We Live to Build

Why do most climate startups fail to scale? Tom Chi, a founding member of Google X and inventor with 77 patents, argues that relying on "Green Premiums" or even price parity is a death sentence. In this interview, he reveals the "CapEx Inertia" trap that prevents factories from adopting new tech and why your solution needs to be 3x cheaper than the incumbent to survive. Tom shares the heartbreakin...

Why is aiming for 10x growth actually easier than aiming for 2x? Philipp Wehn, founder of an AI company for heavy industries, explains how raising $15 million shifted his mindset from survival to dominance. In this interview, he reveals why you need to stop doing 80% of your tasks to achieve exponential results. Philipp breaks down his unique business model—combining a high-touch service agency wi...

Why do talented new hires often destroy value instead of creating it? Matt Putra, founder of EightX and a fractional CFO for 8-figure brands, argues that "profitability is a human problem," not a math problem. In this interview, he explains how misaligned teams create operational drag and how he helps companies save millions (like a recent $1.5M inventory win) by fixing communication rather than j...

Can you land enterprise clients like Marriott and Panasonic without a massive sales team? Dima Syrotkin, founder of Panda Training, reveals his strategy for hacking enterprise sales: partnering with consulting firms who already have the trust (and the golf buddies) to close the deal for you. In this interview, Dima and Sean discuss why firing middle managers is a mistake, the reality of "AI shrink...

Is AI coming for your job, or just the boring parts you hate? Tim Cakir, an AI consultant who scaled his agency to nearly $1M ARR in the first year, reveals why he believes "boring work" is the enemy of productivity and how AI agents can eliminate it. In this interview, Tim shares the controversial story of how he helped a company replace 50 employees with an automation tool, why he believes leade...

Why do ad platforms like Meta and Google claim credit for sales they didn't actually generate? Scott Desgrossilliers explains why relying on ad platform data is like letting the "fox watch the henhouse" and how it leads businesses to burn cash on ineffective campaigns. In this interview, Scott and Sean discuss the complexities of multi-touch attribution, why you need an unbiased "source of truth"...

How do you save a startup when growth flatlines? Itai Sadan, co-founder of Duda, reveals the two critical pivots that saved his company: shifting from mobile-only to responsive design, and the controversial decision to ignore 50% of his customers (small businesses) to focus entirely on agencies. In this interview, Itai explains why AI is the new SEO, how to optimize your website for ChatGPT search...

Why do the ultra-wealthy ignore the traditional 60/40 portfolio? Tad Fallows, founder of a high-net-worth community, reveals that his members hold almost zero bonds and use portfolio lines of credit instead of keeping cash reserves. In this interview, he breaks down the actual asset allocation strategies used by those with $5M-$100M+ net worths, including why they prioritize private equity and rea...

Why should most startups avoid hiring a PR agency until after their Series A? Jackson Wightman, founder of a tech PR firm, argues that early-stage companies often waste money on agencies before they are ready. In this interview, he breaks down the right time to invest in public relations and why the playing field has tilted against those who ignore AI. Jackson also reveals how AI has fundamentally...

Is the $400 billion currently being poured into AI infrastructure a visionary bet or a massive bubble waiting to burst? Vijay Rajendran explains why we are seeing the biggest investment in fixed capital since the railroads, and what could cause it all to come crashing down. In this interview, Vijay and Sean discuss the new velocity of fundraising, where startups hit $100M ARR in months, and the ri...

In the "Amazon Age," customers expect custom products yesterday. Eric Turney explains why businesses are now "forced to automate" or get left behind. In this interview, he reveals how Chinese manufacturers are using robotics to reduce factory lines from 50 workers to just 5 and why speed is now the most critical metric for survival. The conversation delves into the practical side of automation: us...

Why did people turn down a $5,000 cash reward for referring a candidate? Dakota Younger discovered a strange psychological phenomenon while building his referral platform: offering money sometimes decreases motivation. In this interview, he breaks down the complex psychology of incentives, explaining why altruism often outperforms cash and how to structure a referral program that actually works. D...

Why did David Windley disrupt the recruiting industry by moving from commissions to an hourly model? In this interview, he reveals how he scaled his firm to $50 million in revenue before selling it. He explains why the traditional 33% commission model is broken for clients and how he implemented a professional services approach instead. David unpacks the terrifying reality of a 75% revenue drop du...

