Podcasts about minimize

Cassie Young brings hard earned lessons from a career spanning CRO roles, customer success leadership, turnarounds, and now investing as a General Partner at Primary Venture Partners. She talks about building and rebuilding go to market teams, why sometimes you should fire customers on purpose, and how churn is a lagging indicator that hides deeper retention issues. Cassie shares strong views on overrated metrics like NPS, the incentives that actually drive behavior inside a business, and the myth of finding one perfect KPI. She also brings signature Cassie isms like sunlight is the best disinfectant and the reminder that leaders often get stuck working in the business instead of on it offering practical insights for anyone trying to keep their SaaS metrics from going sideways.—SPONSORS:Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Sage Intacct is the cloud financial management platform that replaces spreadsheets, eliminates manual work, and keeps your books audit-ready—so you can scale without slowing down. It combines accounting, ERP, and real-time reporting for retail, financial services, logistics, tech, professional services, and more. Sage Intacct delivers fast ROI, with payback in under six months and up to 250% return. Rated #1 in customer satisfaction for eight straight years. Visit Sage Intacct and take control of your growth: https://bit.ly/3Kn4YHtMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.—LINKS:Cassie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassyoung/Primary Venture Partners: https://www.primary.vc/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:Getting fired 4 times made me a founder | Sam Jacobs of Pavilionhttps://youtu.be/8X-JVOF-1A0—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:02:30 Sponsors Aleph | Fidelity Private Shares | Sage Intacct00:05:21 Returning From Pavilion & GTM Summit Takeaways00:06:49 What Makes a Great Executive00:11:07 The Importance of True P&L Fluency00:12:17 First Team Leadership vs Functional Loyalty00:13:33 Reading the Macro Environment and Market Forces00:14:29 Sponsors Mercury | RightRev | Tipalti00:18:26 Applying First Team Leadership in Practice00:22:24 Churn as a Lagging Indicator00:24:23 Finding Real Leading Indicators of Renewal00:25:30 Customer Value as the Only Path to Enterprise Value00:26:52 Product Adoption Perception and Retention00:29:16 Price to Value Ratio as a Predictor of Guaranteed Churn00:30:37 The Ultimate Question What Gets Your Customer Promoted00:32:33 How NPS Is Actually Calculated00:34:56 Sailthru's Minus 26 NPS and What It Signaled00:37:31 Rebuilding Customer Trust Through Transparency00:40:24 Why Net and Gross Retention Must Be Paired00:42:51 Aligning the Executive Team Through a Unified Bonus Plan00:45:18 Firing Customers When Misaligned Segments Drain the Org00:49:35 Carrot vs Stick How to Motivate a Modern GTM Org00:52:31 Why MBO Plans Fail CSMs01:03:51 Why Time to Value Matters More Than Ever#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CustomerSuccess #ChurnPrevention #GoToMarket #VentureCapital This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Dear Boss Babe... if you are thinking I should be further along by now… This episode is your reminder that hustling yourself into the ground is not the path — intention is. If you've been battling burnout, second-guessing your pace, or comparing your journey to someone who isn't living your reality… this one's for you. In today's pep talk, I'm pulling back the curtain on what it really looks like to build a dream while holding down a 9–5 — the identity shifts, the emotional weight, and the discipline it takes to grow without slipping into hustle culture or burning yourself out. You'll walk away feeling grounded, re-centered, and reminded of what your spirit already knows: You are not behind. You are building with intention, not urgency. Why your pace does not determine your potential How high achievers accidentally slip into burnout loops Using your 9–5 as leverage instead of letting it drain you The difference between building with pressure vs purpose The self-care habits that keep you steady through the climb The mindset reframe that every multi-hyphenate founder needs ✨ If you loved this pep talk, go listen to the full episode (#128) where I break down the actual structure, boundaries, and energy management skills that help you grow both sides of your life without crumbling under the pressure. ✨ Come connect with me on Instagram: @theerickanicole / @bossbabereset ✨ Podcast produced by: Your Girl Media Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

CoreWeave CFO Nitin Agrawal joins Run the Numbers to unpack the finance engine behind one of the fastest-growing AI infrastructure companies on the planet. CJ and Nitin dive into what it takes to build financial discipline in an environment where business models are being invented in real time, discussing the company's 700% growth last year and massive first-quarter performance as a newly public company. They cover capex strategy, securitizing GPUs, managing billion-dollar revenue backlogs, and structuring incentives for hyperscale deals, all while keeping investors grounded and servers running at full tilt. If you want a front-row seat to finance in the AI arms race, this episode delivers.—SPONSORS:Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Sage Intacct is the cloud financial management platform that replaces spreadsheets, eliminates manual work, and keeps your books audit-ready—so you can scale without slowing down. It combines accounting, ERP, and real-time reporting for retail, financial services, logistics, tech, professional services, and more. Sage Intacct delivers fast ROI, with payback in under six months and up to 250% return. Rated #1 in customer satisfaction for eight straight years. Visit Sage Intacct and take control of your growth: https://bit.ly/3Kn4YHtMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.—LINKS:Nitin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nitin-agrawal-cloudcfo/Company: https://www.coreweave.com/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:The Art and Science of a Day-One IPO Pop with OneStream Software CFO Bill Koefoedhttps://youtu.be/kYCn7XNkCBcFrom Facebook's Hypergrowth to Daffy's Disruption: A CFO's Playbook for Saying Yeshttps://youtu.be/bRIZ6oNPGD0—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:02:54 Sponsors – Tipalti | Aleph | Fidelity Private Shares00:06:12 Interview Begins: Scaling CoreWeave00:06:52 CoreWeave's Pivot From Crypto to AI00:11:41 Why CoreWeave Is Uniquely Positioned to Lead AI Infrastructure00:13:32 Hiring for Both Scrappiness and Scale00:16:01 Post-IPO Whirlwind: Acquisitions, Debt Raises, and 10-Year Deals00:16:43 Sponsors – Sage Intacct | Mercury | RightRev00:20:13 Managing Investor Expectations With Radical Transparency00:22:39 Doubling Active Power in Six Months00:25:19 Risk-Balanced Capital Deployment: Power First, GPUs Second00:27:12 Financing GPUs With Delayed-Draw Facilities00:29:38 CoreWeave Rated Platinum for GPU Cluster Performance00:32:25 Compute as the Bottleneck for AI Growth00:33:47 Explaining Revenue Backlog Shape & Timing00:35:06 The Strength of Reserved Instance Contracts00:36:07 Giving Tight but Honest Guidance00:40:26 How Mega-Deals Require C-Suite Participation00:42:19 Tackling Revenue Concentration Through Diversification00:44:05 Building an AI-Only Cloud, Not a General-Purpose Cloud00:46:27 Capital Markets Muscle: Raising Billions at Speed00:47:47 Accounting Complexity in a Business With No Precedent00:49:33 Even the CFO Must Unlearn Old Cloud Assumptions00:51:29 Scaling Public-Company Processes in 90-Day Cycles00:54:42 The Couch Fire vs. House Fire Framework00:57:17 Balancing Risk Mitigation With Opportunity Seeking01:00:30 No Downtime for ERP Changes During Hypergrowth01:02:33 Why the Team Stays Energized Despite the Chaos#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CFOInsights #Hypergrowth #AIInfrastructure #FinanceStrategy This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

You ever feel like your phone owns YOU? Every ding and light-up screen yanking you around like a dog on a leash? The "urgent" text that could've waited. The random notification breaking your focus. The email that suddenly derails your morning. Let's be real. You're not "staying connected." You're being controlled. And it's costing you your focus. Your energy. Your relationships. YOUR GOALS. What I learned very quickly in my professional career – if you don't manage how people get access to you, they will control you. And when you're "ON" 24/7? That's not commitment – that's chaos! That's why in this week's 5-Minute Drill on the Coming Up Clutch with J.R.™ show, I share the exact 3-play strategy I use to… Protect your boundaries without losing results Minimize distractions, so you can maximize your momentum Put your phone (and the people who abuse your availability) back in their place In this episode, you'll hear: Why constantly being "ON" 24/7 is usually a symptom of a poor or non-existent communication strategy. How Nehemiah's focus while rebuilding Jerusalem's wall offers a biblical blueprint for resisting constant digital distractions. A 3-play strategy to manage your phone use and protect your focus. Two tactics to weaken the habit loop and reduce impulse checking your phone. How to use the Eisenhower Matrix to filter true priorities from false emergencies. Practical steps to create a communication strategy so you can  protect your boundaries and define urgency on your terms. Key Quotes "If what is asking to get your attention is not urgent or important, it can wait." - J.R. "Your phone and its apps aren't bad. Your management of them is." - J.R. "Define urgent and important on your terms." - J.R. Connect with J.R.  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamesJRreid  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamesjrreid/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesjrreid/  Twitter: https://twitter.com/jamesJRreid Website: jamesreid.com Check out The Clutch Club™️: jamesreid.com/club (For Men Only) Follow and Review: We'd love for you to follow us if you haven't yet. Click that purple '+' in the top right corner of your Apple Podcasts app. We'd love it even more if you could drop a review or 5-star rating over on Apple Podcasts. Simply select "Ratings and Reviews" and "Write a Review" then a quick line with your favorite part of the episode. It only takes a second and it helps spread the word about the podcast. Episode Credits If you like this podcast and are thinking of creating your own, consider talking to my producer, Emerald City Productions. They helped me grow and produce the podcast you are listening to right now. Find out more at https://emeraldcitypro.com. Let them know we sent you.

TRANSCRIPT video1290704010 Gissele : [00:00:00] Was Martin Luther King Jr. Right? Does love have the power to turn an enemy into a friend? Does it have the power to heal? We are creating an inspiring documentary called Courage to Love. The Power of Compassion explores the extraordinary stories of individuals who have chosen to do the unthinkable, love and forgive even those who have caused the most deep harm. Through their journeys, we will uncover the profound impact of forgiveness and love, not only on those offering it, but also on those receiving it. In addition, we’ll hear from experts who will explore whether loving compassion are part of our human nature and how we can bridge divides with those we disagree with. If you’d like to support our film, please donate at www MAI tt R-I-C-E-N-T-R e.com/documentary. [00:01:00] Hello and welcome to The Love and Compassion Podcast with Gissele. We believe that love and compassion have the power to heal our lives and our world. Don’t forget to like and subscribe for more amazing content. Today we’re talking about not feeling good enough and what we can do to start feeling better. Our guest today is Sabrina Trobak Based out of Fort St. John BC Canada is a registered clinical counselor and author of the book, not Good enough, understanding Your Core Belief in Anxiety. She’s also a clinical supervisor, public speaker, and holds a master’s degree in counseling psychology. Before establishing her practice, she dedicated over 20 years to education, serving as a teacher, vice principal, school counselor across three school divisions. Sabrina, has extensive training in addressing trauma in its effects on daily life, [00:02:00] including anxiety and the core beliefs. Of not being good enough, not important, not valued. Her counseling agency Trobak. Holistic counseling aims to help individuals identify, challenge, and transform these core beliefs into being good enough, important enough, and value. Please join me in welcoming Sabrina. Hi, Sabrina. Sabrina: Hi. Nice to be here. It’s nice to meet you. Gissele : Oh, nice to meet you too. Thank you for being on the show. I was wondering if you could start by telling the audience what sort of led you to do this sort of work? Sabrina: I always wanted to be a teacher, you know, even in kindergarten, I was the kindergartner helper that helped other kids tie their shoes. Just was always something I wanted to do is be a teacher. Towards the end of my teaching career, I was a school counselor. And even as a teacher, I was a learning assistant teacher, so I did a lot of work in smaller groups, working more individually with students. So you get [00:03:00] to create a much deeper connection because you’re working one-on-one as opposed to a class size of, you know, 25, 30, 35, whatever it might be. And so then I went into counseling. Same thing. You really get to build that relationship. And then I went to a workshop on suicide. That was looking at suicide, more of a symptom of that core belief. Feeling not good enough. Not important, not valued. At the end of the workshop, I just thought, this is what I need to do. So the presenter, Tony Martins taught me his model of therapy. I quit teaching and started my own private practice, which really uses that as the focus point. So really going back and helping people understand and support and challenge that core belief. I started my own private practice in 2010. And within about six months I had a waiting list and I hated having to turn people away. The model I practice where we’re really addressing that core belief is a long-term model of [00:04:00] therapy. So a lot of my clients are with me a year and a half, two years, sometimes even longer. And so I decided to write the book not good enough as a way to provide a resource for people who can access counseling for whatever reason. Gissele : That’s beautiful. Thank you. And reflecting on your teaching experience, did you find that students were suffering from not feeling good enough? And do you think that’s changed? Sabrina: Students, teachers, parents, administration, support staff? Yeah, it’s kind of a worldwide thing. You know, I think it’s been there for a really long time. I think what we’re seeing a difference in is. People are talking more about mental health. So rather it being this thing that we just kept down and suppressed and pretended wasn’t an issue. Now we’re talking about it and the problem with that is we don’t necessarily know what to do with it now that we’re talking about it. So it seems like it’s kind of imploding all over the place. But you know, I think it’s been going on forever and [00:05:00] ever, and ever and ever. In fact, your core belief develops based on your parents’ core belief. If your parents’ core belief was not good enough, not important, not valued, they can’t really teach you anything else. So that means that was that generation. Well, where did they get it from? Their generation, and it just kind of goes on and on and on and on. Gissele : I really appreciated that you said that. ’cause that has been my experience that we are just now vocalizing the fact that we have these feelings. And to some people it’s like, we didn’t have these things before. That’s just simply not true. It’s just that now it’s feeling safer to talk about it. We want to address the issues and want to understand where this sort of came from. I wanted to really. Touch on the concept of not good enough. Because at least in my experience, I wasn’t that sort of person that criticized themselves. I didn’t say call myself a loser. My not good enough actually showed up in a very different way, in a [00:06:00] very covert way. I would say in terms of limiting my dreams or really negative thinking in terms of like catastrophizing. how does not feeling good enough show in different people? is there specific patterns or is it just very different depending on the person? Sabrina: I think the main pattern is it holds you back. it doesn’t allow you to feel content, feel peaceful, feel confident. That would be a common pattern, but what that can look like can vary significantly. Also, the degree of your core belief can play a significant role as well. You might be feeling, you know, actually pretty good enough, important and valued just once in a while. That not good enough, not important, not value comes up. All the way to the other where really everything, every thought you have is reinforcing and supporting that not good enough, not important, not valued. So it can look like a variety of different ways. We get clients who come into counseling for all kinds of different things. [00:07:00] Relationship issues, anxiety, depression. They can’t really sleep. They’re having nightmares. Pornography gambling, alcohol, drugs, cheating, lying you name it, all kinds of different things. What we say is. These aren’t really the problem. These are the symptoms of that core belief. If your core belief is not good enough, not important, not valued, you need to distract, but you’re gonna be going to things that allow you to distract that ultimately end up reinforcing that core belief because it gives you something to beat yourself up over. Hmm. So it can look like a variety of different behaviors For sure. Gissele : Do you ever see people with like health issues? Sabrina: Oh, all the time, for sure. Mm-hmm. Stomach issues, headaches, sore aches and pains. What happens when with that core belief not good enough? it creates a lot of self-doubt and insecurity. Anxiety is lack of [00:08:00] confidence. Not believing in yourself. You can handle something. A lot of people think anxiety is about the trigger, right? I have anxiety of driving on the highway. If it really was about driving on the highway, then no one would be driving on the highway. So it’s not about that. It’s about my belief and my ability to handle it. So if I believe I can handle driving on the highway, I’m not gonna have anxiety. If I can’t, I believe I can’t handle it. I will have anxiety. So that anxiety, that self-doubt, every time we go into anxiety, that fight, flight, freeze, adrenaline gets dumped into our body. That gives us that boost of energy to fight or to run away. But if I’m creating all of this anxiety in my head through my own thoughts, or it’s creating a sense of danger, I think I’m in danger, but I’m not really in danger. It’s the catastrophizing thoughts, the negative thoughts, the beating yourself up, the what if scenarios. Every time you go into that fight, flight, freeze, that adrenaline, that energy has to come from somewhere.[00:09:00] So what happens is it zaps all of our non-vital organs. Stomach, bladder, pancreas, kidney, liver, skin all of our non-vital organs get zap of energy. So if you have really high anxiety where you’re going into this fight, flight, freeze response, hundreds of times a day, you are going to see a physical impact. Absolutely. You know, if your stomach is being zapped a hundred times a day, don’t expect it to digest food properly. That’s, it’s just not gonna work. Gissele : Oh, thank you for that. I really appreciate that. That also got me to think about my experiences with trust. I used to have huge trust issues ’cause I was raised with like, my parents also had views and trauma and, it was when I realized that I didn’t trust myself to deal with people’s betrayal, not necessarily trusting the other people, that things shifted for me. It was me realizing that it was like, oh, this is about me. This isn’t about them. And their behavior, whatever they choose to do, is [00:10:00] entirely up to them. if they choose to betray me, well then that’s their choice. But it was about me. What are some things that can help someone become more aware of whether or not. They’re not feeling good enough. Sabrina: You know, I think that one, the one that you just kind of said where you don’t trust, you think you can’t trust in other people. Anything where you’re doing, where you’re focusing on others, blaming others caring to others, people pleasing for others, judging others, gossiping about others. All that time that you spend focusing on other people is all time. You’re not spending on yourself. Why is that? It’s usually because that core belief is there. We don’t like ourselves, we don’t wanna deal with it, so we’re focusing on all these outward things. As long as you’re fo focusing outward, there’s likely a bit of that core belief going there, and it’s not gonna get better until you focus more inward. Gissele : Mm, [00:11:00] yeah. To what extent do you feel like the systems we’ve created also perpetuate that, continue that belief? So not only the belief that kids were taught from their parents, but also when entering in these different systems that we have created. Sabrina: You know, I think a, a lot of our systems are very symptom based. So, you know, I have anxiety. Okay, we’ll do these things to deal with the, anxiety you have depression. Okay, we’ll do these things to deal with the depression. You have anger, okay, here’s some anger management strategies, rather than really looking at why is it there in the first place. What’s fueling those things? So our society in general often has a very bandaid, approach. Just put a bandaid on it. But if you have a wound and you just put bandaids on top of bandaids, on top of bandaids, that wound doesn’t just not heal. It gets worse, it gets more infected, it becomes more painful. It creates more stress, more anxiety. [00:12:00] And so we really need to take that bandaid off. But our society, you know, even medical right? I have a sore throat, they just address the throat rather than looking at is there something going on that’s feeding that right? Yeah. our, policing system is all very reactive and again, very kind of punitive and system based rather than really what’s going on here, what’s feeding all of this underlying stuff. Gissele : Yeah, and I think it comes from the separation from within ourselves, right? Like not really understanding or seeing ourselves holistically and our separation from each other and from nature. And I think that’s kind of why we have these systems. Sabrina: And I think part of why we even have that system is because if I deal with the surface doesn’t create a lot of emotion. Mm. If I go a bit deeper, ooh, that creates more emotion, vulnerability, fear. Abandoned. Lonely. I don’t like to feel those emotions, so keep it surface. Minimal emotions have to play. One of the [00:13:00] big things that drives that core belief and a big issue in our society is. We don’t really feel our emotions again, I think we’re getting better at talking about them, but now it’s almost like, oh, I’ve got emotion. I need to stop rather than I’ve got emotion. I need to feel it so I can move through it. And so that emotion piece is massive. We keep things very surface, so we don’t really have to feel. Gissele : Yeah, absolutely, as children, some of us were taught like, don’t feel or only limit the scope of emotions. You can feel these emotions are okay, these emotions are not. And this took me a long while to realize that the reason why my emotions were limited, at least by my parents and people in my life. They didn’t have the emotional girth to be able to hold space for my difficult feelings. So they did not teach me how to hold space for my difficult feelings and how to hold space for my kids’ difficult feelings. And so it was a journey where I really had to understand and it took me shifting my [00:14:00] perspective because I think originally I felt it was my fault, right? As I got older and became a parent, I realized, oh, they didn’t have the space, so they had to squash my emotions in order for them not to feel uncomfortable because they couldn’t cope with it. Sabrina: If I’m as a parent, if I don’t like to feel my emotions, now my child is feeling emotion, well that creates emotion in me, but I don’t wanna feel my emotions, so I need to shut my child down. It’s okay. It’s not really that big of a deal. It’s fine. You’ll get over it. You know, you’re worrying about nothing. Minimize, minimize, minimize, which is teaching your child shut down and suppress their emotions as well. Where did they learn it from? Right. You know, if we’re not learning how to feel our emotions, we are learning how to suppress our emotions. Gissele : Yeah. Yeah. And then that comes out in a different way, in the worst parts of my journey in learning to love myself and, step into that worthiness was I realized a pattern I had some unexpected things [00:15:00] happen in my life that were shocking to me. they had such a traumatic effect that I would actually, with my negative thinking, create negative experiences so that I could control them. does that make sense? Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Gissele : but I wasn’t aware that I was doing that, So that uncertainty was very frightening for me and it’s very frightening for very many people. I’m just curious as to your thoughts about that. Sabrina: You know what I think uncertainty. Again, what feeds that is that core belief. So we can have all kind of experiences happening. If I don’t believe I can handle them there, there’s gonna be a lot of stress over all these situations. But if my core belief is good enough, important and valued, whatever comes up, I think o okay. I got it. this isn’t gonna be easy. This is gonna be a lot of work, but I can handle it. I can figure it out. But when there’s that uncertainty and that self-doubt often, rather than again, working inward on what do I need to do to build my confidence? We work look outward on how do [00:16:00] I control these things. And of course you can’t control anything but yourself. So you may have these things under control for a period of time, but eventually things are gonna collapse and then you can go, oh, see, no one cares reinforces and support’s not good enough. So as long as you’re using control as a way to try to. Try to kind of handle situations. It, it’s not gonna be highly successful. It’s about within yourself, building that confidence within yourself. Mm-hmm. Gissele : What has been your experience with surrender? I have found in my life and my experience that the more I surrender, the less resistance I have to things, the less I need to control. the more things work out, sort of in a very smooth way. does surrender have a role Sabrina: what we kind of refer to it as is responsibility. Do I have responsibility in this? If I do, then what’s my role? If I don’t, then it’s okay to me, for me to just remove [00:17:00] myself from it. And so we wanna look at that. if I have something that I do need to be accountable, I will take accountability for my part. But I’m not gonna worry about taking accountability for everyone else’s part. And if I have someone in my life who refuses accountability over and over and over again, then I need to learn from that and realize my expectations for this person need to look very different. Maybe I choose not to have them in my life. Maybe I do. But those boundaries look a bit different rather than constantly trying to get them to take responsibility. I realize that that’s not my place. I need to just figure out me. That’s it. Hmm. Gissele : Are there any sort of behaviors that don’t outwardly seem as issues of not being good enough but are or might be? Sabrina: Busyness is a big one. You know, it’s almost a bit of a bragging rights in our society to be busy, right? Oh, I’m so busy. I got this activity, I got this, I got my kids, I got this, I got this, I got [00:18:00] this. Busyness is not good. Mm-hmm. Busyness is a distraction. As long as I’m, again, running around focusing on all these things, you know, out in front of me, that’s all time I can use to avoid and distract from what’s really going on within me. So we often see that as a pretty significant symptom. Same with control. Micromanaging. A lot of people may see that as a healthy coping strategy, but it really is not a healthy coping strategy. You know, when we look at coping strategies, one of the things we talk about is, you know, a coping strategy in itself is not really healthy or unhealthy. It’s how I choose to use it, right? Mm-hmm. So if I go out and have a drink of wine with, you know, a couple girlfriends once every couple weeks or whatever, it’s probably a healthy coping strategy. But if I’m drinking because I’m feeling emotions and I need to numb everything, and I’m drinking way too much, and it’s damaging relationships. Then it’s more of an [00:19:00] unhealthy coping strategy. So we really need to look at why are we using it, if we’re using it so that at the end we feel good, we feel content. It makes us feel proud of how we’re handling things. It’s allowing us to feel our emotions sort through things. Probably healthy coping strategy. Unhealthy usually is used to the extreme, either way too extreme or we shut it off and don’t do it at all. Like exercise Now I’m not exercising at all. And so it’s used to the extreme. It’s used to escape and avoid dealing with things. It’s used to numb our emotions so we don’t have to feel our emotions. It ultimately, after we do it, we feel guilt, bad regret, reinforcing and supporting. Not good enough, not important, not valued. So rather than looking specifically at the behavior, we need to look at why am I using it? That’s gonna give you more idea of which core belief you are reinforcing. Gissele : So what do you think the role of compassion is in [00:20:00] helping somebody go through the difficult emotions? Because as a person who has done it, who sat with probably the most challenging emotions that she has faced, a lot of the fears, it can feel really overwhelming. What helps people sort of titrate or stay in it long enough to get to the other side of it? Sabrina: You know, I think like most things, it’s really about practice. The more you practice it, the more comfortable it becomes. You know, with a lot of my clients that are in their thirties, forties, fifties, you know, my oldest clients are in their seventies. They’ve spent decades avoiding feeling emotion. And so how do you start to feel emotion where that doesn’t feel absolutely overwhelming? ’cause most of them are full up with emotion. So the thought of feeling emotion is just too much. So we always go back and start very, very small. You know, I have a emotions list on my website, but really if you Google Emotions list, you’ll, you’ll find a hundred of them. I tell my clients, print them off, [00:21:00] put them all over your house. Then when you start feeling angry, overwhelmed, just kind of off like something’s bothering you, pick up the emotion list and just read through it. The emotions that you are feeling, you’ll recognize. So now you’re starting. Don’t even have to say it out loud, just read it. So you allow yourself to feel the emotion just a little tiny bit. Doesn’t feel quite as overwhelming. Then after you’ve done that a few times, then you can say the words out loud. ’cause even saying sad out loud creates a bit of sadness. So now I’m feeling a bit more confident. I keep using that for a while, then I get to that place where I can just stop and think about what I’m feeling in the moment. But it takes time and practice. You gotta build that up. So I think a big part of compassion is. Confidence. I have to believe in myself. I can handle being compassionate to myself and to others. Once we build that confidence, then that compassion almost just seems to more just kind [00:22:00] of naturally flow because we can let our own defenses down and really just be present and in the moment with ourselves or with others. Gissele : so thank you for that. I really appreciated that. what are some of the things or signs that will help them know that they’re changing, for example, that they’re starting to feel more good enough? Because I think sometimes we are very good at saying, these are the signposts of things that aren’t working, but what are some signposts of things where people are like, yeah, you know what? Things are changing. You’re changing. Sabrina: You don’t feel as stressed at the end of the day. Mm-hmm. You’re sleeping a little bit better, you smile a bit more. Mm-hmm. You are open to other people’s opinions, thoughts. criticism, feedback you’re not as defensive. You’re able to kind of just listen to what someone else is saying. You’re getting better at feeling your emotions and sorting through your emotions. You are [00:23:00] using more healthier coping strategies that at the end of it, you feel proud of yourself. Right. Whether it’s going for a walk or listening to music or doing some journaling, at the end of it, you feel like, wow, I, you know, I, I handled that really well. You are more patient, you are more calm. you are more open to other people’s suggestions. All those kind of things are suggesting you believing more in yourself. You can handle more. That means that core belief is shifting. You’re willing to take risks, try new things, listening to podcasts, different things like that where you’re stepping outta your comfort zone, creating new opportunities and experiences. Gissele : Yeah. Yeah. Somebody that I was talking to was saying that they’re gonna take two things that make them uncomfortable, like two risks a day. I thought that was pretty cool. Like a pretty cool idea to become more, much more comfortable with discomfort, right? Sabrina: For sure. [00:24:00] Remember, anxiety is lack of confidence, not believing in yourself. You can handle something, so every time you try something new. There should be more anxiety because it’s something you haven’t done before. Mm-hmm. Right. Even just building your confidence in taking risks and trying something new where now, oh, it’s scary, but I know I can handle it. ’cause I’ve stepped outta my comfort zone many times as well. One of the things we say in this model of therapy is nothing really stays the same. Yeah. So if you are not challenging and stepping outta your comfort zone, it’s getting smaller and smaller and smaller and smaller. Gissele : Yeah. Thank you for mentioning that. I’ve had many conversations with different people in my life and one of the things it’s like. I don’t like to say pick your hard but it is sort of like that if you face your, difficult emotions now, later on, it gets easier. The more that you choose from fear, the more you constrict and constraint, the smaller and smaller and smaller your world becomes. And it [00:25:00] feels much more difficult to do it. Later on do you find that your older clients tend to struggle a little bit more or is it just sort of buried? Sabrina: Well, okay. That’s a good question. So a lot of it is buried, but once we start opening it up, then yeah. And one of the things that the older clients have to recognize and acknowledge. Is the hurt they’ve caused to their adult children, their grandchildren, maybe even their great grandchildren, whereas someone who’s in their twenties and thirties, they haven’t had nearly enough time to hurt as many people. And so there’s not as much of that kind of responsibility piece with it, for sure. you know, hurt people, hurt people. So if I was hurting, the chances that I did things to hurt other people is really, really high. Part of the counseling that we do is we need to acknowledge it and sort through that. ’cause as long as I’m carrying a bunch of stuff where I’ve hurt other people, why would I believe I have the right to a happy content life? it’s not [00:26:00] balanced. So I need to deal with all those things that I’ve done to hurt people in order to really, truly heal. Hmm. Gissele : Yeah. And that’s very powerful. Shame and guilt can feel really overwhelming, right? people that don’t know how to regulate their emotions will do almost anything to avoid the feeling of shame, right? Because underneath there there’s a belief that you won’t be loved. And so what helps people work through the whole concept of shame? Sabrina: You know, I think shame loves not good enough and not good enough loves shame. They just feed off of each other for sure. And so it often is this thing that we’ve done that we feel bad about doing, and rather than just acknowledging it and addressing it, and understanding why we made the choices that we did. We just hold onto it. and as long as you’re carrying a lot of shame, you’re not gonna feel happy and content in your life. they just don’t balance out. Shame is significant. So one of the things you wanna do is, first, manage some of those other emotions. [00:27:00] Get better at feeling, you know vulnerability, loved, connected powerless, vulnerable, unheard and then start looking into the shame after you’ve had some experience feeling some of those other ones. If you start off with shame it’s almost too overwhelming and we just end up shutting it off. Then you have to acknowledge and allow yourself to feel that, take responsibility for the actions that created that shame, and then you can start to kind of move on. You know, guilt’s another one. a lot of us were raised with parents who used guilt as a parenting coping strategy. So it’s ingrained in our head that we just automatically feel guilty about everything because that’s how our parents tried to control our behaviors. So that’s a really ingrained thinking pattern more than an emotion. It is a thinking pattern. Mm-hmm. The good thing about that is we can go back and change it. The definition we use of guilt is [00:28:00] not living up to someone’s expectations, usually our own. Hmm. So once I challenge those expectations and change the expectations, the guilt goes down. So, for example, if I was always taught, you never say no, you please everyone don’t ever wanna upset or make anyone else unhappy. That’s my pattern of thinking, sacrifice to make everyone else happy. But now I’m thinking I wanna have a voice. I wanna start saying, no, I wanna start taking care of myself. Well, those collide. Yeah. I can’t say no and make everyone else happy. So I have to change and adjust my expectations. So my expectation now is I need to be respectful when I say no, but it is okay if I have a voice and it is inconvenience or awkward for the other person. That’s for them to figure out. Now as I tell myself that I’m not gonna feel guilty because I’m expecting that this may be uncomfortable for them, and that’s okay. That [00:29:00] guilt dissipates guilt’s more of a thought than it really is an emotion. Gissele : Mm-hmm. Yeah. You mentioned the difference between thoughts and emotions. And, and this is just my perspective, I usually find that. All emotions begin with a thought. So you usually have a thought first, which you have interpreted, and then some somehow have a big emotion about or not. Right? And so is it accurate that The habits that are formed from just your thoughts are easier to manage than ones that are based on thoughts and emotions. Sabrina: That’s how emotions are created. So what happens is we have a thought that creates a chemical reaction that we then feel physiologically in our body creating the emotion. Our thoughts create our emotions. So the good thing about that is if I’m feeling really anxious and I challenge and control my thoughts, the anxiety goes away. Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Sabrina: Right? If I’m [00:30:00] feeling really angry and I can stop and go, what are my thoughts? And I can realize, oh yeah, those thoughts are gonna create anger, challenge, and change those thoughts, the anger goes away. So neutral thoughts gonna create neutral emotions. But if we’re having thoughts of people hurting us, of feeling taken advantage of feeling you know, of being unappreciated, that is going to create emotions that we then feel physiologically in our body. Gissele : Mm-hmm. you mentioned that whole concept of not good enough. Where does self-love fit into the whole concept of good enough? Sabrina: the more you feel good enough, important and valued, the more you feel loved and content, right? Our kind of end goal is that contentment. You just feel peace within yourself. you love yourself. I’m always a bit cautious around the word love. Because it has been warped in many situations. Yeah. I’ve heard [00:31:00] clients tell me love means taking abuse. Mm-hmm. Love means sacrificing myself to not cause any, issues. Love means keeping secrets. Yeah. Right. Then we have the other extreme where we say, I love you now almost too much. It’s almost like, hi. Like I’ll say, oh, you know I love you. Oh, and I love spaghetti. Well, Gissele : yeah. Sabrina: So what does that really mean? So I think we need to even be aware of what is my definition of love? Is it a healthy definition or is it more of an unhealthy definition? And then what? What else does that look like? Contentment. Peace, calm thoughts. You know it, you’ve gotta define it. love is almost a bit of that symptom word. We need to go deeper. We’ve gone through generation, you know, my parents were never said, I love you. Never said it at all. and didn’t have to, didn’t create any emotions. But now we still don’t wanna say feel emotions, so now we [00:32:00] say, I love you a thousand times. So it really still doesn’t create a lot of emotion. Mm-hmm. So I find that balance and really be careful of what that word means to us, for sure. Gissele : Mm-hmm. Yeah. Thank you for that. And so using whatever different term you’re gonna use, as long as you’re getting at the same thing which is about thriving, I think is really important. You mentioned that anxiety is lack of confidence. What’s depression? Sabrina: they go together in a cycle, right? Mm-hmm. So anxiety is that fight, flight, freeze on guard, ready to attack. Well, you can only do that for so long and it’s exhausting. So then we kind of slip into the depression where I just don’t have to feel anything. I can curl up in a bit of a ball. I don’t have to deal with anything, but then that kind of passes I feel a bit better. So I come out of that, but now I’m in that fight flight freeze again. So we often see depression and anxiety often working together in a cycle for sure. Depression, you know, is [00:33:00] another way of reinforcing and supporting that not good enough if I feel not good enough. Not important, not valued. What’s the point? Why bother? So, you know, just like we talked about how that core belief can present in alcohol, drugs, gambling, anxiety is one. Depression is one as well. Gissele : I also wanted to emphasize the fact that, you know, the work that you’re doing is focusing on people feeling good enough from within. Many people try to find it from outside, whether it be through overworking, like you mentioned, through acquiring all the things they think they should have or by acquiring love from outside. What sort of the mindset shift that needs to happen for people to realize that? It’s something that they can give to themselves from within versus from without. Because if you look at this world, everything in this world that we teach is get it from the external. Sabrina: if my core belief is not good enough, not important, not [00:34:00] valued, I don’t believe I have much to offer even to myself. But if I get it in a car, a big house, if I get a new dirt bike, if I have the best, whatever it is mm-hmm. Then I’ll be good enough. Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Sabrina: As long as you’re looking externally, you’re not going to find it. But if I don’t believe in myself, I don’t really believe that I have it within even myself. So I think that’s one of the first stages, is really becoming more aware of where is my core belief at. How much do I really give myself that opportunity to feel good enough, important and valued. Once you become aware, even just becoming aware starts to develop that core belief good enough, important and valued. ’cause now you know what’s there and you’re willing to challenge it. Honestly, if I don’t think I can even handle doing that, I’m not going to. So once we even start to become aware of it, that core belief is shifting. Once that core belief shifts, then we can continue to build on it little tiny step at a time where we start to find more of our own worth and [00:35:00] value within ourselves. As we do that, we just naturally start to kind of look more inward and don’t worry so much about the outside stuff. Hmm. Yeah, yeah. Gissele : But the journey towards. Shifting from not feeling good enough to feeling good enough can sometimes feel very challenging, right? Because you are dealing with difficult emotions. What are some of the things that keep people moving forward? Sabrina: it can be absolutely terrifying, you know? Mm-hmm. I’ll say to my clients, going through and challenging and changing this core belief is going to be one of the hardest things you’ve ever done. The only thing maybe harder is living the way you’ve been living. Yeah. Right. But the only way to really keep is you gotta let all that stuff out. Well, letting all that stuff out sucks. Mm-hmm. It is lot fun. It’s terrifying. It’s a lot of work. It’s exhausting, but going very, very [00:36:00] slow helps you build confidence so you feel more in yourself. You can handle it. Reminding yourself that to heal, I gotta let this out. The more you let it out, the better it is. You are never going to feel emotion that you aren’t carrying. So if there’s emotion there, let it out. Mm-hmm. Every time you do that, it gets a little bit easier and you feel a bit better. Right? Mm-hmm. We have a good cry. We always feel a bit of a sense of relief the next day. Continuing to do that. They work hand in hand. So as you practice, you’re learning more, you’re understanding more, but you’re also feeling better, feeling more content, feeling more good enough, important and valued, feeling more pride. So they feed off of each other and you can continue to move forward. But they’re definitely, I know for my clients, every single client, there are days where they think I don’t wanna do this. Like, what’s the point? You said I was gonna get better? I feel worse than I did before. Because you’re in it, right? Part of moving and getting healthy [00:37:00] is you may have a bit of an idea of what you wanna work towards, but you haven’t figured out how to get there yet. That is frustrating, but you have to keep practicing and practicing and practicing hope. You know, I think hope is okay for a period of time, but we need much more than hope. You know, if I’m going hiking in the Outback and I say to my guide. Do you know where we’re going? And he says, I hope so. I’m probably not going with them. Right. And so hope can can get us over that lip a little bit, but we need to have a plan. We need to have practice behaviors so we know what we’re doing, not just hoping. Gissele : Mm-hmm. And you know, as you were talking, I was thinking People who have done hard things, the people that overcame, you know, the Holocaust, they saw themselves beyond that experience. They might have died, but they needed to see themselves beyond that experience. So there is an element of belief that you can do it. There is that element [00:38:00] of desire to say, I don’t know how, I don’t know when, when I’m gonna get through this, this hurdle. What do you think the role of affirmations are in helping people gain more confidence and feel more good enough? Sabrina: You know what, again, it can be a surface level thing, right? I can tell myself a thousand times that I am good enough, but if I don’t believe it, it’s not going to do any good. So what we talk about with all those kind of. Tools is, it really is just a tool. It’s up to you how much you wanna apply it. So I can have an affirmation that I say, I, you know, I stick on a sticky note on my bathroom and I see it every day. But we all know after about five days, we don’t even really notice it there anymore. It’s not, gonna be of benefit, but if I’m using that affirmation to remind myself, to reframe my thinking, to challenge myself, to see things differently. Then they can have an impact. So it’s not so much about the tool, it’s about how [00:39:00] am I using it? Am I using it to make changes to believe in myself or am I using it to actually beat myself up? Gissele : Yeah. Yeah. Are there any other tools that you think that are helpful in helping people start on their journey? Sabrina: I think there’s two really important pieces. First one is breathing. So when we’re going into that fight, flight, freeze response, and we’ve got adrenaline being dumped into our body, we also have a chemical called cortisol being dumped into our brain. Cortisol stops us from thinking we can’t use logic and reason, understand consequences feel our emotions. It has a massive impact in our brain. Breathing stops that fight, flight, freeze response from happening. So if I’m in danger, we often hold our breath shallow breathing. When I take nice deep breaths, my brain goes. Oh, we’re not in danger. And so it is a really effective tool in helping to stop and [00:40:00] break that fight, flight, freeze response from happening. What I usually say to my clients is don’t wait until your anxiety is a 10 outta 10 to breathe. You definitely need to Breathe outta 10, outta 10, but start breathing regularly throughout the day. It just brings everything back down. So breathing is a really, really effective coping strategy for sure. But the other one is make a plan. Remember, anxiety is a lack of confidence. Well, if I have a plan of how I’m gonna handle something, I’m going to feel way more confident in handling it. So a lot of times we have those worry thoughts, those what if scenarios, we just let them repeat over and over and over and over and over in our head. We say, take that thought, write it down on a piece of paper and figure out what do I do if this happens? Once we have a plan, we realize, oh, I could handle it. That anxious thought goes away. If it’s still there a little bit, it’s gonna be much less. But then you [00:41:00] just remind myself, no, I just do A, B, and C, and I would handle it. Even taking that to worst case scenario. Right. So, you know, let’s say I’m working with a student who is worried about failing a test. Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Sabrina: So we can make a plan about what do you do to not fail the test. But that’s not the worry thought. The worry thought is what if I fail? So what if, if you fail your test, what do you do? You talk to the teacher, you know, you see if you can rewrite, you study more for the next ones. You do really well on your presentations so that you are bringing your markup, okay, so I can handle failing this test. Worst case scenario, what if I fail the whole course? So what do you do? You retake it. Maybe you drop out and you start working. Even the worst case scenario we could handle. So once we start making a plan, we can really help believe in ourselves more that we would handle it. [00:42:00] Might not be fun, might not be great. I probably won’t even be very graceful in doing it, but it will happen. We are way more resilient than we give ourselves credit for. You. Think about all the experiences you’ve been through in your life. You’ve survived them ’cause you’re here now. Mm-hmm. We need to stop and look at that. I’ve handled all these things. Can I handle failing a test? Yep. Probably. Mm-hmm. Won’t be fun. Mm-hmm. It’s gonna create emotion that I don’t wanna feel, but yeah, I can handle it. Speaker 3: Mm-hmm. Sabrina: So I think those are two really important strategies. Breathing and make plans. Mm-hmm. Gissele : Is there a level of detachment that should happen when you create a plan? during the time. When I was challenged the most creating that plan might’ve introduced a lot of resistance in me if it didn’t come through the way that I had planned. And so I think that would’ve generated a little bit more fear in me. Is there a level of detachment or maybe different options that would’ve helped and [00:43:00] the other thing that would probably have arisen in me was well, I’m feeding that experience. I’m saying that that’s gonna happen. Sabrina: Yeah. Right. Well, well, and the problem is, you probably are already thinking that’s gonna happen a thousand times in your head. Yeah. So let’s just acknowledge it and say, okay, what do, if it happens? Mm-hmm. With a lot of our anxious thoughts, they never even really happen. So we don’t even have to put the plan into place. But in knowing we have a plan builds confidence, which means those anxious thoughts are going to go down. You know, when we first start doing it, well, I think even after we’ve been doing it for a really long time. We can have a plan and the chances that it’s gonna go exactly the way our plan is, is laid out not very high. That’s just not the way life works. Mm-hmm. So the first few ones can be, frustrating, but after you’ve made plan 10, 15, 20 times, you start realizing, okay, I can adapt that piece and I can challenge that piece. And I never even thought about that, but I figured out how to handle it because it’s not even really about the plan. It’s about [00:44:00] building confidence, helping me realize I got this, I can handle it, I can figure it out. And so over time, that happens. But the, the plan is often more thought based than emotion based. It doesn’t have to be, but often it is. It’s more, you know, I’m thinking through more than I am really feeling through. Gissele : Hmm. I was just thinking of a quote that I had heard about how people with good mental health are people that are the most flexible. Flexible and flowing who are willing to go with life. It’s not that life doesn’t give you adversity or things don’t happen. it’s the willingness to be flexible and the ability to bend. And it really is the people that are the most in resistance and struggle the most, or the people that are want to control and are not. Able to adjust, Sabrina: right? More. My core belief is good enough. The more confident I’m gonna be. So the more, no matter what comes up, I got it. I’ll figure it out. Core belief, not [00:45:00] good enough. More insecurity. I don’t trust in myself that I can handle any of these things, so it’s gotta go exactly like plan. Mm-hmm. And so it’s, it’s building that we, you know, we don’t want that plan to be like a routine where it has to go A, B, C, D. It’s more about how do I handle these kind of scenarios and building that confidence rather than creating more rigid plans. For sure. Gissele : Yeah. And that flexible and flowing can make you feel like. Right. Because when you stop controlling things in your life, there’s an openness, there’s a sense of, oh, I don’t have to do all of that. I don’t have to control life anymore. I can just allow it. And that doesn’t mean that things aren’t gonna happen. You know, there’s a difference between pain and suffering, right? Everybody experiences pain, whether we choose to. Suffer is optional. Like when I think about my experiences, many times I [00:46:00] experienced pain, but I was the one who was causing myself suffering by repeating those same thoughts and constricting and all of that stuff. But it’s hard for us to acknowledge that we are doing that to ourselves. Right? Right. Sabrina: It’s that responsibility piece. I think same with the word stress, right? People often talk about how everything is so stressful. You create your own stress. If you go into it thinking, I can’t handle this, yeah, you’re gonna be stressed out. But if you go in feeling confident, knowing that no matter what comes, you’ll figure it out and you will handle it. It’s not as stressful. there are varying things for sure, something really significant happen. It may create more stress than other things, but if we’re really stressed all the time, you are creating your own stress by how you are thinking about how you’re gonna handle the event. Not the event itself. Gissele : Hmm. Yeah. Thank you. So I wanted to give you an opportunity to share where can people find you? Where can they work [00:47:00] with you? Tell us a little bit more about your book. Sabrina: Sure. So my book is not good enough. Understanding Your Core Belief and Anxiety. It’s available on Amazon’s. It is a handbook. So you’re reading about core belief and in general, but then you do an activity where you’re applying that information to your own personal experiences. So it’s a, a book about self-reflection, learning more, understanding more about your core belief, and then how is it, you know, showing up in your life. And then what do you do? What are some things you can do to challenge yourself? To start to feel more and more good enough, important and valued. I am also on on most social media. I am Sabrina Trobak on YouTube and on LinkedIn. I am NGE. So not good enough. Understand. NGE_Trobak on Instagram and NGE_CoreBelief on TikTok. And then I’m on Facebook as well in [00:48:00] Trobak holistic counseling. Mm-hmm. Wonderful I have a website, http://www.trobakholistic.org. On my website is a page to my book. It’s got a blog section, which is just short, two to four minute reads about everything. Also got a link, a page that links all of the podcast interviews that I’ve done as well. Gissele : Hmm. Beautiful. So one final question. I ask this of all my guests. What is your definition of love? Sabrina: I, I would say my definition of love is. Probably just one word. Acceptance. Mm-hmm. Acceptance of self and others. And, and sometimes that means giving love and sometimes that means moving on. Gissele : Hmm. I like that. I like that. Even acceptance of situations. Right. If you have the confidence to believe that you can overcome anything, it’s just acceptance. Beautiful. Thank you so much, Sabrina, for being on the show and for sharing your wisdom with [00:49:00] us, and thank you to those who tuned into love and compassion with Gissele Stay tuned for another episode.

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3828: Chalene Johnson shares four refreshing ways to cut through holiday chaos and reconnect with what really matters. By learning to say no, delegate tasks, and let go of outdated expectations, you'll create more space for joy, reflection, and meaningful connection this season. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.chalenejohnson.com/how-to-minimize-holiday-stress/ Quotes to ponder: "We all have so much going on in December. How about we spend this time with our loved ones and pick this up again in the New Year?" "It's the thought that counts! Not the time you spent going to the store and wrapping it." "If it doesn't actually bring you joy and feels like more of a burden, just drop it!" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3828: Chalene Johnson shares four refreshing ways to cut through holiday chaos and reconnect with what really matters. By learning to say no, delegate tasks, and let go of outdated expectations, you'll create more space for joy, reflection, and meaningful connection this season. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.chalenejohnson.com/how-to-minimize-holiday-stress/ Quotes to ponder: "We all have so much going on in December. How about we spend this time with our loved ones and pick this up again in the New Year?" "It's the thought that counts! Not the time you spent going to the store and wrapping it." "If it doesn't actually bring you joy and feels like more of a burden, just drop it!" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover all of the podcasts in our network, search for specific episodes, get the Optimal Living Daily workbook, and learn more at: OLDPodcast.com. Episode 3828: Chalene Johnson shares four refreshing ways to cut through holiday chaos and reconnect with what really matters. By learning to say no, delegate tasks, and let go of outdated expectations, you'll create more space for joy, reflection, and meaningful connection this season. Read along with the original article(s) here: https://www.chalenejohnson.com/how-to-minimize-holiday-stress/ Quotes to ponder: "We all have so much going on in December. How about we spend this time with our loved ones and pick this up again in the New Year?" "It's the thought that counts! Not the time you spent going to the store and wrapping it." "If it doesn't actually bring you joy and feels like more of a burden, just drop it!" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Greg Henry, CFO of 1Password and one of the most commercially minded finance leaders in tech, to break down why he left the public-company grind at Couchbase for a PLG-driven security business and what he's relearning in the private sphere. Greg explains how forecasting changes when the product does the selling, how to think about comp and pricing in a usage-led world, and the early tells that a model is quietly over- or under-performing. He shares why CFOs should meet far more customers than they do, how finance can drive revenue without stepping on sales, and what it actually takes for a company to plan with clarity instead of reacting. Greg also recounts the near-derailing of the Couchbase IPO, reflects on the “back nine” of his career, and offers grounded advice for aspiring first-time CFOs.—SPONSORS:RightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.com—LINKS:Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/greghenry23/1Password: https://1password.com/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:Behind the Earnings Calls: Couchbase CFO Greg Henry on Consumption Models & Analyst Relationshttps://youtu.be/o_pDfz5a-Hw—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:02:57 Sponsors – RightRev | Tipalti | Aleph00:07:03 Back in the Private Sphere: Why Greg Joined 1Password00:07:49 Greg's Four-Part Framework for a Great Role00:10:12 Thinking About the “Back Nine” & Legacy00:13:16 Transitioning to PLG & SLG at 1Password00:15:12 Blending PLG Efficiency with Enterprise Sales00:17:12 Sponsors – Fidelity Private Shares | Metronome | Mercury00:20:03 B2C vs. B2B ARPU Contrast00:22:41 Forecasting in PLG vs. Sales-Led Models00:24:18 Building Toward Chunky Enterprise Upside00:25:39 Comp Plans: Complexity, Pitfalls & the Alexander Group00:27:35 Keep Comp Plans Simple & Focused on ARR00:29:10 Why Mid-Year Comp Plan Changes Are Dangerous00:31:04 Governance & Guardrails for SPIFFs00:33:19 Using the CFO Network to Drive Revenue00:34:52 Why CFOs Must Meet Customers Directly00:36:19 Wallet Share & Being a Buyer AND a Seller00:38:08 Why He Avoids 3-Year+ Commitments00:40:20 How Much Discount Is a “Year” Worth?00:42:31 Greg's Structured Annual Planning Framework00:43:50 3–5% Upside/Downside Menu00:44:57 Comp Plans Must Go Out Early00:47:23 January Compensation & System Cutover Challenges00:48:31 Why Roadmap Alignment Must Kick Off Planning00:50:21 Sustain / Differentiate / Durable Growth / World-Class Teams Framework00:52:29 Couchbase IPO Almost Going Sideways00:54:59 How to Actually Become a CFO01:00:11 Legacy Greg Wants to Leave at 1Password#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CFOInsights #SaaSLeadership #PLGvsSLG #FinanceStrategy This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Who is the one that was born in the manger? God with us, Immanuel. Join us on this journey through the book of John as we find out who Jesus is and what he has done for us.

How do you know when a company is ready to go public? And what do you do to prepare for this? Chirag Shah, CFO of Motive and former CFO of Kong and Cornerstone OnDemand, joins CJ to share insights from his experience of scaling businesses from $30 million to nearly $1 billion and tripling ARR. He talks about taking companies public and how he helped take one private again in a $5.2 billion deal. In this episode, he explains what signals indicate that a company is ready to accelerate its growth, the art and science of building sales capacity, and how to balance efficiency and growth in hypergrowth mode. He also covers how to achieve a great valuation without a strong performance, the biggest headache on the road to IPO, and whether you should IPO in the first place or remain private.—SPONSORS:Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com—Chirag Shah on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chirag-shah-787b1b20/Motive: https://gomotive.com/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:From $30M to Almost $1B: A Guide to Hypergrowth, IPO Prep, and Navigating the Public Markethttps://youtu.be/_pJfdN5p-ik—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:02:57 Sponsors – Mercury | RightRev | Tipalti00:06:49 Motiv CFO Intro & Company Background00:07:01 Product Market Fit as a CFO00:09:26 Lessons From Taking Companies Public00:11:04 Preparing for Life as a Public Company00:11:26 Moving From Finance Into a GM Role00:12:50 Learning the Business Beyond Finance00:14:23 Empathy for Sales & Carrying a Quota00:15:51 Sponsors – Aleph | Fidelity Private Shares | Metronome00:19:03 Asking Better Questions After Operating Experience00:21:23 Knowing When to Accelerate Growth00:23:16 High-ROI Capacity Signals00:24:51 Scaling Requires Supporting Functions00:26:19 The Art + Science of Adding Reps00:27:53 Sales Team Buy-In Before Scaling00:29:15 Reading Product-Market Fit Through Sales00:30:08 Where Scaling Breaks First (Enablement)00:31:36 Importance of SE / SC Ratios00:33:13 Timing Supporting Hires00:34:32 Maintaining Momentum While Scaling00:36:33 Longest Pole in IPO Prep: Predictability00:38:47 Building Confidence Through Consistency00:40:45 Large Deals Swing Small Companies00:42:41 Growth Still Drives Quarterly Volatility00:44:43 Investor Education as a Core IPO Task00:46:00 Harder to Make Big Changes Publicly00:47:39 Managing Morale in Volatile Markets00:48:33 Taking Cornerstone Private00:52:32 Advice: Know Why You Want to Go Public00:56:18 Efficiency Without Sacrificing Growth01:00:58 Operating Roles Prepared Him for CFO01:06:23 Finance Software Stack Overview#RunTheNumbersPodcast #Hypergrowth #IPOreadiness #CFOInsights #MostlyClassics This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

11-20-2025 Michael Marino Learn more about the interview and get additional links here: https://thedailyblaze.com/good-to-the-last-drop-using-coffee-proactively-to-minimize-litigation/ Subscribe to the best of our content here: https://priceofbusiness.substack.com/ Subscribe to our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCywgbHv7dpiBG2Qswr_ceEQ

There's two things that are guaranteed in life: death and taxes. But there's a way to at least MINIMIZE the taxes you pay, nearly down to zero, if you know what you're doing. And believe it or not, it's ENTIRELY legal.Today, we walk with Joe Williams, another real estate investor. Joe flips houses, but he hasn't owned any rental properties. And that's what we talk to him about today - how rental properties can bring you passive income, cashflow, and give you the best tax benefits possible. If you're trying to learn how to invest in real estate and minimize your tax burden, this is the podcast for you.#realestate #investing #realestateinvesting #podcast #taxes NOT INVESTMENT, FINANCIAL, LEGAL OR TAX ADVICE

Shrinking your holiday footprint on the planet can seem daunting – but this episode offers tips to make it a joy. Peak Alliance for a Sustainable Future (PASF) is deviating from the norm this month. Instead of the usual live, third Wednesday Zoom event, the November Sustainability in Progress is this pre-recorded studio conversation.This conversation is about the holidays, discovering local resources to give meaningful and lifelong gifts to reduce waste. Host Mary Barber of PASF is joined by Ally Richardson of Pikes Peak Permaculture and Dave Gardner of GrowthBusters (both are regular co-producers of the Studio 809 Podcasts Peak Environment podcast).We're considering making some changes in SIP, and we're inviting collaboration. Help Peak Alliance for a Sustainable Future and the entire sustainability/resiliency community make plans for 2026. Please take this poll: https://forms.gle/aJCcs4Lv9ZAVk6E69LINKS MENTIONED: Pikes Peak Bulletin Winter Holiday Calendar with local-maker markets: https://pikespeakbulletin.org/events/2025-winter-holiday-calendar-events-and-markets-in-the-spirit-of-the-season/Colorado Springs Mom winter markets calendar: https://cospringsmom.com/parenting-wisdom/winter-markets-in-colorado-springs/Downtown Shopping Gift Card: https://downtowncs.com/event/shop-local-win-local/Resource Central Garden in a Box: https://resourcecentral.org/gardens/Center for Biological Diversity's Simplify The Holidays Helpful Tips: https://simplifytheholidays.org/So Kind Gift Registry: https://sokindregistry.org/Who Gives a Scrap for the crafty: https://whogivesascrapcolorado.com/Volunteer with the City of Colorado Springs: https://hr.coloradosprings.gov/VolunteerOpportunitiesFind opportunities at Flying Pig Farm, community farm practicing permaculture and building resilience: https://flyingpigmanitou.org/Divert waste with Galvanize Recycling: https://www.galvanizerecycling.com/services/El Paso County Hazardous Waste Facility: https://communityresources.elpasoco.com/household-hazardous-waste/Compost with Food To Power: https://foodtopowerco.org/Other holiday-related podcast episodes we mentioned:Sustainable Holiday - Peak Environment episode #66Have Yourself A Low Impact Holiday - Peak Environment episode #112Plastic Bags Update & Moving Toward Zero Waste: Policy Wins, Advice and Resources - Peak Environment episode...

Health and nutrition start with caring for the soil. Food can and should be our medicine. Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot of the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health and Soil Health Labs shares his perspective on connections with soil health and public health with Eric, Mary, and Jeff in this episode. Buz reflects on his own research but also points out what he has heard from farmers and ranchers he has worked with through the years. Building on the idea that eating is an agricultural act and food can be medicine, Buz would like health professionals, agronomists, soil scientists, farmers, and ranchers to collaborate more on soil and public health research and education.In addition to your own research and study of soil and human health, Buz recommends reading Fred Provenza's book Nourishment: What Animals Can Teach Us about Rediscovering Our Nutritional Wisdom. As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles: 1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden;3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food for soil and plants, farm enterprises, and livestock integration. The 4 The Soil team recently commissioned a new set of art posters to help people remember the four principles of soil health and celebrate that “We Are 4 the Soil!”.  If you are personally or professionally interested in printing and framing the soil health artwork, the 16” by 20” posters are available for purchase and printing as single posters or a set of five posters.If you have questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.  4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today's program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.

Serving SMB mid-market customers is one thing, but when you go upstream to enterprise sales, everything changes: go-to-market strategy, the sales process, how you structure deals, even how you define customer value. Today's guest, Andrew Casey, has helped scale four SaaS companies: ServiceNow, WalkMe, Lacework, and his current company, Amplitude. At ServiceNow, he worked closely with Snowflake's Mike Scarpelli and Coatue's David Schneider, and he was instrumental in establishing the company's deal desk to support its sales motion. As an operationally focused CFO, he shares a wealth of knowledge on the importance of staying close to the customer, structuring deals that work for both sides, establishing transparency in usage-based pricing, aligning incentives and strategy in sales, the pros and cons of multi-year deals, the problem with auto-renewals and what to do instead, and how to adapt your go-to-market strategy when moving from SMB mid-market to enterprise.—SPONSORS:Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.—Andrew Casey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-casey-6b14875/Amplitude: https://amplitude.comCJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:An Operationally-Focused CFO's Guide to Scaling From SMB to Enterprise: Lessons From ServiceNowhttps://youtu.be/iUpMAQ14YpM—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:03:27 Sponsors – Metronome, Mercury, RightRev00:07:08 Andrew joins the podcast00:08:10 Becoming an operational CFO00:09:25 Early customer-empathy beginnings at Sun00:11:34 How customer-empathy shaped Andrew's career00:14:08 Navigating HP's troubled EDS contracts00:16:05 Sponsors – Tipalti, Aleph, Fidelity Private Shares00:19:37 Returning from ads – running toward hard markets00:20:13 Scaling ServiceNow's sales operations00:23:27 Breaking into the trusted circle after the Q1 miss00:25:26 Building and scaling the ServiceNow deal desk00:28:11 Principles of transparent, value-aligned pricing00:30:17 Rethinking metering models and usage alignment00:33:01 Diagnosing budget constraints vs. cash timing00:36:14 Incentives, comp plans, and high-trust selling00:39:21 Training enterprise reps for long-term value00:40:17 Multi-year deals and when they actually work00:43:05 Overselling, discount levers, and ZIRP contract bloat00:45:58 How enterprise scale transforms go-to-market00:51:03 Pipeline coverage and maturity modeling00:54:02 Not all pipeline dollars are created equal00:57:05 Career-risk mindset in enterprise selling01:00:02 Defining enterprise and moving upmarket01:01:00 A business-first approach to the CFO role01:03:10 Getting hired at ServiceNow01:06:37 Building GTM finance, deal desk, and a 400-person org01:08:00 Lightning round – biggest mistakes and IR lesson01:11:10 Advice to his younger self and leading through change01:13:34 Defining customers, ARR accuracy, and hierarchy pitfalls01:15:12 The wildest expense attempt ever submitted#RunTheNumbersPodcast #SaaSFinance #EnterpriseSelling #GTMStrategy #CFOInsights This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Let's talk about how to stay mindful with eating and consistent with your habits over the next 6 weeks with the holidays! These are specific strategies I use and teach my clients to be successful. Schedule a FREE Discovery Call with me here:https://yourlifenutrition.org/nutrition-coaching-application/.Come join our private accountability group, the Goal Getters Group, for all things health, wellness & nutrition! You'll get sample weekly meal plans, recipes, weekly group coaching calls and access to our exclusive Blood Sugar, Wellness, Mindfulness & Movement Challenges to help support you and keep you accountable on your health & nutrition journey AND get access to private messaging with me, your dietitian!Click the link below to join the Goal Getters Group today!https://your-life-nutrition-goal-getters.mn.co/plans/1821314?bundle_token=1724009ab3ed355237fdeeebd2fe1d9f&utm_source=manual.For health & nutrition tips, recipes & more - follow me on:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/yourlifenutrition/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourlifenutritionrdn/Email: Brittany@yourlifenutrition.orgShop my Favorite Products!Stelo Continuous Glucose Monitor System**I am an Amazon Affiliate and may earn commissions on qualifying purchases.Mentioned in this episode:Consistency Through the Holidays Challenge 2025Do you want to continue making progress on your health and nutrition goals during the holidays? If you've ever felt like November through December just becomes a blur of sugar, stress, and skipped workout This does not have to be the season that you need to abandon your healthy habits all together and wait for the New Year to get started again! Want to know how to keep the momentum going through the holidays, so that you can *FEEL* good and keep yourself moving towards your goals? Then you gotta join the CONSISTENCY THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS CHALLENGE! This challenge will take place INSIDE of the Goal Getters Group! For the 2nd time we are doing a 6-WEEK CONSISTENCY THROUGH THE HOLIDAYS CHALLENGE! The Consistency Through the Holidays Challenge begins on Monday November 24th, 2025 and runs through Sunday January 4th, 2026 and is a 6-week challenge all focused just being consistent with 3 basic habits during the holiday season to help you FEEL GOOD AND still enjoying yourself and all that the holidays bring! Focus on 3 main goals Drink 80-100 oz of water daily Get in 30 minutes of movement 5x/week Eat ⅔ of the meals for the day focused on PPFF method It's Simple & Effective! Don't get lost on your goals over the holiday season! Maintain your momentum and head into the new year strong with the Consistency through the Holidays Challenge by joining the Goal Getters Group with the Link below! If you are listening to this episode past the start of the challenge, feel free to check out the Goal Getters Group anyway because you're welcome to join the challenge at ANY point during the 6 weeks! https://your-life-nutrition-goal-getters.mn.co/plans/1821314?bundle_token=1724009ab3ed355237fdeeebd2fe1d9f&utm_source=manual

