The Growth Show

Jon Westenberg is arguably one of the top writers on Medium. He has over 50 thousand followers, and his content receives over 300 thousand views in a month. By any measure, Jon is incredibly successful - but he’s also taken his fair share of knocks. In this episode, Jon talks about some of the secrets to his success on Medium - and how a few important failures shaped who he is today.

Imagine starting a company with your significant other. Does that sound like a dream...or a nightmare? For married couple Anna and Nathan Bond, it seemed only natural to start a business together. Years ago, they began Rifle Paper Co., a stationery company, out of their garage. In this episode, Anna and Nathan share the real implications of having your business partner and romantic partner be the same person in your life - and how their relationship has been a key to growing Rifle Paper Co.

Over 3 million educated women in the U.S. are looking to re-enter the workforce after taking a career break - yet only 40% secure full-time jobs, according to the Center for Talent Innovation. That’s where Jennifer Gefsky, founder of Après, comes in. In this episode, Jennifer shares advice on how to prepare for a career break, what to do during the gap to ensure an easy transition back, and what businesses around the world have to gain from hiring these valuable candidates.

Suhail Doshi, the founder of Mixpanel, is not afraid to question the way things are done. It all started in 2009. Suhail challenged the “golden metric” of website success and opened the door to more detailed analytics. Today, Mixpanel has nearly 4,000 customers at companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Venmo. In this episode, Suhail shares how he managed to grow his company during a recession using his passion, discipline, luck, and unconventional way of thinking all along the way.

On paper, the hiring process appears fairly straightforward: read applications, interview, hire top talent, and then rinse and repeat … right? Well, not exactly. The thing is, the conventional hiring process is broken -- and Jon Bischke, CEO of Entelo, has made it his mission to mend it. In this episode, Jon schools us on the top mistakes managers make in the hiring process and the tactics you can employ to be better at recruiting the right talent to grow your team.

Are computers replacing humans? In short: not yet. That’s what Ryan Block, co-founder of Begin, believes, anyway - and he knows a thing or two about bots. In fact, his team is building one of their own, one that helps you stay on top of everything you've got going on. Ryan knows better than most what the bot timeline means for humans, and despite huge tech advancements, he’s largely skeptical. In fact, he claims we’re “15 Nobel Prizes away” from anything that could even remotely replace humans.

People pay for convenience. In fact, the Journal of Economic Perspectives found that consumers are willing to pay 20% more for a product purchased at a convenience store. Kevin Gibbon, the founder of Shyp, experienced this firsthand during his college years as an eBay PowerSeller. During that time, there was one major inhibitor on his business’ scale: the shipping process. Kevin decided to take matters into his own hands, and started Shyp, an uber-convenient shipping service.

Victoria Ransom has never been afraid of doing things a little differently than her peers. By never shying away from the risks associated with making big changes, Victoria has reaped the rewards - one of them being an acquisition by Google for a reported $450 million. In this episode, Victoria tells us about the risks and rewards of being acquired by Google and the power of taking a break to unlock career growth.

Meet Frank Warren, the person who likely keeps the most secrets in the world. Twelve years ago, Frank asked people to anonymously send their secrets to him on a pre-stamped postcard. More than a decade later, his social experiment turned into one of the most-visited ad-free blogs in the world. In this episode, Frank shares why vulnerability was the key to PostSecret’s growth, and how it can be used to strengthen your core relationships, leadership skills, and business.

charity: water’s founder, Scott Harrison, spent 10 years as a club promoter before starting his nonprofit. A decade later, he’s managed to help over 6 million people get access to clean water. How did he rapidly grow charity: water with no experience in the nonprofit sector? He attributes his success to an often-undervalued quality: being naive. In this episode, Scott explains the perspective he’s gained being an outsider in the nonprofit sector and how this has helped him rapidly grow his organizatio

Bill Walton’s life is one of extremes. Back in the 80s, he was a talented player on the Celtics. He's also experienced some deeply difficult situations with his health. At one point, he didn’t think he’d be able to walk again. To navigate these ups and downs, he’s leaned on lessons from three of the most influential leaders of his life: John Wooden, his basketball coach at UCLA; Larry Bird, his teammate on the Celtics; and Jerry Garcia, his idol in The Grateful Dead.

As the Chief Creative Officer of GE, Andy Goldberg led the charge in developing new stories on emerging platforms and broadening General Electric's brand reach in the process. One of Andy's recent efforts was launching a podcast called "The Message." In the few weeks after launch, it shot up to the top of the iTunes charts, beating out hits like "Serial." On today's show, Andy shares advice on how to actually push a brand to explore these new, creative pursuits while still staying true to a company's roots.

Part of being an exceptional leader means setting a solid vision for your team - and getting them on board to execute your vision together. But that is easier said than done. Even if you have a great idea, getting your team to understand and support your vision comes with a host of challenges. Enter communications experts Nancy Duarte and Patti Sanchez. In their new book, "Illuminate," Nancy and Patti dive into research and real examples from companies like Apple, Disney, and IBM.

For Michael McNally, working at LEGO was destiny. As a kid, he was a die-hard LEGO fanatic. So when he stumbled on a LEGO job listing as an adult, he knew he had to take a chance and apply. Seventeen years later, he couldn't be happier with his choice. In this episode of The Growth Show, Michael shares stories about what it's been like to work for such an iconic company - and his experiences shaping the future of the LEGO brand.

The best managers aren't always quick to provide a solution. Instead, they ask more questions to help guide their employees to a solution on their own. Sounds simple, right? The thing is, this can be very tough to put into action. And in this episode of The Growth Show, that's exactly what our guest helps us do. We're joined by Michael Bungay Stanier, author of "The Coaching Habit," to learn what separates good managers from great ones - and the tactics you can employ to become a great manager yourself.