The first time my eyes beheld Kat Kinsman was on my TV screen. There was this woman chatting about food on CNN, and she seemed goth? I thought, how good do you have to be to a CNN food reporter? and a food reporter allowed to express your own style on a mainstream news outlet? Well, the answer is pretty damn good. Kat Kinsman is the former managing editor of CNN’s Eatocracy who now is the food and drinks editor for Time Inc’s all-breakfast site Extra Crispy. She has written a book called Hi, Anxiety: Life With a Bad Case of Nerves, and that website I just mentioned, chefswithissues.com, is her brainchild. She is a force. And she is fully herself as much as she can be, courageous enough to tell her story, and brave enough to live beyond it. She has been a constant behind-the-scenes cheerleader in my professional food media life, but this story she tells here is for you. How do you find your calling? How do you step into new roles, the thing you want to do, are passionate about, but don’t know what that even is? How did she get all these jobs, follow her path to here? Food is just the beginning of this conversation, but don’t think we’re all sappy all the time. Kat also has a wicked sharp sense of humor, and we can’t help but giggle a bit too.