In this special episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson records live from Campfire's AI Finance Forward conference in San Francisco, serving up a trio of rapid-fire interviews with top-tier finance leaders. First, Daniel Kang, CFO of Mercury, breaks down the quality of fintech revenue streams, the mechanics of float in a falling rate environment, and what investors really value. Then, Brad Floering, SVP of Finance at Snowflake, shares war stories on usage-based pricing, forecasting consumption, and the role of AI in modern FP&A. Finally, Mitzi Yue of Boulder Care brings a mission-driven perspective, reflecting on dual roles in finance and culture, career product-market fit, and the ethical frontier of AI in healthcare. It's a fast, thoughtful taste of where modern finance is headed.—LINKS:Daniel Kang on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmkang/Mercury: https://mercury.com/Brad Floering on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brad-floering/Snowflake: https://www.snowflake.com/Mitzi Yue on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mitziyue/Boulder Care: https://www.boulder.care/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:Grindr's $0 CAC Secret from the CFO Who Launched Disney+ | Vanna Krantzhttps://youtu.be/ijFIMmtpLNw—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:04:03 Sponsors – Fidelity Private Shares, Metronome, Mercury00:06:49 Guest – Daniel Kang (Mercury) joins00:07:55 Lessons from being first finance hire00:10:49 Finance collaborating on product decisions00:13:12 Comparing customer segments and revenue models00:16:58 Sponsors – Right Rev, Tipalti, Aleph00:21:11 Market shift for consumer fintech models00:23:14 Balancing gross profit with product growth00:24:41 Misconceptions about fintech revenue00:26:57 Guest – Brad Floering (Snowflake) joins00:30:22 Aligning pricing with cloud resource consumption00:33:17 Forecasting challenges with usage-based revenue00:35:06 Complexity of sales commissions under consumption model00:38:23 Lessons from AWS: committing for discounts00:41:16 Cold start forecasting challenges and the role of employee size00:44:01 Customer behavior and rollover credit challenges00:47:08 Using professional services to recover unused credits00:49:05 Seasonality and forecasting challenges in Q400:54:16 Guest – Mitzi Yue (Boulder Care) joins00:57:05 The pandemic's impact on telemedicine adoption01:00:33 Finance decisions with human consequences in healthcare01:02:26 Finding personal product-market fit in Series B/C stage01:03:33 Finance as the central nervous system of the company01:07:10 Nonprofits inspired by personal values and experience01:10:52 Exploring AI's potential in healthcare and finance—SPONSORS:Fidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/run—#RunTheNumbersPodcast #FintechStrategy #UsageBasedPricing #HealthcareFinance #AIinFinance This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Welcome to the third day hiking a beautiful Washington high route! Molly and Carrie discuss use of WAG bags in busy, fragile alpine environments. Carrie lets loose on this trip by wearing WHITE shoes. Molly describes the remarkable glacially carved terrain. The girls get to a “trail or creek bed” section. Carrie recounts what it is like to travel through the Necklace Valley. Molly smells the unmistakable scent of death…. or is she mistaken?

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Vanna Krantz, former CFO of Disney+ and Grindr, to explore what it takes to lead finance through massive inflection points. Vanna reflects on building Disney+'s subscription model from scratch under Bob Iger's leadership and the pressure of launching a global product with no precedent. She discusses forecasting as both science and art, and the importance of appreciating high-stakes moments amid chaos. Shifting to Grindr, Vanna breaks down how the company went public with remarkable efficiency—boasting 40% EBITDA margins and under 200 employees—and how she modeled for a user base that consistently churns and returns. She also opens up about career longevity, work-life balance, and helping women find sustainability and acceleration in leadership.—LINKS:Vanna on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vannakrantz/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:Monetizing Community Engagement: The Business of Fitness with Strava CFO Lily Yanghttps://youtu.be/zlLb5yZDKQE“Let's Just See What Breaks” — Intuit's CFO on Being a Disruptor When You're Already the Incumbenthttps://youtu.be/Le1D9HXHvGI—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:03:02 Sponsors – Aleph, Fidelity Private Shares, and Metronome00:06:09 Meeting at A16z and Disney Plus Discussion00:07:13 Interviewing with Bob Iger and Joining Bamtech Media00:10:43 Forecasting the Unknown at Disney Plus00:13:01 Launch Strategy – Mandalorian and Retention00:15:15 Sponsors – Mercury, RightRev, and Tipalti00:19:23 Forecasting, Retention Curves, and the Art vs. Science Balance00:22:20 Lessons in Art and Science of Finance at Disney00:25:08 Launch Day Chaos and the Disney Plus CDN Outage00:26:24 Celebrating the 10 Million Subscriber Milestone00:27:21 Grindr IPO and Financial Discovery00:32:42 Active User Metrics and Reactivation Trends00:34:29 Seasonality and Human Behavior in App Usage00:36:02 Free vs. Paid Users and Revenue Optimization00:38:21 Pricing Strategy and Global Monetization00:40:23 Women in Leadership and Staying in the Game00:43:30 Work–Life Balance and Career Seasons00:46:12 Wisdom, Experience, and Staying in the Game00:50:08 Finance Stack, Craziest Expense, and Closing Remarks—SPONSORS:Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.—#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CFOInsights #DisneyPlus #GrindrIPO #Leadership This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Tenant fraud is no longer rare—it's guaranteed if you manage rental properties long enough. In this episode, Charles Carillo breaks down the exact tricks fraudulent tenants use, why rental application fraud has exploded since COVID, and the proven steps landlords can take to stop it before handing over the keys. You'll learn how to identify fake documents, false employer claims, fabricated income, stolen identities, and the red flags that most landlords never catch. This episode also uncovers the “second wave” of fraud that starts after move-in, including illegal subletting, hidden roommates, and professional tenants who exploit eviction laws. If you want to protect your properties, avoid costly evictions, and dramatically improve your tenant screening process, this is the guide you've been waiting for.   What You'll Learn in This Episode How rental application fraud works and why it's rising The most common fake documents used by tenants How to verify income without relying on tenant-provided information Identity theft warning signs and how to confirm a real ID Why urgency, inconsistency, and avoidance are major fraud red flags Post–move-in fraud: illegal subletting, hidden occupants, and professional tenants A complete system to prevent tenant fraud before it costs you thousands Links Referenced in Episode: SS203: Insider Tips for Effective Tenant Screening - https://youtu.be/9F6KehpXq20 Connect with the Global Investors Show, Charles Carillo and Harborside Partners: ◾ Setup a FREE 30 Minute Strategy Call with Charles: http://ScheduleCharles.com ◾ Learn How To Invest In Real Estate: https://www.SyndicationSuperstars.com/  ◾ FREE Passive Investing Guide: http://www.HSPguide.com ◾ Join Our Weekly Email Newsletter: http://www.HSPsignup.com ◾ Passively Invest in Real Estate: http://www.InvestHSP.com ◾ Global Investors Web Page: http://GlobalInvestorsPodcast.com/

We're so glad you're joining us for pt. 4 in our series, "Sent." We pray God uses this message in your life in a powerful way!Pursuit Church on Social Media:facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PursuitChurchDenver/?ref=bookmarksinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/pursuit_church/Pursuit Worship on Social Media:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Pursuit-Worship-671274439695803/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pursuit.worship/

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Jeff Bernstein, managing partner at Riveron, to unpack what really happens when a company decides it might be time to go public. Jeff draws on his experience across banking, hedge funds, operating roles, and advisory work to break down IPOs, dual-track processes, and the surprising realities behind price discovery—including why a 20x-oversubscribed book isn't what it seems. He also dives into the re-emergence of SPACs, what's different this time, and the key considerations CFOs should weigh before choosing that route. From IPO-readiness must-haves to building the muscle memory needed for public-company life to the sketchiest EBITDA adjustment he's ever seen, Jeff brings stories, frameworks, and hard-won lessons for any finance leader thinking about the road to the public markets.—LINKS:Jeff Bernstein on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-bernstein-498a23158/Company: https://riveron.com/CJ on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:02:59 Sponsors – Tipalti, Aleph, Fidelity Private Shares00:06:20 The Mechanics of Going Public at Riveron00:09:59 The State of Tech Capital Markets00:11:19 Comparing the Internet, Mobile, and AI Waves00:14:11 Understanding Dual Track Processes00:15:34 Sponsors – Metronome, Mercury, RightRev00:19:35 Why Companies Choose to Go Public or Sell00:23:02 Why Price Discovery Is Harder in Today's Market00:26:05 The Pros and Cons of Direct Listings00:29:16 Balancing Fairness Between Employees and Investors00:30:47 Inside the IPO Pricing Process00:34:26 How Banks and Investors Game Allocations00:41:22 The Return of SPACs and Why They're Back00:43:46 Key Considerations for CFOs Evaluating SPAC Mergers00:47:53 The Most Successful SPACs to Date00:49:00 Building Public Company Readiness00:52:03 Developing Muscle Memory for Quarterly Reporting00:55:31 The CFO's Role as Chief Communicator00:57:47 Long-Ass Lightning Round – Overhyped Metrics and Sketchy EBITDA—SPONSORS:Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.—#RunTheNumbersPodcast #IPOmistakes #CFOinsights #SPACs #FinanceLeadership This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Changing course is never easy, especially if the change requires a complete overhaul at the most basic, fundamental level. Dr. Robin "Buz" Kloot of the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health and Soil Health Labs talks with Eric, Mary, and Jeff about this paradigm shift among farmers and within the soil science community.Buz explains how the shift in thinking and paradigms occurred. In many cases, people were focused more on the symptoms rather than the cause, for instance, soil loss through erosion or poor water infiltration. Understanding the underlying cause required a whole-system approach. For Buz, an open mind to farmers' stories and experiences, and a beginner's mindset as a scientist were required to truly grasp the dynamic nature of soil.         If you are beginning your journey with soil health and cover cropping systems, the featured length Under Cover Farms video, Buz and his team produced, provides a good introduction and uplifts the initial experiences of farmers in South and North Carolina. As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles: 1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden;3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food, farm enterprises, and livestock integration. The 4 The Soil team recently commissioned a new set of art posters to help people remember the four principles of soil health and celebrate that “We Are 4 the Soil!”.  If you would like to learn about the history of the art posters and access a link to purchase an individual poster or the set of five 4 The Soil posters, please visit our recent blog post: Spreading the Message for Healthy Soil with Posters!If you have questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.  4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today's program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.

Discover how the wealthy legally eliminate their tax bills through real estate investing.In this episode, hosts Adam Schroeder and Zach Lemaster sit down with Jason Melilo, CEO of K B K G and former CEO of a Top 100 CPA Firm, to unpack the tax strategies every investor should know — from cost segregation and bonus depreciation to qualifying as a real estate professional and using short-term rentals for massive deductions.Jason reveals how he helps investors save thousands in taxes while building long-term wealth — and even shares how you can get a 10% discount on cost-seg software using code RTR 2025 at cbn.com.

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Colin Gardiner, General Partner at Yonder VC and former Chief Revenue and Product Officer at Outdoorsy, to unpack what really drives successful marketplace businesses. Colin shares lessons from scaling a peer-to-peer RV platform, where the biggest unlock came not from casual users but from power hosts optimizing utilization and yield through the SaaS tools they built. He introduces his “Marketplace Plus” investing framework—showing how layering SaaS and professional tools can transform a platform into an operating system—and where founders risk overreaching by taking on inventory or managing supply too tightly. The conversation dives deep into monetization, pricing psychology, take rates, and the fine balance between product-market fit and margin obsession, before zooming out to explore how AI and the decline of SEO are reshaping marketplace discovery.—LINKS:Colin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colingardiner/Company: https://www.yonder.vc/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:996 Culture, Exploding AI Bills & SaaS Chaoshttps://youtu.be/qhrxDL0gsRo“Keep the Take Rate Low” - Turo's Chuck Fisher on Scaling a Successful Peer-to-peerhttps://youtu.be/LKH8o1MjnZoThe Art of Stacking S-Curves: Olo's Winning Vertical SaaS Strategy with CFO Peter Benevideshttps://youtu.be/1X2VoYogj44—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Intro and Guest Overview00:02:57 Sponsors – RightRev, Tipalti, and Aleph00:07:13 Outdoorsy and the RV Market00:10:33 Balancing Supply and Demand00:13:05 Marketplace Plus Model00:16:59 Sponsors – Fidelity Private Shares, Metronome, and Mercury00:21:45 Professionalizing Marketplaces00:24:10 Building Software, Insurance, and Financing Layers00:28:07 Avoiding Fully Managed Models00:32:34 Take Rates and Pricing Strategy00:35:00 Monetizing Both Sides00:37:06 Advertising and Marketplace Scale00:39:48 Marketplaces Meet Social Platforms00:42:36 AI and Marketplace Distribution00:45:54 AI Agents and Matchmaking00:47:03 When AI Becomes the Supply00:49:09 Negative Gross Margins and Scale00:53:04 Picking a Side – Supply or Demand00:54:35 Branding, Utilization, and Growth00:55:42 Closing and Credits—SPONSORS:RightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.comMercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.com—#RunTheNumbersPodcast #MarketplaceStrategy #AIPoweredBusiness #SaaSModel #StartupFinance This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Discover how the wealthy legally eliminate their tax bills through real estate investing.In this episode, hosts Adam Schroeder and Zach Lemaster sit down with Jason Melilo, CEO of K B K G and former CEO of a Top 100 CPA Firm, to unpack the tax strategies every investor should know — from cost segregation and bonus depreciation to qualifying as a real estate professional and using short-term rentals for massive deductions.Jason reveals how he helps investors save thousands in taxes while building long-term wealth — and even shares how you can get a 10% discount on cost-seg software using code RTR 2025 at cbn.com.

