When the Company He Built Almost Killed Him | Eric Ries, Author of Incorruptible

When the Company He Built Almost Killed Him | Eric Ries, Author of Incorruptible

Eric Ries spent a decade building LTSE. The night it almost died, his body responded like it was dying too. Eric Ries (author of The Lean Startup and the new book Incorruptible, founder of the Long-Term Stock Exchange) sits down with Vlada to walk through the part of founder life that almost never gets published: what happens to your body when the company you built starts to fail, and how naming what therapists call ego identification changed the work he's done since. In this episode: • Growing up in a family of doctors, and the IBM XT computer his father brought home that changed everything• The night LTSE almost died, and what ego identification feels like in the body• The board meeting Eric was sure would end his career, and how it became Lean Startup• Why he calls VC forecasts "a kabuki ritual"• How Costco's founder Jim Sinegal predicted Groupon's collapse with one phrase: "taking heroin"• Cloudflare's "be principled" value and the encryption decision it cost them• Why shareholder primacy isn't actually law, and how one conversation with one friend can puncture it• Eric's zero-courage tactic for changing any company from the inside Subscribe to Heartful Wonders — conversations about following your heart when the path isn't clear. New episodes every other Tuesday. 👤 About Eric Ries: Over the last two decades, Eric Ries's ideas about continuous innovation, long-term thinking, governance, and market reform have reshaped company building and management practices. He is the creator of the Lean Startup method, and the author of the New York Times bestseller The Lean Startup; The Leader's Guide; and The Startup Way. As a founder, he has put his own ideas into practice with The Long-Term Stock Exchange (LTSE); Answer.AI, an AI R&D lab; Virgil, a legal services startup; and IMVU. On The Eric Ries Show, he talks with world-class technologists, thought leaders, and executives building for the long-term. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and three children. 💻 Eric can be found: Website: https://www.ericries.coLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eries/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ericriesactual/X: https://x.com/ericriesNewsletter: https://news.theleanstartup.com/Podcast: https://www.ericriesshow.com/Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@theericriesshowNew Book — Incorruptible: https://www.amazon.com/Incorruptible-Shape-Companies-That-Stand/dp/B0FWZZBPZB ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladaSubstack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnikMarco Polo: https://www.marcopolo.me/ 📎 Resources mentioned: Answer.AI: https://www.answer.ai/ Episode is produced by: Mun Yee Kelly: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mun-yee-kelly-769868/ #HeartfulWonders #LeanStartup #EricRies #Founders #MissionDriven

Born on a gold mine | Cheyanne Donald, Bodyworker & Artist

Cheyanne Donald was born on a gold mine in Alaska. Her parents were hippies. Their nearest neighbors lived eight miles away. She grew up skiing under full moons, building a house, and believing there was no wrong decision. Just a decision. At a young age she moved to California with fifty dollars in a duffel bag and a phone number for a Taekwondo instructor. From there, she built a life that didn't follow anyone's plan. She taught herself bodywork by reading every book her dad threw on a shelf for her. She studied every modality she could find. She raised her daughter alone, worked four jobs at a time when she needed to, and built a 30-year practice entirely by word of mouth. She also became an artist who runs festivals in Santa Cruz under a business she calls White Rabbit. In this episode, Cheyanne and Vlada Bortnik talk about what it takes to build a life on your own terms. The ego trap of trying to be the magic. The discipline of staying out of your own way. And what changes when you stop treating society's path as the only one. ▶️ Watch the full episode now. 👤 About Cheyanne Donald: Cheyanne Donald is a Bay Area artist and creative force whose work blends art-making, community building, and thoughtful curation. She is the creative mind behind White Rabbit Social Club, a community-oriented art and vendor collective she built from the ground up to give makers and artists the space, support, and audience she wished she had when she started vending her own work. 💻 Cheyanne can be found: * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/white_rabbit_ink_/ * Website: https://wearethewhiterabbit.com/ ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: * LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vlada * Substack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/ * Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnik * Marco Polo: https://www.marcopolo.me/ 📎 Resources mentioned: * White Rabbit Social Club: https://wearethewhiterabbit.com/

How to Find Your Purpose When the Path You Planned Stops Working | Dr. Nseyo, OB-GYN

Dr. Nseyo spent years fighting to become the doctor she always dreamed of being. Then she got there, and she burned out. Ono Nseyo is an OB-GYN, women's health advocate, and podcast host who grew up watching her Nigerian immigrant father change lives in his community. Literally! That image of her dad shaped everything for her. She pushed through Stanford, organic chemistry, pre-med haters, eight years of training, and the systemic racism that still exists in medicine, all to show up for her patients. And then one day she realized she wasn't really showing up, not the way she wanted. In this episode, we talk about what burnout actually feels like from the inside, how she found her way back, and the moment in a college lecture that told her exactly why she was put on this earth. We also get into the maternal health crisis that still doesn't get enough attention: Black women are still 3 to 4 times more likely to die in childbirth. The statistics haven't improved. And Ono is one of the people fighting to change that. Key takeaways: * How you know something is actually your calling. Dr. Nseyo didn't decide to go into women's health. Something "ignited" her. There's a difference .. and she names it. * What burnout actually feels like from the inside. Not just tired. Not stressed. Muted. Like someone put a filter on your life and turned the color down. * Why she started a podcast when she already had a full career. The exam room couldn't hold everything she wanted and needed to say. So she built something that could. * The importance of community showing up. Dr. Nseyo shares the moment she almost quit medicine and who flew across the country to stop her? Her mom! * What happens when you stop chasing the numbers. Dr. Nseyo got obsessed with metrics and it nearly killed the thing she loved. Letting go of that is what saved it. * The statistic that ignited her life's work (and had me fuming). Black women in America are still three to four times more likely to die in childbirth. Decades of effort. The number hasn't moved. * Impact of being loved by someone who won't give up on you. She says she's a better person because of her husband. Not in a cheesy, greeting card way. In a very real way. ▶️ Watch the full episode now and subscribe. 👤 About Ono Nseyo: Ono Nseyo, MD FACOG is a board-certified OB/GYN and former Medical Director of Women's Health for Sutter East Bay Medical Group, where she led strategic initiatives to expand access and equity in care. Based in Berkeley, Oakland, and Richmond, she serves a diverse patient population with a focus on compassionate, equitable care. She earned her undergraduate degree in Human Biology from Stanford University and completed her medical training at UCSF, with a career shaped by her commitment to addressing health disparities. Passionate about maternal health and matrescence, she founded the Hour.FM podcast to elevate women's voices and experiences across the health spectrum. 💻 Ono can be found: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goldenhour.fm [https://www.instagram.com/goldenhour.fm] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@goldenhour.fm [https://www.tiktok.com/@goldenhour.fm] Golden Hour FM Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@GoldenHourFM [https://www.youtube.com/@GoldenHourFM] ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vlada [https://www.linkedin.com/in/vlada] Substack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/ [https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnik [https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnik]

