What happens when we stop chasing the myth of the lone “10x coder” and start building engineering cultures rooted in empathy, predictability, and inclusion?

In this candid conversation, we go deep with Autumn Patterson—VP of Technology, veteran engineering leader, and trans woman whose journey has redefined what leadership in tech can look like. Autumn shares how she learned to “climb the mountain,” moving fluidly from the details of code to the big-picture vision of business impact.

Along the way, we explore:

• Why true agility is about context and predictability, not just speed.
• The three pillars of engineering stability: due consideration, understanding, and predictability.
• How transitioning unlocked Autumn’s empathy and made authentic leadership possible.
• The dangers of “10x coders” and cultures that exclude, versus teams that thrive on mentorship and balance.
• How AI tools like Claude, Cursor, and Lovable are reshaping engineering work—for better and worse.
• Why inclusion isn’t charity—it’s strategy.

This episode is for anyone who wants to rethink leadership, connect code to culture, and build systems where both people and products can thrive.

Find Autumn:
LinkedIn: Autumn Patterson
Quora: (if you can find her 👀)

Brought to you by:

• Humma — Empathetic AI™ made by and for the community.
• Bast.ai — Building the trust layer for our AI infrastructure.

Listen, subscribe, share — your support keeps these conversations going.

In this conversation, we go deep with Crystal Street — Naropa Institute graduate, journalist, photographer, and bridge-builder between the frontline of crypto and the ethics we desperately need in tech. From whistleblowing in Web3 to building decentralized communities in Web3, Crystal brings lived experience, clarity, and a healthy dose of "enough is enough" to our exploration of how technology can serve people, not extract from them.

We talk endings and beginnings:

• Ending: extractive systems that consume our time, attention, and sovereignty.
• Beginning: a return to open, transparent, community-led tech — the promise of Web1 reborn through Web3.

Along the way, we dig into:

• Why Web2's top-down hierarchies break inside blockchain's organic ecosystems.
• Hyperlocal currencies and cooperative governance as lifelines when old systems fail.
• Smart contracts — why lawyers side-eye them, and when they're worth fighting for.
• How DAOs like JournalDAO are reimagining journalism from the "basement of the casino."
• What voting on-chain could mean for real democracy.
• The quiet crisis of Gen X in the job market, and why bridges between generations matter now more than ever.

Crystal also shares a raw look at the current labor reality — the silent suffering behind the job hunt, the collapse of safety nets, and why reinvention is both a necessity and a skill set we cannot afford to lose.

This episode is for anyone who:

• Wants to understand Web3 without the crypto bro haze.
• Feels the strain of extractive work systems.
• Wonder how local communities can take back power from centralized platforms.
• Believes transparency and participation should be baked into the systems that shape our lives.

Find Crystal:

Twitter/X: @CrystalDStreet

Podcast: The Human Layer

Brought to you by:

• Humma — Empathetic AI™ made by and for the community.
• Bast.ai — Building the trust layer for our AI infrastructure.

Listen, subscribe, share — your support keeps these conversations going.

Welcome back to And We Feel Fine—the radically honest podcast about what’s ending, what’s beginning, and how we build systems of care, not conquest.

In this episode, co-hosts Beth Rudden and Katie Smith flip the script on self-care—from something commodified and individual to something collective, powerful, and deeply structural.

We unpack why real rest is not separate from leadership—it's at the heart of it. From neurodivergent rhythms to exit strategies for grind culture, we explore what it looks like to plan your breakdown, build rituals instead of routines, and stop treating exhaustion like proof of worth.

This one’s for anyone who’s held it all together for too long—and is ready to build something better.

🔍 Topics We Cover:

• Why “always on” leadership is a dead end
• How neurodivergent and queer folks model new ways to rest and reset
• What the engagement economy steals from us (and how we reclaim it)
• The link between self-care, collective care, and actual system change
• Stories of dance parties, breakdowns, and radical boundary-setting

🕰️ Timestamps:

00:00 – When leaders need to fall apart (and why that’s healthy)

05:00 – Neurodivergence, burnout, and boundaries at work

13:00 – “Always on” tech and the addiction economy

20:00 – Redesigning the workplace for psychological safety

32:30 – Building culture with rest, rituals, and care at the center

💥 Sponsors:

⁠Bast.ai⁠ — Explainable, transparent AI that keeps your data yours.
⁠Humma.AI⁠— Empathetic AI™ that starts with consent builds with community and delivers cultural relevance at scale.

🗣️ Join the conversation:

✔️ Subscribe for more radically honest talk on society, culture, technology and AI

💬 How do you build in breaks, joy, or boundaries? Tell us in the comments

❤️ Like if you’re ready for a new model of leadership

🔔 Hit the bell so you never miss a new episode

📬 Want deeper dives and behind-the-scenes posts?⁠ andwefeelfine.substack.com