Disrupt Yourself Podcast with Whitney Johnson

The 2008 financial crisis inspired Patrick McGinnis to examine – and disrupt – his career. Motivated by the collapse, Patrick incrementally dove into entrepreneurship. He's the author of The 10% Entrepreneur, a big idea that advises new business seekers to ease into their ventures. He also coined the term FOMO – Fear of Missing Out – a phrase that plays a role in everybody's lives – and one that c...

When Kara Goldin left her job at AOL after 7 years, she decided to work on her health in her new free time. That meant weening off of Diet Coke. But plain water was too boring, and there were no other options. So Kara came up with her own solution, ultimately disrupting the soda industry. 12 years later, Hint water is her multi-million-dollar flavored water company. Show Notes:  https://whitneyjoh...

Adda Birnir is an entrepreneur and the founder of Skillcrush, an online coding school that offers a curriculum tailored for women who don't fit a typical 'coder' profile. Students are working moms, retirees, and mid-level workers who seek new career opportunities that once seemed impossible. Entrepreneurs intuitively seek disruption in their work. But as Adda has learned, personal disruption has a...

Naveen Rajdev is the chief marketing officer of a large international company that many listeners won't recognize. His company, Wipro, is a technology company that comes up with creative solutions across industries. They operate behind the scenes. Naveen's role as the brand's number one advocate has him constantly darting down new avenues of disruption. He also has some fascinating ideas for how c...

Chrysula Winegar is the driving force behind Global Moms Challenge, a public health education project and online community supported by the United Nations Foundation. To her four children, Chrysula is simply "Mom". Mother's Day offers a unique opportunity to look at motherhood's capacity to disrupt, reward, and teach.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/chrysula-winegar-disrupt-yourself-podca...

Paula Froelich is an accomplished journalist whose work has allowed her to travel the world. She's written for The Guardian and the New York Post's Page 6, among others. She built Yahoo! Travel into a must-read online travel website. But through the years, those opportunities have also led to burnout and personal frustration. Now Paula finds herself working through a transition, in search of a new...

Asi Burak is disrupting how we think about playing games. Asi makes video games. But he's not content making video games that are just entertaining. He wants to make games that are powerful enough to end conflicts and solve some of life's greatest challenges. His new book with co-author Laura Parker is " Power Play: How Video Games Can Save the World ". Review this podcast on iTunes: https://itune...

Susan Cain disrupted how the world thinks about introverts. Her best-selling book " Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking " and The Quiet Revolution now help businesses and schools rethink the ways in which they serve people of all temperaments. As a writer, Susan actively seeks out questions and topics that might lead her readers to uncomfortable places. Show Notes:  h...

Garry Ridge is the CEO of WD-40. He has served in that role for more than two decades, repeatedly disrupting the processes and the culture inside a company that's best known for a selling a can of oil that silences squeaks. You don't have to look hard for evidence of his company's success. Try naming any other can of grease.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/garry-ridge-ceo-wd-40/

Marco Rosamilia is a small business owner whose clients are occasionally terrified of the service he provides. He co-founded a trapeze business with his brother in New York City, then added a location in Arizona. He's in the business of helping people overcome fear. The challenges Marco and his clients face offer some fascinating parallels for how we think about disruption. Show Notes:  https://wh...

Meredith Kopit Levien disrupts and is disrupted by the business side of journalism on a daily basis as executive vice president and chief revenue officer at the New York Times. It's her job to find new ways to pay for quality reporting and innovative storytelling as the very word 'newspaper' starts to sound more and more like 8-track.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/meredith-kopit-levien-...

One day in 2015 Patrick Pichette woke up and realized he no longer wanted to be the chief financial officer at Google. He didn't want to be an executive at all. What he really wanted to do was spend time with his family, enjoy the outdoors a bit, maybe find out whether or not he had a marathon in him. So he disrupted himself with a letter he posted online detailing the leap he was about to take an...

Stacy London is a stylist and fashion consultant who made her name on television as the co-host of the TLC reality series "What Not To Wear". The job was rewarding but it eventually left her feeling burnt out, so she quit. Her planned return to TV has proved challenging on a number of levels. One of them is age and the uncertainty that comes with getting older.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson...

In the early 1980s, Bernie Swain left his dream job at a young age to work in a closet with his wife. Their goal was to create the Washington Speakers Bureau. The agency has since represented several presidents, prime ministers, and bold-faced names -- clients he signed with a handshake. Bernie Swain's new book is " What Made Me Who I Am ". Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/bernie-swain-disr...

Sarah Feingold is a disruptor with dual passions -- law and handcrafted jewelry. She's a big believer in the fact that people can and should create their own opportunities. Back in 2007, fresh out of law school, Sarah noticed a new crafting community called Etsy didn't employ a lawyer to check the fine print. They weren't looking to hire one. Sarah applied anyway. Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohns...

James Altucher disrupts himself on a daily basis as a best-selling author and angel investor. His willingness to push himself to explore new opportunities has both paid dividends and taken an emotional toll through the years. From HBO to the highest highs and lowest lows of managing a hedge fund, Altucher's intense curiosity about disruption and his honesty about what makes it hard offer an import...

Coss Marte disrupted his own prison sentence by developing a fitness program behind bars. He dropped 70 pounds in six months with no equipment. Fellow prisoners soon became his clients. After he was released from prison for dealing drugs, he used the hustle his mom instilled in him and a mentorship with Defy Ventures to turn his training program into a small business. Marte is the founder of ConBo...

Isha Johansen is an entrepreneur and the president of the Sierra Leone Football Association. She is the founder of F.C. Johansen, a soccer team that got its start as a humanitarian project and now competes in the country's top league. She started the team in 2004 to give young boys an incentive to spend as many hours in school as they spent on the soccer field.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson...

Brian Moran is an accomplished entrepreneur and publisher who has faced his fair share of setbacks. His ability to learn and grow from early disruptions eventually opened doors at the Wall Street Journal, Inc, and Entrepreneur magazines. Brian now passes along those lessons to fellow entrepreneurs and marketers. And when times get really tough, faith continues to play a crucial role in his life. ...

Raju Narisetti is the former Senior Vice President of Growth & Strategy at News Corp. He's a veteran journalist who thinks a lot about the business of journalism. Narisetti likes to say he's gotten used to living at intersections. Right now he sits on a corner where publishing high quality journalism meets the challenge of finding a way to pay for it.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/raju-...

Michelle McKenna-Doyle is Chief Information Officer at the NFL. It's her job to dig into data and coordinate across departments to improve how football fans experience the game. A healthy obsession with competition and a creative approach to problem solving make her one of the top disruptors in sports.  Show Notes:  https://whitneyjohnson.com/michelle-mckenna-doyle-disrupt-yourself/