the end of an Unladylike era
Caroline is moving on
Since this is a Very Special Edition, we’re skipping the non-Unladylike-podcast-related news roundup and catching y’all up on all the ch-ch-ch-ch-changes afoot <3<3
tl;dr: It’s time.
My dearest unladies,
I’m leaving Unladylike — the podcast and self-employment. Cristen and I chat it all out on my final episode this week. Before I leave, though, I wanted to write you a love letter and reminisce a little.
I still remember the conversation with Cristen when we decided to go independent and bet on ourselves. We sipped iced coffees as we determined that, yes, we would quit our salaried jobs that provided full benefits and a refrigerator full of free fizzy water. We would take our podcasting / feministing / community-building skills out from under the corporation that effectively owned us. We would write a book, we would create an LLC, we would print up merch and we would launch a podcast on our terms (or as close to our terms as possible).
To me, it felt inevitable. As some of y’all old-timers might remember, I started podcasting with Cristen in 2011 as a contractor. When I finally joined the HowStuffWorks.com team full-time, in October 2014, the idea of taking the show on the road, so to speak, was already in the back of my mind. Why wouldn’t we? We’d made hundreds of podcast episodes and countless social media and blog posts; Cristen had made about a billion hilarious YouTube videos. We had an audience, is what I’m saying.
And that audience — you — has been everything. You have stuck with us, you have quite literally supported us, you have held us accountable and kept us learning. The best part — the very best part — of this entire job has been you.
What a privilege to get to hear from you: You’ve trusted us with your stories, your fears, your feedback. We’re not teachers, doctors or nurses, and yet you’ve told us that we’ve changed your lives. Hearing that an episode we’d done made you feel less alone — I can say personally, that was what kept me going.
So you might be like, “If we’re so great — and she got to interview Geena Davis and Tori Amos — why is she leaving?”
Well, y’all, life happens, and sometimes things need to change in order to grow and figure out where you fit. That’s definitely something I’ve learned from you and your wonderful emails over the years (like the one from the woman who became an archaeologist because of a SMNTY episode and corresponding listicle I wrote about archaeologists — like, WHAT?!).
Tl;dr: It’s time.
I can’t wait to see what my brilliant, one-of-a-kind work wife of more than a decade does next and what heights Unladylike reaches. Y’all, I know you know this, but Cristen is the funniest, most talented person in any room she’s in, and she will keep creating brilliant, one-of-a-kind work.
CC and I have been on an incredible journey together, and I’m so honored to have had you along for the ride.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Stay Unladylike.
Love,
Caroline
main feed: How to Move On
To quote Caroline in this episode, “Y’all have trusted us with your stories, and now we’re trusting y’all with ours.”
Our big goal for this convo was transparency—about us parting ways as work wives and co-hosts (but not as friends!), how we’re both feeling and what we’re both taking away from our 10+ years of podcasting together. In other words, we wanted to bring as much honesty, vulnerability and love as all you wonderful unladies have brought us over the years.
cristen here!
Just a quick note for now to say that I'm blushing from Caro's kind words above and honestly still processing all the changes afoot. Like we talk about in this week's episode, I've known about (and fully supported!) Caroline's plans for a while, so I've felt more prepared for that transition. But losing Unladylike’s Stitcher/SiriusXM production dream team (s/o Nora, Gianna and Michele!) as well was … a curveball. But y'know what they say – when life throws you curveballs, put down the bat and make more podcasts? Here’s hoping!
Like we also discuss on the ep, my heart is still stubbornly Unladylike, and as long as y'all want to listen, the show will go on — and for at least a few weeks until the network hands over the podcast keys, it'll go on exclusively on Patreon. Yes, that means a $5/mo subscription, but that also buys you 96 existing C&C bonus eps!! But I digress.
If y’all have any q's, concerns, hot tips (unless you’re trying to sell me a life coach), etc., just reply to this email.
xo,
cristen
patreon feed: The Founding Ladies of Libertarianism
If you want one last non-goodbye-related C&C convo, then pop over to the Patreon bonus feed where Caroline introduces us to the “Three Furies” of Libertarianism, aka a trio of women whose politics we don’t stan but are nonetheless notable given the overwhelmingly bro third party they philosophically inspired.
**EXTRA THANKS** to our newest dearest patrons Ellie and Trish!!
til next week . . . be like this dad <3
awww, goodbye and good luck, Caroline.