What was the Disney College Program really like? My friend Donna joins me to revisit our first year working at Walt Disney World—the excitement of walking into the parks, the reality of tight finances and roommates, celebrity encounters, and nights at Pleasure Island.

We also talk about how September 11 changed the atmosphere at Disney, the friendships that lasted, and the opportunities Donna wishes she’d taken. It’s a funny, nostalgic, and honest look at a first year that shaped far more than her career.

What does it really take to leave behind everything familiar and build a life in another country?

Joseph welcomes his college friend Kim to My First Year to revisit her experience moving internationally and living in South Africa. Kim shares the initial excitement, the overwhelming first impressions, the language barriers and the cultural differences that made everyday life feel completely unfamiliar.

Living abroad isn’t the same as taking a vacation. Kim opens up about navigating loneliness, finding an expat community, adjusting to family life in a new culture—and making a few unforgettable cultural faux pas along the way. She also reveals how the experience tested her resilience, strengthened her courage and gave her an entirely new appreciation for home and ranch dressing.

It’s an honest, funny and deeply relatable conversation about taking risks, finding your people and discovering what you’re capable of when everything around you changes.

Because every new beginning has a first year—and nobody has it all figured out.

Messy. Honest. Hopeful.

Subscribe for more honest conversations about the first years that change our lives.

What happens when you move to New York City even though it was never your dream?

Jess shares her journey to New York, where she moved to support her husband’s career. She opens up about her expectations, the cultural shocks, the apartment her husband chose without her and the surprising sense of peace she felt on her very first night in the city.

From mastering grocery shopping and discovering incredible restaurants to building community and learning to love the noise, energy and endless possibilities, Jess’s first year became a journey of connection, personal growth and finding home in an unexpected place.

Joseph also reflects on his own experience of living in New York, the freedom to reinvent yourself and why life here can sometimes feel like living in a movie. Together, they explore what it really takes to embrace change—and offer honest advice for anyone considering a move they’re not entirely sure they want to make.

What was it really like to work behind the scenes at The Oprah Winfrey Show and witness television history as it happened?

For the very first episode of My First Year, Joseph sits down with his friend Tracey, the woman who hired him at Oprah and helped change the course of his career. Together, they revisit the persistence it took to break into show business, the magic of walking into the Oprah studio for the first time, and unforgettable encounters with Tom Cruise, Cher, Lady Gaga and more.

From the infamous couch-jumping moment to a baby doll that somehow ended up on eBay, this candid and funny conversation reveals the stories behind the iconic television moments along with the passion, perseverance and gratitude that shaped Joseph’s first year at Oprah.