You can be born shy and still become a CEO, TEDx speaker and live national television guest in your early 20s. Jahin Tanvir, the CEO of ASE Group has done just that.
He went from stacking 31 work experiences by the age of 24 (most of them unpaid) to becoming CEO of a national company as his first full-time job. After cold-emailing charities for volunteer gigs, Jahin turned lockdown into his launchpad, creating Breathe, a public speaking business that blew up on TikTok, signed clients like Canva and Toyota, and was acquired within six months.
Now he is one of the youngest CEOs in Australia, teaching life skills to over 180,000 young Australians. In this episode of ex-vicarious, Braith delved into Jahin’s mental model that reframes nerves into excitement, how Jahin overcame being told he was “too young” and why failure should never mean bouncing back, but failing forward.
Whether you love or hate it - LinkedIn video is the buzz.
📞 So I buzzed Mr. LinkedIn himself for the secrets.
Yes, I’m talking about LinkedIn News Editor, Brendan Wong.
This legend spearheaded the LinkedIn Editorial Content Program for Australia.
(i.e. He taught us how to be better at LinkedIn – based on real insights from LinkedIn itself).
Now for several months, Brendan’s actually been making some awesome LinkedIn videos of his own.
So I asked him how to truly capture your authenticity on video to share your expertise and connect with others on this platform.
We also delved into how he:
📚 was invited to MC multiple book launches,
🎤 spoke to a room of entrepreneurs at the @The ASE Group’s launch event
🗣️ overcome the sound of his own voice on video through self-imposed, exposure therapy
Brendan was even kind enough to tell me all of this at the LinkedIn HQ!
Check out the full podcast now!
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction and Guest Welcome
00:27 Brendan's Journey and Career Insights
02:32 Overcoming Video Challenges
05:44 Tips for Creating Authentic LinkedIn Videos
06:43 Quick Fire Questions and Personal Goals
08:59 Top Book Recommendations
11:41 Daily Habits and Mindsets for Success
13:18 Message (or question) to the world
— — —
You can connect with Brendan here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/brendancwong/
You can check out LinkedIn News here:https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/linkedin-news/posts/?feedView=all
You can check out the books Brendan mentioned here:https://www.amazon.com.au/Productivity-Joy-Energised-Effective-Minutes/dp/1394282214https://www.amazon.com.au/Busy-Idiots-Science-Productivity-without/dp/1394282729https://www.amazon.com.au/Less-Hustle-More-Happy-fulfilled/dp/1923186175/ref=asc_df_1923186175/?tag=googleshopdsk-22&linkCode=df0&hvadid=712376727302&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=16014736875799034945&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1000286&hvtargid=pla-2336558647874&psc=1&mcid=b9758496e1d43851bc3683e8f865e837&gad_source=1
Give yourself some f*cking permission.
Harvard, McKinsey and 7-fig, bootstrapped companies will be waiting.
But that’s only scratching the surface of Stephen Turban’s life.
By giving himself permission, rather than waiting for it, Stephen has:
🎭 Convinced Vietnam’s #1 Comedy group ‘Saigon Teu’ to let him join. He’s now the #1 white guy doing stand-up in fluent Vietnamese (40M views, I’ll link it in comments).
🇨🇳 Become an internet celebrity in China while at Harvard University (yes, he also speaks fluent Chinese and did this way before everyone was flocking to Rednote).
📖 Authored a #1 Amazon bestseller in Friendship called “Your Relationship GPA”.
🍜 Acted in an advertisement for Nissin Foods (shoutout to my Asian brothers and sisters who grew up on these instant noodles).
Okay, so what does all of this have to do with permission?
Well 90% of people never do what they truly want to because their parents, teachers, employers or VCs didn’t give them the “permission” to do so.
In response, most people never learn to give themselves permission.
But Stephen’s life is a case study for everything amazing that happens when you say “f*ck it” to permission.
In high school, he was kicked out of class 64 times before he gave himself permission to drop out and live in Taiwan for a year.
He returned with a completely different attitude towards academics and landed at Harvard.
I’d love to tell you the full story but I think you’ll enjoy hearing it more from Stephen himself on the latest episode of ex-vicarious.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Stephen Turban
02:29 How to get into Harvard after being Kicked out of Class 64 times
04:07 Dropping out of School in the US to live in Taipei for 1 year
05:37 How Stephen became the “#1 White Guy Doing Stand-up Comedy in Vietnamese”
12:53 Organising an International Flashmob for Malaria Awareness
15:41 Balancing TWO 7-Figure Startups
20:09 Bootstrapping vs going out of business after raising $20M+
24:42 How Sam Parr’s “Hampton” community reveals the Illusion of Success and Prestige
25:52 Diverse Paths to Entrepreneurship
27:16 The Joy of Language Learning (Chinese, Spanish, Vietnamese, Hindi)
29:18 Embracing the Underdog Mindset, Going through the Side Door
35:48 Finding Time for Hobbies
40:50 Quickfire Questions and Reflections
45:39 Final Thoughts and Contact Information
You can connect with Stephen here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenturban/details/experience/
You can check out Lumiere Education here:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/lumiere-education/ https://www.lumiere-education.com/You can check out Leverage Assistants here:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/leverage-assistant/ https://www.leverageassistants.com/Christopher Chow posted a LinkedIn video every day for 30 days straight. He’s now known as the “video guy” amongst Australia’s top B2B marketers. I interviewed him to see how he got there. First, he built his career at the intersection of tech and marketing: 🍎 Accepted into Apple’s first ever graduate program, 💻 Became a marketing manager for tech giants including Microsoft and HP, and 💼 Now leads digital marketing at legal-tech startup, Smokeball Australia Next, he started creating his own content for fun, including: 🗞️ His newsletter “Attention Please”, which explores the most important topics in the tech industry. 🏦 A YouTube channel on finance and investing which reached 4K+ subscribers ✍️ LinkedIn posts about tech strategy and B2B marketing, where he became a top voice! So by the time he gave himself a 30 day challenge with video, he had the perfect tool set to put it all together. In this episode, Chris told me all about his - massive leverage by using LinkedIn video ads, - non-negotiable “batching” method for posting consistently, & - his personal content which changed how his company did marketing You don't want to miss this. — — — Timestamps 00:00 Introduction and Guest Background 01:21 Early Career and Mentorship 02:15 Marketing in Big Tech Companies (Apple, Microsoft, HP) 03:05 LinkedIn and Video Marketing at Startups 05:58 How to Create Engaging LinkedIn Videos 13:42 Quickfire Questions 16:09 Message to the World — — — You can connect with Chris here: * https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrischow91/ You can check out “Attention Please” and “Smokeball Australia” here: * https://chrischow.substack.com/ * https://www.linkedin.com/company/smokeball-au/
You always hear “people person” thrown around – so what does it mean?
Scott Harrison knows. He’s made it his superpower.
Growing up on the rough streets of Dumbarton, Scott learned how to read people, handle pressure and talk his way out of trouble.
He NEEDED to.
But later on, he took these communication skills into his career through as
👨💼 director of Hays recruitment’s Auckland office,
🤝 a global lead boardroom negotiator, and now
💪 founder of Apex Negotiations.
Scott’s already helped over 150 leaders across the world master the art of negotiation – but he has many more knocking on his door because he mastered another skill.
The art of LinkedIn video.
If you’re in Singapore, you may have seen Scott waltzing the streets and speaking to the camera between errands.
But if not, you’ve probably seen him on LinkedIn, as he gets a minimum of 1 million impressions on each video!
From startup founders to C-Suite execs of giants like @Unilever, many of Scott’s clients slid into his DMs after enjoying the authenticity and wisdom of his LinkedIn videos.
Last week, I slid into Scott’s DMs to learn about his process of making effective videos and being a true “people person”.
He told me the secrets in the latest episode of @ex-vicarious.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Scott Harrison
01:15 Scott's Journey with LinkedIn Videos
04:28 The Evolution of Video Style
09:22 Facing Challenges and Criticism
12:49 The Power of Authenticity in Video
16:34 Navigating Stressful Negotiations
24:08 Managing Emotions in Negotiations
25:11 Creating Value Beyond Price
27:02 Contingency Planning and Communication
31:39 The Importance of Emotional Intelligence
33:00 Quick Fire Questions
34:33 Overcoming Rejection
38:12 Inspirational Quotes and Final Thoughts
— — —
You can connect with Scott here:
You can check out Apex Negotiations here:
So you have a podcast – but how can you turn it into a business?
That’s exactly what Michelle Akhidenor was testing when she found her answer in the inverse.
Making podcasts for businesses!
Not just any businesses though.
Through running her own BIPOC and female-led podcast – “PEERS”, it only made sense that her agency would focus on developing credibility and trust for progressive companies through podcasts.
So she founded The PEERS Project, where she’s produced chart-topping podcasts across diverse industries, including recruitment/HR (Indeed), retirement (Estia Health), energy (AGL) and Fortune 500 tech giants (Alibaba).
This landed her in both the @Forbes 30U30 and @B&T 30U30, which recognises trailblazers who dare to be different in the realm of media and advertising.
But after bringing this podcast agency model to the US, which has a market that’s “50 times bigger”, Michelle realised she needed to niche down much more “just to get meetings”.
So first she focused solely on tech, but found out even that wasn’t niche enough. A year of experimentation later, she landed on venture capital firms.
Why? Because she found that:
[1] One in ten VC firms have a podcast already,
[2] VC firms are the most engaged segment of tech in podcasting, &
[3] The US has thousands of VC firms, with hundreds in New York alone.
It was the clear choice.
Michelle explained how she’s tackling this enormous opportunity today and delved into all the dreams and challenges leading up to it.
This episode is a must listen for anyone who wants to positively impact the world through business.
Enjoy :)
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to the Episode
00:02 Meet Michelle Akhidenor
01:43 Michelle's Early Career and BCSS
03:51 Discovering a Passion for Marketing
05:14 The Love for Languages
07:17 Cultural Immersion and Business Lessons
11:00 Diverse Career Path
13:33 Starting the Peers Podcast
19:01 Challenges and Triumphs in Podcasting
28:17 The Journey to Sponsorship
31:21 Persistence Pays Off: Landing the Shopify Deal
34:48 The Importance of Representation in Media
37:55 From Podcasting to Business: The Journey
41:53 Navigating the US Market: Lessons Learned
50:02 Quick Fire Questions and Personal Insights
54:35 Final Thoughts and Contact Information
— — —
You can connect with Michelle here:
* https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelleakhidenor/
* https://www.instagram.com/michakhidenor/?hl=en
You can check out The Peers Project here:
* https://www.instagram.com/thepeersproject/?hl=en
Imagine you had over 1 million followers across YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
CNN wants to interview you. Billboard wants to interview you.
Even Adam22 from the No Jumper podcast wants to interview you.
Oh, and the New York Times quoted you.
Well, Finn McKenty doesn’t have to imagine.
He’s built a massive following from his YouTube channel – the Punk Rock MBA.
But aside from being a creator, Finn helps entrepreneurs grow on LinkedIn and YouTube, after doing 20 years of marketing for clients including Nike, P&G, Starbucks and Microsoft.
As cool as this is, what really made me reach out to Finn was when he explained why short-form video can suck for entrepreneurs.
(Yet, he still believes everyone should be making short-form videos on LinkedIn).
How does this make sense?!
Well, you can find out from this mini-interview now!
— — —
00:00 Introduction to Finn McKenty
01:08 Diving into LinkedIn Video
01:30 Leveraging Diverse Audiences from Punk Rock lovers to Entrepreneurs
02:42 The Power of Short Form Video
04:48 Engagement and Reach on LinkedIn
08:06 Tips for Effective Video Content
16:28 Quick Fire Questions with Finn
18:10 Final Thoughts and Contact Information
— — —
You can connect with Finn here:
You can check out his services here:
This year, LinkedIn rolled out their response to Instagram reels and TikTok by adding their own short-form video section. In a world where AI can (arguably) write better than most people, video is super powerful in capturing authenticity. It builds trust. But not just that, with attention spans dipping to an all-time low, video is effective because it can be a lot more engaging. But should we all be buying ring lights, sitting in front of a camera, and speaking what we would previously write? Being a writer myself, I’ve seen many users who are disappointed by this feature as LinkedIn was the last platform where words everything. So, I’m starting a mini interview series where I’ll ask experts their thoughts on LinkedIn Video - is it good? Is it bad? Should you start? Or should you run? In this first episode I’m joined by one of the creators leading the LinkedIn video revolution - Louis Butterfield. I first came across Louis when he interviewed Lara Acosta - but this wasn’t just any interview. He made the clip far more engaging than any I’ve seen before - whilst also showcasing his mission to make the least boring videos on LinkedIn (that still attract customers to your business) He’s gained over 2k organic followers in the last month alone and each video post gets 10,000 - 700,000 impressions and hundreds of likes on average. And although he's doing awesome stuff with some of the biggest LinkedIn creators now, his past is anything but conventional. We'll dive into how he was a voice actor, an off-grif farmer living in a yurt, and how you can get better at LinkedIn Video. — — — Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to the New LinkedIn Video Series 00:32 Meet Louis Butterfield: The Pioneer of Engaging LinkedIn Videos 01:38 Louis' Journey: From Off-Grid Farmer to Video Production Success 03:08 The Secret to Success on LinkedIn: Authenticity and Engagement 07:00 Balancing Entertainment and Education in LinkedIn Videos 11:19 Quickfire Questions with Louis Butterfield 12:22 Top LinkedIn Video Creators to Follow 13:14 How to Connect with Louis Butterfield — — — You can connect with Louis and check out his awesome business videos here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-the-butterfield/
I bet you’re tired of spending 60+ hours explaining how tasks are done to new hires.
