Finding Founders

You just heard from Alexandra Zatarain as she recounts the few dread-filled hours that preceded her father’s terminal cancer diagnosis. Though this fundamentally changed the course of her life, Alexandra dealt with the sudden grief by asking the same question she had always asked: What can I do? This unshakable dedication to problem-solving has led up to her entrepreneurial endeavors as the co-founder of Eight Sleep, creating a temperature-regulated, health monitoring bed. Spearheading the tech industry’s exploration into sleep fitness, Alexandra’s made Forbes’ 30 under 30 and her product has been recognized two years in a row by TIME’s best inventions of the year. But she didn’t always want to be an entrepreneur…in fact, her life began far from Silicon Valley, it began bouncing between San Diego and Tijuana Mexico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You just heard Zack Honarvar talking about the moment he realized he needed to move on from the stagnant safety of his traditional finance company and forge his own path. Zack is now the founder of the management company One Day Entertainment, which powers the financial side of channels such as Yes Theory, Airrack, and The Cheeky Boyos. Beyond harnessing the power of multi million subscriber channels, Zack is also the co-founder of the influencer merchandise company Fan of a Fan and CEO of Creator Now, which is basically film school reimagined for the digital age. But before LA’s creator scene, Zack was learning business the old fashion way: hustling Lunchables on the playground and operating alone at home from as early as four. And even before he was born, Zack’s life was primed for practicality. Let’s take a look at the story before Zack’s story, one that paved the way for his unique balance of both steady utility and daring imagination. Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You just heard Josh Johnson recalling the moment where his worst nightmare came true: after finally stepping away from his safety net, he found himself jobless with the rug yanked out from under him. Now well known for his performances on Conan and Comedy Central, his tours with Trevor Noah, and a 2020 Emmy nomination, Josh has come a long way from his first script writing experience on the Tonight Show. Although this all seemed like a sudden rise to success there’s a lot of history behind these shining moments. Before late night talk shows and award ceremonies, there were years of non stop working. By night, he would tour the comedy circuits of Chicago and New York. And by day, he worked the early bird shifts at Aldi’s and Trader Joe’s. Believe it or not, his double life of growing comedian and grocery bagger continued well into his career. There was no ‘making it’, no easy way to fame. Instead, he remembered that for every one step forward, there was a chance at falling two steps back. This cautious approach to his career, this consistent humility, can be traced all the way back to his childhood in Louisiana…where love and danger seemed to be the only constants of his surroundings. Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ronan Levy is the founder of Field Trip Health, a rapidly expanding therapy program which combines psychotherapy and psychedelics to address treatment-resistant mental health disorders. His clinics span across Canada, the United States, and Europe, with Levy aiming to establish 75 clinics over the next four years. But to spearhead a mental health movement, Levy had to go through kidnapping, heartbreak, and the cannabis gold rush. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, it might be helpful to look back into the edges of Levy’s consciousness and catch a glimpse of who he was before his career…before college…before childhood even… Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You are about to listen to Michael Tucker talking about how yet another project, a chance at being legitimized in LA’s film industry, failed before it even had a chance to lift off the ground. We’re going to tell you how he got to this point, and past it… eventually creating the popular YouTube channel ‘Lessons From the Screenplay’. Garnering more than 5 million views on his most popular release with a whopping 1.4 million subscribers, Michael’s channel saw a meteoric rise from its launch in 2016. Yet, before he shared his knowledge of film theory and narrative structure with an audience- Michael had to learn his own lessons from the screenplay. From tracking down DVD commentaries of his favorite movies to printing out and studying the shots he was inspired by, Michael turned his childhood curiosity into a serious, personal study of filmmaking. So, let’s rewind a bit…..and see how this passion started with a simple handheld camera. Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You are about to hear from Stu Krieger, writer of some of your favorite Disney childhood classics. From the animated film The Land Before Time to the Disney Channel Originals Cow Belles and Smart House, Stu’s career shaped the childhoods of a generation. But before he was penning the stories that entertained children across the nation, Stu was just another kid entranced by the spell of movie magic. We’ll hear how his early wish to move to California grew into something more, taking him to Los Angeles, to Steven Spielberg’s desk, and on the Walt Disney studio backlots he had dreamt about.We would also like to congratulate Stu on the release of his new novel "RAFT" which is releasing from PipeVine Press some time in the first half of 2023. If you enjoyed the interview and would like to stay up to date on the release, be sure to follow him on Instagram @stukrieger! Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You are about to listen to Eric and Ali, a couple who have made their living by farming in the unlikeliest of places: Downtown Los Angeles. Now, you may be wondering ‘Is that even possible?’. Looking at the concrete urban sprawl, there’s little green space to begin with let alone enough to raise a sustainable amount of crops on. Yet, despite the lack of water, space, and quality soil…it seems that Eric and Ali have found a way. For this episode, I hopped on my bike to my nearest metro station and took the train to their community plot in Lincoln Heights. There, I sat down with the pair and heard their story.Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week I talked to Ruth Askren and Phoebe Piper, owners of the beekeeping company Hive Tribe. Hive Tribe has established and maintained 25 active beekeeping sites throughout LA and Ventura county, working with a variety of estates and celebrity clients. But before we sat down to talk, Ruth and Phoebe gave me a taste of their sweet lifestyle by letting me don the beekeeping suit myself. On a warm spring day, I headed down to Malibu and visited the pair at their hillside operation. There, I helped separate bee boxes to check on the different colonies’ health and the progress of their hives. I watched through my mesh helmet as they monitored white wax, checked for pollen, and looked at the honey on the outside of the young hives. Amongst the seaside flowers and scent of salty ocean breeze, I found that there were few better ways to spend the day than beekeeping in Malibu. Yet, before Ruth & Phoebe maintained hives for a living, this was just a hobby for Ruth.  And before that…she didn’t work with bees at all. Her day job was teaching art at a private prep school. But let’s dive into this winding, up   hill journey through SoCal and remember that it is never too late to find wonder in your life. Sometimes a new source of excitement is wedged between the tiles on the roof, waiting to be found.Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mina Le, a former economics major who found her career as a fashion Youtuber in the unlikeliest of times: the pandemic. Stuck inside the house with no place to be, many of us turned to unexpected hobbies to fill our time. There was the sourdough bread craze, where people made DIY yeast starters in their kitchens and posted their golden-baked results on instagram. Others learned a new instrument, crocheted, or binged the entirety of Breaking Bad beneath the covers. Mina Le, on the other hand, started her own YouTube channel. She has been creating detailed videos on fashion history, film theory, and pop culture and during isolation at her parent’s house she amassed a loyal fanbase of nearly one million subscribers. Her most popular video now has 3 million views. However, the road to becoming a fashion influencer, pop culture historian, and skilled video essayist began far from the sphere of social media. Mina’s first experience with fashion started in the home, looking at her mother’s style inspiration board in the closet.Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sareen began his fashion education on the steps of the Taj Mahal, picking up snippets from the people he drove. After finishing a Mechanical Engineering degree, he moved to Canada, but had no idea where to start. So he started at the bottom washing dishes for $2 an hour. Soon after he would be making $1.2M a year but a heart attack would have him realize his true calling... founding a fashion company. Bringing cutting edge engineering to the fashion world, Sareen founded Tukatech, the first in the industry to provide an open and fully automatic Computer-Aided Design system.Subscribe to our Newsletter!https://findingfounders.co/subscribeWebsite: findingfounders.coFollow Sam: https://www.instagram.com/samueldonner/Follow Finding Founders IG: https://www.instagram.com/findingfounderspodcast/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices