This new episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up features a dynamic tag team of David Meltzer, the Co-Founder of Sports 1 Marketing, and Peter Goldstein, entrepreneur and the author of “The Entrepreneur’s IPO”!You’ll hear about David’s complete rebirth in his life and career journey as he shares the surprising ways that money impacts your life, and Peter shares solid gold advice about how you can prepare to take your company public.David Meltzer is the Co-Founder of Sports 1 Marketing, and a legendary sports executive. He formerly served as CEO of the renowned Leigh Steinberg Sports & Entertainment agency, which was the inspiration for the movie Jerry Maguire. He is one of the world's top Entrepreneurs, Investors and Business coaches. David has been recognized by Variety Magazine as their Sports Humanitarian of the Year and awarded the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.Learn more about David | Websitehttps://dmeltzer.com/ Peter Goldstein is a seasoned entrepreneur and capital market expert with over 30 years of experience. His diverse background in international business has equippedhim with valuable insights across various markets and industries.Peter began his entrepreneurial journey as the Founder and CEO of a specialty food distributor, pioneering the farm-to-table organic produce industry in renowned NewYork City restaurants. He is also the author of The Entrepreneur's IPO: The Insider's Roadmap to Taking Your Company Public.Learn more about Peter | Websitehttps://pgoldstein.co/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

How do you find your new idea?What does it take to attract a team of true believers?And what does glass-blowing have to do with entrepreneurship? Hint: the key is timing.All of these questions are answered in my newest episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up with Jim McKelvey, the Co-Founder of Block (previously known as Square)!Jim McKelvey is best known for co-founding Square, now called Block.  He also founded LaunchCode.org, which has provided free training and jobs for thousands of aspiring programmers.  He is the former Chair of the St. Louis Federal Reserve and a trustee of Washington University. Jim is also an artist/designer. Art of Fire is the world’s top textbook on glassblowing and his industrial designs are in both the Smithsonian and Museum of Modern Art. He co-founded Third Degree Glass Factory, one of the top centers for glass artwork.   He is currently working on a plastic-free diaper. Jim’s book, The Innovation Stack, explains how industry-creating innovations actually happen.Learn more about Block | Websitehttps://block.xyz/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

If you’re looking for inspiration to upgrade your leadership for 2024, you’ll want to listen to my conversation with Josh Reeves, CEO and Co-Founder of Gusto on the newest episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up.These are just three topics from our talk that are fantastic guides to follow into the new year:➡️ The key to hire the right people for your company ➡️ The one rule that will help you manage everyone. ➡️ The most important meeting to add to your calendar (hint: it’s with yourself.) Josh Reeves is the CEO and co-founder of Gusto, a startup on a mission to create a world where work empowers a better life. By making the most complicated business tasks simple and personal, Gusto is reimagining payroll, benefits and HR for modern companies. Gusto has offices in San Francisco and Denver, and its investors include Google Capital, General Catalyst, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and the founders of Instagram, Stripe, Nest, PayPal, Yelp, Box and Eventbrite, among others.Learn more about Gusto | Websitehttps://www.gusto.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Does your company have an employee bill of rights?Jon Beckstrand put one together for his team as CEO of MasterControl.That’s just one of the strategies that Jon has used at MasterControl to grow the company and successfully execute a pivot. We talked about his leadership philosophy, his tools for learning, and how he’s come to embrace having difficult conversations. Listen to the rest of it for helpful strategies you can use right now to become a better leader. Jon Beckstrand is responsible for the overall direction and vision of MasterControl. Since his leadership began in 2002, MasterControl has enjoyed robust growth, introduced an array of new solutions, continued the company's push for innovation, and advanced its position as a leading provider of quality management software and services for regulated companies.Over the course of his 20 years in the software industry, Beckstrand has served on the executive team of a midmarket financial services-focused software provider and advised software and IT companies on company strategy and mergers and acquisitions as part of a team at KPMG in Chicago and Silicon Valley.Learn more about MasterControl | Websitehttps://www.mastercontrol.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

What is the real impact of one bad apple on your team?What’s it like to work directly with Bill Gates? What’s your playbook for coming in as CEO of a promising company - like Snowflake - and taking them from 0 revenue to $100M in 5 years? On this episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up, Bob Muglia, the former CEO of Snowflake and author of The Datapreneurs: The Promise of AI and the Creators Building Our Future, answers all of these and more. You’ll learn about his time at Microsoft, including getting fired by Steve Ballmer not just once, but twice, the good and bad lessons he learned from Microsoft in how to lead people. You’ll hear his exact playbook when he came into Snowflake, a company with 0 revenue. And you’ll learn key leadership lessons like how he builds a values-based company and how he holds people accountable without making them feel bad.Bob Muglia is a data technology investor and business executive, former CEO of Snowflake and past President of Microsoft's Server and Tools Division. As a leader, Bob focuses on how innovation and ethical values can merge to shape the Data Economy's future in the era of AI. He serves as a board director for emerging companies that seek to maximize the power of data to help solve some of the world's most challenging problems.Learn more about his book, The Datapreneurs | Websitethedatapreneurs.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Not all feedback is created equal. Giving positive feedback offers far more benefits than simply showing gratitude for someone’s work. It also helps as a vital step to personal self-discovery and self-inquiry. This is a central theme of Jerry Colonna’s brand new book, Reunion: Leadership and the Longing to Belong.Jerry joins me on the newest episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up to discuss the process of radical self-inquiry, why it’s essential for you to do if you want to grow, and the difference between honesty and vulnerability.Jerry helps people lead with humanity and equanimity. His unique blend of Buddhism, Jungian therapy, and entrepreneurial know-how has made him a sought-after coach and leader, working with some of the largest firms in the country.In his work as a coach, he draws on his experience in Venture Capital (VC) as Co-founder of Flatiron Partners, one of the most successful, early-stage investment programs. Later, he was a partner with J.P. Morgan Partners (JPMP), the private equity arm of J.P. Morgan Chase.As a partner with J.P. Morgan Chase, Jerry launched the Financial Recovery Fund with The Partnership for the City of New York, a $10 million-plus program aimed at creating grants for small businesses impacted by the attacks on the World Trade Center.Along with a strong commitment to the nonprofit sector, Jerry is the author of two books: REBOOT: Leadership and the Art of Growing Up and REUNION: Leadership and the Longing to Belong.Reboot was met with critical acclaim, stirring up a big question in the hearts and minds of people: “How have I been complicit in creating the conditions I say I don’t want?” Jerry’s second book, Reunion, builds on this question, asking us what benefit we get from the conditions we say we don’t want.Learn more about Jerry at reboot.io | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

We often ask each other “What’s your why?”Go a step deeper and ask: “What’s your dominant question?”Jim Kwik is a brain coach and the author of the #1 WSJ bestseller, “Limitless: Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, and Unlock Your Exceptional Life.” One of the many fascinating things we discuss is the idea of the dominant question - why it’s so important and useful if you want to do big things in this world.Listen to this brand new episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up to hear all about the most important question to ask yourself, a process to make sure you move your vision forward, the simple methodology you can use to move your vision forward.Jim Kwik is an internationally acclaimed authority in the realm of brain optimization, memory improvement and accelerated learning. With over 30 years of experience, Jim has dedicated his life to helping people tap into their brain’s full potential. From overcoming learning challenges after a childhood brain injury, Jim embarked on a journey with the mission to leave no brain behind. Through his teachings, Jim inspires others to unlock their inner genius, empowering them to live a life of greater power, productivity, and purpose.This November, Jim is unveiling an expanded edition of his New York Times and #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller, "Limitless - Upgrade Your Brain, Learn Anything Faster, Unlock Your Exceptional Life."  