Mark Bernath, ECD at Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam, is a musician that records psychedelic rock under the name 'Necessary Explosion,' illustrating the tracks with hand-drawn animations created on his smartphone. He also weighs in on the benefits of having an agency radio station, why he likes awkwardness and why it’s always better to ask for forgiveness than permission when Netflix-cheating on your partner.

Judy John, global CCO at Edelman, talks about making it in advertising as a shy, socially awkward person who hates small talk and public speaking. She also weighs in on her favorite football team, her love of Kanye West and what she would eat for her last meal.

Jessica Pels, editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan, she talks about growing up as a ballet dancer. She also weighs in on the ways her training has made her a better editor (high pain tolerance, for one), the joys of mass transit and skin care tips from presidential candidates.

Dyllan McGee, founder and executive producer at the women-focused media company Makers, talks about getting off the couch and finally becoming a runner. She also weighs in on her favorite things about Peloton, exercise as therapy and the lies people tell about the runner's high.

Derek Fridman, design partner at Work & Co, talks about his background in street art, specifically wheatpasting—poster graffiti applied with a homemade glue made of flour and water. He also talks about a close shave with Lucasfilm, the failings of the InstaPot and how “The Mandalorian” succeeds as episodic, appointment television.

Jeff Sweat, founder of Sweat & Co., the public relations and consulting firm previously known as Mister Sweat, talks about growing up Mormon and leaving the religion with his wife and family as an adult. He also talks about his disappointment at being sent to Iowa for mission work, his proclivity for climbing tall objects and his thoughts after seeing Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon.”

Joe Staples, executive creative director at Mother Los Angeles, talks about growing up with undiagnosed dyslexia and dealing with a school system that didn’t understand him. He also weighs in on the similarities between advertising and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, the joys of driving in Los Angeles traffic and shepherding his young son through his own diagnosis of dyslexia.

Melissa Hobley, CMO at OKCupid, describes the obstacles facing people who are undergoing in vitro fertilization. She is currently pregnant with her second child conceived using the technique. The process is stressful, time-consuming, painful and expensive, and it involves plenty of uncertainty. “It’s one of those things that so few people talk about, for obvious reasons.” She also weighs in on the best and worst couples, the allure of live TV and mixing politics and family.

Neal Arthur, managing director of Wieden & Kennedy New York, shares stories of his time as a sex ed teacher at a Catholic school. “There’s a weird sort of faux confidence in 8th grade that you have to have to make it,” he says. “You walk around acting like you’ve got it all figured out, yet you know nothing.” He also weighs in on his love of Nike’s “Mars Blackmon” ads and admits that he doesn’t like The Beatles or one particular Golden Girl.

Joan Creative CCO Jaime Robinson keeps both a spinning wheel and a loom in her closet so she can spin yarn and knit blankets and sweaters, “like the lady in Rumpelstiltskin.” She also reveals her favorite Joan and goes deep on the allure of “Russian Doll” and her childhood memories of the Sears Wish Book.

Teresa Younger, president and CEO of the Ms. Foundation for Women, is a lifelong Girl Scout who earned every possible merit badge. She also talks about the appeal of local talk radio and weighs in on the very best flavor of Girl Scout cookie.

Toygar Bazarkaya, global chief creative officer at Optimist, talks about hitchhiking across Europe in the ‘80s and ‘90s, thumbing rides from his home in Stuttgart, Germany to art museums around Europe. He also also talks about growing up the child of Turkish immigrants in Germany, the excitement of finally owning the work of artists he’s admired for decades, the legendary exploits of Peggy Guggenheim and a diet he swears by that he says lets him lose weight and still indulge his sweet tooth.

Terri Meyer is co-founder and co-CEO of Terri & Sandy, the agency she runs with her best friend Sandy Greenberg. She talks about how she gets away from the pressures of agency management to recharge, as well as the dystopian allure of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the bright nostalgia of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” and the acquired taste of gefilte fish.