In this episode of Grow Think Tank, we dive into the connection between leadership and workplace stress, and how CEOs can minimize stress to create healthier, more productive teams. Research shows that 75% of employees see their boss as a primary source of stress, which makes leadership style more important than ever. We'll talk about how clear communication, aligned priorities, and a psychologically safe environment can transform team dynamics, plus I'll share practical ways to reduce stress through stronger personal connections with your people. This episode will inspire you to lead with greater awareness and intention, helping both you and your team thrive. Be sure to check out my free training on effective leadership to take these ideas even further. Episode Highlights & Time Stamps 2:22 The Impact of Leadership on Employee Stress 3:55 Communicating to Alleviate Workplace Stress 4:46 Creating a Thriving Work Environment 5:26 Commitment to Improved Leadership Skills Understanding Leadership Stress Ask your team what they think you could do to improve as a leader. If you truly listen beyond the words, ask follow-up questions, and reflect on their answers. This gives you a much better chance to show up and help your employees feel less stressed. Welcome to Grow Think Tank! This is the only place to gain insights from the founders and CEOs of the fastest-growing privately held companies. I'm your host, Gene Hammett. I help leaders and their teams navigate the defining moments of growth. Today, we're talking about how stressful work can be, especially when you're the leader. Most leaders are used to stress, thrive under pressure, and have faced countless challenges. But a recent Harvard Business Review study shows that 75% of employees view their boss as their primary stressor. Now, I'm not saying that you're causing stress intentionally, but these numbers are eye-opening. Don't just dismiss it as "those other leaders can't manage." Instead, consider: where could you improve? How can CEOs minimize stress for their teams and create a healthier work environment? How Leadership Impacts Stress Stress often stems from unclear communication. If expectations aren't clear, confusion arises. Too many priorities? That's stress. Lack of psychological safety? Employees may hesitate to share ideas for fear of judgment. Think about what stresses you out at work, write it down, and use it as a starting point to make intentional changes. So, how do you reduce stress as a leader? It starts with communication, not just what needs to be done, but why it matters. Connect tasks to the company mission and to your team members' personal goals. Listen actively, ask how they're doing, and reflect on feedback to improve your leadership approach. This is a key way CEOs minimize stress in their teams. Remember, people spend more time at work than almost anywhere else. If 75% of your team feels stressed because of leadership, it's a problem that only you can address. By fostering trust, clarity, and support, you can create a workplace where people thrive. Taking Action to Reduce Stress I hope that you'll commit to being a better leader, improving communication, coaching, conflict resolution, feedback, and clarity. Strong leadership doesn't just get work done. It creates an environment where people can thrive and grow alongside you. If you want to go deeper, join my free training at training.coreelevation.com. It will help you refine your leadership skills, create clarity in your company, and implement a new leadership operating system, all steps that help CEOs minimize stress while driving growth. Invest in your leadership growth and take active steps today to create a workplace where both you and your team can thrive. Key Takeaways Leadership directly impacts workplace stress, with 75% of employees citing their boss as a primary stressor. In this episode, Gene Hammett shares actionable strategies for CEOs to minimize stress, including clear communication, aligning priorities, fostering psychological safety, and building stronger personal connections with employees. By implementing these practices, leaders can create a thriving work environment where teams feel supported, motivated, and empowered to grow. Resources & Next Steps Ready to take your leadership energy to the next level? Explore free training and resources at training.coreelevation.com to help you identify energy leaks, strengthen your leadership presence, and elevate your team's performance.

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Sam Jacobs, Founder and CEO of Pavilion, the global community for GTM leaders. Sam shares how getting fired multiple times as a CRO led him to build a business rooted in belonging — one that monetized members first, prioritized intimacy over growth, and turned a Slack group into a multimillion-dollar company. He and CJ unpack the mechanics of community: the tradeoffs between exclusivity and expansion, why venture capital doesn't always fit human-centered businesses, and how Pavilion balances pricing, curation, and access. They also explore the evolution of the GTM function — from the myth of the plug-and-play VP of Sales to how AI is reshaping RevOps, forecasting, and leadership. Finally, Sam reflects on building durable value beyond personal brand and what it really takes to scale trust as a product.—LINKS:Sam Jacobs on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samfjacobs/Company: https://www.joinpavilion.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:E120: What does the future of tech look like when it costs $0 to switch software?https://www.youtube.com/live/Cpw2pkq-FXI?si=-0y0tcLTIlIbkmyOCFOs: Want to Outmaneuver Your Competitors? Here's the Jedi Mind Trickhttps://youtu.be/Yte_fe1xF90?si=hVfgdd0Fg0PQuuoSThe Gross Margin Episode with Sarah Wang of a16zhttps://youtu.be/72aP5ohBxvE—TIMESTAMPS:00:00:00 Preview and Intro00:03:05 Sponsors – Mercury, RightRev, and Tipalti00:06:50 Pavilion, Community, and Go-to-Market Leadership00:10:28 Career Tenure and Executive Turnover00:12:55 Compensation Structure and Equity Negotiation00:14:31 Building Wealth Through Equity00:16:30 Sponsors – Aleph, Fidelity Private Shares, and Metronome00:19:36 Managing Wealth, Lifestyle, and Longevity in Leadership00:22:58 Founding Pavilion to Empower Operators00:25:13 Taking Roles for Learning, Titles, and Leverage00:28:47 Contrarian Executives, Team Dynamics, and Leadership Lessons00:30:36 What Makes a Great VP of Sales00:33:23 Revenue, Profitability, and Misaligned Incentives00:35:08 Quota Setting, Forecasting, and Spreadsheet Pitfalls00:39:07 AI in Sales and the Myth of the AI SDR00:40:32 The Future of Playbooks in the Age of AI00:43:38 The Dangers of AI and the Need for Humans in the Loop00:45:27 Monetizing Pavilion – Memberships, Sponsors, and Pricing Strategy00:49:30 Building Higher-Margin Community Businesses00:57:46 Building a Personal Brand with Long-Term Value01:01:52 Closing Credits and Outro—SPONSORS:Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Metronome is real-time billing built for modern software companies. Metronome turns raw usage events into accurate invoices, gives customers bills they actually understand, and keeps finance, product, and engineering perfectly in sync. That's why category-defining companies like OpenAI and Anthropic trust Metronome to power usage-based pricing and enterprise contracts at scale. Focus on your product — not your billing. Learn more and get started at https://www.metronome.com#RunTheNumbersPodcast #Finance #CommunityBuilding #Leadership #GoToMarket This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

This episode is sponsored by Lightstone DIRECT. Lightstone DIRECT invites you to partner with a $12B AUM real estate institution as you grow your portfolio. Access the same single-asset multifamily and industrial deals Lightstone pursues with its own capital – Lightstone co-invests a minimum of 20% in each deal alongside individual investors like you. You're an institution. Time to invest like one._________________________________You can hack every minute, but if those minutes don't serve what truly matters, what's the point? In this focused episode of Succeeded In Medicine Podcast, Dr. Ari Tuckman challenges the blind chase of “more done.” Drawing from his fifth book, The ADHD Productivity Manual, he explains why physicians must first ask: To what end am I being productive?The discussion unpacks the gap between being busy and being productive—especially in high-stakes medicine where reactivity rules. Dr. Tuckman introduces temporal discounting, the bias that makes immediate rewards (another patient, one more episode) feel far stronger than future costs (burnout, unfinished charts, missed family moments). He shares how to make future outcomes visceral: close your eyes and feel the drag of a sleep-deprived day versus the clarity of a rested one.Time is treated like money—finite, non-renewable, and requiring deliberate allocation. Priorities, Dr. Tuckman stresses, are revealed in actions, not words: if “health” or “family” never make the calendar, they aren't priorities. He advocates sacred time blocks, realistic scheduling that buffers emergencies, and ruthless to-do list decluttering (hesitate to justify? delete).On work-life balance, the financial tension of private practice surfaces: every hour off is lost revenue. Yet true wealth is the margin to take that time when it counts. Dr. Tuckman adds the hard truth: “Part of the cost of a good life is sometimes doing things you hate.” Minimize suffering—finish unpleasant tasks fast, without mental gnawing.From charting between patients to setting boundaries on complex cases, this episode equips physicians to stop surprise-ending their days and start designing them.Three Actionable Takeaways:Ask the “To What End?” Question Before Any Productivity Hack: Reactivity breeds burnout. Pause and define: What do I want my life to look like? List 3–5 core values (e.g., patient impact, family presence, personal health). For each time or financial decision, ask: Does this align or erode my priorities? Review weekly in 5 minutes to stay intentional.Combat Temporal Discounting with Vivid Future-Feelings: Procrastination wins because future pain feels abstract. Before the immediate reward (skipping notes, doom-scrolling), close your eyes for 30 seconds and feel tomorrow-you: dragging, behind, irritable—versus rested, caught-up, present. Make the future visceral to choose action.Declutter Your To-Do List Ruthlessly and Fast: Overloaded lists paralyze. Set a 10-minute timer weekly. For each item, decide in

In this episode, I share how a simple seating chart can transform the Station Rotation Model into a more focused and productive learning experience. I talk about how intentional grouping can minimize distractions, strengthen collaboration, and make it easier to assign a facilitator or group leader at each station. I also offer tips for displaying groups and numbering stations so both teachers and students can navigate rotations smoothly and stay on task. Episode Resources Related Blog Grouper — Grouping Tool  [Template] Grouping Sheet  [Template] Grouping Display

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Teddy Collins, EVP of Finance at SeatGeek, who helped scale the company from its first in-house finance hire to a tech-forward finance team powering one of the most dynamic businesses in live events. Teddy shares what it was like leading finance through the pandemic when live events went dark overnight, how that period reshaped his approach to forecasting and uncertainty, and how SeatGeek is now using AI and machine learning to enhance planning accuracy and decision-making. He and CJ also dive into how finance can evolve from a cost center to a strategic partner, the toughest manual processes he's eliminated, and where he sees the next big leap in the CFO tech stack. Finally, Teddy opens up about his rapid rise—four promotions in ten years—and offers practical advice on career growth, feedback, and building trust in a world where AI is redefining what “junior” really means.—LINKS:On LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/teddycollins/Company: https://seatgeek.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:CFO of FloQast on Why Finance Teams are Data Curators—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:02:49) Sponsor – Metronome | Mercury | RightRev(00:06:36) Joining SeatGeek and the Early Finance Journey(00:08:05) Managing Finance When Live Events Went Dark(00:10:23) Forecasting Through Uncertainty(00:13:12) Building Systems and Processes from Scratch(00:15:34) Sponsor – Tipalti | Aleph | Fidelity Private Shares(00:18:06) Using AI and Machine Learning in Forecasting(00:22:44) Build vs. Buy: SeatGeek's Tech Philosophy(00:26:31) Turning Finance into a Strategic Partner(00:30:42) Killing Manual Processes and Automating Insights(00:34:55) The Next Big Leap in the CFO Stack(00:38:46) Leading Teams Through Change and Growth(00:42:11) Talent, Tools, and the Future of Finance Roles(00:46:07) Climbing the Ladder: Four Promotions in Ten Years(00:49:50) Career Advice and Earning Trust in Fast-Growing Teams(00:53:16) How AI Is Reshaping the Definition of “Junior”(00:56:22) Lightning Round and Closing Thoughts—SPONSORS:Today's podcast is brought to you by Metronome. You just launched your new AI product. The new pricing page looks great. But behind it? Last-minute glue code, messy spreadsheets, and running ad-hoc queries to figure out what to bill. Customers get invoices they can't understand. Engineers are chasing billing bugs. Finance can't close the books. With Metronome, you hand it all off to the real-time billing infrastructure that just works—reliable, flexible, and built to grow with you. We turn raw usage events into accurate invoices, give customers bills they actually understand, and keep every team in sync in real time. Whether you're launching usage-based pricing, managing enterprise contracts, or rolling out new AI services, Metronome does the heavy lifting so you can focus on your product, not your billing. That's why some of the fastest-growing companies in the world, like OpenAI and Anthropic, run their billing on Metronome. Visit metronome.com to learn more.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.#RunTheNumbersPodcast #FinanceLeadership #CFOStack #AIForecasting #SeatGeek This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Did you know soil microorganisms of all sizes and shapes need water, air, shelter, and care to function and thrive? Dr. Ashley Jernigan, assistant professor and director of Virginia Tech's Sustainable and Organic Vegetable Crops Production Lab, returns to talk with Jeff and Mary about what farmers and gardeners can do to encourage a hospitable habitat for soil microorganisms.As a soil ecologist, Ashley recommends keeping track of your soil organic matter level and its aggregate stability, and how these soil health indicators compare to native biological systems. Soils, like people, need quality food in diverse and complex forms (compost, green manures, plant roots, etc.). Similarly, farmers and gardeners should avoid leaving the soil naked and bare. Being gentle and reducing the intensity of tillage is also key to maintaining a comfortable environment for soil critters and not disrupting the structures and networks that soil organisms establish.   We would encourage our listeners to visit Andy Murray's A Chaos of Delight: Exploring Life in the Soil website and tour the gallery of photos of different soil microorganisms. As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles: 1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies; avoid bare fallows;2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage as much as possible in your field or garden ;3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, high-quality food, farm enterprises,  and livestock integration. To enjoy recent 4 The Soil blog posts and additional soil health resources, please visit https://www.4thesoil.org/blog and https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.  4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today's program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.

Gross margins, GPUs, and the future of finance — this one's for the metrics nerds. CJ sits down with Sarah Wang, General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, to talk about what happens when the traditional SaaS playbook collides with AI. Sarah shares how legacy benchmarks like payback period and burn multiple start to break down in a world where compute, not headcount, drives costs. She explains why sky-high gross margins can actually be an orange flag, how finance leaders can think about resource allocation between engineers and GPUs, and why the most valuable finance teams today are deeply operational. They also unpack what it's like partnering with AI-native founders, the evolution of pricing models as LLM costs drop, and whether we'll see a private trillion-dollar company anytime soon.—LINKS:on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-wang-59b96a7/Company: https://a16z.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:996 Culture, Exploding AI Bills & SaaS ChaosFrom Credit Karma to Notion: CFO Rama Katkar on Leading Finance Through Every Growth Stage5,762 Job Applications. Zero Offers.Thinking About Adding Payments to Your Software Product? Listen to This First!—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:02:40) Sponsors – Fidelity Private Shares, Mercury, RightRev(00:05:50) Sarah Joins the Show(00:06:06) The Future of Excel in the Age of AI(00:08:24) Why Gross Margins Don't Tell the Whole Story(00:10:42) When Sky-High Margins Are an Orange Flag(00:12:57) Finance as a Strategic Lever in AI Companies(00:15:04) Sponsors – Tipalti, Aleph, Rillet(00:17:22) Partnering with AI-Native Founders(00:20:35) When Traditional SaaS Benchmarks Break Down(00:23:58) Forecasting and Financial Planning for Compute Costs(00:27:16) The Engineers-Versus-GPUs Trade-Off(00:30:29) Resource Allocation and Infrastructure Efficiency(00:33:47) How Pricing Models Evolve as LLM Costs Drop(00:37:15) Circular Finance: When Big Tech Funds Its Own Vendors(00:40:39) Metrics That Still Matter in AI-Driven Businesses(00:44:12) The Evolving Role of Finance Leaders(00:47:26) What “Operational Finance” Really Means(00:50:58) Building Sustainable Efficiency in AI Companies(00:54:03) Will We See a Private Trillion-Dollar Company?(00:55:33) Outro—SPONSORS:Fidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metrics#RunTheNumbersPodcast #FinanceLeadership #AIinBusiness #VentureCapital #SaaSMetrics This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

In this value-packed conversation, host Kaylee Felio sits down with industry expert Chuck Hartle to crack open some of the most overlooked costs of running a dealership parts department. From the hidden impact of idle inventory to the real-world strategies for beating manufacturer compliance traps, Chuck shares proven methods for turning your parts department into a lean, profit-driving machine.If you're a parts manager, fixed ops director, or dealer principal eager to fix your inventory foundation, you'll walk away with actionable tips to minimize obsolescence, dial in your productive inventory, and get everyone—from staff to body shop managers—rowing in the same direction.Kaylee and Chuck use real calculations, candid examples, and a bit of gritty optimism to show how small adjustments in turns, holding costs, and compliance can result in BIG savings, improved customer satisfaction, and higher dealership profitability.--------------------------------------------This show is powered by PartsEdge: Your go-to solution for transforming dealership parts inventory into a powerhouse of profitability. Our strategies are proven to amp up parts sales by a whopping 20%, all while cutting down on idle inventory. If you're looking to optimize your parts management, visit

