous place to begin a joy at work redesign.