『Born to Ramble Podcast』のカバーアート

Born to Ramble Podcast

Born to Ramble Podcast

著者： I'm here to ramble and make you laugh.
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Born to Ramble is a storytelling podcast featuring stories by me, Nikki Settelmeyer, and by other writers I love. I write mostly creative fiction based on everything I see, do, and experience as a 45 year old creator, mommy, and corporate burnout embarking on a new chapter of embracing creativity and community over emails and corporate circle jerks. My favorite writers are Augusten Burroughs, Raymond Carver, Charles Bukowski, Judy Blume and Jenny Lawson.

borntoramble.substack.comNikki Settelmeyer アート エンターテインメント・舞台芸術 社会科学
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  • The Job Report: Open to Work, Rejected & Trying Not to Panic

    The Job Report: Open to Work, Rejected & Trying Not to Panic
    2026/08/12
    Welcome to a special edition of The Job Report with Nikki.Today, Nikki finally admits something she has been resisting: she’s adding the green “Open to Work” circle to her LinkedIn profile.And she’s not celebrating.This episode is an honest, funny, and vulnerable conversation about job hunting, unemployment, job rejection, career anxiety, LinkedIn, and the emotional toll of looking for work in a difficult job market.Because applying for jobs isn’t necessarily the hardest part.The hardest part is what happens when you actually meet people, have a good interview, start imagining yourself in the role—and then receive an automated rejection email.Especially when it arrives at 5 a.m. on a Monday morning.💔 When Job Rejection Feels PersonalNikki talks about why automated rejection emails don’t necessarily bother her. Send her 200 in a day and she’ll keep going.But meeting real people changes everything.After interviewing for a position on Friday, Nikki woke up Monday morning to an automated rejection.And suddenly, the job search didn’t feel like business anymore.It felt personal.This episode explores something that doesn’t get discussed enough when we talk about unemployment and career transitions: job rejection can genuinely hurt.Even when you know intellectually that a rejection isn’t a judgment of your worth, it can still feel like one.💼 Welcome to the “Open to Work” ClubNikki officially surrenders and adds the green Open to Work banner to her LinkedIn profile.It’s a small visual change, but emotionally, it represents something much bigger: admitting that the job search has become difficult, uncertain, lonely, and frightening.She talks about the strange experience of watching friends continue on with their jobs while you’re stuck in the seemingly endless cycle of:Apply → Interview → Hope → Wait → Rejection → Repeat.👩‍👧 What Her Mom Had to SayWhen Nikki starts spiraling, she calls her mom.Her mom reminds her that she had to interview three times before getting her teaching job in 1989.That story unexpectedly helps validate Nikki’s feelings.If even her mom remembers how stressful it was to interview for a job decades ago, maybe Nikki isn’t being unreasonable for feeling disappointed and anxious about today’s job search.❤️ “Something Better Is Going to Come Along”Nikki also calls her son’s dad, who approaches the situation from a completely different angle.He asks her to imagine what she would say if he called with the exact same story.Her response?Obviously, she’d tell him the company was full of losers, they were probably going to hire someone’s son-in-law, and he didn’t want to work there anyway.His response:Exactly.Sometimes it’s easier to believe in someone else’s future than your own.And sometimes the people who love us can see something we can’t see when we’re in the middle of disappointment.🧠 The Emotional Reality of Looking for WorkThis episode is ultimately a message to anyone else currently looking for a job:You are not alone.Job searching can be lonely.It can be frightening.It can create anxiety and self-doubt.And it can be especially difficult when you’re surrounded by people who still have their jobs and don’t have to think about where their next paycheck is coming from.Nikki doesn’t have the secret algorithm for getting hired.She doesn’t know the magic combination of keywords, applications, networking messages, resumes, interviews, or LinkedIn optimization that finally makes someone say, “You’re hired.”But she does know this:She is capable.She has experience.She has skills.She can manage projects, work in software and technology, create marketing strategies, work in digital marketing and social media, build a Shopify store, and do approximately 700 other things.And somehow, she’s still looking for work.🍁 And Yes, She Can Make Pumpkin SconesBecause sometimes you have to end a serious conversation about unemployment by reminding everyone that you have marketable skills.And apparently, pumpkin scones are among them.Open to work. Get full access to Born to Ramble at borntoramble.substack.com/subscribe
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    5 分
  • Born to Ramble: “One Day at the Swearing Club” | Childhood Chaos, Corporate Burnout & Why Adulting is a Scam

    Born to Ramble: “One Day at the Swearing Club” | Childhood Chaos, Corporate Burnout & Why Adulting is a Scam
    2026/08/07

    What do job hunting, fake cigarettes, neighborhood delinquents, and a six-year-old swearing club have in common?

    As always, My Life!

    In this episode of Born to Ramble, I share a hilarious update on THE JOB REPORT. Spoiler alert: it still sucks! I celebrate some exciting podcast milestones, and read an excerpt from my upcoming memoir, NeverWife.

