Building Leverage
What does it really take to build a $50 million company from nothing? In this episode, I sit down with Naz Dumanskyy, the co-founder of Poppy AI, a tool that’s transforming how creators work and think. Naz’s story is anything but ordinary. From immigrating to America with nothing, to failing in school, to risking everything for a startup no one believed in, Naz reveals the raw truth behind his journey. He shares how embracing neurodiversity became his superpower, why he ignored conventional advice, and the brutal sacrifices it took to go from $0 to $6 million a year—without a safety net.In this conversation, we dive deep into: * The real risks and emotional toll of building a startup from scratch * How Naz turned ADHD and visual thinking into a product moat * The power of customer obsession (and why most founders get it wrong) * The pitfalls of chasing VC funding—and what to do instead * Building a team culture that thrives under pressure * The unscalable things that actually scale a business * The future of AI, creators, and the one-person business * Naz doesn’t hold back. He shares the moments of doubt, the failures, and t-the lessons that changed everything. Whether you’re a founder, creator, or just someone who dreams of more, this is the conversation you need to hear.0:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c] - Intro1:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=60s] - Key takeaway from the conversation2:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=130s] - Nas’s immigrant story & early challenges4:22 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=262s] - Moving to America and family struggles8:06 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=486s] - The moment he risked everything11:11 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=671s] - Interest in computer science and engineering15:10 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=910s] - Building Poppy AI from a sketch22:30 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=1350s] - Why neurodiversity is a superpower29:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=1740s] - Customer obsession vs. VC advice36:45 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=2205s] - The $6M/year milestone44:20 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=2660s] - Team culture & doing the unscalable52:00 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=3120s] - The future of AI for creators58:31 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMaVij9I0c&t=3511s] - Naz’s advice for foundersSubscribe for more conversations that go beyond the headlines.Connect with Naz:Poppy AI: https://getpoppy.ai [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbkRKUHlKSjJNckV1WVVJOVBHekQweTFGMTVsZ3xBQ3Jtc0tuaG9JYzN2OU5sLWhaaUJveXZKcmpSNFFPa1JLcEE5TklHS2dORTNHajZsa2tjc0x6bmRSd2Q1Um1LT3dfaGF3NVhpdUduQUxVeFBNX3ZWUERJR1c0a045QW9UNDQxNUdmM0dHS3VDQ2hVUUtnSUF0dw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fgetpoppy.ai%2F&v=yGMaVij9I0c]Naz on X: https://x.com/NazDumanskyy [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbVJuanZKLUkzNmxObUMwbVByUzhkWWppRDAyd3xBQ3Jtc0tueGRMcmkxbTNESVZBTmZVM25ROEhOMlBhNVBvcjVrU19hV043WFdwajNRTzNVcDBlNGRZSGZYdmV5OExoUU1ITFR3ckNHckVHWnZRQ0thVHRDMzIxdWFNR3ZQOXl2YktNY01mV3ZUUXFBRTFBSGRiaw&q=https%3A%2F%2Fx.com%2FNazDumanskyy&v=yGMaVij9I0c]Naz Instagram: / nazdumanskyy [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqa1p4alJqUmxMeDdMbFUxNWxJMUlkaFFteDVJZ3xBQ3Jtc0traExTdjBWMTM5RjlwREVrdzhZenhtMEExZkpIVUgyc3c3ZlpJaXFyanNpUExueG55c09lM2xGdUNJOFhaQk9GUU1HN1dkVWdLNjhkb3gzcmdkc2o3ZlEzTFNlSkFBWWc1UlJ3QXVieEdJMVVPdDFoUQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fnazdumanskyy&v=yGMaVij9I0c]Follow BUILDING LEVERAGE:Instagram: / buildingleveragepod [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbVRsWEpZMl9UV2pjWHBvSEpZN3RhXzBkOFBMd3xBQ3Jtc0ttWDdqRmRuM1hrZGp4VXVWbUs0VUUybzVHWExTRjBYNU9wN0JiZFlGTjFLaUQ2RllCQlE5WFh5X29BUW9leTNsNzJZVkNfYjJxR2FiRFVXWE5ESXRBVXRZRnY3TFZpaTcwX2FXWEtBZnJucjR5cF96NA&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fbuildingleveragepod&v=yGMaVij9I0c]TikTok: / josh_larosa [https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbVFMeko2bUhtZTBobHFBU3BiVVl2Y2ViWGN3QXxBQ3Jtc0tta092VVI4N2JmXy1EM1dxUVRzdGY1Sm8xclo5eUdzUWFNZ2EzMjdOUTJtRFRfcmVSc3o2TmY0WHp4ZVRPcDBKOEphaGFWT3Y5bkZMelg2bVpYc3IwS20ybXRpTXFRWTZDSEx3U2h6Wl90R25NRE9LNA&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40joshualarosa.ai&v=yGMaVij9I0c]
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