

What I Know
Inc. Magazine
The greatest businesses weren’t born from moments of genius. They emerged after years of discovery--and often after years of failure. What I Know from Inc. magazine takes you inside the messy, painful, and--every so often--transcendent journey of starting a company. Through candid interviews, Inc. senior writer Christine Lagorio-Chafkin draws out the real grit and true lessons behind innovative companies and remarkable brands.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jan 18, 2022 • 46min
Julia Hartz of Eventbrite: Culture at Work? It’s Complicated
She co-founded the event-ticket site Eventbrite in 2006, took the role of CEO 10 years later, and then did what few women leaders have done: took her company public. Then, the pandemic hit–and with live events canceled globally, she stared into a terrifying future. Julia Hartz explains to host Christine Lagorio-Chafkin how she led her team through a harrowing crisis, as well as her unique view of company culture as “more of a living, breathing organism than a bug stuck in amber.” She explains that workplace culture can’t be stuck in time–nor can it always be happy or pleasant. But it can be strong, and self-healing and help workplaces get through even the toughest times.

Dec 27, 2021 • 4min
What I Know Best: Michelle Prepares For a Big Presentation
The founder and CEO of Lively left Victoria’s Secret–and took it on with her inclusive intimates brand. These days, she does a lot of media and big meetings, and her secret to preparing is to not overdo it. She explains to Christine Lagorio-Chafkin.

Dec 20, 2021 • 48min
Michelle Cordeiro Grant of Lively: Do It All Backwards
In order to launch her intimates and loungewear brand, Lively, Michelle Cordeiro Grant decided to do everything a little differently. In fact, some of her strategy turned convention on its head. She built up a community of fans and advocates before she had a product to sell–and made several other counterintuitive business decisions along the way to an $85 million acquisition very early in her startup’s life. She explains her motivations, inspirations, and the company’s turning points to host Christine Lagorio-Chafkin.

Dec 13, 2021 • 6min
What I Know Best: Amber’s Secret to Getting It All Done
The co-founder and President of LTK, the influencer-shopping ecosystem, Amber Venz Box, works with a personal assistant. But that hasn’t always been seamless, she tells Christine Lagorio-Chafkin. Her simple collaboration tool was right under her nose.

Dec 6, 2021 • 47min
Amber Venz Box of LTK: Freedom Through Delegation
Christine Lagorio-Chafkin talks with Amber Venz Box--co-founder and president of LTK--about being an introvert, founding a company with her significant other, and the power of delegating.

Nov 22, 2021 • 25min
Gary Vaynerchuk: Use Your Soft Skills
Christine Lagorio-Chafkin talks with Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of VaynerMedia and chairman of Vayner X.

Nov 15, 2021 • 9min
What I Know BEST: Don’t Fear Asking The Most Basic Questions
Christine Lagorio-Chafkin continues her conversation with Ryan Breslow and asks him about how he interviews potential employees.

Nov 8, 2021 • 38min
Ryan Breslow of Bolt: Culture Is Everything
Christine Lagorio-Chafkin talks with the founder and CEO of the company that ranked No. 64 the 2021 Inc. 5000, Ryan Breslow. The company is called Bolt, and it is one-click checkout for retailers. Ryan started Bolt in 2014 as an offshoot of his cryptocurrency research at Stanford, and after years of product development and fundraising and slow growth, the company has hit an inflection point and is growing wildly, with over 10 million shoppers on the Bolt network.

Nov 1, 2021 • 13min
What I Know BEST: How To Deal With Customer Complaints, Fast
This week, Kara Goldin, the founder and CEO of Hint Water, explains how her ability to put herself in another person’s shoes--even when that person has a completely different set of needs and desires than her--helped her learn to negotiate

Oct 25, 2021 • 49min
Hint Water’s Kara Goldin: The Outsider’s Advantage
When Kara Goldin launched her fruit-flavored water company, Hint, in 2005, she’d worked in media and tech--but never in consumer products, much less beverage creation or distribution. But armed with curiosity and verve, when she lacked know-how, she asked the right questions. And perhaps what she didn’t know was the most valuable asset of all--because the immense challenges that would come didn’t seem impossible. Goldin tells host Christine Lagorio-Chafkin about her biggest moments of doubt, including when Hint’s biggest customer, Starbucks, canceled its orders, which amounted to 40 percent of the company’s sales. Goldin learned, though that and other challenges, that it’s to be expected that you’ll get some “no”s as you build your business. Whether you keep growing is up to whether you continue your journey of learning.


