Well Said

Cuore Collective
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Marketing
  • Updated Weekly

We're Pia and Kelly, co-founders of Cuore. We met at Amazon new-hire orientation 13 years ago, sitting at different tables, and ended up desk neighbors on the communications team. We've spent our careers obsessed with how words change what happens next, in boardrooms, in hallways, in the text you reread three times before sending. Well Said is our podcast about connection as a human skill. We talk to coaches, chefs, journalists, and founders about what actually helps people reach each other when it matters. If you care about trust, communication, and saying things that land, this is for you.

Episodes

  1. 2d ago

    What 40 Years as a Celebrity Trainer Taught Him About Honest Communication | David Kirsch

    David Kirsch passed the bar exam. Then he called his parents and told them he was going to be a fitness trainer. Dead silence. That call (and the 40 years that followed) are what this episode is really about. David trained J.Lo, Heidi Klum, Kate Upton, Gigi Hadid, and Naomi Campbell. Not by telling them what they wanted to hear, but by being the one person in the room who wouldn't. He's spent decades watching people fail to change and finally figured out why: the conversation in their head never shifted. Now the fitness director at The Core Club in New York, his philosophy is the same as it's always been: sound mind first, sound body second. The physical work is almost secondary. In this episode, David sits down with Pia and Kelly to talk about what it actually takes to communicate with someone who has made themselves completely vulnerable and why the trainers, leaders, and caregivers who do it best have always been in the people business, not the fitness business. Highlights: - Why David quit law and how his parents reacted - The moment a client burst into tears mid-ab work and what it changed about how he trains - Why 40 years of expertise is something AI cannot replicate, and what it actually feels like to be truly seen by a professional - How a conversation with Kate Upton helped his teenage daughter through body dysmorphia - His honest take on GLP-1s: when they work, when they don't, and the one thing people on Ozempic need to be doing more of - Why longevity has nothing to do with supplement stacks or biohacks (and the three things that actually matter) - What it means to be a single dad by choice and how nearly dying in 2006 clarified everythingIf you want to catch all future episodes, subscribe to Well Said by Cuore on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

    1 hr

  2. May 26

    The Standup Comedian's Guide to Communicating In Any Room with Ben Gleib

    From ages four to twenty-two, Ben Gleib had a stutter and a vocal disfluency so severe that his chords would lock down mid-sentence. He'd sit in class dreading being called on to read aloud, convinced it was a kind of execution. And he wanted, more than anything, to be a comedian and a TV host. He became one. Twenty-five years of standup later, Ben has performed to arenas, hosted an Emmy-nominated game show (Idiotest, 210 episodes across Netflix and Game Show Network), appeared on Chelsea Lately, starred in a Showtime special now on Amazon, and is building the internet's first late night talk show (Goodnight with Ben Gleib) backed by Nikki Glaser and Scott Galloway. He also coaches executives on their TED Talks and wedding speeches. And yes, those are the same skill set. Pia first saw Ben perform at a comedy club in Austin. Pia was front row, not by choice, watching him navigate a guy in a cowboy hat who wouldn't sit down and kept trying to make himself the show. Ben didn't flinch. He made the cowboy the funniest part of the night. Watching it happen, Pia realized this is exactly what crisis communications looks like. This episode is a masterclass in owning a room, staying composed under real pressure, and saying things that actually land. It applies whether you're in a comedy club, a boardroom, a media interview, or an all-hands meeting where your whole team is watching to see how you show up. In this episode: - Why comedians have become the last honest voices in public life and how truth is baked into every real laugh - Crowd work as a communications framework: how Ben reads a room, finds the right people, and knows exactly how far to push - The math that proves speaking to a thousand people is less risky than speaking to one - What a childhood stutter that lasted eighteen years taught Ben about public speaking anxiety - Why silence is the single most underused communication tool in business - The coaching techniques Ben uses with executives on TED Talks and high-stakes presentations - How building a late night show from his house on YouTube became the perfect format for an attention economy that rewards real over polished - The idea-capture habit he shared with Chris Rock and has used for twenty-five years - Why the moments that go most wrong are often the ones that build the most trust If you’re an exec or founder looking to level up your communications skills, this episode is for you. Ben Gleib is launching his new weekly late night show ‘Good Night With Ben Gleib’ on YouTube on Thursday May 28 and every Thursday at 10 pm EST / 7 pm PST. People can join his interactive worldwide virtual audience the night before and every Wednesday by getting a ticket at makeitagoodnight.com. You can follow along on his socials on all platforms @makeitagoodnight. And make sure you subscribe to Well Said on all platforms to get new episodes every Wednesday. TIMESTAMPS 02:12 — Front row in Austin, cliffhanger compliments, and comedians vs. politicians 05:00 — What is crowd work and why it's a masterclass in real-time communication 07:45 — "Stay in the pocket" 10:00 — The math of crowds 13:30 — Self-deprecation + admitting mistakes 17:30 — A childhood stutter 20:00 — The power of silence 24:00 — Coaching executives: timing, motion to stillness, and how to make a moment land 29:40 — "Goodnight with Ben Gleib" 39:30 — When things go wrong: the DJ, the muted audience, and Scott Galloway's mic

    47 min

  3. May 20

    How a Celebrity Hair Stylist Communicates Under Pressure | Alex Pardoe

    What does a celebrity hairstylist know about communication that most executives don't? More than you'd think. Alex Pardoe has done hair for Paris Hilton at 3am, worked red carpets and film sets with some of the most recognizable names in Hollywood, and built his LA career from scratch after leaving a successful salon in Michigan with no clients and a three-month trial period. He's worked with Lindsay Lohan, Camila Cabello, and a roster of A-listers he mostly can't talk about. Five years into his LA chapter, he's one of the most sought-after hairstylists in the industry and the founder of hair extension brand The Anti Co. But the reason we brought Alex on Well Said is because he thrives in high-stakes and fast moving communication environments. He just happens to work with hair. In this conversation, Alex breaks down the philosophy that's driven his entire career: that he's not in the hair business, he's in the relationship business. Everything flows from that. How he asks questions before he ever picks up the scissors. How he reads a room under pressure. How he shows up in one of the most intimate settings imaginable, someone's home, their most vulnerable state, and makes every single person feel like the only person in the room. There's more practical communication wisdom in this episode than in most leadership books we've read. In this episode: - Why the hair industry is really the relationship business, and what that means for anyone whose job involves people - The 50-question consultation method, and why Alex would rather spend 20 minutes asking than five minutes assuming - How to stay grounded and calm when everything around you is chaotic - What it means to walk into a room blind and still show up prepared - How Alex thinks about fame, access, and keeping perspective around people he genuinely admires - The transparency shift happening across beauty and media, and why the industry's dirty little secret is becoming a selling point - What betting on yourself actually looks like when you've left everything behind to do it - Why Alex believes nothing is really that serious, and how that belief makes him better at his job If this episode resonates, please subscribe and leave us a review. And share this one with someone who needs a reminder that communication is always, at its core, about making people feel seen.

    46 min

  4. May 12

    How to Communicate Hard News from an ER Doctor Who’s Been to Nearly Every Country | Calvin Sun

    Dr. Calvin D. Sun is an emergency room physician, author of Monsoon Diaries (HarperCollins), and founder of the Monsoon Diaries travel community. He has visited every UN-recognized country in the world and is ranked among the ten most traveled Americans. During COVID, while most hospital doctors were silenced by media clauses, Calvin was working per diem across four New York City boroughs, free to speak to anyone who called. He did 10 to 20 interviews a day. What makes him a natural fit for Well Said: he has spent his career in the hardest communication situations that exist. Delivering devastating news. Deciding what to tell his partner after a brutal ER shift. Speaking truth to the public when his colleagues legally couldn't. He has thought harder than most about the difference between honesty and truth, when withholding protects the people you love, and what it actually means to read the room. In this episode: - Ubuntu: the philosophy that says a person is only a person through another person, and what that means for how we show up in every conversation - Why authenticity isn't a fixed trait but a relational one — who you are depends entirely on who you're talking to - How Calvin's father's journal, written for the wrong son, shaped his entire relationship to writing and vulnerability - Why changing your environment, whether that's a foreign country or a different cafe, is one of the most underrated communication tools there is - The three communication principles Calvin has lived by: read the room, show your cards with intention, and stay consistent Subscribe to Well Said everywhere you get your podcasts so you never miss an episode. Thanks for listening!

    50 min

  5. May 5

    How to Have Hard Conversations Without Sounding Cold or Scripted

    Thank you for an incredible first month of Well Said. The questions, the feedback, and the support have meant everything to us. We (Kelly and Pia) are the co-founders of Cuore Communications and former Amazon PR executives with more than 20 combined years advising C-suite leaders, managing global communications teams, and guiding companies through some of the highest-stakes moments in business. In this episode, they sit down to answer the questions that came in most during Well Said's first month: the ones about trust, apologies, hard news, and finding your voice. In this episode: - How to start a trust-repair conversation without making it more awkward - What real apologies actually require, and the one step most people skip - How to deliver hard news with honesty - How to know when a message you keep rewriting is ready to send - What taking ownership for a team mistake looks like, step by step - The communication lesson Kelly learned outside of corporate life that changed how she leads through crisisMake sure you subscribe to Well Said on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube so you never miss an episode. And if you have a question for our next Q&A, send it our way. DMs are always open.