Since its debut in 2020, "Limitless" has emerged as a touchstone in the field, garnering praise from global thought leaders and luminaries. The book has equipped countless readers with tools for unparalleled productivity, personal transformation, and professional triumph – including the future of work, brain nutrition, brain types, and how AI will impact our daily lives. This new edition is tailored for those keen on staying ahead in our fast-changing world.Recognized globally for his expertise in brain empowerment and renowned as the world's #1 brain coach, Jim’s influence is vast. Through Kwik Learning, present in 195 countries, he's revolutionizing global learning methods.  From students and tech mavens to CEOs, from Hollywood celebrities to professional athletes, Jim's teachings resonate with a diverse audience. Industry giants like Google, Virgin, Nike, SpaceX and 20th Century Fox, along with institutions like Harvard and the United Nations, have embraced his methodologies. His collaborations with entities such as the U.S. Air Force and the Cleveland Clinic further highlight the extensive scope of his influence.Jim is also behind the phenomenal success of the podcast "Kwik Brain with Jim Kwik." His podcast boasts millions of listeners and more than 60 million downloads, and is a testament to his ability to connect and inspire.  Learn more about Jim here — Websitehttps://www.jimkwik.com Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Gareb Shamus is a visionary in the Superhero and character-based franchise worlds. Throughout the last 30 years, he’s made a tremendous impact on geek and nerd culture and formed relationships with an unrivaled collection of artists, writers, toy developers, game designers, and celebrities. Gareb founded Comic Con as we know it today, producing 180 events with millions of tickets sold, reaching billions of people worldwide. He is also the founder of Wizard, ToyFare, and Anime Insider magazines with over 100 million issues sold in 75 countries His most recent endeavor, ACE Universe, achieved instant success having produced seven events over two years with the most popular Superhero celebrities that were live-streamed to massive global audiences. Comic Con, the largest comic, sci-fi, and fantasy event in the world, almost never happened. That’s because as a young founder, Gareb Shamus, the founder of ACE Comic Con, was on the brink of shutting down his upstart comic magazine, Wizard. Gareb turned to his father and got some surprising, life-changing advice. This episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up is a highlight reel of Gareb Shamus, a superhero visionary, who championed inclusion in his business by focusing on a niche market. You will learn about perseverance, how to take the fuel of your passions and harness it into a product, and how inclusion drives profits. Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

At 17 years old, inventor and entrepreneur Joe Landolina invented a medical breakthrough that is transforming at-home and in-patient wound care. Landolina conceived an adhesive hemostatic gel composed of plant-based polymers that could adhere to a wound site and simultaneously support the natural clotting process. To refine and manufacture the gel technology he invented, Landolina with his partner Isaac Miller founded Cresilon (formerly Suneris), which has since grown into a medical device company headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. As Chief Executive Officer, Landolina is now gearing up to take the company's proprietary product VETIGEL to the veterinary market-offering a faster, more reliable solution in hemostasis for veterinarians performing both routine treatments and complex operations in clinics every day. As the face of Cresilon, Landolina meets with investors, clinicians, and industry key opinion leaders, alike, to keep a pulse on the market, meanwhile leading all strategic initiatives internally.Landolina's research background is in biocompatible polymers; in 2013, he was selected as a Barry M. Goldwater Scholar in recognition of his outstanding potential in scientific research. In 2014, Landolina was named a TED Global Fellow and has since traveled around the world representing Cresilon. Landolina is also a former Innovation Consultant at his alma mater, NYU Tandon School of Engineering, and on the board of eLab NYC, which supports the development of NYC as the new world leader in life sciences entrepreneurship.Joe Landolina is a force of nature! He was doing chemistry experiments as a teenager, and ended up starting his company, Cresilon, at 17-years old.  We talked about his back story and how he learned management and leadership skills, as well as plenty of ups and downs along the way. We also talk about where he got his first clean room (hint: you can buy one too) and what happened when he tried an experiment on his cousin.Learn more about Cresilon | Websitehttps://www.cresilon.com/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Joel Jackson is co-founder and President of Lifeforce, the first clinically integrated health optimization platform. He is a Canadian entrepreneur and executive who has led technology organizations across healthcare, consumer goods, and wellness. Most recently, Joel was CTO of Upgrade Labs, a personal optimization and recovery company based in Santa Monica, California. Prior to Upgrade Labs, Joel led the engineering team for The Honest Company, a direct-to-consumer company focused on improving the health and sustainability of baby products.How do you manage working with someone who has a larger-than-life personality?Joel Jackson, Co-Founder and President of Lifeforce, has worked with figures like Jessica Alba, Dave Asprey, the biohacker and founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and his new venture Lifeforce was co-founded with self-help guru, Tony Robbins.Joel shared so many valuable insights in this conversation, including what it was like to have to shut down his first startup, how he’s able to handle big personalities, and his process to deliver blame-free debriefs on projects. We also talk about how he’s learned to take in feedback without getting defensive - a valuable skill for all of us.Learn more about Lifeforce | Websitehttps://www.mylifeforce.com/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Liz is an infrastructure and information security expert. She is a two-time founder / CEO of venture-backed companies, building the first to a successful exit and the second to a multi-hundred-million-dollar business. Elizabeth has raised more than $100 million in venture capital from the most renowned investors in the world, and is a frequent speaker and guest at industry events and tech podcasts.Jerry Neumann has been an investor and early-stage advisor to groundbreaking technology companies for more than 25 years. He has been called one of New York’s “50 Most Important VCs” by Business Insider. Jerry also teaches innovation and entrepreneurship at Columbia University.This episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up has lots to celebrate, as my guests Jerry Neumann and Elizabeth Zalman launch their brand new book, Founder Vs. Investor, and this is also the 50th episode of the show!!I couldn’t have asked for better guests for this milestone, who shared a wealth of knowledge for startups and founders about how to actually love fundraising, what you can do to better manage the dynamics of a mercurial board room, and get a walkthrough from Jerry about how to speak VC!Find out more about Jerry and Elizabeth | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Joe Thomas is the CEO and co-founder of Loom, the video communication platform for async work. Joe leads Loom in its mission to empower effective communication, wherever work happens. Prior to Loom, Joe served as Director of Product at MyLife.com and Director of Operations at MediaPass. He also co-founded Redesign Agency while in college at Indiana University.While leading Loom, Thomas has been recognized by Forbes 30 Under 30, Forbes Cloud 100, and America's Best Startup Employers.When Joe Thomas started working on Loom, he and the team pivoted 3 times in 9 months. But they finally got the idea right, and now “Loom” is a noun, meaning “send me a video.” In this great discussion, Joe and I go deep in what it’s like to tinker with a concept over and over until you finally get it right. We discuss what he learned in his many “at bats” at fundraising, how and why he tracks his time, and the value that his meditation practice has brought to him as a CEO and as a human.This new episode of From Start-Up to Grown-Up has so many pearls of wisdom from Joe - I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!Find out more about Joe and Loom | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Vishal Sunak is the founder and CEO of LinkSquares, the trusted legal technology partner for over 1,000 in-house teams, including Wayfair, ProPharma, TIME, The Boston Celtics, and Commvault. LinkSquares’ market-leading, AI-powered contract lifecycle management and legal task management solutions surface business intelligence with speed, accuracy, and scale. Vishal is widely recognized as a thought leader in the legal technology space, where he has worked tirelessly to improve outcomes for legal teams, while elevating their visibility within the enterprise.In 2021, Vishal was named an EY Entrepreneur Of The Year, one of the most competitive business awards for ambitious leaders who are building and sustaining successful, dynamic companies. Vishal was honored as one of Boston Business Journal’s 2022 40 Under 40, celebrating the Boston area’s young professionals who are achieving the most in their careers and giving back to the community. LinkSquares’ rapid growth ranks No. 10 in Massachusetts and No. 379 overall on the 2022 Inc. 5000 list of America’s fastest-growing companies, landing a top spot for the second year in a row. The company also ranked No. 100 on the 2022 Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ awards, recognizing the most innovative, fastest-growing technology companies in North America. Internationally, LinkSquares placed among the top ten percent on Financial Times’ 2023 ranking of The Americas’ Fastest Growing Companies. LinkSquares is recognized as a best place to work locally and nationally by Inc., Boston Business