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ sits down with Michael Stanisz, Partner at Revenue Management Labs, the person companies call when their pricing model stops making sense. For decades, software pricing was predictable: sell more seats, add more margin. But with AI, every usage prompt has a real cost, and the old economics no longer hold. CJ and Michael dive into what happens when your product looks like software but behaves like infrastructure, how pricing power erodes as features become free, and why value-based pricing might not be as customer-friendly as it sounds. They also explore the chaos of real-world pricing: from Microsoft cloning your startup to measuring ROI when your product's impact is undeniable but hard to prove; all wrapped in sharp insights and a few “we still run this on DOS” war stories.—LINKS:Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-stanisz-27418a28Revenue Management Labs: https://revenueml.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:“Anything new needs to have AI core to its offering”: Amy Butte, How Navan Is Redefining Finance OpsFrom Credit Karma to Notion: CFO Rama Katkar on Leading Finance Through Every Growth Stage—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:02:23) Sponsor – Rillet, Fidelity Private Shares, and Mercury(00:05:27) The new economics of AI pricing(00:07:51) When variable costs replace software margins(00:10:30) The fall of 80% SaaS margins(00:13:23) From premium feature to table stakes(00:15:07) Sponsor – RightRev, Tipalti, and Aleph(00:19:12) Spotting a feature before it becomes a commodity(00:23:31) The real cost of switching and why stickiness matters(00:27:46) The rise of AI white labeling(00:30:03) Outcome-based pricing — altruism or strategy?(00:34:22) Rewarding throughput and avoiding “tollbooth” pricing(00:36:29) Measuring usage and why telemetry matters(00:40:49) What makes a value exchange credible(00:44:14) Cost avoidance vs. revenue gain(00:46:02) The stages of pricing maturity(00:49:49) Why startups see what big companies can't(00:52:09) When hype meets hard costs in AI(00:55:17) When customers refuse to leave on-prem(01:03:29) Credits and Sign-Off—SPONSORS:Rillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metricsFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/run#RunTheNumbersPodcast #PricingStrategy #SaaSModels #AIPricing #B2BRevenue This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

In this episode, CJ sits down with Brandon Sullivan, CFO at 2X, to unpack one of the most enduring tensions in business — the uneasy relationship between finance and marketing. From the myth of clean ROI to the chaos of martech spend, Brandon explains why measuring marketing impact is far harder than most CFOs think, and how spreadsheet logic can lead to bad decisions. He shares what it's like to run finance inside a 1,200-person marketing org, why cutting too deep in downturns can backfire, and what it takes to actually bridge the gap between teams that speak different languages. Along the way, he reveals lessons from scaling 2X across time zones, building global reporting rhythms, and redefining how finance and marketing can finally pull in the same direction.—LINKS:Brandon Sullivan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonsullivan2x/2X: https://2x.marketing/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—RELATED EPISODES:From Facebook's Hypergrowth to Daffy's Disruption: A CFO's Playbook for Saying Yes—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:02:28) Sponsor – Aleph | Rillet | Fidelity Private Shares(00:05:55) Behind Enemy Lines: Finance Meets Marketing(00:07:00) Why CFOs and CMOs Clash(00:08:12) The Myth of Marketing ROI(00:10:19) Why Marketing Is So Hard to Measure(00:11:23) The Single Source of Truth Problem(00:15:29) Sponsor – Mercury | RightRev | Tipalti(00:19:35) The Three Buckets of Marketing Spend(00:21:26) The Long-Term Cost of Cutting Program Spend(00:23:27) How AI and ChatGPT Are Changing Marketing Attribution(00:25:43) Building a Modern Finance Team(00:27:55) The First-Time CFO Learning Curve(00:31:05) From Solo Operator to Scaled Finance Org(00:32:41) Why Weekly Reporting Beats Monthly Reviews(00:40:10) Working with Private Equity Partners(00:43:43) The Founding Story of 2X(00:48:12) Running a Global Team Across Time Zones(00:54:00) Long-Ass Lightning Round(00:57:00) Advice to Younger Self(00:58:58) Finance Stack and Craziest Expense Story(00:59:58) Credits and Sign-Off—SPONSORS:Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metricsFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.#RunTheNumbersPodcast #FinanceVsMarketing #CFOInsights #MarketingROI #BusinessStrategy This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Ivan Makarov, Operating Partner at Andreessen Horowitz and former VP of Finance at Webflow, to explore what it takes to build a finance function from scratch inside a fast-growing startup. Ivan shares lessons from the trenches—how to decide between outsourcing and hiring in-house, what makes a great first finance hire, and why early-stage companies often run out of cash before they run out of ideas. He also dives into fundraising pitfalls, audit readiness, and the tools that make up a modern finance stack. Beyond the spreadsheets, Ivan opens up about the shift from operator to venture partner, the value of helping founders avoid his past mistakes, and what makes an offsite actually work.—LINKS:Ivan Makarov on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ivansmakarov/Andreessen Horowitz: https://a16z.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.comRELATED EPISODES:Webflow's VP Finance Ivan Makarov on Understanding Startup Equity:Portfolio Operations: This Is What You Actually Have To Do To Make Sure a Company Is Successful:Brex COO/CFO Michael Tannenbaum on Taking Risks996 Culture, Exploding AI Bills & SaaS Chaos—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview, Intro(00:01:18) Meet Ivan Makarov of Andreessen Horowitz & Episode Setup(00:02:39) Sponsor – Tipalti | Aleph | Rillet(00:06:51) From Webflow to Andreessen: Becoming an Operating Partner(00:09:19) When and Why Founders Hire Their First Finance Leader(00:12:52) Hiring Early in Complex or Regulated Industries(00:13:58) The First Finance Hire in 2025 vs. 2015(00:15:46) Sponsor – Fidelity Private Shares | Mercury | RightRev(00:19:02) The Many Hats of Finance Leaders & The Rise of RevOps(00:24:55) What Founders Look For: Startup DNA and Work Ethic(00:26:05) Grind Culture, Return to Office, and New Expectations(00:28:20) From BizOps to RevOps: How Finance Roles Are Evolving(00:31:57) The First 12 Months of a Finance Leader's Playbook(00:35:05) Choosing Audit Partners and Avoiding Hidden Costs(00:36:32) Why Startups Really Fail — Running Out of Cash(00:39:16) Cash Controls, Banking Diversification, and Fraud Prevention(00:43:48) Fundraising Red Flags: Metrics, Definitions, and Diligence(00:47:50) 409A Valuations, Equity Clarity & Candidate Questions(00:50:09) The Modern Finance Tech Stack & Gen 3 Tools(00:55:05) AI's Impact: Replacing Labor, Not People(01:00:00) Offsites, Team Building & The Future of Finance Leadership(01:02:28) Wrapping Up: Reflections, Gratitude & Closing Credits—SPONSORS:Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metricsFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.#RunTheNumbersPodcast #StartupFinance #VentureCapital #CFOInsights #Leadership This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

How do you regenerate and bring back life to worn-out soils? Does your garden soil just fall apart in your hands? Dr. Ashley Jernigan, assistant professor and director of Virginia Tech's Sustainable and Organic Vegetable Crops Production Lab, in visiting with Jeff and Mary, advises doing your own test in your garden or crop field with a shovel.As someone who enjoyed digging soil pits as a seven-year-old, Ashley recommends sampling to a six-inch depth to get a sense of your soil's tilth and aggregate stability. If the soil does not have a good, varied crumbly structure, the soil's organic matter content and aggregate stability may be low. Therefore, feed your soil and soil animals to feed your plants to start the biological journey and bring back the life in the soil.If you have ever wondered what soil animals like springtails and soil mites look like, Dr. Jernigan developed a Soil Mesofauna: Who are They? resource guide to help. Ashley also highly recommends Andy Murray's Chaos of Delight: Exploring Life in the Soil website for wonderful photos and videos. As always, we encourage you to cooperate with other farmers, graziers, and gardeners for peer-to-peer learning and to follow the four core soil health principles: 1) Keep the soil covered -- Cover crops are our friends and allies;2) Minimize soil disturbance -- Practice no-till or gentle tillage in your field or garden as much as possible;3) Maximize living roots year-round -- to improve biodiversity, soil structure, and life in the soil; and4) Energize with diversity -- through crop rotation, farm enterprises, and/or livestock integration.More details about the Virginia Farm-to-Table Feast and Harvest Celebration scheduled for Saturday, October 25, 2025, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. at On Sunny Slope Farm in Rockingham, Virginia, can be found at https://virginiafarmtotable.org/2025vaf2tharvestcelebration/To enjoy recent 4 The Soil blog posts and additional soil health resources, please visit https://www.4thesoil.org/blog and https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/. For questions about soil and water conservation practices, natural resource concerns, and soil health principles and practices to restore the life in your soil, call or visit a USDA Service Center, a Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District office, or your local Virginia Cooperative Extension office.  4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today's program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.

Learn how to keep more of your money in retirement with smart income and tax strategies! Most people picture Social Security or a 401(k) when they think about retirement income — but that’s just the beginning. In this episode of Winning Retirement, Greg and Kristen explain how to coordinate multiple income streams, from pensions and IRAs to RMDs, dividends, and rental income, while keeping taxes as low as possible. Learn how to identify your real retirement income need, create a comfortable spending plan, and discover why a 10–20% cushion can make all the difference. ✅ Need a little help getting organized? Download a FREE copy of Legacy’s My Retirement Kit: https://www.legacyretirementgroup.com/podcast-requestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, CJ sits down with Joe Floyd, General Partner at Emergence Capital, for a candid conversation about the venture landscape reshaped by AI. They unpack how acqui-hires are rewriting the social contract between founders and investors, why AI engineers are commanding “boy band money,” and how SaaS playbooks are being torn up and rebuilt in real time. Joe explains the economics of AI-native startups — from circular capital flows to model-provider costs — and explores whether the next trillion-dollar private company could come from this new wave. Along the way, they discuss valuation frenzy, headcount discipline, and why curiosity might be the most valuable skill in tech today.—LINKS:Joe Floyd on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joefloyd/HarbourVest Partners: https://www.emcap.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.comRELATED EPISODES:Why Fundraising Has Slowed Down: Insights from Emergence Capital's Benchmarking Report: From Credit Karma to Notion: CFO Rama Katkar on Leading Finance Through Every Growth Stage:—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:00:54) Opening and Episode Overview(00:02:53) Sponsor – RightRev | Tipalti | Aleph(00:07:07) Back to the Office and Startup Pace in San Francisco(00:08:40) AI Tooling Experiments and the Risk of Short-Term Hype(00:10:19) Building Stickier AI Products and Competing in Crowded Markets(00:12:27) SaaS Moats, Product-Market Fit, and the AI Shift(00:14:00) How Productivity Platforms Use AI To Stay Sticky(00:15:58) Continuous Authentication and the Next Wave of Security Tech(00:16:36) Sponsor – Rillet | Fidelity Private Shares | Mercury(00:19:54) Acqui-Hires, the Social Contract, and the War for AI Talent(00:22:42) Stock-Based Comp and the Economics of Attracting Engineers(00:24:39) The New Go-to-Market Playbook and Curiosity as a Superpower(00:27:59) AI's Impact on Sales, Forecasting, and Buyer Behavior(00:29:11) Coding Agents, Headcount Reduction, and the Future of Engineering(00:32:21) Building Defensible IP and Competing in the LLM Ecosystem(00:34:34) AI ROI, Payback Periods, and the Search for Efficiency(00:37:17) Valuations, Fund Cycles, and the Venture Market Reset(00:40:20) The Circular Flow of AI Capital and Infrastructure Overbuild(00:45:37) AI Pricing Models, Platform Wars, and Open Source Futures(00:50:02) The Race to the First $1 Trillion Private Company(00:51:09) Credits and Outro—SPONSORS:Fidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metrics#RunTheNumbersPodcast #VentureCapital #ArtificialIntelligence #StartupStrategy #FutureOfWork This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Can you live without debt in today's Canada? In this myth-busting episode, Doug and Ted explore the real cost of going debt-free. They unpack the difference between credit and debt, challenge the necessity of mortgages and student loans, and share strategies to reduce or eliminate debt, whether you're starting out or retiring soon. From rising housing costs to the fear of missing out (FOMO), this episode offers practical, age-specific advice for Canadians trying to regain control of their finances. [00:00] What Does ‘Living Without Debt' Really Mean? [05:00] Why Life Feels Pricier: Inflation vs. Reality [06:30] Homeownership in Canada: Is Debt Inevitable? [08:00] The Canadian Dream: How Culture Fuels Housing Debt [11:00] Is University Worth the Debt? Alternatives to Student Loans [13:00] How to Minimize or Eliminate Debt: Real Strategies [15:30] Crunching the Numbers: Real-Life Debt Scenarios [19:00] What's the Cost of Avoiding Debt Entirely? [22:00] Debt in Retirement: Smart Advice for Seniors [26:40] When Debt Feels Overwhelming: What to Do Next [28:00] Credit vs. Debt: Focus on What Really Matters Free full length Canadian documentary: Debtasized Personal Budgeting Help and Free Spreadsheet DIY Credit Repair Strategies and Free Course Sign Up for the Monthly Debt Free Digest Hoyes Michalos YouTube Channel Disclaimer: The information provided in the Debt Free in 30 Podcast is for entertainment and informational purposes only and is not intended as personal financial advice. Individual financial situations vary and may require personal guidance from a financial professional. The views expressed in this episode do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hoyes, Michalos & Associates, or any other affiliated organizations. We do not endorse or guarantee the effectiveness of any specific financial institutions, strategies, or digital tools/apps discussed.