    12 min

  6. Apr 28

    How to Talk to Anyone: Lessons from a Michelin Star Chef Who Does It 100 Times a Day | PJ Calapa

    PJ Calapa is the Brand Executive Chef of Marea, one of the most celebrated Italian seafood restaurants in American fine dining, with locations in New York, Beverly Hills, and Aspen. He got there through twenty years in New York's most demanding kitchens, including Bouley, Eleven Madison Park, and Nobu 57, a Michelin star and three NYT stars at Ai Fiori, two restaurants of his own, and one he lost during the pandemic. He came back. Marea's regulars include the Obamas, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga. Anthony Bourdain called the pasta the best he'd ever tasted. PJ's entire career has been built in environments where communication isn't something you prepare. It's a reflex you build. That's why he's on Well Said. And: Pia has known him since high school in Brownsville. In fact, he was her prom date. In this episode: - The week at Bouley that became the foundation of his entire leadership philosophy - Why giving his team ownership of a dish produces higher standards than demanding them - How he keeps a team calm during the most chaotic service, even when he knows it's rough - His system for reading any table or entering any difficult conversation - What a Fortune 500 CEO would learn in one week of kitchen service - Why growing up bilingual on the Texas-Mexico border gave him a communication edge he still uses every day Subscribe to Well Said on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. TIMESTAMPS00:00 — Growing up in Brownsville 08:00 — Landing at Bouley 13:00 — The week that almost broke him 17:00 — The conversation that changed how he leads 27:00 — Ai Fiori and earning the Michelin star 36:00 — Losing Scampi: "I'm a free agent, not a failure" 44:00 — Why lifting your team is the only leadership that works 52:00 — How a Michelin star chef reads a table 58:00 — Talking to a billionaire and a dishwasher in the same motion 1:04:00 — Where to find PJ

    46 min

  7. Apr 21

    What a Sexologist Taught Us About Communication That Most Execs Never Learn

    Natassia Miller is a Brazilian-American sexologist (AASECT-certified), the founder of Wonderlust, a sexual wellness brand, and the writer behind the Lust in Translation newsletter on Substack. She studied political science at Columbia, worked in finance, and pivoted to sexual wellness after co-founding and exiting a prior wellness startup during COVID. In 2022, she launched Wonderlust with the Mindful Intimacy Card Deck after surveying 500+ couples and finding that communication was their #1 barrier to a better sex life. Her work has been featured in Cosmopolitan, Glamour, GQ, and NBC. What makes Natassia such a natural fit for Well Said: her entire career is built on teaching people how to say the thing they've been avoiding. And the skills she coaches couples on, asking for what you want, creating safety, being intentional, repairing when something breaks, are the same skills every great communicator and leader needs. In this episode: - Why communication, not chemistry, not compatibility, is the #1 barrier to a better intimate life, and how that maps directly onto leadership and teams - How to apply SMART goals to your relationship and sex life (and why it doesn't kill the mood, it builds the foundation) - Kelly's lesson from managing 100+ people across 17 countries: if you only have 30 minutes with someone who matters, show up with intention - The Wheel of Consent framework and how couples (and teams) can use it to negotiate what they actually need - Pia's 24-hour rule: take a breath, don't react, come back with your best self - Why bedroom confidence and boardroom confidence are built with the same muscles Make sure you subscribe to Well Said everywhere you get your podcasts, so you never miss another episode. Thanks for listening! CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS 00:00 — Meet Natassia Miller 00:02 — What a sexologist and two PR execs have in common 00:07 — SMART goals for your sex life 00:11 — Boundaries at work and at home 00:18 — The salty lemonade study 00:20 — Why new experiences keep relationships (and teams) alive 00:23 — Vulnerability as a communication superpower 00:28 — Planning sex doesn't kill the mood, it creates it 00:29 — Spontaneous vs. responsive desire 00:31 — The Wheel of Consent 00:33 — How to make someone comfortable talking about the hardest things 00:36 — Knowing what you want (and learning how to ask for it) 00:41 — Talking about sex makes talking about everything else easier 00:44 — Where to find Natassia and Wonderlust

    45 min

  8. Apr 14

    Self-Care Is a PR Strategy: Lessons From Emmy Award-Winning Producer, Nyle Washington

