163. He made $750 million, but it almost killed him… ft. Mike Lazerow
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What’s up, Rock Nation! Today we sit down with Mike Lazerow, the founder of Buddy Media, a billion-dollar startup he sold to Salesforce, and the author of Shoveling Sht: A Love Story, one of the realest takes on entrepreneurship you’ll ever read.
In this episode, Mike unpacks the hidden cost of success - from nearly dying after scaling too fast, to rebuilding his identity after stepping away from a company worth hundreds of millions. We go deep on why founders burn out, how to avoid it, and the mindset shift that saved his life.
We also talk about selling to Salesforce, the early days of Facebook and Instagram, building with Gary Vee, investing in Liquid Death, and his 6-part Go Gauge framework for picking winning startups.
If you’re building something big, or thinking about it, this conversation is your warning and your roadmap.
Check out Mike here here:
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https://www.youtube.com/@UCgLzz0yep6lUaE5i62zMXTw
https://shovelingshit.com/
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Timestamps:
0:00 - Intro
1:21 - The cost of building a $745 million company
4:24 - prioritizing health
6:58 - Mike’s biggest tradeoffs
7:30 - Mike’s relationship with his father
9:41 - Getting out of your own way
12:46 - The most important trait of a good leader
13:26 - How to fire someone
17:23 - The fuel that drove Mike early on
21:06 - Early days of facebook
23:36 - The common trait of ultra successful entrepreneurs
27:42 - The process of making a book
30:45 - Shoveling sh*t in Central Park
33:00 - The biggest life lesson from Marc Benioff
37:46 - Processing selling Buddy Media for $745 million
40:02 - The challenges of working with your wife
41:50 - Venture Capital is broken
42:36 - Why pizzeria are great business
44:59 - You can’t fire your own kids
46:36 - Go Gauge - 6 steps to determine if Mike invests
49:31 - Not investing in Uber
52:27 - Everyone is born an entrepreneur
53:31 - Investing in Liquid Death
57:06 - Pivoting the revenue model 4 times for Buddy Media
59:44 - Not every business can become a $100 million business
1:01:07 - Pizza business roleplay
1:03:16 - People don’t know how to market
1:04:36 - What founders get wrong with scaling
1:08:00 - Going all in on social media
1:11:17 - How Kass and Mike push each other
1:12:17 - Finding the right business partner
1:14:08 - What makes Kass (Mike’s wife) an amazing entrepreneur
1:18:32 - Tips for becoming a better manager
1:20:10 - Hiring A Players
1:22:16 - How to keep employees motivated
1:24:46 - How to divide equity of a business
1:27:04 - Meeting and working with Gary Vee
1:30:12 - Mike was college roommates with Seth Myers
1:34:04 - Reminiscing on the journey
1:37:36 - Advice to 18 year old self
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