
Alex Friedman - How to be unapologetically authentic and optimist on the Internet!
The Undefeated Underdogs
Embracing Adversity and Finding Strength Through Loss
Exploring how facing loss and adversity can lead to personal growth and resilience, highlighting the transformative power of challenging experiences.
👉🏼 About the Guest:
Alex Friedman is currently an Entrepreneur in Residence for Techstars Music. She is also an angel investor and a 3x startup founder who has developed CPG products that have been sold in over 3,000 stores across the nation. She is well-known for building Founder Gigs((part-time gigs for startup founders) using no-code tools and selling it to Hirerunner after 6 months with over 5k MRR!
Along with her experience as Program Manager for Techstars Austin and Techstars Impact, she has worked with thousands of startup founders. As a content creator, she has a following of over 150k across various platforms at @heyalexfriedman.
👉🏼 About the Host:
Sharath is a founder, creator, and community builder. He is also a serial maker who built and shipped 15+ projects using no-code tools. His SaaS product Shoutout generated $30k ARR, which was sold to a UK-based product studio. Prev, Sharath worked for world-changing startups like Product Hunt and On Deck, where he helped build and nurture communities. He also grew his audience on Twitter from 200 to 22,000 using give-first principles and creating high-value content. Currently, he is the Head of Community + Brand at Threado, building a side project called GuestLab, and runs a newsletter called YC Founder Stories alongside hosting this podcast.
👉🏼 Sponsor Corner:
Shoutout to Acquire.com for being the first sponsor of The Undefeated Underdogs podcast! They’re the best online marketplace to buy/sell startups and I know many founders who have sold their businesses there. If you're looking to wind down your business and cash in some of your founder chips, check them out - https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
👉🏼 Description:
Tune in as Sharath and Alex discuss authenticity while building content, building microprojects for acquisition, entering the founder community, and more!
👉🏼 Timestamps:
- 00:00: Episode Highlight
- 00:42: Shoutout to Acquire.com
- 03:07: Introduction to Alex Friedman, 3x founder and influencer
- 06:08: Why is there a cowboy hat on Alex's Twitter?
- 09:24: How to be optimistic in writing
- 13:47: Next 3 steps after you've run out of stories
- 15:34: Breaking into founder communities as an introvert
- 26:00: Developing a thick skin as a founder
- 30:32: The journey from microprojects to acquisition
- 38:23: Building better marketplaces
- 41:50: What makes a content piece go viral?
- 49:17: The importance of highlighting the failures of business-building
- 54:10: How dealing with personal losses impacts all aspects of your life
- 1:06:16: Recovering from loss
- 1:10:12: Outro and closing thoughts
👉🏼 Resources:
- Have your product acquired: https://try.acquire.com/sharath/
- FounderGigs: https://www.foundergigs.com/
👉🏼 Where to find Alex:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/heyalexfriedman
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heyalexfriedman/
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@heyalexfriedman
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heyalexfriedman/
👉🏼 Where to find Sharath:
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/5harath
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@5harath
- Website: https://5harath.com/
- Newsletter: https://5harath.substack.com/