Private markets are swelling, public markets are shrinking, and the line between the two has never been blurrier. In this episode, CJ sits down with Scott Voss, Managing Partner at HarbourVest, to make sense of what's happening across venture, private equity, credit, and secondaries. Scott explains why companies like SpaceX and OpenAI are now valued alongside public giants, how the surge in take-privates is reshaping corporate strategy, and what happens when the quarterly earnings pressure disappears. They dive into the rise of GP-led deals, the evolving role of private credit as the “third voice in the room,” and why liquidity—not scarcity—will define this cycle. Scott also breaks down the growing appeal of evergreen and permanent capital structures, plus what AI mega-deals signal about the next phase of private investing.—LINKS:Scott Voss on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-voss-b91b94/HarbourVest Partners: https://www.harbourvest.comCJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.comRELATED EPISODES:Secondaries, Continuation Vehicles, and Sidecar Funds: Private Equity with HarbourVest's Scott Voss -—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00:00) Preview and Intro(00:02:49) Sponsor – Mercury | RightRev | Tipalti(00:06:43) Opening Conversation(00:07:23) The Blurring Line Between Public and Private(00:09:36) The Rise of Mega Venture(00:11:20) The First $10 Trillion Company(00:12:28) The Shrinking Public Markets(00:13:09) Take-Private Playbook(00:14:04) Why Companies Go Private(00:16:00) Sponsor – Aleph | Rillet | Fidelity Private Shares(00:19:21) Efficiency and Exits(00:23:15) Liquidity in Private Markets(00:24:01) Secondaries and GP-Led Deals(00:27:14) Yale and the Secondary Market(00:29:09) Innovation and the Rise of GP-to-GP Trades(00:30:16) Liquidity Cycles and Interest Rates(00:33:18) The Third Voice in the Room – Private Credit(00:34:44) Private Credit and GP-Led Deals(00:36:02) Interest Rates and Deal Spreads(00:37:15) The Major Players in Private Credit(00:38:09) Regulation and Risk(00:39:25) Private Credit vs. Traditional Lending(00:40:33) Evergreen and Permanent Capital(00:45:57) Expanding Access to Private Markets(00:47:03) Understanding the Cap Table(00:47:44) AI Deals and Consolidation(00:50:00) The Evolution of AI and Blockchain(00:53:20) Funding Innovation and Risk(00:55:28) Lessons From Investing(00:55:39) Nostalgia and Life Phases(00:57:06) Nostalgia and the 1990s(00:59:21) Learn, Earn, and Return(01:00:45) Talking Nostalgia at Dinners(01:01:27) Summer Surfing(01:02:25) Wrap-Up and Closing—SPONSORS:Fidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metrics#RunTheNumbersPodcast #PrivateMarkets #VentureCapital #TakePrivate #FinanceLeadership This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

With over 30 years in wireless—from helping pioneer intercarrier SMS to running mobile identity operations across Americas and Asia Pacific — Eddie DeCurtis saw what others missed: 967 of 1,000 global mobile network operators lack the infrastructure to monetize CPNI data while protecting customers from fraud. The technical challenge isn't building APIs. It's that operators spent billions on 5G infrastructure and now lack capital, internal expertise, and operational frameworks to launch authentication services. In 18 months, Shush went from PowerPoint to 30 employees, supporting 47 network APIs with full GSMA Open Gateway compliance. Eddie shares how understanding regulatory frameworks by jurisdiction, not just deploying technology, became their competitive moat—and why hiring the executive who built T-Mobile USA's authentication platform gave them credibility no competitor could match. Topics Discussed: Why operators repeatedly said "we want to do it, we have no idea how, we have no money, we don't have a platform" Validating the thesis with former AT&T Communications CEO John Donovan before launching Securing a POC with a major operator pre-incorporation—with only a PowerPoint deck The three-legged stool: technology, network integration, and business operations (where competitors fail) Why knowing privacy regulations for CPNI data sharing by country became a deal-closer Reducing network integration from dozens of touchpoints to three specific network elements Supporting 8 Linux Foundation Camara APIs and TS.43 GBA AKA authentication standard Going from 3 to 30 employees and launching at Mobile World Congress on a $75/night Airbnb budget GTM Lessons For B2B Founders: Validate with the person most likely to kill your idea: Eddie deliberately chose John Donovan—former CEO of AT&T Communications, board member at Lockheed and Palo Alto Networks—specifically because "he's going to be rough, he's going to totally ask the really hard questions." When Donovan's response was "go raise $40 million and own this space...you're not going to be alone for long," the validation carried weight because it came from someone incentivized to find fatal flaws. Most founders validate with friendly audiences or investors looking for deals. Find the battle-tested executive who has nothing to gain from being kind. Convert pre-product conviction into design partner commitments: Eddie secured a POC agreement with a major operator before Shush incorporated. "I had nothing. I didn't have software. We had an idea, we had a PowerPoint presentation." This only works when you've spent decades building domain expertise and relationships. The lesson isn't "sell vaporware"—it's that deep industry knowledge lets you articulate problem-solution fit so precisely that sophisticated buyers commit before seeing code. Infrastructure founders with 10+ years in-market can accelerate 12-18 months of product-market fit by converting expertise into early design partnerships. The enterprise moat is operational knowledge, not technical capability: Eddie's thesis: "Anybody can come up with the technology. You walk down the street in the Bay Area, 10 developers will develop it for you." Shush differentiated by answering questions competitors couldn't: How do you price SIM swap detection per query? What are CPNI data sharing regulations in Indonesia versus Brazil? How do you navigate internal stakeholder alignment across legal, privacy, and regulatory teams at a tier-one operator? When Eddie told an operator "here's the privacy rules for your country" after they admitted "I have no idea," he closed a knowledge gap that pure technology vendors can't fill. In regulated infrastructure markets, execution expertise beats technical superiority. Target the ambition-capability gap in capital-constrained buyers: Operators told Eddie the same story: eager to launch authentication services, zero clarity on execution, budgets decimated by 5G spending. This created perfect conditions for a full-stack solution. "Mid-market is hard because you have a buyer with problems that are not basic anymore, but they lack the ability to execute." Shush didn't sell point solutions—they delivered technology, integration, and business operations as a turnkey package. Identify buyers with sophisticated needs, strong intent, and constrained internal resources. That's where full-stack platforms win over point tools. Hire the operator who ran your exact use case at scale: Eddie cold-called John Morrowton, who "built this actual product and service offering at T-Mobile USA, from its inception to its execution and ran it for four years." His pitch: "I'm Eddie DeCurtis, how are you? You want a job? You're Chief Product Officer." Hiring someone who'd operationalized authentication services at a tier-one carrier gave Shush instant credibility with operator buyers and compressed years of trial-and-error into institutional knowledge. In infrastructure sales, hiring executives from reference customers eliminates "can you actually do this" objections before they surface. Minimize integration surface area to accelerate deployment: Mobile operators run highly secure networks with limited external access points. Shush "narrowed it down to three network elements that we can communicate with to provide all 47 APIs." Fewer integration points means faster deployment, lower implementation risk, and reduced operator IT overhead. This architectural decision became a sales accelerator. Infrastructure founders: identify the minimal viable integration that unlocks maximum API coverage, then make that your differentiated deployment story.   //   Sponsors: Front Lines — We help B2B tech companies launch, manage, and grow podcasts that drive demand, awareness, and thought leadership. www.FrontLines.io The Global Talent Co. — We help tech startups find, vet, hire, pay, and retain amazing marketing talent that costs 50-70% less than the US & Europe. www.GlobalTalent.co // Don't Miss: New Podcast Series — How I Hire Senior GTM leaders share the tactical hiring frameworks they use to build winning revenue teams. Hosted by Andy Mowat, who scaled 4 unicorns from $10M to $100M+ ARR and launched Whispered to help executives find their next role.  Subscribe here: https://open.spotify.com/show/53yCHlPfLSMFimtv0riPyM

Rama Katkar has helped steer some of the most iconic companies in tech through moments of scale and transformation. Now CFO at Notion and formerly a finance leader at Instacart and Credit Karma, she joins CJ to unpack what it means to build a modern finance function inside a product-led growth company. They discuss how to design finance for velocity without losing discipline, the art of forecasting when virality drives your business, and why Notion's path to profitability looks different from its peers. Rama also shares lessons from scaling Credit Karma through its $8.1B acquisition by Intuit, what she learned about IPO readiness at Instacart, and how finance leaders can balance ambition with realism in uncertain markets.—LINKS:Rama Katkar on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ramakatkar/Notion: https://www.notion.so/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.comRELATED EPISODES:“Let's Just See What Breaks” — Intuit's CFO on Being a Disruptor When You're Already the Incumbent— —TIMESTAMPS:(00:00) Preview – Credit Karma, Instacart, and the Road to Notion(00:01:14) Welcome & Episode Overview – Rama Katkar, CFO of Notion(00:02:22) Sponsor – Fidelity Private Shares | Mercury | RightRev(00:06:10) Interview Begins – From Dinner Conversations to Notion's Pricing Evolution(00:09:20) Early Launch of Notion AI and Add-On Pricing(00:12:40) Community-Led Growth and Notion's Viral Flywheel(00:14:38) Sponsor – Tipalti | Aleph | Rillet(00:18:39) Who Adopts Notion First? Product, Design, and Engineering(00:20:32) Turning Free Users Into Paid Teams(00:22:09) Why Notion Added an Enterprise Sales Motion(00:26:29) The CFO's Long Game: Balancing Free Users and Cost(00:30:44) How Notion Experiments With AI Pricing(00:32:42) Rama's Three-Part Framework for Forecasting(00:36:38) Why Notion Plans on a Six-Month Cadence(00:40:56) Transition – From Forecasting to M&A: Credit Karma's Wild Ride(00:41:31) Selling Credit Karma During the Pandemic and DOJ Review(00:44:04) Closing the Deal With Intuit(00:49:47) Why the Org Chart Is the Most Important M&A Slide(00:52:08) The Long-Ass Lightning Round(00:56:45) Career Advice to Her Younger Self – Context Over Calculation—SPONSORS:Fidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metrics#CFOInsights #StartupFinance #NotionHQ #ProductLedGrowth #RunTheNumbersPodcast This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

Have an episode suggestion? Text us!Many spouses believe they're catastrophizing — blowing things out of proportion, imagining the worst — when in reality, they're minimizing. In this episode of Paige's Perspective, we explore how minimization shows up as a survival strategy, how addicted partners manipulate us into shrinking the truth, and how society reinforces it with messages like “at least he's not hitting you” or “forgive and forget.” I'll share real-life examples of what minimizing looks like, why we're so afraid of facing reality, and how recognizing the truth — even when it's scary — can set us free.Find video clips and full length video from this episode on YouTube and our other social media pages!On the web:www.twfo.comSupport the Show:Buy Us a Coffee!Online Program: www.independentlystrong.comSoberlink Device:www.soberlink.com/wheelsCheck out our blog:https://twfo.com/blogFollow us on TikTok:https://tiktok.com/@twfo_coupleFollow us on Instagram:https://instagram.com/twfo_couple/Follow us on Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/TWFOCoupleFollow us on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@twfo_coupleFind Taylor Counseling Group:https://taylorcounselinggroup.com/Donate to Counseling for the Future Foundation:Donate Here

The IPO market may be slowing down, but the discipline of operating like a public company has never been more important. In this episode, CJ is joined by Chad Gold, CFO of FullStory and veteran operator with previous stints at G2, SalesLoft, and Rubicon, to discuss how capital markets and financing strategies are shifting in real time. Chad explains why more companies are staying private longer, how the rise of private credit is changing the CFO toolkit, and why building IPO-ready discipline matters even if you never go public. The conversation also dives into one of his specialties—pricing models and sales incentives—covering how seat-based, usage, and blended structures influence rep behavior, comp plans, and long-term revenue quality, as well as how the wrong incentives can quietly derail a business. Finally, Chad reflects on lessons from his early career at Home Depot and how fundamentals from retail operations still inform his instincts in SaaS today.—LINKS: Chad Gold on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chadgold/Fullstory: https://www.fullstory.com/CJ on X (@cjgustafson222): https://x.com/cjgustafson222 Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.comRELATED EPISODES:G2 CFO Chad Gold on Building A Durable Career as a Venture Backed Exec:Big Systems Thinking for Building a Finance Org: Advice From a Zoom Hypergrowth Survivor:—TIMESTAMPS:(02:14) Sponsors – Mercury | RightRev | Tipalti(06:10) What's New at FullStory(09:22) Hypotheses, Data, and Unlocking Use Cases(10:13) Early CFO Career and the Evolution of Data(11:09) From Deterministic Models to Analytics-Driven Forecasting(12:17) Cohorts, Segmentation, and Revenue Quality(13:17) Why Companies Stay Private Longer(15:28) Sponsors – Aleph | Rillet | Fidelity P.S.(19:01) Capital Flows Into Hot Sectors Like AI and Cybersecurity(20:20) More Companies Going Private Than Public(21:41) Costs and Tradeoffs of Being Public(22:46) Secondary Markets and Access to Top Companies(24:14) Staying Private Longer and CFO Planning(25:29) Keeping the Org Exit-Ready(26:10) The Rise of Private Credit(27:37) Banks vs. Venture Debt After SVB(30:47) Pricing Models Across Chad's CFO Roles(35:47) How to Incentivize Sales Reps Across Pricing Models(43:26) Lessons From Home Depot + Lightning Round—SPONSORS:Mercury is business banking built for builders, giving founders and finance pros a financial stack that actually works together. From sending wires to tracking balances and approving payments, Mercury makes it simple to scale without friction. Join the 200,000+ entrepreneurs who trust Mercury and apply online in minutes at https://www.mercury.comRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. For RevRec that auditors actually trust, visit https://www.rightrev.com and schedule a demo.Tipalti automates the entire payables process—from onboarding suppliers to executing global payouts—helping finance teams save time, eliminate costly errors, and scale confidently across 200+ countries and 120 currencies. More than 5,000 businesses already trust Tipalti to manage payments with built-in security and tax compliance. Visit https://www.tipalti.com/runthenumbers to learn more.Aleph automates 90% of manual, error-prone busywork, so you can focus on the strategic work you were hired to do. Minimize busywork and maximize impact with the power of a web app, the flexibility of spreadsheets, and the magic of AI. Get a personalised demo at https://www.getaleph.com/runRillet is the AI-native ERP modern finance teams are switching to because it's faster, simpler, and 100% built for how teams operate today. See how fast your team can move. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/metricsFidelity Private Shares is the all-in-one equity management platform that keeps your cap table clean, your data room organized, and your equity story clear—so you never risk losing a fundraising round over messy records. Schedule a demo at https://www.fidelityprivateshares.com and mention Mostly Metrics to get 20% off.#CFOInsights #SaaSFinance #CapitalMarkets #IPOReady #RevenueStrategy #GrowthStageCFO This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cjgustafson.substack.com

HEADLINE: Russian Probes, European Escalation Rhetoric, and the Threat of Drone Swarms GUEST NAME:General Blaine Holt 50 WORD SUMMARY: Russian aircraft regularly probe the Alaskan ADIZ, met by US F-16s. Standardized procedures minimize miscalculation risk. Reckless rhetoric from European allies threatens escalation by suggesting shooting down Russian jets violating NATO airspace. European defense ministers are planning a "drone wall" to counter massive Russian drone swarms, which Ukraine currently cannot defeat. B-36 CONVAIR

HEADLINE: Russian Probes, European Escalation Rhetoric, and the Threat of Drone Swarms GUEST NAME:General Blaine Holt 50 WORD SUMMARY: Russian aircraft regularly probe the Alaskan ADIZ, met by US F-16s. Standardized procedures minimize miscalculation risk. Reckless rhetoric from European allies threatens escalation by suggesting shooting down Russian jets violating NATO airspace. European defense ministers are planning a "drone wall" to counter massive Russian drone swarms, which Ukraine currently cannot defeat. 1870 SWEDEN

#606 We're back with Part 2 of our three-part series on the seven rules of creating wealth! In this episode, Justin Williams and Andrew Giancola of The Personal Finance Podcast dive deeper into investing — where to start, how to maximize your employer's 401(k) match, the power of HSAs, Roth IRAs, and why keeping fees low is critical to long-term wealth building. Andrew also breaks down the step-by-step process of investing in index funds and ETFs, plus tips for setting up investment accounts for your kids. If you haven't listened to Part 1 yet, be sure to go back and check it out. And stay tuned for Part 3 tomorrow, where we'll wrap up the series! (Original Air Date - 3/5/25) What we discuss with Andrew: + Maximize 401(k) match – Best guaranteed return + HSA benefits – Triple tax advantages + Roth IRA strategy – Tax-free growth & backdoor option + Minimize fees – Avoid costly advisor & fund fees + How to invest – Open accounts & automate contributions + Lump sum vs. monthly – Best way to invest large amounts + Time in market – Long-term growth power + Investing for kids – Roth IRAs & brokerage accounts + Stocks vs. real estate – Passive vs. active wealth building + S&P 500 advantage – Outperforms most funds Thank you, Andrew! Check out Master Money at ⁠MasterMoney.co⁠. Listen to ⁠The Personal Finance Podcast⁠. Watch the ⁠video podcast⁠ of this episode! To get access to our FREE Business Training course go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠MillionaireUniversity.com/training⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. And follow us on: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Tik Tok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Youtube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To get exclusive offers mentioned in this episode and to support the show, visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠millionaireuniversity.com/sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Want to hear from more incredible entrepreneurs? Check out all of our interviews ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices