The Awfully Quiet Podcast

If you’re quiet, introspective, and don’t consider yourself good at “selling yourself,” this conversation will change how you think about job search.
This week, I sat down with Anna Belyaeva to talk about how jobs actually happen now, especially for people who think deeply, do solid work, and don’t rely on loud self-promotion.
Anna is a Stanford-certified career coach and job search strategist who works with ambitious professionals to help them land high-paying roles they genuinely enjoy.
In this conversation, we get into:
the career skills that matter most, but often get overlooked
why getting hired in 2026 isn’t about uploading a PDF anymore
how to gather interview intel that helps you stand out without performing
how senior roles often come together without a formal application
the quiet truth about “selling yourself”, and why introverts are often better positioned to network than they think

Anna is someone whose work I’ve admired for years for her fresh, unconventional take and her honest perspective on the amount of practice, rigour, and effort that actually goes into landing a role that fits, not just pays.
🔗 Learn more about Anna’s work @careerdiet or listen to her Podcast (she recommends Episode 40 in this conversation).
If this episode resonated, follow the show and leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating.
It genuinely makes my day & and it helps the right people find these conversations.
Follow the podcast:
AWFULLY QUIET (bts + reflections): @awfullyquietpodcast
SUBTLE (tips + tools): @subtleseries

In this episode, I walk through four concrete moves that help make your thinking visible at work, especially if you tend to be on the quieter side.
Not by speaking more, pushing yourself to perform confidence, or explaining yourself all the time.
But by making your judgement, direction, and intent easier for other people to follow.
We look at:
– why quiet thinking so often stays invisible by default
– what people actually look for when they’re trying to gauge competence
– how to anchor your thinking to judgement, direction, and consistency
– four practical moves that help turn quiet into something others rely on

Chapters
00:00 — When Quiet Becomes Competence
02:30 — Why Being Quiet Gets Misread
03:28 — Move 1: Letting People See Your Thinking
04:15 — Move 2: Making Your Judgement Visible
05:22 — Move 3: Giving Your Thinking Direction
06:20 — Move 4: Becoming Known for How You Think
07:20 — When Quiet Turns Into Authority

Follow along
If an episode ever resonates, follow the show and leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating.
And if you comment or write a review, know that it genuinely makes my day.
AWFULLY QUIET (bts + reflections): @awfullyquietpodcast
SUBTLE (tips + tools): @subtleseries

Quiet doesn’t get overlooked because it’s weak.
It gets overlooked when other people don’t know what to make of it.
In this episode, we move past why quiet gets misread at work and into the more useful question: when does quiet thinking actually start working?
You’ll hear why two people can think quietly in the same room, and yet only one is read as smart, trusted, and pulled into bigger conversations.
This episode is for you if you’ve ever felt:
– capable, but underestimated
– trusted to deliver, but not to lead
– included, but not invited into what comes next
You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of what your quiet is signaling at work, and how to shift how it’s read, without becoming louder or less yourself.
📌 Follow along:
If an episode ever resonates, follow the show and leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating.
And if you comment or write a review, know that it genuinely makes my day. 🤍
AWFULLY QUIET (bts + reflections): @awfullyquietpodcast
SUBTLE (tips + tools): @subtleseries

You do solid work. People rely on you. And still, you’re easier to overlook than you should be.
This episode looks at how that happens.
How perception forms at work. Why some people get read as “ready” early, while others keep delivering without being pulled forward.
It’s not a confidence issue. And it’s not about motivation.
It’s a quieter mechanism most people never name.
The quietest big dream behind this show is to change how quiet is read and understood at work.
That only happens if this work reaches the people it’s meant for.
So if an episode ever resonates, follow the show and leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating.
And if you comment or write a review, know that it genuinely makes my day 🤍

Follow along for more:
Instagram (behind the scenes + reflections): @awfullyquietpodcast
Subtle career tools & frameworks: @subtleseries

Quiet people are often told the same things: Speak up more. Be more confident. Put yourself out there.
But what if none of that is actually the real problem?
In this episode, we look at something far more uncomfortable + far more powerful: the fact that quiet behavior creates cognitive and evolutionary discomfort in other people.
Not because you’re doing anything wrong. But because the human brain is wired to distrust what it can’t read.
This episode isn’t about fixing yourself. It’s about understanding the invisible forces shaping how you’re interpreted and why loudness so often wins before skill ever enters the room.
If you’ve ever felt boxed, underestimated, or quietly overlooked despite being capable, this episode will give you a completely new way of seeing what’s actually happening.
Chapters
00:00 — Quiet Isn’t As Innocent As You Think
01:53 — The Evolutionary Wiring Behind Being “Hard to Read”
02:48 — Why Loud Feels Safe
03:20 — The Signal Gap
04:28 — From Assumption to Reputation
05:32 — Quiet Creates Tension Before It Creates Respect

If this episode resonated
If something in this made you feel seen (or slightly exposed) that’s a good sign.
It means you’ve just found the real tension this show is here to work with.
Follow the show, rate it, or pass it on to someone who is quietly capable and constantly underestimated.
That’s how this work travels.
Quietly.