Jose is a Los Angeles based journalist and scriptwriter and Nicy's younger brother. He studied cinema at California State University, Northridge. He recently started teaching broadcast journalism at his alma mater and you can find him roaming the halls in his signature Chucks. He hosts and produces a Vegan podcast called "⁠Beyond the Kale⁠" and is an avid gamer and storyteller.  

In this inaugural episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Nicy shares her experience of being laid off from Google after almost nine years at the company. Jose discusses his career journey, including going back to college after a 7 year break, working full time jobs all throughout school, and managing feelings of not being "good enough."

#1 - Jose Duran & The Google Layoffs

Crystal Stonebreaker started her career at PWC as an auditor, but soon realized that she prefers working with people rather than numbers. She ran her own boutique recruiting firm and then went on to Google, Amazon, and Meta. Crystal’s most recent role was Director, Leadership Recruiting at Meta, where she led a team responsible for hiring Engineering Managers across North America and Canada. Earlier this year, she was part of the Meta layoffs that resulted in 80% of all recruiters losing their roles. 

In this third episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Crystal and Nicy explore the importance of investing in our health, our friendships, and our boundaries even in high stress environments.

#3 - Crystal Stonebreaker & Boundaries

Ashley Gaertner is a registered nurse at University of California San Diego's Burn Intensive Care Unit. She spent the formative years of her career on night shift at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital Emergency Room and Trauma Center, including working as an ER nurse during Covid's peak.

In this fourth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Ashley and Nicy discuss the value of vulnerability, the importance of opening up to your people, and how to become more aware of our inner thoughts so we can learn to be kinder to ourselves.

#4 - Ashley Gaertner & Inner Thoughts

Trent Raymond is a personal trainer based in San Diego, California. He says that learning to create a relationship with his clients while pushing them to become the best version of themselves is what keeps him motivated and happy to come to work everyday. Prior to this, Trent spent four years in the US Marine Corp.

In this fifth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Trent and Nicy discuss Trent's experiences in the military, the value of letting go, and very importantly, how to be brave through the fear.

#5 - Trent Raymond & Letting Go

Hamsa Mahendranathan is a second generation Sri Lankan Tamil who grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and in Seoul, South Korea. She attended Columbia Law School and has spent the last 8 years at a mid-sized law firm predominantly representing whistleblowers. She currently lives in Jersey City, New Jersey, with her two dogs and her spouse Alex, who is a public school teacher and she’s super proud of him.

In this sixth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Hamsa and Nicy discuss their shared immigrant family experiences, the realization that adulthood is a scam, Hamsa's reasons for not having children, and how to break free from the fat phobia in our society.

#6 - Hamsa Mahendranathan & Adult Scams

Rachel is currently an Administrative Business Partner for YouTube Marketing, which in other companies is known as an Executive Assistant. She is based in Los Angeles, California, where she spends her days baby talking to all dogs, trying to become a crow girl and picking fights with squirrels. 

In this episode, Rachel and Nicy discuss how to break out of what Rachel calls, “black and white thinking” where we label ourselves and others as good or bad people. Rachel shares a deeply personal experience of asking for help when all seemed lost and learning that we all matter in this world, even when our thoughts are deceiving us in the darkness. 

A warning that this episode contains a detailed conversation about suicide. If you are based in the US and you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters, please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline to connect with a trained counselor. For resources outside the US, you can visit https://befrienders.org/.

#7 - Rachel Shin & Celebration

Andrew Peterson accidentally got into broadcasting, which turned into a decade of working on some of Australia’s biggest shows and pioneering digital content creation, distribution, and commercialization during the 2000s. He then spent 5 years at Universal Music working with artists to build their fan base and tell their stories in new ways. Today, Andrew is the Head of YouTube in Canada, where he oversees the content, creator and viewer ecosystems for the country. 

In this eighth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Andrew shares a few of his life lessons that include the benefits of saying “yes” to new experiences, the importance of community, and the power of being a nerd.

#8 - Andrew Peterson & Saying Yes

Zynara is a self-growth speaker and TEDx speaker, focusing on the importance of self-development, healing, and growth. Her mission is to help individuals realize their full potential by unlocking the things that hold them back from within. Zynara has also worked as a video producer for over a decade at Google and YouTube where she is passionate about sharing the stories of others. Her work is rooted in helping individuals find their voices and share them with the world.

In this ninth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Zynara uses her empath abilities to trick Nicy into becoming the interviewee. Zynara and Nicy discuss how work can sometimes be performative, the impact of existential crises, and how to approach mistakes. A warning that this episode contains discussion of gun violence.

#9 - Zynara Ng & Existential Crises

Stephen Salinas is a first-generation Mexican-American who was born and raised in Los Angeles. He started his career at the education non-profit, City Year. After spending 5 years building City Year in Los Angeles, he attended business school at Yale, where he met his wife Rachel. He has been at YouTube for 9+ years, working in almost every part of the business organization -- Partnerships, Operations, Business Operations, and now runs Strategy for Support. Aside from work, he loves staying active and coaching people looking to unlock their potential. Most importantly, he’s a devoted husband to Rachel, and father to Joaquin and Gisela. 

In this tenth episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Stephen and Nicy discuss the cost of evolving into the person you want to become and reframing what it means to be ambitious. 

A warning that this episode contains discussion of suicide. If you are based in the US and you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters, please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline to connect with a trained counselor. For resources outside the US, you can visit https://befrienders.org/.

#10 - Stephen Salinas & The Cost of Evolving

Christian Franco is a Bay Area native who spent most of his childhood in the quiet town of Burlingame, CA, where he lived with his parents and older brother, Carlos. Upon graduating from Cornell University with a BA in Psychology he moved to New York where he attended law school, worked as a licensed attorney, and eventually embarked on a career as a brand strategist. In 2019, Christian moved back to California to be close to family and currently lives in San Francisco. He borrows his mantra from the storied Jedi Master, Yoda -- “Do, or do not. There is no try." He has an unhealthy addiction to sneakers, and believes in the healing power of Labrador puppies.

In this eleventh episode of the "One of a Kind Podcast," Christian and Nicy discuss career pivots, the nostalgic power of movies and music, the importance of family, and that loss is an inevitable part of life.

# 11 - Christian Franco & Nostalgia

The show where we explore the stories we tell ourselves and the moments that got us here.

#5 - Trent Raymond & Letting Go

One of a Kind Podcast

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