Today's guest is Mike Slade of Second Avenue Partners – an investor, advisor and seasoned storyteller who worked with Bill Gates, Paul Allen and Steve Jobs.

Mike started his career at Microsoft in 1983 and spent seven years in a variety of product marketing roles launching hugely successful products including Excel, Works and Microsoft Office. He then went to work at NeXT as VP of Marketing, reporting directly to Steve Jobs.

Paul Allen (Microsoft co-founder) then hired Mike as CEO of Starwave which was his trailblazing venture into the Internet and multimedia space. While building Starwave, Mike launched ESPN.com, NBA.com, NFL.com, and many other huge sites. Following the company’s sale to Disney, Mike went back to Steve Jobs and joined Apple’s executive team, as Steve’s strategic advisor.

As I said before, Mike is an incredible storyteller so expect to hear some wonderfully funny, insightful and even touching stories about his time with these three innovators.

But before we get into the episode, I wanted to tell you about today’s sponsor – Wave – the coaching app used by leaders at all the top tech companies from Google, to Amazon and Stripe. Check it out here. And for less than 20 euros a month, you too can access your very own executive coach and reach your work and life goals using the power of AI combined with actual human coaches.

It’s funny because we expect to see elite athletes using coaches but just imgagine what applying that same support could do to your life and work?

Whether you’re struggling with work challenges such as leadership, time management or problem solving, Wave is the app to use. I signed up last week and I am already looking forward to my first session next week.

I know lots of founders and CEOs who need and want outside help but don’t know where to go or don’t have the time or money to get that help. And whilst many current apps and methodologies for professional growth are outdated, I think Wave is doing something completely different and innovative and is one of THE most time and cost effective ways I have seen to help you set, measure and achieve your goals. 

So what are you waiting for? Hit the link here to try Wave for under 20 Euros a month. It’s a bargain!

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Mike Slade Twitter / Second Avenue 

Danielle Twitter / Instagram / Newsletter

Episode image: Mike Slade

Becoming Steve Jobs: The Evolution of a Reckless Upstart into a Visionary Leader by Brent Shlender and Rick Tetzeli