Episode 7: Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) recount the wild story of how the digital media company Red Ventures bootstrapped its way to becoming a business with an $11 billion valuation. Then, the crew dives into fundraising—when to do it, how to set your goals, and their best advice for how to raise most successfully. And finally, the crew answers a Startup AMA question around how find the most attractive benefits packages at the best rates as a small company.#TheCrazyOnes #Startups #EntrepreneurListen to The Crazy Ones here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_WSubscribe to Morning Brew!Sign up for free today: https://bit.ly/morningbrewytFollow The Brew!Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrewTik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrew00:33 - Intro02:02 - The Rundown03:15 - The story of Ric Elias and Red Ventures08:09 - Ric’s life-changing experience 08:51 - How Red Ventures’ growth started to take off12:10 - Red Ventures’ great work culture13:29 - Jesse’s biggest takeaways from working with Red Ventures15:38 - How Ric Elias spends his time24:16 - Sophia’s experience of fundraising and her biggest lessons learned30:51 - What kind of businesses should raise money vs shouldn’t?36:29 - Sophia’s advice for founders looking to raise capital right now37:05 - Jesse’s advice for founders looking to raise capital right now37:37 - Alex’s advice for founders looking to raise capital right now37:58 - Startup AMA - How do startups get attractive benefits packages at competitive rates before they get a large headcount?Links:  Ric Elias TED Talk  You’ve Never Heard of the Biggest Digital Media Company in America Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 6: Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) break down the hype behind Generative AI—what is it, how it’s being used right now, and how to think about it as a business builder. Then, the team discusses their personal experiences with using executive coaches and why it is or isn’t worth the money. And finally, we finish the episode with a game of Product Hunt Roulette, where the team picks their favorite new companies featured on Product Hunt, a startup curation site.#TheCrazyOnes #Startups #EntrepreneurListen to The Crazy Ones here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_WSubscribe to Morning Brew!Sign up for free today: https://bit.ly/morningbrewytFollow The Brew!Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrewTik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrewFollow Our Hosts!Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista)Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso)Jesse Pujji (@jspujji)00:00 - Cold Open00:45 - Intro 02:05 - The Rundown02:54 - Why is Generative AI a GOLD RUSH?12:47 - Jasper AI & Copy AI LIVE TESTS16:18 - Takeaways & Ideas from Generative AI22:46 - Is Executive Coaching Worth It?13:35 - Jesse’s on what he’d do as CEO of Twitter17:06 - Sophia on never wanting to be Elon Musk21:29 - Alex on the 6 Steps to turn Twitter around23:17 - How the crew would monetize Twitter26:23 - Lessons for entrepreneurs watchingLinks: Sequoia Capital definition of Generative AI The Timeline of Generative AI Open AI’s $1B Funding From Microsoft Jasper AI’s $1.5B Valuation Product Hunt’s Website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 5: EMERGENCY POD – Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) had to spontaneously hop on the mic to talk about Elon’s $44 Billion takeover of the world’s most topical social app, Twitter, and the steps he’s already taken to monetize the company. Then, the crew plays “what would you do as Elon Musk” and give their own ideas into how to turn the Twitter ship around.#TheCrazyOnes #Startups #EntrepreneurListen to The Crazy Ones here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_WSubscribe to Morning Brew!Sign up for free today:  https://bit.ly/morningbrewytFollow The Brew!Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrewTik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrewFollow Our Hosts!Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista)Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso)Jesse Pujji (@jspujji)00:00 - Cold Open00:58 - Intro 01:11 - The Rundown01:41 - Chronology of Elon’s story acquiring Twitter06:41 - Elon announcing Twitter Blue10:38 - Elon’s new Twitter Cohort12:37 - Advertisers hinting to pull money out of Twitter13:35 - Jesse’s on what he’d do as CEO of Twitter17:06 - Sophia on never wanting to be Elon Musk21:29 - Alex on the 6 Steps to turn Twitter around23:17 - How the crew would monetize Twitter26:23 - Lessons for entrepreneurs watchingLinks: Elon’s Tweet about “Twitter Blue” Stephen King hating on Elon Advertisers leaving Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 4: Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) breakdown MrBeast’s $1.5 billion valuation and exactly what factors have allowed MrBeast to be so successful. Then, the team shares their strategies for coming up with ideas for new businesses, and Alex shares his most recent startup pitches. And finally, for Startup AMA we answer a listener question about the best and worst hiring practices.#TheCrazyOnes #Startups #EntrepreneurListen to The Crazy Ones here: https://link.chtbl.com/OV4W93_WSubscribe to Morning Brew!Sign up for free today:  https://bit.ly/morningbrewytFollow The Brew!Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/morningbrew/Twitter - https://twitter.com/MorningBrewTik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@morningbrewFollow Our Hosts!Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista)Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso)Jesse Pujji (@jspujji)Links: Paul Graham’s How to Get Startup Ideas How to get startup ideas in 10 diagrams Alex’s 7 strategies to brainstorm startup ideas Hiring Decision Template Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 3: Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) get into the MADNESS of the Gas app - a new social networking platform that has surpassed Instagram, TikTok and Twitter for daily downloads. Then, they get into how to & how NOT to conduct a layoff, whether it’s for one person or a company-wide one. And finally, the trio gets real about the secrets of QSBS and how understanding it can save you MILLIONS.00:01 - Cold Open: Jesse speaking to Zuckerberg about the highschool version of Facebook00:32 - Intro 01:35 - The Rundown02:27 - How the “Gas” app works and how it stays positive03:50 - Sophia on the Founder of Gas being a “master” of testing & iterating05:45 - Alex on Highschoolers being the “best demographic” to build an app for07:40 - Jesse on the difficulty of building consumer businesses07:57 - Jesse’s highschool version of Facebook10:00 - Jesse speaking to Mark Zuckerberg12:44 - Where does the Gas app go from here?13:35 - The “Gas” app’s ‘money printing machine’15:40 - The second & third gen of Social Apps17:50 - The Takeaways from Gas21:48 - The “Hub & Spoke” Model of building your business23:10 - Microsoft & the trend of Tech Industry Layoffs24:32 - Sophia on layoffs needing more clarity & planning28:50 - Jesse on Founders needing to be passionate about people & leadership30:35 - The HORRIBLE Better.com Zoom layoff & reaction34:30 - What is QSBS & how it saves founders MILLIONSLinks: WSJ article on the Gas app Nikita Bier’s tweet on Gas’s success Allegations on China faltering the Gas app’s growth Microsoft lays off 1,000 Chart of all Tech Industry Layoffs since COVID How To Rally A Company Through a Round of Layoffs Netflix on building a “team not a family” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 2: Today, hosts Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji) kick off with a discussion of Jamie Dimon’s recent economic predictions and how a possible recession will impact startup founders. Then, we jump into the aspects of Spirit Halloween’s business model that have helped it become wildly successful, the team’s own experience of going from founder to CEO, and finally, for Startup AMA we answer a listener question about how to pay yourself as a founder.00:27 - Jamie Dimon’s prediction about the markets06:06 - Intro06:41 - The Rundown09:58 - Discussion of Spirit Halloween’s wildly successful business model14:02 - Businesses that have capitalized on under-used inventory/resources18:28 - How Spirit Halloween uses licensing to their advantage20:15 - The team discusses their own experiences of going from founder to CEO as their businesses grew20:53 - Jesse’s experience as CEO over the course of his career23:48 - Sophia’s experience as a CEO over the course of her career28:33 - Alex’s experience as CEO 32:40 - Startup AMA - How should you pay yourself as a founder?33:08 - Sophia’s bank statement in 2010, 3 years into starting Nasty GalLinks: Jamie Dimon says the economy is on the verge of a recession Morning Brew Shakes Up Leadership Structure The Role of the CEO: Managing Yourself Trung Phan newsletter What’s The Most Difficult CEO Skill? Managing Your Own Psychology Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 1: Welcome to the FIRST EPISODE of The Crazy Ones, hosted by fellow friends, founders, and builders, Alex Lieberman (@businessbarista), Sophia Amoruso (@sophiaamoruso), and Jesse Pujji (@jspujji). Today, we talk about the rise and the insane $700M evaluation of Liquid Death, then we get into how to make your pitch deck UNDENIABLE to investors, and finally the truths that you need to know as a tech entrepreneur.1:03 - Liquid Death’s $700M Valuation8:15 - Sophia Amoruso on Nasty Gal, her $100 Revenue Business, Girlboss & Business Class8:53 - Jesse Pujji on building the biggest FaceBook marketing business, his venture studio Gateway X11:57 - Bootstrapping as a state of mind vs. Raising money from Venture15:03 - Jesse’s pitch on his e-commerce business Kahani24:38 - Jeff Bezos’ Flywheels on how to make a “defensible” business26:25 - The #1 Question Entrepreneurs need to Ask In A Pitch32:35 - Jesse on the idea of “unfair advantage” for entrepreneurs39:10 - Executive Coaching as a ‘pyramid scheme’ to make $1M in a year41:20 - Startup AMALinks Referenced: Liquid Death’s Valuation | Bloomberg Martha Stewart’s Liquid Death Collab Jesse Pujji’s Tweet Thread on Kahani’s Deck Sophia Amoruso’s Business Class Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Announcing the launch of Morning Brew's newest podcast, The Crazy Ones! Hosts Alex Lieberman, Sophia Amoruso, and Jesse Pujji, will be delivering the sharpest insights and unfiltered opinions about the issues affecting founders today, and the information you need to know to build a better business. Episodes release every Tuesday, starting October 11th. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After more than 300 episodes, Founder’s Journal is taking a little hiatus. We are making some changes to level the show up to create the best possible podcast for business builders. There are really exciting things in the works and I cannot wait to share it with you all.Check out full episode transcripts at https://foundersjournal.morningbrew.com to learn more, and if you have any ideas for our show, email me at alex@morningbrew.com or my DMs are open @businessbarista. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this classic episode, I break down the different types of leverage you need to understand to make smart career decisions.Check out full episode transcripts at https://foundersjournal.morningbrew.com to learn more, and if you have any ideas for our show, email me at alex@morningbrew.com or my DMs are open @businessbarista. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices