The holiday season can throw you so many curveballs that our best course of action was to do a grab-bag episode where both of us came up with advice on how to navigate our top holiday-themed yikes moments, and we closed it out by giving advice on suggestions from our Patreon! Wanna help with the production of the show? Join our Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/professionaltalkers Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

To celebrate our 10th episode, we're bookending our discussion from Episode 1 by teaching you how to GET OUT of a conversation! From things you can say to things you can do to things you can rely on, we've got all the advice to follow and pitfalls to avoid so that you won't have to resort to an Irish Exit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Uh oh, you have to break the news to your friend that the thing they like has some problems with it. Not sure of how to handle it? Feat not! The Professional Talkers, both of which started out as Harry Potter podcasters, have EXCESSIVE EXPERIENCE in this area. We've got ya covered! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mike and Sequoia, no strangers to breakups, share their thoughts on how to best handle the situation when you are the one delivering the bad news. One of our Professional Talkers mainly has been broken up with, while the other has mostly done the breaking up. Which is which? LISTEN TO FIND OUT! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Life threw some lemons at us this week, but rather than make lemonade, Mike made a bonus episode about how to write an email! Whether it's for business, family, or friends, Mike's got the advice and pitfalls you may face when an awkward conversation goes digital. We hope you enjoy and we'll be back with Episode 8 in two weeks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who better to bring on as an expert to discuss how to best talk to bosses THAN SEQUOIA'S OLD BOSS, ELLIOT DAVIS? I'll tell ya who, NO ONE! Added bonus, Elliot made the beautiful artwork for our podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We've got another expert in the mix, Jeffrey Cranor from Welcome to Night Vale, to help us with an essential (and accidentally timely) topic: having uncomfortable conversations with folks close to you at holiday gatherings, office parties, and the like! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mike and Sequoia tackle a tricky subject in which Mike somehow has somehow successfully naviagted FOUR DIFFERENT TIMES! Want to see Mike and Sequoia live on stage in Providence, RI or via livestream? Get tickets to the next The Newest Olympian live show at https://www.thenewestolympian.com/live Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're back with more conversational advice! This time, we're here to help you properly apologize to a friend. No one likes admitting they're wrong and we all have the tendency to get defensive, so it can be tough. We get it! Fear not, though, as we've got some advice for you to follow and a whole mess of pitfalls to avoid. SEE MIKE AND SEQUOIA LIVE ON 9/13: https://www.thenewestolympian.com/live Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Whether you're friends with, acquaintances of, or married to your roommate, telling them they're being messy can be incredibly awkward! Thankfully, Schubes and Sequoia are here to advise you in various ways to ensure the conversation is as smooth as freshly cleaned floor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's our first relationships episode AND it's our first episode with an external guest! To help you ensure that your first dates are never awkward, we've brought in relationships writer Sophia Beniot. We know these are testy waters, so we knew we needed someone checking our advice and pitfalls to ensure they were sound. And speaking of checking, the podcast ghost, Sherry Guo, is back for another Gen Z Introvert Vibe check! WE ARE THOROUGH HERE AT PROFESSIONAL TALKERS. Sophia's website: https://www.1followernodad.com/ FOLLOW PROFESSIONAL TALKERS Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/protalkpod⁠ YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@ProfessionalTalkers⁠  Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/protalkpod.bsky.social⁠  Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/protalkpod⁠  CREDITS Creator, Producer, Host, Video Editor: ⁠Mike Schubert⁠ Creator, Producer, Host, Audio Editor: ⁠Sequoia Simone⁠ Art: ⁠Elliot Davis⁠ Music: ⁠Bettina Campomanes⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

For our first episode, we help you navigate the awkward waters of having to make small talk at a party where the only person you know is the host. We give advice on approaches you could take to help yourself out, identify pitfalls of which you should certainly steer clear, and ponder the intricacies behind the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Plenty of sound advice in this episode, but Sequoia truly saves the best for last and we think you'll love it. Grab some h'ors devours for this podcast luncheon you won't want to miss! Speaking of things you don't want to miss, come to our Podcast Premier Picnic in Central Park this Sunday, July 20th at the Great Hill Oval in Central Park! FOLLOW PROFESSIONAL TALKERS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/protalkpod YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ProfessionalTalkers  Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/protalkpod.bsky.social  Twitter: https://twitter.com/protalkpod  CREDITS Creator, Producer, Host: Mike Schubert Creator, Producer, Host, Editor: Sequoia Simone Art: Elliot Davis Music: Bettina Campomanes Video Editing: Stephen Hauser Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Episode 1 of Professional Talkers releases on 7/14/25! If you want to see Mike & Sequoia ask each other awkward questions as a prelude to this podcast, support us on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/ProfessionalTalkers    Professional Talkers is a comedic advice podcast all about navigating life's awkward conversations. Hosts Mike Schubert (Potterless, The Newest Olympian) and Sequoia Simone (Fanatical Fics and Where to Find Them) draw upon their own life experiences and call on subject matter experts to bring you the do’s and don'ts of tricky interactions. Scared to tell your roommate they’re messy? Dreading your next first date? These professional talkers (podcasters) are here to guide you through chats of both high and low yikes levels. Episodes release every other Monday, with video episodes on YouTube! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices