Airplane Mode

Shea Serrano became a writer when, as a teacher in need of some extra money, he did a Google search for jobs you can do from home. “I didn't have any journalism experience. I didn't know anybody. All I had was the computer and the internet, and I figured that shit out,” says Serrano, who's now a staff writer at The Ringer. Along the way, he wrote three New York Times bestsellers and has established himself as a perennial Twitter all-star (where, when he’s not firing off extremely funny tweets, he’s leveraging his 330K followers to do things like raise $134,000 dollars for Hurricane Harvey victims). In other words, in a world where careers and work are unpredictable and self-doubt is inescapable, Shea Serrano has some lessons on how to bet on yourself—and win big. 

Follow:

Shea Serrano — @SheaSerrano

Clay Skipper — @SkipperClay

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According to comedian Joel Kim Booster, a stand-up audience "can smell the blood in the water if you're not confident." Even though, at 31, Joel has been performing jokes for nearly a decade, he says he's only felt confident for part of that time. On this episode, he unpacks how he got comfortable being in front of a crowd, what comedy and humor have done for his confidence offstage, and why, of all the places he performs, cruise ships are the most nerve-wracking.

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Michael Gervais is a sports psychologist who works with athletes in “high stakes or consequential environments.” The experience with his clients—which range from the Seattle Seahawks (who he helped win a Super Bowl in 2014) to skydiver Felix Baumgartner (who he helped free fall from 130,000 feet as part of the Red Bull Stratos project in 2012)—has shown him that there's one skill that proves more important to success than any other: the ability to respond constructively to the present moment. As proven by his clients' achievements, in Dr. Gervais's hands, fostering presence isn't some B.S. New Age hack. It's the key to increasing mental strength and resiliency, managing your inner world against outside stress, and finding your way to a more confident and capable you.

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With a legendary resume that includes everything from rock climbing to whitewater rafting to marathon mountain biking, Rebecca Rusch isn't just an ultra endurance icon—she has also been dubbed adventure sports' "Queen of Pain." (At 38, she won the first 24-hour bike race she entered, and has since gone on to complete the Ho Chi Minh Trail and part of the Iditarod Trail on a bike.) And yet she's always doubted her abilities and felt like she has more to learn—and cites that sense of self-doubt as the source of her success. Here, she talks the power in pessimism, why good enough is better than perfect, and the lessons pain has taught her. 

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Dr. Barry Michels has spent decades helping his clients in the entertainment industry overcome the self-doubt holding them back from delivering their most compelling performances or writing their most nail-biting scripts. Drawing on years of experience as a psychotherapist, he explains why our society is in need of a radical reimagining of the idea of confidence, and why it all begins with accepting the reality that everyone is insecure. Most importantly, he shares the tools he uses to help Hollywood's A-listers beat that insecurity—yes, they're insecure, too—and unlock their potential.

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For a long time, Ari Leff made music that largely went unnoticed. But even after finding mega pop success writing and producing under the name Lauv, he still wrestled with self-doubt and struggled to work or create in the face of depression and anxiety. Now, with a debut album "How I'm Feeling" due out March 6th, he shares how he got his confidence back, how he calms his nerves and quiets negative self-talk, and what he's learned about getting out of the way of his own success.

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Over the course of four years at Duke and 14 in the NBA, J.J. Redick has proven himself to be one of basketball’s deadliest sharpshooters. A few hundreds of thousands of jumpers later, he has some thoughts on building the self-belief that will keep you confident under immense pressure and through any slump. Plus: the power of preparation, the joy of exceeding your own expectations, and the key to not psyching yourself out.

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Jill Heinerth’s life story is one of wild adventure, with more than 30 years spent scuba diving beneath glaciers and into dark, underwater caves (once spending 13 consecutive hours on a dive). Not all of those dives have gone well. For our second conversation on confidence, Heinerth explains what we can all learn about managing fear, staying calm, and beating panic from her three decades of surviving underwater. 

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Jalen Rose has spent nearly 30 years being cool in public: first, as a basketball phenom and member of Michigan's famed Fab Five; then, as a 13-year NBA vet with a big game and bigger personality; now, as a beloved and unapologetic ESPN co-host for Get Up! and Jalen & Jacoby. On the first episode of Airplane Mode season 2, Rose explains why self-belief starts with convincing yourself you're the best (even if you're not), his path to radical self-acceptance, and where he found the nerve to wear one of the boldest NBA draft suits of all-time.

Follow Clay Skipper (@skipperclay) and Jalen Rose (@jalenrose) on Twitter.

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Airplane Mode is back! And this time around, host Clay Skipper is diving headfirst into the subject of confidence, that skittish little kitten of a feeling we're always trying to coax out from under the (metaphorical) bed. Across 10 weekly episodes starting January 14th, Clay will be talking to a motley crüe of people—including an NBA player, a cave diver, a Hollywood psychotherapist, and a pop star—about confidence: how to get it, how to keep it, and what to do if you lose it. Subscribe now to give your confidence a little boost.

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