Moving Up

E135: Marcus Whitney - Create and orchestrate

August 18, 2020 15:43 - 23 minutes - 21.1 MB

Going from college dropout waiting tables, to teaching himself to code, breaking into entrepreneurship and now writing an amazing book for first time entrepreneurs. Awesome journey covering the fundamentals of business, philosophies of leadership, and the principles of running a business.

E134: Paul Faust (Ringboost) - Cool guy Paul

July 29, 2020 13:44 - 32 minutes - 30.2 MB

Salesman extraordinaire, Paul tells us about his path to building a company and becoming his own boss. Turning yourself into a force multiplier, how to trust in what you’re doing and getting a brief part on the Office TV show!

E132: Taylor Nieman (Toucan) - Micro-moments of learning

July 08, 2020 18:07 - 18 minutes - 17 MB

Taylor is a distribution specialist. Having learned from some of the best startups in consumer tech, she’s now building a browser extension to help people learn new things as they go about their day. What it’s ok to fail and the importance of relationships!

E131: Max Hellerstein (Extra) - Do you like steak?

June 09, 2020 16:58 - 44 minutes - 41.2 MB

Max started his first business in high school with the goal of making money with his best friend. The growth from there and the transition to creating a viral video for his push for pizza app that created his next business which was acquired by Eaze. Next up was the idea to create a modern-day QVC, raising money from big-time investors and then pivoting to a debit card with a credit card style experience called Extra.

E130: George McGehrin - The mindset of an entrepreneur

May 26, 2020 14:47 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MB

Starting an executive placement firm and helping people craft their brands. George's learnings coming out of the last financial crisis and how to best position yourself to get a job after this one.

E129: Jack Shannon (Recess) - Building an ad network for live events

May 19, 2020 15:54 - 29 minutes - 27.3 MB

After studying finance at IU, Jack followed his passion to LA and became an assistant in the entertainment biz. Working his way up in a talent agency, Jack saw the opportunity to start a concert/festival touring company. From there, a cold email to Mark Cuban secured his first investor and how his concert promotion business has evolved into a tech platform.

E128: Bryce Paul Cypto 101 – Everything you need to know about Bitcoin now

April 28, 2020 15:35 - 20 minutes - 19.2 MB

Bryce goes in-depth on bitcoin and crypto. How to get buy bitcoin and the reasons you should.

E127: Rachel and Kristen - Clarity on Fire

April 14, 2020 14:06 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

These 2 fun and energetic women help people combine their career with their passion. If you know what you don’t want but aren’t sure what you should be doing then this conversation is for you. Also, why your passion and your authentic self don’t necessarily need to be combined.

E126: Carol Cohen – Relaunching your career

April 07, 2020 15:43 - 22 minutes - 20.8 MB

Taking an 11-year break to start a family and then getting a job at Bain Capital. How to authentically create mentors and why its important to network with people junior to you.

E125: Scott Barlow - Happen to your Career Podcast

March 10, 2020 14:35 - 35 minutes - 32.1 MB

How to figure out what you want to do (career wise) and then a plan to make it happen. Identifying the traces of your authentic-self and finding the intersection of what it is you want and what you’re great at.

E124: Martin Senn (Davinci Virtual) - Creating an Airbnb for offices

February 19, 2020 15:41 - 23 minutes - 21.4 MB

Martin grew up in Switzerland and his journey took him away from the traditional Swiss values of working at 1 company for your career and instead towards an entrepreneurial pursuit. How he knew what was the right path for him, having an open-mind and now creating a virtual office business in Salt Lake City that is revolutionizing the way people work and meet.

E123: Tracey (CEO Money 2020) - Food, coffee, content

February 11, 2020 14:46 - 19 minutes - 17.9 MB

A deep dive into the events business. Why people come to conferences, what they look for and where they go from here.

E122: Brandon Krieg (Stash) - Solving real problems

February 04, 2020 16:13 - 30 minutes - 28.1 MB

Thinking he would be a chef after college, Brandon quickly took a job at a trading firm. After learning to love fintech, he then saw a huge problem in consumer finance and set out to build what’s now Stash which he calls the consumer finance company of the future.

E121: Turner Novak (Gelt VC) - Never stop hustling

January 28, 2020 15:40 - 33 minutes - 31.1 MB

Turner was determined to become a venture capitalist and he made it happen – but not without some extreme sacrifices along the way. Building a brand on twitter, making the most out of what you have and always finding a way to add value for others.

E120: Gil Beyda (Comcast Ventures) - Always taking risks

January 21, 2020 15:17 - 30 minutes - 27.6 MB

Gil’s technical background got his career going but his open mind propelled his success. A couple wacky business ideas along his path and the similarities between a comedian and an entrepreneur.

E119: Jason Brown (Tally) - Automating your financial life

January 14, 2020 15:55 - 28 minutes - 26 MB

Jason’s a born entrepreneur – how he discovered that and the incredible company’s he’s built as a result. His advice for how to best tackle life, why he likes operating over investing and a fascinating discussion on the role automation will have in shaping the human experience.

