Mind the gap & sit in the suck - Looks Like Work, Season 1, Ep 18

A photo of Chedva Ludmir Kleinhandler. Looks Like Work. Season 1, Episode 18

Sometimes the bravest thing you can do… is nothing. Or at least, nothing that looks productive on the outside.

In this raw, reflective solo episode, I open up about a summer that knocked me flat—physically, emotionally, spiritually. I talk autoimmune flare-ups, burnout, post-COVID exhaustion, and the unglamorous truth of starting again. Not from the beginning, but from the place where your body and soul say: “This is all I’ve got. Now what?”

This one’s for anyone who’s ever tried to push through and found their push was broken. For those navigating grief, illness, or just a long, gray stretch of meh. It’s a love letter to beginner’s humility, Lorelai Gilmore wallowing, and the courage of getting back on the mat—literally or figuratively—when your spark’s gone quiet.

What We Talk About:

  • Why naming your suffering is the first (and bravest) step

  • How autoimmune illness reshaped my expectations this summer

  • The unspoken grief of “just not feeling like yourself”

  • Letting go of “bounce-back” culture

  • Ira Glass's "Gap" and the discomfort of not being there yet

  • Talking to your team when you’re not okay

  • Why beginner’s humility is a superpower (not a flaw)

  • What productivity can look like when you’re healing

  • Powerful Question:

    What does sitting in the suck look like for you—and how can you give yourself permission to start again, gently?
    Let this one sit with you for a while. It might just be the strategy you didn’t know you needed.

  • Key Lesson:

    You don’t need to fix, reframe, or optimize everything. Sometimes the most honest—and strategic—move is to sit still, feel what’s real, and begin again when you’re ready.
    Whether it’s grief, burnout, or just a lingering blah, this episode is a soft place to land.

 

“Sometimes you just have to sit in the suck and wallow, as the very wise Lorelai Gilmore said.”

 
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 There’s another way - Looks Like Work, Season 1, Ep 19

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Permission to Speak, Power in Accents - Looks Like Work, Season 1, Ep 11