David Linn on Striving for Fearless Living

David Linn is the co-founder of Cycle for Survival, the movement to beat rare cancers. Cycle for Survival has raised more than $340 million to support pioneering research and lifesaving clinical trials at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), bringing new and better treatment options to people around the world.

In addition to David’s active involvement with Cycle for Survival, he is an EVP and Board Member at Oak Point Partners. Prior to starting Oak Point in 2004, David worked at both McKinsey & Company and CenterPost Communications. During his years at McKinsey, David had a unique arrangement whereby he took a 5-month leave of absence every year to play soccer professionally with the Chicago Stingers Professional Soccer Club.

David holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School. He has a BA, with highest distinction, from Northwestern University. At Northwestern, David was elected Team Captain of the varsity soccer team, and he received the Director's Award for Best Academic Performance by a Northwestern Student-Athlete.

David had a number of amazing insights during our conversation. Some of them include:

“One of the most special things in life is being part of a team” (7:35).

“When are [those] fears holding me back? How can I put them aside?” (12:00).

“Fearless for her wasn’t the absence of fear, it was recognizing we all have these fears, but don’t let them hold us back” (15:10).

“[Adversity] makes us stronger” (16:50).

“Whatever life throws at me, I can handle” (17:20).

“We all have adversity… but we have a choice in how we react to those challenges” (17:30).

“We make our own luck” (21:10).

“Leadership is about helping any type of group achieve their maximum potential” (24:35).

“Positive energy can be contagious” (25:20).

“I’ll never expect from any teammate or colleague more than I’m willing to put in” (29:30).

“Everybody grieves differently” (31:45).

“We felt like we had to start [Cycle for Survival] because there was such a clear need” (46:15).

“Spend your time on stuff that you want to do” (49:40).

“One of the most special things in life is creating something from nothing” (54:05).

“Get involved in something that’s bigger than yourself” (1:01:30).

“There’s so much joy that you get from actually helping other people” (1:01:35).

Additionally, you can find more info about Cycle for Survival on their website. You can also follow Cycle for Survival on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Additionally, you can personally follow David himself on Instagram and LinkedIn.

Thank you so much to David for coming on the podcast!

I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers.

Thanks for listening.