In this classic episode of Ad Block, Goodby Silverstein & Partners founder Jeff Goodby talks about his tequila importing business—a small-batch, high-end liquor aged for 5 years in three kinds of barrels. “It makes you do your other job better to have things on the side, whether it’s fishing or painting or playing soccer or whatever you take seriously,” he says. He also chooses the best vandals throughout history, recommends alarming audio books and takes a milk-based pop quiz.

Michael Fanuele, president of MDC media agency Assembly, talks about competing in formal debate in high school and college, including against future Texas Senator Ted Cruz. He also weighs in on the best Italian comfort food, why the data says country music is better than rock ‘n’ roll and handicaps the persuasive messaging in the Democratic primary.

Paul Charney is CEO and founder of Funworks, an agency that incorporates sketch and improv comedians into the creative process. He talks about founding Killing My Lobster, a sketch comedy troupe in San Francisco. Charney also weighs in on the trauma-inducing laughs of Netflix’s “Big Mouth,” the tight storytelling of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and drafts a “Saturday Night Live” fantasy cast.

Kay Hsu, global director at Instagram Creative Shop, talks about living with stage IV metastatic breast cancer, an incurable form of the disease that has spread to her bones. “People always say you’re going to fight it, but it’s not one of those things,” she says. Someday, the doctors tell her, “the medicine will stop working.” She also weighs in on the sheer volume of fascinating content on YouTube, what to wear to chemo (loose, comfortable clothing) and her ideal meal at McDonald’s.

Veronica Parker-Hahn, SVP, growth & innovation at Effie Worldwide, talks about how she and her husband learned how to renovate their home—and even prepare for having a baby—all from do-it-yourself videos on YouTube. She also geeks out about “Star Trek: Discovery” and its predecessors, explains why Miles Morales and “Into the Spider-Verse” are the best incarnations of Spider-Man and sings a local jingle from Philly.

Kay Hsu, global director at Instagram Creative Shop, talks about living with stage IV metastatic breast cancer, an incurable form of the disease that has spread to her bones. “People always say you’re going to fight it, but it’s not one of those things,” she says. Someday, the doctors tell her, “the medicine will stop working.” She also weighs in on the sheer volume of fascinating content on YouTube, what to wear to chemo (loose, comfortable clothing) and her ideal meal at McDonald’s.

Winston Binch, chief brand and experience officer at Gale Partners, talks about transcendental meditation, which he has practiced for several years. Each morning, he closes his eyes and silently repeats a short, secret phrase for 20 minutes. He also weighs in on Pink Floyd’s homage to “The Wizard of Oz,” the enduring power of U2 and growing up with the same name as a popular brand of cigarettes.

Aleen Kuperman, co-founder and CEO at Betches Media, talks about growing up the child of Russian immigrants who escaped the Soviet Union in 1988, a year before the Berlin Wall fell. It was a struggle to explain what “Betches” was to her parents. She also talks about the joys of Café Bustelo instant coffee, the pressures of planning a vacation and the relief she felt when she was finally able to hire someone else to write about "The Bachelor."

Mary Pryor, chief marketing officer at Tonic CBD, talks about more effective ways to market the climate crisis, in order to motivate skeptics or people who don’t grasp what she says is the full extent of the issue. “We literally had the top oxygen source on fire, and that didn’t work,” she says. She also weighs in Kieran Culkin’s masterful turn on HBO’s “Succession” and the strange resilience of villains in anime and opines at length on the evils of pumpkin spice.

Alex Chung, founder of Giphy, talks about the intersection of art, experimentation and technology. He also talks about his favorite street in New York City, the evolution of language and culture and the benefits of working with your friends.

Sarah Watson, chairman of BBH NY and global chief strategy officer at BBH, talks about giving birth to both her children at home in her apartment, without anesthesia or painkillers. She also admits that she plays the flute, though not as well as Lizzo (yet), sings a famous beer jingle and actively tries to recruit more users to Foursquare.

Lenny Stern, founding partner at SS&K, talks about working on political campaigns for Democratic candidates, from Mondale in 1984 to Obama in 2008 and 2012. He also weighs in on Trump's chances at reelection, his love of multitasking and why ‘mainstream media’ is a lazy phrase.