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Listen to the new HEIST podcast here
Hey everyone, Ben here. June featured the hottest days in Berlin since temperatures were recorded. It’s hard not to feel like we have one foot into the future we dreaded. I feel the whiplash of the turning gyre, the sense that everything is changing and we won’t like what’s on the other side of this transformation.
But part of the whiplash is how things continue to improve at the same time. How whiplash leads to backlash, and how backlash can be sweet, even. See: reviews of Cory Doctorow’s new book and the idea of AI populism.
And this month I also spent hours considering the 747 and the mechanical watch, making contact with my 18 year old self or something.
Some personal highlights in June: I was interviewed with Matan in Vashti, where we could continue banging the drum about BAD COUSINS. And at the Kollo Media studio in Chapters, we started our first video tests for new podcast projects. It’s something I’ve avoided for a long time but have been enjoying setting up lights and working through new editing workflows.
Updates below…
Simplify
Simplify put out a listener survey …. it’s just a few simple questions and will help us immensely, so please fill it out if you’re a listener. We published these two episodes in June:
A short update about Simplify’s progress this year. 10,000 downloads per episode. Ad deal signed. Plans to expand. Check it out here. Caitlin added more context and a photo of us from 2017 here.
There is no ideal weight. An extremely practical guide to dieting (also: why dieting doesn’t work!). Podcast. Essay.
Thank you for listening. You can keep supporting us by sharing episodes, rating and reviewing the show, and staying connected: Follow Simplify on Instagram, sign up for Caitlin’s essays in the newsletter, and subscribe to the feed wherever you listen to podcasts. We’re publishing episodes every other week.
HEIST
We published the trailer of the HEIST podcast! Listen here or wherever you get your podcasts. And subscribe to the feed so you get the episodes when they drop.
We’ll launch properly with three episodes on 6 July, featuring Hebh Jamal on Palestinian life in Berlin after October 7; Ben Miller on the AfD’s weaponization of queer politics; and Yossi Bartal on a faked murder in Neukölln.
One thing I’m particularly excited about there is featuring journalists whose work isn’t readily available in English, sharing stories from Berlin that are relevant globally.
HEIST is Berlin’s new worker-owned English news platform HEIST. Follow them on IG and sign up for daily news, weekly features, weekend guides, and much more…
You can good sense of what it’s about via the trailer. And if you like it, please help us spread the word!
The best HR advice comes from people who’ve been in the trenches.
That’s what this newsletter delivers.
I Hate it Here is your insider’s guide to surviving and thriving in HR, from someone who’s been there. It’s not about theory or buzzwords — it’s about practical, real-world advice for navigating everything from tricky managers to messy policies.
Every newsletter is written by Hebba Youssef — a Chief People Officer who’s seen it all and is here to share what actually works (and what doesn’t). We’re talking real talk, real strategies, and real support — all with a side of humor to keep you sane.
Because HR shouldn’t feel like a thankless job. And you shouldn’t feel alone in it.
Fühlungsqualitäten
With Neue Narrative, we have a few more Fühlungsqualitäten episodes (and then will take a break for the summer). I’ve had the benefit of sitting in on some of the recordings and always learn something new from the experts. Every episode starts with a listener’s question from work. Then coaches Frederick Fleischmann, Elena Lange, and NN founder Sebastian Klein all discuss the problem and work through possible solutions.
We published two episodes in June:
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