E118: Nima Ghamsari (Blend) - Focusing on impact

January 07, 2020 16:32 - 27 minutes - 25.3 MB

Walking away from a lucrative career playing professional poker during college in the pursuit of adding value to society. Starting Blend after seeing the opportunity to digitize and simplify the mortgage process.

E117: Tim Chen (Nerd Wallet) – The trust equation

December 17, 2019 15:35 - 23 minutes - 21.4 MB

After Stanford Tim got a job in equity research (which he really enjoyed) then at a hedge fund. After his sister asked for help in picking a credit card, Tim saw the opportunity to create NerdWallet. The learnings from 10 years of operations, how to build trust and what he would do differently.

E116: Kristen Tyrrell (Catch) – Do the stuff

December 10, 2019 14:50 - 26 minutes - 24 MB

With a passion for supporting the working class, Kristen set out on her career to help people. Unfortunately, she graduated during the crisis. So, she went to grad school abroad and then got a job in consulting. Some twists and turns through the startup world and co-founded Catch. Finally, a framework for how to think about being happy in your career.

E115: Norm Cappell (Savvyy) - Going from law to banking to distressed debt to fintech

December 03, 2019 15:40 - 34 minutes - 31.4 MB

Norm decided he didn’t want to live his life based on someone else’s template (the prestigious law firm path). He became an entrepreneur to fix the back-end of the mortgage process and change the way lending is done.

E114: Anu Shultes (CEO LendUp) - Always an optimist

November 26, 2019 15:03 - 46 minutes - 42.7 MB

Growing up in India and coming to the US for grad school, Anu had no idea of the challenges that lay ahead for her. Letting go of your fear of failure and striving to make a difference every day. A story of crazy obstacles ( financial, health and family) and overcoming them all to achieve her dream of becoming a CEO.

E113: Chris Villanueva – How to get your dream job (the actual steps you need to take)

November 19, 2019 22:35 - 25 minutes - 23.4 MB

Why your job search needs to be super targeted, what your resume and cover letter needs to say and how to stand out from the crowd.

E112: Stephen Warley – Life skills that matter

November 05, 2019 14:58 - 25 minutes - 23.6 MB

Stephen left the corporate grind to start his own business. How and why he did that and how everything is about self-awareness. Why in the future we’ll all be working for ourselves and the best exercise for self-awareness and identifying patterns in your life. Also, how to increase your yes to no ratio.

Kyle Westra - The science (and art) behind pricing

October 22, 2019 14:43 - 34 minutes - 31.2 MB

Kyle works for a strategy consultant focused on pricing. We discuss the nuts and bolts of what a consultant does and his cool new book The New Invisible Hand (5 revolutions in the digital economy). Also, a framework for how to write a book.

Hussein Fazal (Snap Travel) – Working hard and a bit of luck

October 08, 2019 15:36 - 34 minutes - 31.6 MB

Hussein left the big company after school to build Facebook games. Pivoted from games to ad monetization and quickly grew from zero to millions a month in revenue and sold for $$. Now building Snap Travel to automate hotel booking using messaging. Inside the entrepreneurial journey and raising money from Steph Curry!

Immad Akhund (Mercury) – The biggest risk in not capturing the upside

October 01, 2019 14:33 - 41 minutes - 37.8 MB

Immad has gone from startup to startup. Joining a company already in YC, starting a video game company and now a bank for startups. Also, his advice for how to network successfully.

Colin Walsh (Varo Money) – Building a delightful bank

September 24, 2019 14:07 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MB

Colin had a huge career in finance (GE Capital, Amex and Wells Fargo). He got the experience, identified the problem, and started Varo to re-invent the model. Also, banking in the US vs UK.

Bryce Galen (Zero) – Challenging the status quo

September 17, 2019 14:22 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MB

Bryce began his career in investment banking and then left Wall Street when his real estate private equity group was shut down in 2008. Deciding to become an entrepreneur, trying to start a bank from scratch and a debit card with credit card style rewards. Also, some advice for going from finance to tech. www.realvision.com/wso

Khaled Hussein (RedDoor) - Trust the network

September 10, 2019 13:37 - 37 minutes - 34.2 MB

Founding Tilt and the learnings from the incredible journey. Now building a real estate tech company to simplify the mortgage process. Working on difficult problems that will can change the world and being stubborn on where you want to be but flexible on how you get there. www.realvision.com/wso

Frank Rotman (QED Investors) - Getting to yes

September 03, 2019 14:27 - 37 minutes - 34.4 MB

Getting a job at Capital One before it was called fintech. The importance of exploration in a career, what to look for in your job and the future of consumer finance. realvision.com/wso.

John Jonas (OnlineJobs.ph) – Free up your time

August 27, 2019 15:43 - 25 minutes - 23.1 MB

John is a pioneer in the outsourcing business – hiring workers from the Philippines to automate your life. The importance of keeping your burn low in the beginning of any new startup, making money online and cutting out the middleman.

