The Aftergrad Podcast Robert Cain and Victoria Gilbert

In Part 2 of this conversation about the future, we close out the season with a special guest. Victoria’s younger sister, Elizabeth Ann Gilbert, joins us to talk about her postgrad plans after graduating from West Point a few months ago. Together, we reflect on the bittersweet emotions associated with finishing an undergraduate degree and contemplate the potential impacts of speculative futures in work, education, and society. We’ll be back for Season 3 in Fall 2023.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to The Aftergrad Newsletter via Substack.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
If you’re interested in playing Decode the Future or want to learn more about the game, check out the links and resources offered by Future Today Institute.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com

It can be quite intimidating to think about the future, especially when there is so much uncertainty and rapid innovation in technology. But it’s a practice that helps us expand our imagination around what’s possible and prepare for the inevitable shifts in culture, work, and beyond. In thinking about potential possibilities for society and ourselves, we briefly discuss some speculative futures and introduce a game called Decode the Future that we’ll ultimately play in our next episode.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to The Aftergrad Newsletter via Substack.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
If you’re interested in playing Decode the Future or want to learn more about the game, check out the links and resources offered by Future Today Institute.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com

A common characteristic of the postgrad moment is separation from friends. And in the era of social media, it can oftentimes feel as though we are totally alone in our emotions and experiences, even though we have immediate access to virtual spaces and online communities regardless of where we might be physically located in the world. Symptoms of loneliness and isolation are becoming more prevalent, especially among recent grads who are struggling to find their footing in careers and relationships. But is loneliness or isolation the same as solitude? If so, how can we begin to feel less alone? If not, what makes solitude unique and why should we be comfortable with this condition in the first place? In thinking about the ways in which people promote mental health on the internet, we contemplate the relevance of community and postgrad collaboration, ultimately advocating for a culture of healing together rather than struggling quietly in depression, disconnection, or self-pity.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to UNLEARN, The Aftergrad Newsletter.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
In this episode, we reference “No Good Alone” by Rayne Fisher-Quann and “Solitude and Loneliness” by William Deresiewicz. Robert also wrote an essay titled “The Enduring Strength of Postgrad Partnership” in which he reflects on aspects of his postgrad journey thus far and elaborates on the importance of communicating with fellow recent grads when navigating the transition from academic institution to adulthood.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com

Sacrifice, in a figurative sense, is the act of giving up something in order to pursue an alternative. It's a practice we're all familiar with in one way or another. But what is lost when we make a sacrifice – either for ourselves or for the sake of others? What do we gain in exchange for these offerings of time, energy, and attention? From an economic standpoint, we can quantify the opportunity cost of our decisions, asking the question of whether or not the choices we make are financially sound or helpful in how they push us closer to our higher selves. However, is it worthwhile to engage in these calculations when living under a system where time and money are inextricably linked? Are we too little, too late to think up new ways of resetting our minds and disconnecting from the socially constructed idea of time? Let’s think about how we can create our own timing and move to the beat of our internal clocks.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to The Aftergrad Newsletter via Substack.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com

NYT bestselling author Kelly Williams Brown joins Robert and Victoria to chat about her book Adulting: How to Become a Grown-up in 468 Easy(ish) Steps, how she navigated the early stages of her career, and offers tips on staying resilient when life doesn't go according to plan.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to The Aftergrad Newsletter via Substack.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com

This is a continuation of our previous episode. Listen to “Many Lives in this Life” before tuning into this conversation where we interrogate the meanings of hard/soft life and ask the question of whether or not we’re able to experience both simultaneously. Is a soft life costly? Is a hard life necessary? In the end, we arrive at a verdict on the popular Gen Z TikTok trend, Lucky Girl Syndrome. How does it work? Can we benefit from this type of manifestation? Let’s chat.
Follow The Aftergrad Podcast on Instagram. View the visual podcast on YouTube. Subscribe to The Aftergrad Newsletter via Substack.
Got a crazy confession about adulting? Looking for advice on navigating postgrad life? Let Robert and Victoria offer you their two cents. Submit your stories, questions, or dilemmas via our Dear Aftergrad Submission Form for a chance to have them featured in a future episode or newsletter. You can also DM us on Instagram, write us an email at theaftergradpodcast@gmail.com, or comment on this post.
Music produced by ALYSS.


This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit theaftergradpodcast.substack.com