Journal, and more.Outside of LinkSquares, Vishal mentors local Boston-based startup founders, plays covers and the blues on his guitar, and spends time adventuring with his wife and two young daughters.Vishal Sunak, the Founder and CEO of LinkSquares, is a shining example of how you can succeed by doing the work and consistently building. He talks me through his process for decision-making, how he learned about his business he knew nothing about at the beginning, and why and how you can rely on your network to thrive if you build it the right way.Find out more about Vishal and LinkSquares | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Randy Komisar is an entrepreneur and investor at Kleiner Perkins.Previously, he was a co-founder of Claris Corp., served as CEO for LucasArts Entertainment and Crystal Dynamics, and acted as “virtual CEO” for such companies as WebTV and GlobalGiving. Randy also served as CFO of GO Corp. and as senior counsel for Apple Computer, following a private practice in technology law.Randy is a founding director of TiVo and serves on the Roadtrip Nation Advisory Board and Orrick’s Women’s Leadership Board. He is the author of the best-selling book,The Monk and the Riddle, as well as several articles on leadership and entrepreneurship. He is also the co-author of Straight Talk for Startups, the insider best practices for entrepreneurial success, Getting to Plan B, on managing innovation, and I F**king Love that Company, on building consumer brands.This conversation with Randy Komisar is just spectacular! We dive right into how he turned his interview with Neil Young from disaster to success, why growing up with a professional gambler sharpened his communication skills, the way that luck factors into your career, and the way to maximize your chances of serendipity coming your way.You’ll learn pearl after pearl of wisdom from Randy in our conversation, including a crucial question he asks as an investor to any entrepreneur to assess what they’re made of. Randy’s such a great storyteller, and this discussion is not to be missed! Find out more about Randy and Kleiner Perkins | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Anouck Gotlib, the Cofounder and CEO of Belgian Boys - a sweet snack company out of Brooklyn, NY, - started her career in fashion. With no business background, she ended up cofounding  Belgian Boys with her husband and did a whole bunch of learning by doing. In this episode of From Start-up to Grown-up, hear about her fascinating journey, her very fresh approach on mundane things like the company handbook, and how her mission to spark moments of happiness gets brought to life. Anouck also talks about how her work with her coach has helped her, and why she has a walk on song.  Find out more about Belgian Boys | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

An investment banker turned three-time award-winning Latina entrepreneur from Bolivia, Carolyn serves as the Cofounder and CEO of Hello Alice (helloalice.com), a smart technology that helps business owners find the right path to start and grow their companies. Carolyn is a long-time advocate for underestimated founders and believes technology-driven data will prove the business case for inclusion. During her time at Hello Alice, Carolyn was recognized as a "17 Women to Watch," by Inc. Magazine, and selected by Mayor Turner of Houston to co-chair the Women and Minority Small Business Task Force in 2019.This episode is a masterclass on entrepreneurship!Learn why it’s not a good idea to compare yourself to others, who you need to look for to bring on your team, how to handle being on the ropes financially, and the questions you should be asking as a founder. Find out more about Hello Alice | WebsiteConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Lauren Bush Lauren is the founder and CEO of FEED, the impact-driven lifestyle brand, making products that help feed the children of the world. A native of Texas, Lauren attended Princeton University where she majored in Anthropology. As a sophomore, Lauren had the opportunity to travel with the UN World FOOD Programme. While visiting regions across Central America, Asia, and Africa, Lauren witnessed firsthand the realities of poverty and hunger that people are facing all over the world. Using this experience as an inspiration, Lauren found FEED as a tangible way for her peers to make an impact in fighting childhood hunger.   Try, try again.If you believe in your mission like Lauren Bush Lauren, the CEO of Feed does, don’t take no for an answer.Learn how she combined her passions with a way to make an impact on the world, how she learned exactly who she needed on her team, and the mistakes made and lessons learned throughout the hiring process.  Find out more about Feed | Website For more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.com To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Seth is an entrepreneur, best-selling author, and speaker. In addition to launching one of the most popular blogs in the world, he has written 20 best-selling books, including The Dip, Linchpin, Purple Cow, Tribes, and What To Do When It's Your Turn (And It's Always Your Turn). His book, This is Marketing, was an instant bestseller in countries around the world. Though renowned for his writing and speaking, Seth also founded two companies, Squidoo and Yoyodyne (acquired by Yahoo!).By focusing on everything from effective marketing and leadership, to the spread of ideas and changing everything, Seth has been able to motivate and inspire countless people around the world.In 2013, Seth was one of just three professionals inducted into the Direct Marketing Hall of Fame. In an astonishing turn of events, in May 2018, he was inducted into the Marketing Hall of Fame as well. He might be the only person in both.Imagine a world where people work where they are respected, where the work - not the employee - is thoughtfully criticized, and where managers create the conditions for employees to do the best work of their lives. Seth Godin does a deep dive on all of these and so much more in our conversation, sharing concepts from his brand new book The Song of Significance that reimagines what work and leadership can be.Find out more about Seth | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Matt Biilmann is the Co-Founder and CEO of Netlify. He was trained to be a musician and music journalist, but early into his career, he pivoted to programming. Among his creations was a content management system that helped web design agencies to build websites. The idea evolved into Netlify, which he launched with childhood friend Chris Bach in 2014. Netlify helped pioneer the movement to decouple front-end web development from back-end server management. Mattel, Unilever, and Verizon have all used Netlify to launch websites.This was a fantastic conversation about Matt's career journey from his former studies in music to pivot towards programming and starting Netlify, what you need to know if you are marketing your product for mass adoption, how you can foster company culture even if you are hundreds of miles apart, and the questions you need to ask when you are hiring!Find out more about Netlify | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Alex Zaccaria is the Co-Founder and CEO at Linktree, the link-in-bio category creator which enables creators, brands, artists, publishers, agencies, and businesses of all sizes to curate an online ecosystem, engage with their audience, and monetize their passions.Find out more about Linktree | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Peter Attia, MD, is the founder of Early Medical, a medical practice that applies the principles of Medicine 3.0 to patients with the goal of lengthening their lifespan and simultaneously improving their healthspan.He is the host of The Drive, one of the most popular podcasts covering the topics of health and medicine.Dr. Attia received his medical degree from the Stanford University School of Medicine and trained for five years at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in general surgery, where he was the recipient of several prestigious awards, including resident of the year.He spent two years at the National Institutes of Health as a surgical oncology fellow at the National Cancer Institute, where his research focused on immune-based therapies for melanoma.Find out more about Peter Attia | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Alex Lieberman is the Cofounder and Executive Chairman of Morning Brew, a media brand that empowers modern business leaders with need-to-know content that is engaging and timely. Since its founding in 2015, Morning Brew has provided millions of users with the most important news from Wall Street to Silicon Valley.Alex was someone ahead of the curve, thinking about the future of content delivery when he started Morning Brew from his dorm room. In our conversation, we discuss the importance of mental health for founders, what it was like to sell his company, his decision-making framework, and why he left his corporate job to start a new company.Follow Alex Lieberman on Twitter | @businessbaristaFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Matthew is the Cofounder and CEO of Matillion. He cofounded his first startup at age 18. Before starting Matillion in 2011, Matthew worked in commercial IT and software development for 15 years at a number of British and European systems integrators. A native of Altrincham, England, near Manchester, Matthew now spends half his time in the United States – primarily in Denver (Matillion’s U.S. headquarters), Seattle, New York, and in the Bay Area, at the beating heart of the enterprise software industry.I am a big advocate for developing healthier company culture, and we dive right into this conversation with a framework on just that from Matthew! We also talk about how there’s no one right answer about which culture to create that leads to building a company with staying power, how to determine when your company pivot is working, micro confidence vs. macro confidence, the personal growth you make as a leader, and the biggest obstacle people have in building their companies.Learn more about Matthew and Mattillion | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.Connect with Alisa!Follow Alisa Cohn onInstagram: @alisacohnTwitter: @alisacohnFacebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohnLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/Website: http://www.alisacohn.comDownload her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better)Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonIf you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Robert Glazer is the Founder and Chairman of the Board of global partner marketing agency, Acceleration Partners. He is also the co-founder and Chairman of BrandCycle. A serial entrepreneur, Bob has a passion for helping individuals and organizations build their capacity to elevate.Key highlights:His company, Acceleration Partners (02:53)How Robert ended up building an email list, writing blogs, writing books, podcasting, and how he fits it all together (06:14) Why clarifying values and purpose is important to you and your company (13:53) Activities and exercises to help you clarify your core values (18:27) What prompted Robert to clarify his company’s culture to take into account the importance of values? (21:38)A scenario where he had to make a hard decision in a situation that didn’t align with his values and the company’s values (27:15)Why he decided to step down as CEO to become an Executive Chairman and what the transitioning process looked like (29:00)His book; Elevate Your Team: Empower Your Team To Reach Their Full Potential and Build A Business That Builds Leaders (36:00) What is capacity? (36:20)The capacity building road map (37:18)Robert’s framework for building team capacity and the different categories of capacity (40:17)How Robert has evolved as a leader (47:47)His experience with the impostor syndrome and how he deals with it (49:06)What Robert wishes he had known earlier on his journey (52:10)His advice for other founders as they embark on their journey to grow into leaders (53:37) Notable Quotes“I have started a ton of things that have failed, but I have never been successful in anything I didn’t start.” (10:44)” If you are accountable, you can have flexibility.” (22:06)Resources MentionedElevate Your Team: Empower Your Team To Reach Their Full Potential and Build A Business That Builds Leaders: https://bit.ly/40IzbmJFriday Forward: Inspiration & Motivation to End Your Week Stronger Than It Started (Ignite Reads): https://bit.ly/3JUU732How to Make Virtual Teams Work: Manage and Empower a Virtual Team That Thrives While Working from Home: http://bit.ly/3zfp5hwConnect with Robert!Follow Robert Glazer on:Website (Company): https://www.accelerationpartners.com/Website (Personal): https://robertglazer.com/Podcast: https://robertglazer.com/elevate-podcasts/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/glazer/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Hubert is the founder and CEO of Productboard.com, a platform for strategic product design and management headquartered in San Francisco, California. Prior to Productboard, Hubert was the Vice President of Product Management at GoodData, where he managed GoodData’s disruptive platform business, built the whole front-end product management and UX team from the ground up, and established and embodied modern principles of user experience design. Hubert also once worked in management consulting as well as trained 20 national park managers in Vietnam on marketing and strategy.In our conversation, filmed live at Web Summit in Portugal, Hubert dives into the challenges of scaling leadership, which include the conversations you need to have when an executive is unable to scale, the tactics he uses for fundraising, which helped Productboard become a unicorn, and how he finds a work/life balance.Hubert’s company; Productboard (02:15)Definition of empathy (04:08) How empathy helps leaders scale a company (05:23)How Hubert developed the skill of giving negative feedback (07:08) The biggest challenge faced by Founders & CEOs of fast-growing companies (12:35)Markers that show that an executive will not be able to scale and the kind of conversations you should have with executives to identify their ability to scale (15:58) The strategies Hubert uses to fundraise successfully (22:37)Why is it necessary to perform due diligence on investors? (29:00) How he conducts due diligence on investors (30:00)Hubert’s mood meter; why he built it and how he uses it (32:33)How he maintains a work-life balance (39:08) His greatest strength and the weakness he is working on (43:26)What Hubert wishes he had known earlier on his journey (45:11)His advice for other founders as they embark on their journey to grow into leaders (47:38)Love the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!Let’s Connect!Follow Hubert Palan on:Website: https://www.productboard.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/hpalanFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/Productboard/ LinkedIn(Personal): https://www.linkedin.com/in/hubertpalan/LinkedIn(Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/productboard/Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Padmasree Warrior is the Founder, President and CEO of Fable, a mobile-first company that brings stories to everyone, anywhere. Previously, Padma was the Chief Executive Officer of NIO U.S., Chief Development Officer and Board Member of NIO Inc., a manufacturer of smart, electric, and autonomous vehicles. In this role, she scaled the company from start-up to a successful IPO NYSE:NIO in 3 years.Our conversation was truly fascinating! We discuss her reverse journey from grown-up to start-up, what she had to unlearn from a large corporation to become a start-up founder, how you can get your initial hires onboard, and the rituals that build a strong company culture.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!What inspired Padma to become an entrepreneur?(03:36)What she had to learn and unlearn when she went from being in a large company to becoming a start-up founder (06:14)Tips to help you when hiring team members for your start-up (09:28)What Fable does (14:45)Why Padma started Fable (15:45)The definition of company culture (22:48)Why investing in company culture is important for your start-up (23:36)The difference between hiring for experience and hiring for expertise (28:37)The ‘Fika’ ritual and why it is a powerful ritual for developing the company culture (33:12)Why she bans talk about work inside the Fika ritual (36:03)What it actually means to bring your whole self to work (40:40)How Padma made a mindset shift from a problem solver to someone who helps other people solve problems (44:35)The decision-making framework she uses in her staff meetings at Fable (49:20)The difference between being on a board and being on a management team (52:30)3 Things you should consider before you become a board member (54:36)What Padma has learned from her board roles at Microsoft and Spotify (56:31)Her experience with the impostor syndrome (59:38)What Padma wishes she had known earlier on her journey (1:02:58)Her advice for other founders as they embark on their journey to grow into leaders (1:04:05) Remember to Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share! Connect with Padma!Follow Padma Warrior on:Website: https://fable.co/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/padmasree-warrior-9917a26b/Twitter: https://twitter.com/PadmasreeConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Nick Sonnenberg is the Founder and CEO of Leverage, a business efficiency consultant, Inc. columnist, and author of the book, Come Up For Air: How Teams Can Leverage Systems and Tools to Stop Drowning in Work. As a serial entrepreneur with a passion for productivity and a background in data science, Nick’s mission is to create companies that disrupt the way people work by leveraging the power of remote teams, digital tools, and automation.His primary focus is to help teams operate more efficiently through his CPR® Business Efficiency Framework, a proven system for leaders, managers, and teams to maximize their performance and reduce overwhelm by using the right tools in the right way, at the right time. This framework consistently results in greater output, less stress, happier employees, and the potential to gain an extra full day per week in productivity per person. Nick has worked with individuals and companies of all sizes including Tony Robbins, Jay Abraham, Facebook, ConsenSys, and more.Nick and I had a rich conversation about the benefits of bootstrapping your business, his thoughts on risk and how to build confidence, and the many ways you can make your business more efficient!Love the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!Introducing today’s guest; Nick Sonnenberg (00:22)How Nick co-founded Leverage after a successful career in high-frequency trading (03:00)Nick’s dramatic breakup with his cofounder and the lessons he learned from that (06:24)Why he never gave up on the company and how he managed stress in that period (10:55)The benefits of bootstrapping your business (13:00)Why hiring is the worst way to get more bandwidth (16:04)How to determine when it’s time to hire someone new (17:54)How to get feedback from your team (21:50)Effective strategies for ensuring you get feedback when you are the boss (25:04)Why he authored - Come Up for Air: How Teams Can Leverage Systems and Tools to Stop Drowning in Work. (32:20)Why people are drowning in work and what they can do about it (33:42)The scavenger hunt problem  (35:09)Quick win tips & tactics in his book to help you make your business more efficient (38:37)How to build confidence as an entrepreneur (44:30)Nick’s advice for people getting into cofounder relationships (45:00)Nick’s leadership style and how it has evolved (49:59)What Nick wishes he had known earlier on his entrepreneurship journey (51:06)His advice for other founders as they embark on their journey to grow into leaders (55:30)  Love the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!Resources MentionedCome Up for Air: How Teams Can Leverage Systems and Tools to Stop Drowning in Work: https://www.amazonConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Chip is the founder of the Modern Elder Academy (MEA), where a new roadmap for midlife is offered at a beautiful oceanfront campus in Baja California Sur, Mexico, and forthcoming campuses in Santa Fe, NM. His five books have made him a leading authority at the intersection of psychology and business. Chip had tons of wisdom to share in this talk, including how to use regret as fuel for the future, what founders can learn when they shift their identities, how to manage people older than you, what Chip learned from the people that he mentored, and his favorite interview question. Key highlights in the episodeKnow our guest; Chip Conley (00:30)The identity cleanse and why it is important (03:19)Chip’s near-death experience and how it made him shift his identity when he sold his company (07:30)The Anatomy of a transition; Three stages of transition (14:48)How Chip became a mentor and an intern to Airbnb Co-Founder&CEO Brian Chesky (18:46)Using regret as raw material for the future (19:45)How insights from Airbnb led him to start the Modern Elder Academy (21:55)Ways of scaling your company’s culture & soul as the company grows (26:46)Culture fit vs. Culture add approach to hiring (28:48)His favorite interview questions (31:20)Why Chip has developed a strong personal brand and how it has served him (37:55)His advice to new founders about having a personal brand (41:06)What Chip teaches his mentees (46:37)What he has learned from his mentees (51:10) How to manage people older than you. And how to operate in an environment where your boss is younger than you (56:18)Ways through which founders can find the truth in their companies (1:01:30)The adjustments Chip has made in his leadership style and the feedback he  received (1:04:13)What Chip wishes he had known earlier on his entrepreneurship journey (1:08:11)His advice for other founders as they embark on their journey to grow into leaders (1:09:41)Love the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share! Resources MentionedFinish Big: How Great Entrepreneurs Exit Their Companies on Top: https://bit.ly/3jtlA2NLife Is in the Transitions: Mastering Change at Any Age: https://amzn.to/3HFPjOaWisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder: https://bit.ly/3YjOxwQLet’s Connect!Follow Chip Conley on:Website: https://chipconley.com/Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChipConleyLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chipconleysf/Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/chipconleyauthor Subscribe to MEA Wisdom well: https://wisdomwell.moderConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Julia Boorstin is CNBC’s Senior Media & Tech correspondent based at the network’s Los Angeles bureau, where she reports and conducts CEO interviews across CNBC programming, and plays a key role on CNBC’s bicoastal tech-focused program TechCheck, delivering reporting, analysis, and interviews around streaming, social, and the convergence of media and technology. She is also the author of When Women Lead. In 2013, she created and launched the CNBC Disruptor 50, an annual list she oversees, highlighting the private companies transforming the economy and challenging companies in established industries. Additionally, she reported a documentary on the future of television for the network, “Stay Tuned...The Future of TV” and helped launch CNBC’s “Closing the Gap” initiative, covering the people and companies closing gender gaps, and leads CNBC’s coverage of studies on this topic. Before joining CNBC, Boorstin was a writer and reporter at Fortune magazine, as well as a contributor to “Street Life,” a live market wrap-up segment on CNN Headline News.This conversation is packed with SO many great topics, including a concept Julia calls the confidence dial, having empathy as a strategic skill, and why people who played sports make for much better leaders. To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Julia | WebsiteFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Lezlie Karls, Co-founder, and CEO started MID-DAY SQUARES with her husband Nick Saltarelli, and brother Jake Karls. After being rejected by every major grocery store buyer, she persuaded her husband to leave his tech startup and help her sell online direct to consumers. Together, they wanted to bring delicious tasting, clean, high-protein afternoon snacks to people on the daily life grind.Join in on our conversation as we discuss how they want to create fans instead of customers, how they've leveraged the power of social media, and built a strong startup together as a family of co-founders.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Mid-Day Squares | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Rob Co-Founded PurposeLab with Andrew Skinner back in 2009 from a simple idea: build technology and invest in companies driven by impact and purpose. They partner with like-minded founders with domain expertise who love to create impact, and who need a tech partner that can ideate, design, and build beautiful consumer and enterprise software products. PurposeLab has evolved into a product development and venture studio that invests in brilliant entrepreneurs striving to disrupt the status quo. Rob is also the Co-host of the Hell & Wellness Podcast with Matt Ruby.We discuss how to bounce back from incredibly challenging circumstances, the process of experimenting vs. sticking it out, and Rob's working with the Kardashian family.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Rob Kramer | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Dan Zavorotny is a healthcare technology entrepreneur whose latest venture, NutriSense, involves CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitoring) technology as a tool for preventative health, weight management, and increased physical performance. His team has helped tens of thousands of individuals, ranging from type II diabetics to world record-setting athletes by optimizing their health and wellness with a data-driven approach.Prior to his entrepreneurial career, Dan worked as a global healthcare consultant at KPMG and has had the privilege of traveling to over 100 countries.We discuss establishing trust as co-founders, the culture shift going from a large corporation to a startup, and his process of teaching himself marketing. I feel that his approach applies globally to any skill you are trying to teach yourself - this is gold!!To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Dan Zavorotny | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Melissa Daimler helps leaders design, operationalize, and scale their culture. She currently serves as the Chief Learning Officer for Udemy, where she develops learning strategies for both customers and employees. Melissa brings over two decades of experience across Learning and Development, Talent Management, and Organizational Development. Prior to Udemy, Melissa created and built Learning, Organizational, and Talent Development functions for Adobe, Twitter, and WeWork. Melissa is a speaker, panelist, and contributor to broad industry publishers including Harvard Business Review, Huffington Post, Chief Learning Officer, and Chief Talent Development Officer magazines. She has served as a board member for the Association of Talent Development (“ATD”) and the Advisory Board for the University of San Francisco, Master’s Program for Organization Development. Melissa is also the author of the McGraw Hill book, ReCulturing: Design Your Company Culture to Connect with Strategy and Purpose for Lasting Success.We talk all about culture, including what it takes to build a strong company culture, what she’s learned from her experiences in different cultural environments. This includes WeWork, and when she realized they weren’t going to change. Melissa shares how she’s managing her worklife now as an executive, author, and speaker, and the systems she’s put in place to keep up with all of her activities.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Melissa Daimler | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Andy Karsner is a true renaissance man! His entrepreneurial leadership has been associated with both venture capital and private equity portfolios throughout the past decade. With responsibilities in guidance and holdings for some of the most successful technology startups, from solar energy to biotech, Karsner is currently a senior strategist at X, the moonshot factory, where he brings an entrepreneurial focus to economic competitiveness, global security, and environmental sustainability. He was the Managing Partner at Emerson Collective where he founded and led Elemental, an environmental practice. He has also served in the US Department of Energy as the Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. A board member at Applied Materials (Nasdaq:AMAT) and Exxon Mobil ( NYSE: XOM) This conversation starts from the beginning of when he led Enercorp as a CEO. You'll hear in great detail the near-death experiences Andy had, why he felt he got a bad deal when he sold his company (even though it ended up being a very good one!), and his perspective as an investor, including the two most important things he looks for in an entrepreneur when he considers backing them. Listen to all this and more, including the advice he most often gives to the entrepreneurs that he mentors in this episode.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Andy Karsner | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Maëlle Gavet is the CEO of the global investment business Techstars, focused on supporting entrepreneurs, and is one of the most well-known startup accelerators around the world. One of the tech industry’s brightest stars, Maëlle has been named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, one of Fortune’s 40 Under 40, one of the Most Creative People in Business by Fast Company, and was fifth among Time magazine’s List of the Top 25 ‘Female Techpreneurs’. She has spoken regularly at the leading technology industry events and her writing has appeared in Wired, the Harvard Business Review, the World Economic Forum, Fast Company, and Fortune magazine. Maëlle shared a wealth of knowledge in this episode! We start off by hearing about how she started her first business at 16, and how the lessons for hiring and motivation she learned then are still used today. We talk about the power of feedback,  the moment she realized she became an autocratic leader, and what she did about it. And you might want to listen to this conversation just for her definition of empathy - it may be one of the best I've ever heard!To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Maëlle Gavet | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Larry Gadea is the Founder and CEO of Envoy, a workplace platform that helps companies welcome visitors, keep employees safe, book desks and conference rooms, and manage deliveries in over 16,000 locations around the globe. Larry started his career as a software engineer at 17, having been recruited by Google out of high school. He later joined Twitter as one of the early people driving its ability to scale. Wanting to build a similar global company, in 2013 Larry went on to build the initial website and app for what eventually became Envoy.   I am thrilled to welcome Larry onto the show! Listen to hear how and why his company, Envoy, had to pivot their work and also use the threat of the pandemic as fuel for new products. You’ll also hear how he developed his leadership growing from a manager to a founder and CEO over the last nine years. Listen to his advice on how he engages the leadership team, and also the resolve one needs to make a startup succeed. To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter. If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast! Learn more about Envoy | LinkedIn For more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Carolyn Childers is the CEO and Co-Founder of Chief. She is an experienced leader and operator, having successfully scaled several early-stage businesses. Prior to founding Chief, Carolyn was SVP of Operations at Handy. Previously, Carolyn led the launch of the site Soap.com (Quidsi) and acted as its GM through its acquisition by Amazon. Carolyn also had roles at Victoria’s Secret and Avon Products where she worked on strategy and business development. She started her career in finance where she spent over three years in investment banking at Deutsche Bank. Carolyn has an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BS in Finance from Boston College.I was able to have such a fun interview with Carolyn live at Collision Conference in Toronto this summer! We cover what it’s like to have a successful career and subsequently, the vulnerability one feels becoming a co-founder and CEO. Carolyn discusses the early days of founding Chief with her co-founder and the breakthrough moment they found after that, what it feels like to have so many people not see your vision, and how she learned to be a leader from her background in sports.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter.If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Chief | LinkedInFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Scott Belsky is an executive, entrepreneur, author, and investor (and all-around product obsessive). He currently serves as Adobe's Chief Product Officer and Executive Vice President, Creative Cloud. Scott's passion is to make the creative world more productive, connected, and adaptive to new technologies. Scott co-founded Behance in 2006, and served as CEO until Adobe acquired Behance in 2012. Millions of people use Behance to display their portfolios, as well as track and find top talent across the creative industries. After Behance's acquisition, Scott helped kick off Creative Cloud’s services and reboot Adobe's mobile product strategy and led Behance until 2016, when he spent a few years as an investor and advisor to multiple businesses. Alongside his role at Adobe, Scott actively advises and invests in businesses that cross the intersection of technology and design - and help empower people. He is/was an early advisor and investor in Pinterest, Uber, sweetgreen, Carta, Cheddar, Flexport, Airtable, OpenSea, Ramp, Ro, and Periscope (now part of Twitter) as well as several others in the early stages.Scott is also the author of the international bestselling books Making Ideas Happen and The Messy Middle.We cover so much ground in this conversation, including how he knows when he can trust an executive, why he sees company culture as an immune system, and why it’s important to extinguish most new ideas.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Scott BelskyFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Sarah Dorsett is CEO of Nanit, a high-growth baby tech company that supports the new parent journey with products that connect parents to their child’s development through powerful insights that improve the sleep and well-being of the entire family.  Under Dorsett’s leadership, Nanit has been named to Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, Deloitte’s Technology Fast 500, and CNBC’s Upstart 100 list of most promising startups. An ecommerce leader with more than two decades of experience scaling retail businesses, Dorsett previously served as Vice President of Ecommerce at Bed Bath & Beyond and held executive roles at Bloomingdales.com, Century 21 Department Stores and Coty. Aside from her corporate responsibilities, Sarah is a mom of three and founder of Parken Jewelry.Sarah offered a fortune of valuable advice in this conversation! From stepping into the role of a CEO replacing a founder, sharing what her experience was as a first-time CEO, developing a playbook for leadership and management, building trust, creating white space in her calendar to focus on bigger questions, building situational awareness, and how her role as a parent has helped her become a better CEO.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about NanitFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Alexi Robichaux is the Co-Founder and CEO of BetterUp, the first leadership development platform to connect coaching to sustainable behavior change. Prior to BetterUp, Alexi was Director of Product Management at VMware. Alexi is Chairman of Youth Leadership America (YLA), a nonprofit he co-founded in 2003, to foster peer-to-peer leadership development and civic engagement in high school students. YLA has collaborated with leading companies including Disney, Google, and Hilton Hotels to coach and mentor future leaders.This episode is chock-full of so many stories! We literally dive right into it, talking about what Navy Seals taught him about running his company, handling a cacophony of pain and misery, why it took him two years to hire a CRO, the frameworks he has in place to scale his business, and the mentors who have helped him learn them.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about BetterUpFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Oleg Rogynskyy is the Founder and CEO of People.aiI was introduced to Oleg by Robin Matlock, who has also appeared on this podcast! Oleg is an incredibly thoughtful and intentional leader in how he builds his company. In our conversation, we talk about specifics for board management,  why he hires people that are "way out of his league," and his strategy to maintain and grow his extensive network.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about People.aiFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Jon Stein is the Founder and Chairman of the Board at Betterment.Jon was the first person I interviewed for my book, From Start-Up to Grown-Up! We start at the beginning of his journey that led him to founding Betterment, then discuss how important culture is to the success of the company. Later on, we got into why he stepped down as CEO, and how he would end up finding his successor.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Jon's company, Betterment, at betterment.comFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Paul English is the co-founder and CEO of Boston Venture Studio.Paul has been a founder for multiple companies and organizations, one of his companies being Kayak. Paul shares how he found his co-founder Steve Hafner and how they decided to build Kayak together. He is also a master of the hiring process, and shares step by step his process for determining whether to hire someone and how he does it within seven days of hearing their name!To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Paul at paulenglish.comFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Kara Goldin is the co-founder and CEO of the beverage company Hint Inc.She discusses co-founding Hint with her husband Theo, why and when she decided to bring in outside investors after bootstrapping for so long, and why singer-songwriter John Legend became an investor.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!If you like what you hear, please subscribe to the podcast!Learn more about Hint at drinkhint.comFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Julien Smith is the Founder and CEO of Practice, a WSJ bestselling author, and former CEO and Founder of Breather.He discusses what he learned stepping away from his former company, Breather, how he strengthens his co-founder relationships, and the insight he gained watching another CEO operate.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!Learn more about Practice at practice.doFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Ilan Twig is the Co-Founder and CTO of TripActions.Ilan talks about how his first company was acquired after nine months, how the pandemic nearly ruined their business, how they leaned on their mission and culture to create and survive, and why a diagnosis helped define his leadership style.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!Learn more about TripActions at tripactions.comFor more stories and advice on founders and CEOs, head to alisacohn.comConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Sid Viswanathan is the Co-Founder and President of the digital health platform, Truepill.This was such a rich conversation! We talked about how he was reverse-pitched on his first startup, founder market fit, how company culture evolves as your business grows, and how when he solves a problem, it's a failure.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Ragy Thomas is the Founder and CEO of the social media and customer management company, Sprinklr.We really got into it in this discussion, from how he grew up in a family that looked down on business, becoming a multi-time entrepreneur, his abundance mindset, and the advice that changed his life.To stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Rahul Vohra is the Co-Founder and CEO of Superhuman.Rahul Vohra is the Founder and CEO at Superhuman. According to Crunch Base, he is also a Technical Advisor at Boldstart Ventures, an investor and advisor at Partender, and an investor of sendwithus and Easy Post. He received his bachelor of arts in Computer Science at the University of Cambridge.Rahul shares the lessons he learned from being a serial entrepreneur, how and why he learned to meditate, what he does to build trust with his team, and the pros and cons of being a celebrity founder.[1:41] Rahul’s Gaming Life[3:57] Rahul’s Past Experiences[6:48] Rahul’s Experience on Rapportive[8:07] Motivation and Driving Power of Rahul[11:25] Maintaining Spiritual, Mental, and Physical Health[26:06] Taking Feedbacks[31:56] Building up Trust[38:29] Change of Mindset as a Leader[44:12] Is there a Downside about Waiting so Long to Launch?[51:52] The Challenges of Change[56:11] Advantages and Disadvantages of Being a Celebrity CEO[59:55] Experience on Self-Doubt[1:02:50] Advice in Growing as a LeaderTo stay up to date on future episodes and learn more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsCheck out Superhuman on https://superhuman.com/You can also follow Rahul on his socials:Twitter | LinkedIn | InstagramConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Robin Matlock was the former CMO of VMware, an independent Board Director of startups including People.ai and Cohesity.Robin is a seasoned Silicon Valley GTM executive with over 30 years of marketing, sales and business development experience in the enterprise software and services market. Currently an Independent Director with Iron Mountain (NYSM: IRM), serving on Technology, Compensation and Risk/Safety Committees. Advisor to People.ai, a fast growing AI and Revenue Acceleration company, and Calamu, an early-stage disruptor in the data security market.She talks about her own career growth and about the importance of not putting limits on yourself and how a fateful lunch totally changed her career trajectory. She talks about how you need to promote yourself in your own mind to lead at a different altitude as you become more senior, and then again when you serve as a board director. Robin also shares a recipe for how to bring culture to life, why you need to get better at failing, and how playing the harp prepared her for her very successful business career.[01:58] Silicon Valley’s Ethos[03:54] Robin’s role model[08:38] A CEO’s Influence[15:41] How Robin’s career began[36:36] The Importance of Culture[46:16] Struggles[52:48] AdviceTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Gregory Galant is the co-founder and CEO of Muck Rack, a platform enabling PR teams to work together to find the right journalists for their stories, send customized pitches, build meaningful relationships with the media, monitor news and quantify their impact. It’s used by thousands of organizations, including Taco Bell, Pfizer, Golin, International Committee of the Red Cross, Knight Foundation, Kauffman Foundation and Penguin Random House. Muck Rack is also the solution of choice for journalists, who use Muck Rack’s free, automatically updated portfolios to showcase their work and provide information about what stories they’re looking for.Greg’s also the co-creator and executive producer of The Shorty Awards, which honor the best of social media. Past winners include Lizzo, Ricky Gervais, Rebel Wilson, Trevor Noah, Conan O’Brien, Issa Rae, Marques Brownlee, Sesame Street, Neil Patrick Harris, Mike Bloomberg and NASA.Greg is a frequent speaker and writer on topics related to social media, marketing, PR, entrepreneurship, remote work and journalism. He’s presented at SXSW, Web Summit, Harvard Business School, Le Web and The International Journalism Festival, and his columns have appeared in Fortune, Forbes and Business Insider.Along with his companies, Greg has been cited in and interviewed by numerous media outlets, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Associated Press, Business News Daily, Editor & Publisher, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Inc., Poynter, PR News and PRWeek. BusinessWeek named him one of the “Best Young Tech Entrepreneurs,” and Crain’s honored Muck Rack as one of the “100 Best Places to Work in New York City.”In this episode, Greg shares why he decided to bootstrap instead of taking VC money, the constant state of change his job is as a CEO, and why he’s become grateful to sit around and be bored.[1:33] Early Days of Greg's Entrepreneurial Career[3:22] Greg's Founding Story[11:04] Greg's View on Failure[15:45] Greg's Opinions on VC Money[19:39] Downsides on the Decisions Made[24:38] Greg's Journey as a Leader[33:00] What Greg Felt When He Gave Way [40:13] Setting Learning Goals[42:27] Working Remotely – The Remote Culture[52:22] Greg on Firing People[57:56] Self-doubt in Greg's Entrepreneurial Journey[1:07:42] Final RemarksTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

David Sax is the author of The Soul of an Entrepreneur.An award winning writer, journalist, and keynote speaker, David has been at the forefront of reporting and dissecting the intersection of business and culture for nearly two decades, including four internationally bestselling books, articles and appearances in nearly every major global news outlet, and dozens of keynote speeches to audiences around the world.We talk through the startup myth, what entrepreneurship really looks like, the emotional and personal journey about what it takes to be an entrepreneur, and the highs and lows of being a solopreneur.[0:48] Going Beyond the Start-Up Myth[3:30] David’s Interest in Entrepreneurship[9:23] Accidental Entrepreneurs[15:56] What does it take to be an Entrepreneur?[22:49] Occupational Hazard on Entrepreneur[25:39] David as a Solopreneur[28:55] David’s reminder during downs[37:58] Is Entrepreneurship a Mental Illness?[41:07] The Change after Writing the Book[44:40] What David is Working on for NowTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Rick Nucci is the Co-Founder and CEO of Guru.Rick Nucci is co-founder and CEO at Guru. Rick brings twenty years of experience in creating category-leading software solutions and companies. Prior to Guru, Rick was the founder and chief technology officer of Boomi, which defined and led a new segment as the first-ever cloud integration platform-as-a-service. Boomi was acquired by Dell in 2010, where Rick went on to run the Boomi business for Dell as its general manager, helping grow the organization into the industry leader it is today. Rick frequently speaks at industry events about startups, SaaS and cloud computing. Rick holds a Bachelor of Science in Logistics, Materials, and Supply Chain Management from Penn State University.In this talk, Rick discusses the importance of having complementary founder skills, his philosophy about culture, what to do when he doesn't know what to do, and why he insists that people vent.[01:04] “Success is not a license for arrogance.”[02:55] What Rick learned from the trials and errors of leadership[15:03] Importance of Culture [19:42] Hiring Candidates [22:09] Downsides to Guru’s Culture [28:02] Maintaining Guru’s Culture during the Pandemic[34:19] The Change and Growth that Ricks has done as a Leader [40:30] Experiencing Self-Doubt and Impostor Syndrome [45:46] What Rick wished he knew before starting his journeyTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Jennifer Dulski is the Founder and CEO of Rising Team and author of the WSJ bestselling book Purposeful.Jennifer Dulski has a wide range of executive experience including leadership roles at Facebook, Google, and Yahoo!, and founder, CEO, and president roles at early stage and scaling startups. She is currently CEO and founder of Rising Team, a company that provides tools, data, and community to turn managers into amazing coaches that build happier and more successful teams.Prior to Rising Team, she led Facebook Groups, used by more than 1.5 billion people each month to create and participate in communities that matter to them. Her team was responsible for envisioning, building, and growing the Groups product. She also led the 2019 redesign of Facebook, “FB5,” to put communities at the center of the app.Before Facebook, Dulski was president and COO of Change.org, a social enterprise company that empowers people to create campaigns for change. Under her leadership, Change.org grew 10x, from 18 million users to 180 million, developed a profitable business model, rebuilt its tech stack, and supported thousands of successful campaigns globally.During our conversation, Jennifer shares her story of becoming the founder of a nonprofit when she was 21, how you can get fooled by thinking you have product market fit, why it's so helpful for founders to spend time at large companies, work/life mashup, and her love of acronyms.[01:49] Overcoming Challenges[03:20] Strengthening Teams with Similar Talents[05:30] Why Jennifer Appreciates Honest Feedback[08:45] Building a Nonprofit Company[10:03] Structure of the Organization[14:23] Developing Technology to Create a Consumer Product[17:53] Truths of Being a Serial Founder[26:12] Jennifer's Goal to Build Rising Team[37:25] Vital Life Lessons Learned[42:55] The Strength of Self-Confidence[49:55] Three Traits for Successful MovementsTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Jeff Wald is a serial entrepreneur,  Board Member, Best Selling author, Keynote speaker and investor.   Jeff is co-founder and Chairman of two new technology startups, Bento Engine (toolkit for financial advisers) and Sonero (AI tool that provides summaries and action items from meetings).  Jeff’s previous company, Work Market, an enterprise software platform that enables companies to manage freelancers was acquired by ADP in 2018, where he served on the Senior Leadership Team until 2020.  Mr. Wald has founded several other technology companies, including Spinback, a social sharing platform (eventually purchased by salesforce.com). He began his career in finance, serving as Managing Director at activist hedge fund Barington Capital Group, a Vice President at venture capital firm GlenRock and various roles in the M&A Group at JP Morgan.Jeff has served on numerous public and private Boards of Directors including Steel Connect (NASDAQ: STCN), Costar Technologies (OTC: CSTI) and venture-backed TransfrVR.   Mr. Wald serves as an adviser to several companies and entities including the X-Prize’s Rapid Reskilling Initiative.Jeff is the author of the #1 Amazon Best Seller, The End of Jobs: The Rise of On-Demand Workers and Agile Corporations and The Birthday Rules: A Fun and Flexible Framework for Raising Children in a Technology Enabled World.In this episode, Jeff talks about cofounder drama, his depression when his first startup failed, and what he said to his investors when they told him to get a coach, frameworks, and what he now looks for as an investor.[02:48] How Jeff started[13:44] Sign of Weakness[20:37] Getting a Coach [27:33] Working Habit[37:28] Lifeline[45:05] Achievements[47:28] Jeff’s Imposter Syndrome[55:23] Advice[01:07:57] ConclusionTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Sadie Lincoln is the co-founder and CEO of the fitness franchise company, Barre3. Sadie is on Inc.’s Female Founders 100 list and the MO100 Impact list, has been featured on NPR’s How I Built This, and speaks regularly on the topics of mindful leadership, the power of body wisdom, and the movement to redefine what success in fitness means. Beyond running her company and being a global spokesperson, Sadie still enjoys teaching barre3 classes to many of her founding clients in her hometown of Portland, Oregon.In this episode, Sadie shares how their in-person business had to pivot during the pandemic, why she views running her business as a spiritual practice, the worst feedback she ever received, and the importance of having the right team around her.[2:17] Building business was a spiritual practice[5:14] Micro practices that bring her closer to her spiritual practices[7:46] Shifting into a more confident state[9:45] The founding story of Barre3[16:39] During the pandemic[33:26] A circle in Sadie’s leadership group[37:41] Female leadership[39:55] What else does Sadie wish she had known earlier on her journey?[41:04] Sadie’s AdviceTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Chris Hsu is the CEO & Co-Founder of Azibo, a VC-backed real estate fintech startup focused on simplifying the rental property experience. Prior to Azibo, Chris served as an Advisory Partner at a16z and previously was CEO of Micro Focus, a $4B enterprise software company. He also was COO of Hewlett Packard Enterprise, where he successfully led the largest corporate separation in history. Chris spent the earlier part of his career in leadership roles at top consulting firms, including KKR and McKinsey. A military veteran, Chris graduated as a Distinguished Cadet from the United States Military Academy at West Point and completed his U.S. Army tenure as a Captain. He also has an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.In this episode of From Start Up to Grown Up, our guest is Chris Hsu. Chris is the CEO and Co-Founder of Azibo, a financial service for rental property owners. He has various work experience with a variety of companies, namely: General Mills, McKinsey, KKR, HP, and Andreessen Horowitz. He also has an MBA from Kellogg School of Management.In this episode, we cover:[1:59] Chris’ Personal Life[7:33] Chris’ Experience on Ranger School[13:55] Azibo Founding Story [18:17] Co-Founding Azibo[22:02] Culture of the Company that Chris wrote down[33:40] Chris on Leadership [37:43]The Struggles of Chris in his journey[46:44] Chris as a CEO [54:09] Challenges in Talking to Employees and Executives[59:48] What Chris Wished He Had Known Earlier[1:02:02] Advice for other FoundersTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Jake Stein is the cofounder and CEO of Common Paper. Previously, he was the co-founder of RJMetrics (acquired by Magento, then Adobe) and Stitch (acquired by Talend). Before RJMetrics, Jake worked in venture capital, started a landscaping business in high school, and was the 44th ranked table tennis player under 21 in New Jersey; achievements of which he is equally proud.In this episode, Jake discusses the pros and cons of distributed teams, the questions that he and his co-founder asked before they started their company, and the challenges he ran into once his former company was acquired. You'll also hear Jake's biggest mistake, how he invites company feedback parties, and all about Whale Wednesdays.[01:27] Entrepreneurship Origins[03:32] Aligning Company Plans[11:33] The Emotional Battle of Running a Business[28:03] Written Feedback vs. Verbal Feedback[33:23] Fostering Company Culture[45:36] Jake’s Biggest Professional Blunder[58:05] The Importance of Self-Care[58:51] Advice for New Business OwnersTo hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter at http://alisacohn.com/5scriptsConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Zvi Band is the co-founder and CEO of Contactually, which has been acquired by Compass. He is also the author of Success is In Your Sphere. His new venture is called Talk Social, which is focused on bringing humanity back together.In this episode, Zvi and I had a conversation about how he got onto the path of entrepreneurship, how he learned to see himself as the leader, and the limits of transparency. Zvi and I also get into a real talk discussion about co-founder dynamics, mental health, and his surprising advice to founders who are getting ready to sell their business.To hear more from Alisa, sign up for her newsletter!Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Matt Blumberg is the founder and CEO of Bolster, a new talent marketplace for on-demand executives launched in 2020. Before Bolster, he was the CEO of Return Path. He has authored two books, namely: The Startup CEO and The Startup CXO.In this episode, Matt will take us through his entrepreneurship journey. He will give us in-depth details on how they founded Return Path, how they built the company culture, as well as their exit from the company. Matt also shares how he creates a support system, learned to say ”no,” and became a two-time CEO.If you were to sell your company today, would you feel like you are giving away your child? Today, I’m joined by a man who founded a company, built it up, attempted selling it and failed, went back to rebuilding it, and sold it years later. Meet Matt Blumberg!Matt is a founder and CEO of Bolster, a new talent marketplace for on-demand executives launched in 2020. Before Bolster, he was the CEO of Return Path. Also, he has authored two books, namely: The Startup CEO and The Startup CXO.In this episode, Matt will take us through his entrepreneurship journey. He will give us in-depth details on how they founded Return-path, how they built the company culture, and their exit from the company. Also, he will tell us how he creates a support system, his journey to learning to say, "no” and how he became a second-time CEO.Key Talking Points of the Episode:[01:36] Getting to know Matt[03:27] Matt’s growth path in leadership[09:30] How Matt learned to say NO[12:39] How to build a support system[13:23] What’s the difference between a coach and a mentor?[15:10] How Matt handles difficult conversations with his employees[21:20] Coaching someone is about to get fired[29:30] How Matt built the company culture at Return Path and how it evolved[40:16] How Matt deals with difficult setbacks and bad moments in his day-to-day life[41:57] Transparency and authenticity[43:27] Matt’s favorite failure[51:05] How Matt sold Return Path[56:25] What is it like to be a second-time CEO for Matt?[01:02:58] The most challenging role for Matt in his current role[01:04:42] Matt’s book, Startup CXO and why it is important [01:10:43] What Matt wishes he knew earlier on his journey[01:11:15] Matt’s message to other founders, as they embark on their journey to grow into leadersQuotes from the Episode:“You’re never done growing as a leader all of us are works in progress.”“The most important conversation to have with an employee or an executive who is not doing well is the conversation you have before the one you fire them.”“The best way to deal with a bad moment is to wait a few minutes. Something else is going to come along and replace it.”“When you make the hard conversation early, that means the later conversation is easier.”“Don’t be shy about asking for help. There are a lot of people around you who know a lot more than you do about a lot of things that you’re doing.” Grab Matt’s BoConnect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!

Learn about Alisa's new podcast, From Start-Up to Grown-Up, where she interviews founders about the journey from their beginnings as a fledgling business to thriving companies that are leading the way.Connect with Alisa! Follow Alisa Cohn on Instagram: @alisacohn Twitter: @alisacohn Facebook: facebook.com/alisa.cohn LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisacohn/ Website: http://www.alisacohn.com Download her 5 scripts for delicate conversations (and 1 to make your life better) Grab a copy of From Start-Up to Grown-Up by Alisa Cohn from AmazonLove the show? Subscribe, Rate, Review, Like, and Share!