Kirsti McNabney
speaker
265 appearances
2 recordings
1 series
first heard May 2026
last heard 11 Aug
Kirsti McNabney’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
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recordings per month · last 12 monthsRecordings per month over the last 12 months — 2 in all, peaking in Aug 2026 with 1.
Appearances
what the invitation of the night is so yeah it's been really cool to see i was so surprised when i went because i had an expectation of it and it like lived up to it by far but it was such a diverse group of people and to your point about like judging a book by its cover like
Some people I would be like, oh, this person's so shy. And then they just like opened up to you about your whole life. And I left and I've just talked about it so much since that like it was a group of people who chose to go and eat dinner with strangers. Like that is a big choice that we have. And I just remember you standing at the dinner and being like, if you like want to see each other again, like these are friends that will do fun things with you that are like so random. Yeah.
And it happened. I made several friends from it. And I think that that's such a nice experience to be able to give the world, especially in a time where like there's just so many conversations about how lonely people are. Well, and I think that there's like...
demographic of people that I'm around here for that I love that so much I think that it just makes life so much more interesting also like if you're doing random stuff you're gonna have a story to tell and that makes it worth it in the end you know
My husband often says that my superpower is making friends. So like I feel like I am not the best person to advise on this because I'm like making friends is so easy. What are you talking about? But it does feel really hard to like go into a new space where you know no one and try and figure out what to do next. I love the idea of talking to the yoga teacher or the host of whatever you're doing.
because their role is partially bringing people together and making them feel safe. So I think that that's a great idea. I also think questions are a very good idea. And one of my favorite parts of Dinner with Strangers was the questions. Specifically, one that I have used ever since is, what was the first thing you bought as a kid? Because the answers were wild. I
I was like, I bought a CD and someone was like, my twin and I bought a bag full of Doritos and we split them and then we threw up. And I was like, what an interesting thing to say.
But good for them. Good for them for staying so holistic. They did great. Bless them. Is there one question that you ask that never fails, whether it's in your personal or work life?
Well, if you're well-planned, you can go for what you need and leave the rest. But it really depends on how much money you want to make, I guess. I'll never know. We won't. We'll need to call that person up and ask them what their thoughts are. What's a question that you have been asked that you are still sitting with today?
And you can also glaze past it if you don't feel like getting into it or you don't have the time, you know, but you can kind of go like, oh, here are the bullet points. I feel like all of my friend dinner should start with that as a whole. Yes. And to your point about social, having a lot of feelings about it lately, which is not a great thing for what my job is.
That's okay. Yes. But it feels so weird when you see someone for the first time in like three or four months. And like, I don't even post that much. I just do it sometimes. And they think that they know everything that's happened in your life. It's like such a weird way. People will say often to me because of the podcast too, that they feel like they know what's going on in my life. They're like, oh, we've been hanging out. And I'm like, oh, actually we haven't.
Like on the times I haven't been here. Yeah. I'm like on the times I haven't been on the mic, I've actually been crying, but we're good. That's not true all the time, but just like there is nuance to all of it. So I think that that's a great question and such a good way to catch up and like leave it up to them to what they want to share, which is nice. You've created a container where other people get to be vulnerable and fully seen.
you're the one that's holding the room and something that I've noticed with other friends that have made community spaces in the spaces that I've been in it is different than being on the inside because you're the one that's in control of that space what does it look like in your role and what do you experience when you come to the table
I really appreciate that you shared all of that because I think from the outside, when you look at people holding space for other people, they're like, that's the best job ever, which it is. It's an incredible, incredible position to be in, but it also has so many fine details. And I, I always love to like dive into what that feels like because you're in a different, you're not just attending the event. There are so many different
moving parts of the play. So I'm glad that you shared that. What would you give as one of your favorite hosting tips to make people feel welcome? Because I feel like you're incredibly good at that.
I think you're incredibly good at it. Even like watching you welcome people in was just so nice because it is intimidating, but everyone felt at ease really quickly. And I think that that's a marker of a really good event. So yeah, shout out to you for that.
That's so funny. It doesn't come across like that at all, just so you know, if you're listening. It's like very well pulled together and such a nice place to be. Okay, I want to switch over to writing now. Because I find your writing so special because of the things that you've already talked about, the way that you...
essentially just like watch human existence and are able to put it into words i'm always excited to see anything that you're doing because i'm like oh my gosh jess is gonna tell me about why i'm feeling this way today not to put that on you
But it just makes it so special. And I feel like you take things that are sometimes like quiet and ordinary. You'll like point out something you saw on a walk or like you notice a human moment between other people. And suddenly it gives context that helps people recognize themselves. And I think that that's really special. So I wanted to start with where does that come from for you? Is it something you've always had or did you have to learn to kind of dig into that?
That's really special. And I think that you're doing two different things with the dinners and the writing, but like really they're just making people feel more connected. And I think that that's really special. This is such a random question, but I have had many conversations on this podcast specifically with people who have said that they're highly sensitive or like deep feelers. Were you ever self-conscious of that? Or was that just something that you were like, this is who I am?
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