The Talktrack Podcast

People are always like, "be bold." But the problem with bold? It has limits. Guardrails , visible and invisible, that keep you playing smaller than you actually could. This month's word is audacious. And I think it's the word more of us need right now. In this solo episode, I reflect on: 1) Why bold is actually suffocating if you're stuck within a container 2) What "fera...

What does it mean to " shoot your shot"? We hear this phrase all the time, and I LOVE it. I often say it to myself when I need to lean into something seemingly scary like during fundraising, or sending cold emails to industry titans. The phrase "shoot your shot" has quietly shaped every major chapter of my career since business school and from venture capital, to founding a healthcare company, to...

Not every founder needs VC money to build something massive. And in the AI era where initial barriers to technical and product entry are lowering, that is even more true. Today, I am excited to feature Mae Karzowski, founder and CEO of Obviously - one of the largest influencer and creator economy companies in the industry. She started the company with just $3,000 in her bank account. And in the pa...

Managing ego in the founder's journey (or as a leader) is a very delicate balance. It both is what makes us take great leaps, and is also what makes us ultimately give up. This balance has been one that I've talked about with thousands of founders in my time in venture capital, to founding a healthcare company, to then shutting down companies, to even now having recently excited a company...

“There is no such thing as risk-free greatness.” When Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote this in support of Olympian Lindsey Vonn, it deeply resonated. As someone who has lived both sides — venture capitalist and founder — I’ve seen firsthand that the people who build anything meaningful all share one thing in common: they are willing to enter the arena. In this solo episode, I unpack: Why greatness is n...

“If you assumed it was real, what would you do?”This question has quietly shaped every major chapter of my career since business school and from venture capital, to founding a healthcare company, to now writing my first novel. I first learned it from a founder we invested in - the founder of Zola, the wedding registry company that reaches millions of couples - and it’s a question I keep coming bac...

Talktrack is a podcast where we have honest conversations with entrepreneurs who turned their most wild and creative dreams — in this case, a disco ball experience — into reality. In this episode, I sit down with Carson Lee to unpack the real story behind NYC's Light Leaks — an immersive disco ball art installation that became, according to Time Out , “one of the best things to do in New York...

Artist and creator Alex Aliume didn’t set out to build a career - he followed curiosity. In this episode, Alex shares how borrowing a canvas in 2017 turned into a life-altering commitment to creation. We talk about painting through doubt, financial instability, and global uncertainty - and why choosing what you love often requires surrender, sacrifice, and trust before clarity arrives. This is a c...