“A relationship is not just one person’s personality. It’s the dance between two personalities.” - Esther Perel on the most recent episode of Adam Grant’s ReThinking podcast which explores “relational intelligence” and how our interpersonal behaviors and emotional expression spill into every aspect of our lives, but notably how this impacts our professional relationships.
The Skinny: This podcast episode and its examination of “relationship baggage” and complementary personalities is fascinating. Understanding our inclinations and being advocates for our preferences can lead to healthier and more successful work relationships. Are you more task oriented or relational? Do you think you’re one but are the other or are you both/and? (wink wink to Industry fans)
The other question is: what do you need in an ideal work partner—or a partner in general? Someone who challenges you, or someone more agreeable? What complements you? There is no universally right or wrong answer, but one tends to encourage more growth than the other. So maybe there is a right answer after all. Sorry, I know that sounds complicated…
A confession: Like Adam Grant, I’m independent-thinking positive (a descriptor, not a judgment!). I naturally gravitate toward helping others, but I sometimes find it harder to be on the receiving end of help and per Perel, this presents its own set of needs. I’m also like Mother Teresa in that we’re both ISFJ - Introverts-Sensing-Feeling-Judging - and yet sometimes I live in data and use it as a comfort blanket to appear more cognitive. Or perhaps I’ve simply been trained this way, developing “dual fluency” and analytical framing skills through 20+ years in corporate business environments and earning an MBA.
Curious if others relate: do you find it easier to give support or receive it?
I’d rather leave a comment.
No other CURRENT show blends workplace tension with the baggage of daily life elevated to such a dynamic emotionally charged peak quite like Paradise. Blending themes of trust, the healing qualities of chosen family, and stewing on life’s meaning, Season 2 is proving even more compelling than its first, a rarity in the sophomore slump that shows often take. It’s back for another season on Hulu, and I’m genuinely glad to have this dystopian political thriller, with some The Last of Us vibes, in the queue among the billions of streaming options out there. Right now, it’s the only show I actually want to come back to week after week. Apart from DTF St. Louis, but that’s a post for another time.
I phoned a funny friend and fellow Paradise fan, Henny Hiemenz to contribute some thoughts and if you aren’t yet listening to his podcast or subscribed to SilentPunt then you need to remedy this, pronto.
❗❗Spoilers ahead for Season 4❗❗
I asked Henny the typical triple loaded question in TV/Film analyst circles of what are this season’s hits, misses, and where he thinks it’s all going (cause it’s got to be going somewhere…Unless it’s Lost, in which case it really was going nowhere).
Here’s what he had to say:
Sterling Brown has been a revelation to me. I know I’ve seen him in some stuff before (notably the other Dan Fogelman-helmed uber popular family drama, This is Us) but he is so good. And Shailene Woodley is awesome too.
But therein lies the rub a little for me. I loved The Last of Us and then they unceremoniously killed off one-half of the relationship that was absolutely the heart of the show. I never watched another episode. [Editor Note: Brave choice. I wanted to quit too. And I think I may…Also, per Henny’s inference, Woodley’s character was killed in episode 4, and she was the emotional core of S2, alongside Xavier, so far.]
I have a sneaking suspicion that Paradise is headed down this same path. Similar to shows like Lost and The Walking Dead where the most compelling parts of the show, at least to me, were the quests the characters were on and not the actual characters.
I think that was what was so exciting about season 1 of Paradise: an incredible story, that I couldn’t wait to see where it went, coupled with a super dynamic and watchable lead.I’m getting the feeling that the show doesn’t know where it eventually wants to finish.
Back to Beth…A few misses for me this season are the prolonged backstories that try to explain why characters are the way they are through parallel storytelling. It’s just too slow. I know Henny and I have kvetched over this and I’ve admitted to the occasional fast forwarding of scenes.
I also miss James Marsden overall, though his appearances in the flashbacks have always worked. Since his character died early in Season 1, he’s really only ever existed in the “before” scenes. One of my favorite scenes from Season 1 is Marsden, the President, in his bathrobe, asking how he can make a mixed tape.
I do love Dan Fogelman’s obsession with Elvis Presley and Graceland because I’m right there with him. Fans: Xavier’s daughter’s name is PRESLEY! That was our Easter egg. Even the idea that Shailene Woodley’s Annie, who happens to be a tour guide at Graceland when the disaster hits, could fall for a geeky, hot scientist played by the guy from The Descendants who used to date Dove Cameron, and who knows nothing about Elvis makes me smile (and this isn’t even an Ali Hazelwood book!).
Vladimir rolled onto Netflix with many moans and a whimper. Sorry, could not resist.
Based on the bestselling 2022 novel by Julia May Jonas, the eight episodes fly by at just under 30 minutes each. I binged all of them yesterday while waiting to pick up a child.
The story follows a very #MeToo era scandal involving a popular male English professor, played in trademark rogue cad fashion very Mad Men Roger Sterling style by John Slattery, who is accused of sleeping with several female students. Side note: Slattery’s acting is one of the best things about this show.
His wife, M, played by Rachel Weisz, is reeling from the scandal and trying to clean up her husband’s mess when a hot new professor arrives, played by everyone’s favorite younger man fantasy/thirst trap, Leo Woodall (see Bridget Jones’s: Mad About The Boy and The White Lotus Season 2). M and Slattery’s character enjoy an open marriage which is fraught and M’s complicity in her husband’s consensual affairs isn’t without complication or liability as the show suggests. The lack of binary (good vs bad) here makes for a more interesting, layered and nuanced watch.
In textbook Fleabag confessional, break the fourth wall fashion, M fantasizes and obsesses over Woodall’s titular Vladimir Vladinski and eventually goes for broke when it comes to fulfilling her desire.
The ending is chef’s kiss and a little quirky. Weisz can be slightly annoying at times (maybe the frozen expressions), and the constant need to be alluring, but she keeps you locked in. Admittedly, I fast forwarded through some of the sexual fantasy scenes.
The family dynamic between Slattery’s character and their adult lawyer daughter Sasha is well done, and academia is depicted fairly close to reality, at least from my perspective as the daughter of an academic and someone who has long been on the periphery. It is not a must watch, but it is a fun escapist show.
Cuts Deeper: For women, M’s character highlights the very real invisible burden required to sustain her family, or at least her perception of what is required, even if Weisz’s departures from reality feels flighty and lacking substance at times. The reality is darker and inescapable: a woman’s load and her ability to truly soar in middle age, post-50s life, often demands a complete overhaul of everything she has learned. There is no playbook and sometimes, you need to burn the whole damn house down to start over.
Highly recommend listening to Gen X actress Christina Applegate’s memoir. Full of the warrior woman/survivor story of a Hollywood legend. She’s incredible. And guess what? It’s not sad. It’s inspiring.
Bridgerton Season 4 - It’s best yet! The Cinderella, rags-to-riches story didn’t disappoint
Ponies (Peacock) - American women in the late 70s getting their Soviet spy action on.
All Creatures Great & Small (PBS)- Not an exceptional season but an exceptional show whose season kept pace with its status. Themes: Chosen family, historical drama, cute animals
Love Story (FX/Hulu) - The Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy and JFK, Jr. “love story” show is definitely controversial. Yes, everyone is reminding us it is all fiction—because it is—even if certain elements are lifted from headlines. Just like Ryan Murphy’s show about the Menendez Brothers is also fictional. All of his work takes dramatic license, as Daryl Hannah reminded everyone when she received hate mail for her portrayal on the series. In fact, if anyone could make a case for wrongful depiction or character slander, it might be her. The show really did her dirty.
What are you watching?
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.