Work with Erika Ayers Badan

Episode: Erika Learns Gen Z Slang & Breaking Down Career Astrology

Date: September 22, 2025
Host: Erika Ayers Badan
Guests: Jessica Rose, Summer, Noah Tannen, Alice Hu

Episode Overview

This episode features a mix of humor and insight as Erika and her team navigate two big themes:

1. Deciphering Gen Z (and some Gen Alpha) slang, with guidance from their intern Summer
2. Exploring how astrology, especially career astrology, can inform work and life transitions, led by guest expert Alice Hu.

The episode blends playful banter about office snacks, dating apps, and workplace routines with deep practical advice on managing change, both personally and organizationally. Memorable moments include Erika gamely trying Gen Z slang, fresh perspectives on workplace astrology, and personal stories from the team.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Office Banter & Modern Dating (00:02–04:04)

• Brief chat about office snacks, eating habits (peaches vs. jerky), and Jessica Rose’s dating adventures using a non-traditional app where people match and pay for dates upfront.
• Quote:
  • “You're going to an unknown restaurant with an unknown person that some piece of technology matched you up." – Erika (01:23)
• Jessica Rose discusses dating as a trans woman and being transparent on her profile for safety and clarity.

2. Behind-the-Scenes: Podcast Guest Booking (04:04–08:08)

• Jessica Rose and Erika discuss how podcast guests are booked and how the booking process could become more streamlined post-talent booker (Georgia).
• Erika expresses openness:
  • “I just think you should do what you’re doing now and just send them." – Erika (06:57)
• Emphasis on flexible, open communication versus rigid structures.

3. Decoding Gen Z Slang with Summer (08:13–21:40)

Host Meet: Summer (intern, certified Gen Z), led the team through a crash course in current slang:

• Mogging (09:04): To be outshined or dominated, especially in looks or confidence.

  • “I met Jacob Elordi the celebrity last week, and he mogged me.” – Summer
  • Erika pushes for simpler language: “Why not just say ‘he’s hot’?”

• Cook (10:36): To crush it or do extremely well.

  • “If you had a guest on and they did super well, it'd be like, she totally cooked that.” – Summer

• Gas (11:36): Something that's really good/excellent.

  • “Justin Bieber cooked. His new album is gas.” – Summer (12:27)

• No Cap / Cap (12:40):

  • “No cap” = No lie, being serious.
  • “They’re capping” = Lying.

• Dead (13:49): Used to express finding something hilarious.

  • Erika claims the term isn’t new: “We’ve used that before you all came along. You’re capping on that.” (14:18)

• Riz (14:22): Charisma or flirtatious charm, can be used as a noun or verb.

  • “If someone's got Riz, they've got charisma.” – Erika (14:36)
  • Can also mean “to flirt.” (15:20)

• Bet (15:53): Agreement or affirmation, like “okay.”

• Mewing (16:24): Making the jawline more pronounced for photos, popular for “looking good” on social media.

  • “Now they just show their jaw. They're like, look at my jawline. You're like, he's mewing.” – Erika (17:12)

• Gen Alpha add-ons:

  • Skibidi: Meme from “Skibidi Toilet,” lacks concrete meaning (18:40–20:38)
  • 6, 7: Reference from a song, turned into a meme in sports and youth culture.

4. Movie Inspiration: Working Girl (21:09–21:40)

• Erika encourages Summer to watch “Working Girl” as essential viewing for ambitious young women in NYC.
  • “You live in New York City and worked in New York City when you’re young and poor and ambitious. It is a wonderful story.” – Erika (21:25)

5. Food52 Perspective with Noah Tannen (21:44–26:44)

• Noah's Role: From test kitchen creator to “talent,” sharing what it’s like to have a public-facing creator's job.
• Three words that describe Food52 experience: Honest, chaotic, freedom (22:06)
  • “It’s a very weird job.” – Noah (22:42)
• Identity: Resists label “chef” or “mixologist”; prefers “influencer”—sees it as accurate, not derogatory.
  • “People work for that title...and I’m not, like, ‘we need to bow down at the altar of the chef.’” – Noah (24:54)
• Audience: Curious, engaged community interested in storytelling and trying new things.