    Before we dive into the story, I vent about today’s impossible job market, why every job description sounds like corporate gaslighting, and how my parents somehow managed to support an entire family by drinking coffee, smoking cigarettes, and using an adding machine.

    That was in the mid 80s, which is exactly where our story begins! 1987

    In “One Day at the Swearing Club,” six-year-old Nikki and her neighborhood friends gather in a backyard playhouse where they pretend to be exhausted adults—complete with fake cigarettes, happy hour, high heels, and plenty of colorful language. Their afternoon of make-believe takes an unexpected turn when one neighborhood boy shows up waving a very real hunting knife, leading to one unforgettable rescue by Nikki’s cigarette-smoking, cowboy-boot-wearing father.

    It’s childhood nostalgia, dark humor, Gen X memories, and storytelling exactly the way life actually happened.

    In This Episode

    * Exciting podcast news: Born to Ramble is now available on YouTube and Amazon

    * My first attempt at affiliate marketing (and why Starbucks should absolutely sponsor me)

    * The weekly Job Report: corporate buzzwords, impossible expectations, and remote work dreams

    * Why modern job descriptions make me question reality

    * A reading from my upcoming memoir, NeverWife

    * “One Day at the Swearing Club” : Growing up in the 1980s with neighborhood adventures, fake happy hours, and very real trouble

    Topics Covered

    * Memoir writing

    * Funny childhood stories

    * Growing up in the 1980s

    * Gen X nostalgia

    * Corporate burnout

    * Remote work

    * Job hunting in 2026

    * Humor and storytelling

    * Creative nonfiction

    * Parenting

    * Life after layoffs

    * Neighborhood adventures

    Memorable Quote

    “We’re looking for someone who loves organization, thrives on communication, and gets excited about turning opportunities into appointments.”

    Translation: We’d like one person to do six jobs for half the pay.

    Mentioned in This Episode

    * My upcoming memoir: NeverWife

    * The Born to Ramble Shop

    * New podcast merchandise

    * Affiliate marketing adventures

    * Starbucks (still waiting for that sponsorship...)

    If You Enjoyed This Episode...

    Please subscribe, leave a review, and share the podcast with someone who survived the 1980s, is currently rage-applying for jobs, or remembers pretending to smoke fake hot dogs in a backyard playhouse.

    And if you ever had your own “swearing club,” I definitely want to hear about it.

    New episodes of Born to Ramble drop regularly, featuring funny true stories, memoir excerpts, observations on modern life, motherhood, midlife, nostalgia, and whatever else my brain decides to ramble about.



    Get full access to Born to Ramble at borntoramble.substack.com/subscribe
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    16 分
  • Bonus Episode: Interviewing Otto

    Bonus Episode: Interviewing Otto
    2026/07/31

    Bonus Episode: Interviewing Otto | A very short interview with my son and dog.

    In this special bonus episode of Born to Ramble, Otto and I test out our new “set” in our first ever primetime interview.

    We discuss life's biggest questions, including:

    His favorite book

    His favorite TV show

    Swimming lessons 🏊

    Chocolate 🍫

    Orange pop 🍊

    If you've ever talked to a preschooler, you know conversations rarely go according to plan.

    In This Episode

    00:00 Welcome to Born to Ramble

    00:40 Meet Otto, my first guest ever

    01:20 Swimming lessons

    02:10 Favorite books

    02:45 Sonic vs. Grizzly

    03:30 Chocolate is the best food

    04:00 Signing off, Sir

    About Born to Ramble

    Born to Ramble podcast features audio essays and stories by me, Nikki Settelmeyer, and others. I love creative non-fiction, memoir, and hilarious real stories with a sprinkling of tragedy. Special episodes delve into the “Craft of Writing.” I love writing and I love talking about it. I love talking. #voice

    “Hosted by writer, children's author, and creative writing instructor Nikki Settelmeyer, each episode explores the funny, messy, and meaningful moments that make up everyday life—from corporate burnout and midlife reinvention to parenting adventures and the stories hiding in ordinary moments.” –Anonymous

    Subscribe to Born to Ramble

    If you enjoy stories about writing, l-i-v-i-n-g, (geriatric) parenting, creativity, books, and starting over, be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode of Born to Ramble. I'm over here failing fast and the momentum's got me excited.

    The Born to Ramble newsletter comes out every Thursday at 11:00, and podcast episodes are released each Saturday at 12:07pm ♥️ YouTube Reels and TikTok shorts every day ♥️

    Connect with Nikki

    ✍️ Writer

    🎙️ Host of Born to Ramble

    Subscribe on Substack for essays, behind-the-scenes writing updates, podcast episodes, and plenty of stories



    Get full access to Born to Ramble at borntoramble.substack.com/subscribe
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    3 分
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