    Nyle Washington has spent 20+ years in entertainment communications. She started as an intern in The Oprah Winfrey Show's publicity department, spent four years at an agency handling campaigns for artists including Usher, Ne-Yo, and Keyshia Cole, and then built a reputation as one of the sharpest publicity executives in the television industry across eight years at VH1, and later at HBO, Starz, and Netflix. At Starz, she ran press for Power, the show that became one of cable's biggest hits of the decade. At Netflix, she has led awards campaigns for The Crown, Squid Game, Stranger Things, and When They See Us. In 2025, she won a Primetime Emmy Award as a producer on a short-form Netflix documentary. What sets Nyle apart, beyond the resume, is what she cares about most. After two decades of red carpets, 24/7 crises, and all-night awards pushes, the topic she most wants to talk about is this: taking better care of yourself makes you a better communicator. In this episode of Well Said: • The specific discipline Nyle developed to stay genuinely connected to press contacts in an industry famous for transactional relationships (and why she knows her journalists' pets' names)• Her "monthly intention list," a practice she created with her therapist after realizing she couldn't answer the question "What do you do for fun outside of work?"• What running the Squid Game awards campaign taught her about building communications that connect across cultures• The Rose, Thorn, Bud check-in she uses with her Netflix team, and her argument that comms teams need more humanity in their own rooms• The pandemic burnout moment that led to a 5 AM workout routine and a different relationship with the work• Why she believes a good story has to pull at something universal in the person hearing it, and how that standard shaped her entire approach to entertainment PR• What it felt like to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy without seeing it comingSubscribe to Well Said on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts so you never miss an episode. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 — Kelly and Nyle's origin story 01:17 — How you spot a comms person from across a room 03:34 — Bringing humanity back to comms 06:04 — The monthly intention list 08:27 — Becoming a morning person on purpose 10:30 — Running the global Squid Game campaign 14:28 — The reporter spreadsheet Pia used to keep 16:17 — What the pandemic clarified about human connection 22:01 — Best red carpet moment 25:25 — The Emmy nomination 29:21 — What makes a great story: the heartstrings test 36:16 — The Oprah internship origin story 40:01 — "Persistence breaks resistance"

    42 min

  9. Apr 7

    The Ghostwriter Behind Hinge and Duolingo: How the Best Founders Tell Their Story with Adam Delehanty

    Adam Delehanty has spent his career helping famous CEOs and investors find the language their ideas deserve. He's the founder of Ghost, a content agency that works with some of the most recognized companies in tech, including Hinge, Google, Duolingo, e.l.f. Beauty and dozens more. This is the launch episode of Well Said. We chose Adam as our first episode because he sits at the center of writing, communication, founder psychology, and culture. Everything this show is about. In this episode: • Why Adam calls ghostwriting "journalism times therapy" and how long-term relationships with founders become something closer to confidant than contractor • The “VGPS” framework for introducing yourself to new people in a way that helps them remember you, and generates curiosity (Vision, Gratitude, Profile, Service) • Why culture books are becoming essential tools for organizations to scale their culture and clarify their specific way of working • The AI "steroids" analogy and the gap between sloperators (publishing at scale with nothing to say) and hermits (deep expertise, zero output) - (check out https://ghostagency.substack.com/p/sloperators for more context) • Why he believes the founder should always write or speak the first draft, and what happens to a message that goes through too many layers of approval • Why quality of readers matters more than quantity, and how five inspired people can change a company more than going viral Make sure you subscribe to Well Said everywhere you get your podcasts, so you never miss another episode. Thanks for listening! CHAPTER TIMESTAMPS 00:00 — "The wrong people have the steering wheel of content creation" 02:49 — AI is steroids 09:06 — Ghostwriting = journalism × therapy 09:53 — How to tell the truth when you have lawyers and a board 13:47 — Companies are religions 18:28 — The origin story that separates funded founders from everyone else (Hinge + Duolingo) 20:19 — The VGPS method to introduce yourself 33:20 — LinkedIn do's and don'ts 38:00 — Rapid fire: Patrick Radden Keefe, the word "dude," and the worst advice in content

    39 min
  • 9 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

We're Pia and Kelly, co-founders of Cuore. We met at Amazon new-hire orientation 13 years ago, sitting at different tables, and ended up desk neighbors on the communications team. We've spent our careers obsessed with how words change what happens next, in boardrooms, in hallways, in the text you reread three times before sending. Well Said is our podcast about connection as a human skill. We talk to coaches, chefs, journalists, and founders about what actually helps people reach each other when it matters. If you care about trust, communication, and saying things that land, this is for you.

Information

  • Creator
    Cuore Collective
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    9
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Cuore Collective
  • Show Website
    Well Said

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