6. Career Astrology with Alice Hu (26:44–43:11)

Guest Intro: Alice Hu, career & business astrologer

Eclipses and Work Transitions (29:06–34:36)

• Eclipse season: Brings change, transformation, and “what you need—not necessarily what you want.” (29:06)
• Current season: Heightened by recent Mercury retrograde, leads to restructuring, AI integration, emerging need for real community.
  • “Eclipse season brings a lot of change and transformation. Expect unexpected news and surprises.” – Alice Hu (29:09)
• Industry Examples: Noia House shut down abrupting, Soho House goes private. Markers of workplace and community flux.

Astrology as Career Tool (27:45–38:51)

• Alice’s practice focuses on using astrology to clarify career pivots, side hustles, and business-building.
• Mercury Retrograde: Period for introspection, communication issues, planning buffer time.
  • “Mercury retrograde is always about an inward time, inward reflection and introspection.” – Alice Hu (30:51)
  • “During this time…travel and technology…can get really like, messed up.” – Alice (31:00)
• Scorpios at Work: Thrive on autonomy, intuition, ambition but need recognition; struggle if under-utilized or disrespected.
  • “Scorpios are always dealing with change, whether they like it or not. They constantly need to transform…they need a lot of autonomy in their jobs.” – Alice Hu (35:27)
  • “It's very important to pay attention to your intuition because it will always lead you the right way.” – Alice (36:58)

How to Use Astrology for Career (38:14–41:20)

• Resource: Alice built yoursaturn.com for free career astrology reports with plain language, no jargon.
• Her Journey: Astrology helped her through her “Saturn return,” a period of personal/professional transformation, uncovering insights about identity, values, and direction.
  • “When you understand yourself, there's just a lot more clarity around how you can contribute.” – Alice (40:09)

Practical Wisdom

• Alice advocates astrology as an empowering framework for better self-understanding, not fortune-telling.
  • “Very rarely will I do a reading for someone and it's a complete surprise. There's always a little bit of an inkling.” – Alice (41:08)

Community Focus

• “Community is a huge thing that I've seen astrologically over the last few years…this is what people want and need, especially with so much AI and technology these days.” – Alice (41:45)

Where to find Alice Hu:

• Instagram: @woowooco
• Free career astrology report: yoursaturn.com

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I'm having a peach... Please not say, I'm going to town on the peach.” – Erika (00:09)
• “I think you just text or slack me and you’re like, hey, would you...Do you think having a conversation with this person would be a fit?” – Erika, about podcast guest booking (05:32)
• “Why not just be like, he’s hot?” – Erika, challenging Gen Z lingo (09:46)
• “Mercury retrograde is always about an inward time, inward reflection and introspection.” – Alice Hu (30:51)
• “Eclipse season…giving us what we need. Maybe not what we want, but definitely what we need.” – Alice Hu (29:09)
• “A very summer movie network.” – Erika, on the importance of “Working Girl” (21:14)
• “When you understand yourself, there's just a lot more clarity around how you can contribute.” – Alice Hu (40:09)
• “There's a power in that…to help people navigate things not through a place of fear.” – Erika (40:22)
• “I'm not going to go around calling myself a social media chef because…people just shit on that.” – Noah Tannen (24:55)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Segment | |-----------|--------------------------------------------| | 00:02–04:04 | Snack banter & Jessica’s dating story | | 04:04–08:08 | Guest booking process behind-the-scenes | | 08:13–21:40 | Gen Z slang decoding with Summer | | 21:09–21:40 | Working Girl movie reference | | 21:44–26:44 | Creator chat with Noah Tannen | | 26:44–43:11 | Astrology deep-dive with Alice Hu |

Tone & Style

The episode maintains an upbeat, conversational, and often humorous tone. Erika is unfiltered, practical, and curious, while her guests blend self-deprecating stories, professional insight, and contemporary cultural references. The language is informal, contemporary, and accessible.

Summary Takeaway

This episode bridges generations—language, culture, and workplace trends—by mixing irreverent office chat and Gen Z slang with tangible insights into how astrology can serve as a pragmatic tool for navigating career changes. Underneath the humor and pop culture references, Erika and her guests model curiosity, openness to change, and the value of self-awareness—no matter your age or astrological sign.