How to Know When Your Fear Is Lying to You | Mun Yee Kelly, Entrepreneur + producer

Most of us have a voice in our heads that sounds like wisdom.Mun Yee Kelly spent years listening to hers, and it told her that being herself was the problem.So she stopped. She changed her hair, her personality, her city. Twice. And it worked, until it didn't. In this conversation, we go deep on the moment she finally stopped believing everything she thought, and what happened when she started following her heart instead.If you've ever talked yourself out of something that felt right, this one's for you. Key takeaways: • The belief that kept Mun stuck for years, and how she uncovered it • Her journey through an eating disorder, therapy, and building businesses she loved • Why following your heart isn't always a choice • "Be suspicious of your own suspicions" — the mindset shift that changed everything #mentalhealth #healing #selfworth 📹 Watch the full episode now. 👤 About Mun Yee Kelly: Mun Yee Kelly is an entrepreneur, community builder, and lifelong student of what it means to follow your heart, even when it's inconvenient or hard to explain. She believes that fostering genuine human connection is a form of activism, and that building community isn't separate from the work; it is the work. She lives in Oakland, California, where she hosts a weekly dinner table open to all and is working to expand that spirit into a larger space where more people can gather and connect. 💻 Mun can be found: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mun-yee-kelly-769868/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mun_the_bun/ X/Twitter: https://x.com/erischan ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vlada Substack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnik 📎 Resources mentioned: Groundbreakers: https://www.groundbreakers.co/ Byron Katie – The Work: https://thework.com/ Harvard Business Review: https://hbr.org/

What Nobody Tells You About Following Your Heart | Sue Heilbronner, Author of "Never Ask for the Sale"

What if the emotion you think is your heart is actually fear?Sue Heilbronner has been a federal prosecutor, startup founder, venture capitalist, executive coach, and now author of Never Ask for the Sale. She's followed her heart more times than she can count. And she's also followed her fear, thinking it was her heart.In this conversation, Sue gets honest about what it actually takes to follow your heart — including the parts nobody talks about. The disappointment. The self-doubt. The moments where you still don't believe you're enough, even after decades of building.She also introduces a framework that I believe is helpful: passionate ambivalence. Care deeply about what you're creating. Run experiments. But don't tie your worth to whether they work out.Because disappointment is the most common thing that happens. But it doesn't mean you can't come out optimistic on the other side of crying your eyes out. This is a conversation about courage, honesty, and what it looks like to keep showing up after things don't go the way you hoped.Key Takeaways1. Fear and following your heart can feel the same. Decisions rooted in shame or self-doubt can feel like intuition. The difference is direction: moving toward something vs. away from discomfort.2. Following your heart doesn’t require a leap. Sue made bold moves in a way that felt safe to her — starting her company at night and testing her book before self-publishing. You can follow your heart and manage risk.3. Passionate ambivalence is a practice. Care deeply, but don't be attached to the outcome. When your identity isn’t tied to the outcome, you show up more freely.4. Disappointment sucks and it's common and survivable. Disappointment hurts. But Sue knows from experience that she’ll come out the other side. Trying many things keeps any one disappointment from defining you.5. The best agenda is flexible. Structure creates safety; letting go creates magic. Real listening means being present enough to follow what’s actually happening.👤 About Sue Heilbronner:Sue Heilbronner is a CEO, leadership coach, and advisor who helps founders and executives navigate growth, decision-making, and change. She is the co-founder of MergeLane, a venture fund investing in diverse teams, and the creator of Leadership Camp for high-potential leaders. She has led and scaled companies across digital marketing, e-commerce, and technology, and now works closely with founders through coaching, teaching, and mentorship, including with Techstars and the University of Colorado. Sue began her career as an attorney, serving as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division. She holds a BA from Oberlin College and a JD and Master of Public Policy from Duke University.💻 Sue can be found:Website: www.heysue.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sueheilbronnerNever Ask for the Sale – Sue Heilbronner: https://www.amazon.com/Never-Ask-Sale-Sue-Heilbronner/dp/059353936X✨ About Vlada Bortnik:Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales.💻 Vlada can be found:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vladaSubstack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vladabortnik📎 Resources mentioned:Conscious Leadership Group: https://conscious.isThe 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership – https://conscious.isEnneagram: https://www.enneagraminstitute.com