Don't miss out on this game-changing Cursor technique designed specifically for AI entrepreneurs. While most use Cursor AI just for coding, there's a revolutionary way to manage your entire business, documents, emails, projects, and sales, directly within its interface, treating everything like code in a GitHub repository. In this demo, Seva Ustinov unveils this powerful workflow. Forget scattered...

Which is harder: being a founder or being an investor? Mike Lazerow has done both, building and selling companies for nearly $1 billion and now running a $400M VC fund and a PE firm. His answer might surprise you. In this interview, Mike unpacks the "existential dread" of entrepreneurship versus the challenges of deploying capital. He shares why he's most excited about AI transforming "boring" bus...

Jeff Archibald is one of the lucky few who was able to sell his agency, and now he advises other agency owners. In this interview, he reveals what he would do differently if he had to start his agency all over again. We break down the critical mistakes most founders make, starting with the failure to set revenue goals and reverse-engineer a plan to meet them. Jeff explains why being too risk-avers...

Everyone is talking about an "AI-First" content strategy, but it's the wrong mentality, and it's killing your founder authority. In a world drowning in noise, you don't need to be everywhere; you need to be "undeniable where it counts." This interview with Ethan Monkhouse, founder of Naviro, breaks down the new rules for building authority as a founder. We explore why quality content is a hundredf...

For many ambitious founders, bootstrapping is a slow death. After building a profitable, high seven-figure SaaS company for 10 years, Sameer Narkar realized his self-funded model was no longer enough to win. In this interview, Sameer explains why the AI revolution is forcing successful bootstrapped companies into raising funds to move faster. He breaks down his decision to seek investment after a...

Are you making the #1 mistake in AI pricing? Many founders are using their old SaaS pricing model, but for AI, that’s a huge error. As pricing expert Dan Balcauski explains, it’s like showing customers your “underpants”, and it’s killing your sales. In this guide to AI pricing, Dan breaks down why the game has changed. Unlike traditional SaaS, AI products have significant variable costs and unpred...

How do you get a 70% reply rate on LinkedIn DMs? In this episode, I sit down with Gabe Lullo, CEO of the 8-figure sales development agency Alleyoop, who shares his exact method for filling his sales pipeline every single day. Gabe unpacks the hard truths about modern sales, explaining why most LinkedIn outreach is just noise and how hyper-personalized voice notes can get you a 7x higher response r...

A shocking statistic reveals that 80% of leaders are dangerously behind on AI, and the window to catch up is closing fast. Most are trapped by day-to-day "urgent" tasks, ignoring the "important" work of AI adoption that will determine their company's future. In this episode, executive coach and founder of NewPo, Arielle Lechner, explains why so many leaders are failing to integrate AI and provides...

What if your "great" work ethic is secretly sabotaging your business? It's a tough question, but one every founder needs to confront. The toxic hustle culture sold by Silicon Valley isn't just unhealthy, it's often unprofitable. In this episode, Personal Growth Advisor Brad Farris joins me to dismantle the "grind" mindset. We explore why overworking kills the creativity needed for breakthroughs ,...

Why stop building a startup from scratch when you could just buy a profitable business instead? For many entrepreneurs, acquiring an established company is a faster and more direct path to success. In this interview, Neel Bhargava, Founding Partner of the private equity firm NB Group Investors, unpacks his playbook for entrepreneurial investing. He explains the real differences between private equ...

Ever wonder how someone bought an $8M/year company with only $5,000? Gary Shelton did just that, and in this interview, he reveals his exact model. Gary is "The Coaching King," having acquired, scaled, and sold 12 different businesses over the last 50 years, each hitting 8-figures per year. He explains why mindset is the #1 reason most entrepreneurs never hit $1M a year in revenue and shares the l...

Are you accidentally destroying your team with a "Hero Leader" mindset? Many leaders believe their job is to be the primary problem-solver, but this approach can secretly sabotage team performance and create a massive bottleneck. This is the "Hero Leader" Delusion. In this interview, executive coach Dr. Carla Fowler (MD, Ph. D.) breaks down the psychology of leadership and reveals how even well-in...