Raj De Datta (Bloomreach) - What’s the cost of being wrong?

August 20, 2019 13:54 - 32 minutes - 29.5 MB

The founder and CEO of Bloomreach (an AI powered software platform for ecommerce businesses) chats about starting his career at Lazard and turning down HBS to join a startup. How he started his entrepreneurial journey and 2 big pieces of advice for how to take the power in the job search process.

Joseph Woodbury (CEO/Co-founder of Neighbor) – The startup journey

August 13, 2019 15:31 - 35 minutes - 32.3 MB

Joseph is the co-founder of Neighbor, the Airbnb of storage. Turning down a job at Bain, how to raise capital from business competitions and create FOMO with investors at the same time. Also, building a company guided by values and why it’s all about the people.

Adam Dell (Clarity Money acquired by Goldman Sachs) – Run towards what you’re good at

August 06, 2019 14:04 - 39 minutes - 36.1 MB

Adam discovered his interest in venture capital while in law school then hustled his way into the industry by offering to work for free. Not being afraid to do the work, going deep and the importance of focus. Starting Clarity Money and selling it to Goldman Sachs 18 months later for $$$.

Ben Gilbert (Pioneer Square Labs / Acquired Podcast) – Keep tinkering

July 30, 2019 14:45 - 29 minutes - 27 MB

“Startup guy” Ben discusses how to set intentions for your career. The virtues of starting off at a big company (Microsoft) and how to think entrepreneurially within a large organization. Also, why side projects are so important. www.onlinemba.unc.edu/wso

James Beshara - The other side of startup success

July 25, 2019 13:36 - 57 minutes - 52.2 MB

James started Tilt – a company that raised $70m, had a huge valuation and was ultimately sold to Airbnb. The tactical takeaways from a massive success and then an outrageous failure. What stops people from thinking big, how to optimally approach every day on your journey and so many more useful insights. www.ansarada.com

Michael Rangel (Bank Novo) - Putting things into perspective

July 16, 2019 14:12 - 43 minutes - 39.7 MB

What happens after a car accident changes everything. Coming back, asking yourself why and then launching a business. Advice to not get an MBA, the glamorization of startups and how the future of banking is personalized. www.ansarada.com

Jon & Alex (AgentRisk) - The future of money management

July 09, 2019 13:49 - 25 minutes - 23.3 MB

Moving from Greece, the learnings from many failures and then a huge success (17x exit), what it’s like being a second time founder and building a fintech business based of the problems they experienced. www.ansarada.com

Alex Cohen (Even Financial) – Opening doors

July 02, 2019 14:25 - 29 minutes - 26.7 MB

Alex built Birch Finance which was acquired by Even Financial, where he’s now director of strategy. How to maximize your credit card points and building a fintech recommendation engine. What will open more doors – going to work for a big name corporate or a startup? Job offer at the end! www.ansarada.com

Camille Holden - How to be time rich

June 25, 2019 14:37 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MB

Building an online business while living in Bali, highlights from 4-years travelling the world and getting 3x faster with PowerPoint. https://nutsandboltsspeedtraining.com/wso/ https://nutsbolts.samcart.com/products/powerpoint-3x-cpp/#?coupon=wso40

Camille Holden - How to be time rich

June 25, 2019 14:37 - 23 minutes

Building an online business while living in Bali, highlights from 4-years travelling the world and getting 3x faster with PowerPoint. https://nutsandboltsspeedtraining.com/wso/ https://nutsbolts.samcart.com/products/powerpoint-3x-cpp/#?coupon=wso40

Ryan Darnell (Max Ventures) – Transitioning from PE to VC

June 18, 2019 14:46 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MB

The differences between pe and venture and why venture is so much more about influence. How to think about the first 12-months of a new business and finding the intersection of what you’re good at and what you like to do. www.ansarada.com

Adam Shaw - The business of sports

June 11, 2019 19:19 - 54 minutes - 49.6 MB

Deciding between Goldman Sachs and BCG and then leaving to become a tennis pro at Club Med. Why you shouldn’t think of your career as a race, how the most successful people figure out what they’re good at and pursue it in their own way. Launching the NFL Network and the future of the media/sports business. www.ansarada.com

Marlon Nichols (MaC Venture Capital) - When to make the jump into entrepreneurship

May 28, 2019 14:58 - 30 minutes - 28 MB

How to get a job in venture after business school and working at the world’s biggest venture fund (Intel Capital). www.ansarada.com

Alda Dennis (Initialized) - The appeal of tangible investments

May 21, 2019 14:19 - 23 minutes - 21.9 MB

Alda’s journey from lawyer to venture capitalist. What she learned working alongside Peter Thiel and Sean Parker. Working for both the hedge fund Clarium Capital and the venture fund Founder Fund at the same time and what her dream job is. www.ansarada.com

Episodes

Books