Finnlay Morcombe definitely was, back when he was in data analysis.
In a team of 15, he spent 4 hours individually with each consultant to manually document their steps in using Confluence, SharePoint, Word and other software.
“This has got to be a common problem.” he thought. “There's got to be an easier way to solve this.”
There was - he just had to create it.
And so, the idea for Fluency was born.
Months later, Finn and Oliver Farnill won “best pitch” at the Swinburne pre-accelerator.
They made immense progress in the 3 months that followed, and landed in Swinburne’s Accelerator as the youngest people there, amongst other founders already doing 7-figures in revenue.
Flash forward to today, Fluency is a multi-million dollar company amid their second raise 👀
I sat down with Finn and Fluency’s head of growth, Leo Roubos to chat about
☘️ growing the startup culture in Melbourne,
🌃 consecutive 2AM nights spent coding at the office, and
🧲 how they both made unique shifts from corporate into startups.
They left me with an important message - “taste them grapes”.
Want to know what it means? Then listen now.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 What is Fluency?
00:40 Meet the Team: Finn and Leo
01:09 ex-vicarious Introduction
01:53 Finn's Idea for Fluency
03:45 Leo's Path to Joining Fluency as Head of Growth
05:14 Corporate vs. Startup Life
06:57 Achieving Goals and Overcoming Challenges
09:30 Startup Culture in Melbourne
13:36 Team Dynamics with a Gen Z Team
16:44 Fluency’s Raise and Finn’s Accelerator Experience
19:05 How to Support Fluency
20:45 Personal Dreams and Ambitions
27:02 The Turning Point: From Fun to Serious Impact
27:28 Early Coding Adventures and Fluency's Origins
29:43 Learning to Code from Nothing
32:57 Navigating Barriers and Finding Direction
35:03 Sales Journey: From Customer Support to Strategy
39:16 Work-Life Immersion, not Balance
41:59 Future Goals and Ambitions for Fluency
43:50 Final Thoughts and Reflections
— — —
You can connect with Finn and Leo here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leo-leo-leo/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/finnlay/
You can check out Fluency here:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/getfluency/
Imagine this - you’re in your early 20s, chillin’ by the beach in Vietnam, surfing, eating, and writing…
PLUS getting paid to do so.
Some may say it’s the dream life. For @Will Eisenhuth, this is reality.
He called in from Vietnam to update me on his freshly launched ghostwriting agency, where he helps founders and business owners dominate their niche on LinkedIn.
We both began our LinkedIn writing journeys last year, but I’ve loved seeing his exponential growth since (such as getting 128,709 views & 400+ leads on a single post!).
So, it was a pleasure to discuss how he:
💼 landed his (then) dream job at a top law firm before realising law wasn’t his passion
🥊 interviewed a boxing commentator on his podcast who offered him a job at Fox Sports
✍️ built unbeatable systems for working from anywhere as a ghostwriter, &
💪 believes Stoicism is misunderstood by modern society
Though all the writers will love this ep, you don’t need a pen right now.
Just grab some headphones and tune into this episode!
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction and Guest Overview
01:13 Will’s Journey to Becoming a Copywriter
01:19 Remote Work and Creative Inspiration
03:34 Career Pivots from Law to Sports to Copywriting
06:04 Starting a Podcast and Exploring New Avenues
07:22 Transition to Copywriting and Starting a Business
11:35 Building a Personal Brand on LinkedIn
19:04 Experimentation and Overcoming Fear of Failure
23:37 Podcasting Journey and Guest Outreach
26:28 Refining the Outreach Process
27:52 Stop Caring what Others Think
31:29 Influences and Inspirations
32:36 How Stoicism is Misunderstood
35:10 Will’s Memorable Podcast Guests
36:13 The Fascination with Sport
38:13 Balancing Writing and Business
44:42 Learning Business from His Own Clients
46:07 Reflecting on Achievements and Future Plans
52:30 Final Thoughts and Contact Information
— — —
You can connect with Will here:
https://www.linkedin.com/notifications/?filter=all
You can check out Will’s Ghostwriting Agency here here:https://www.linkedin.com/company/william-eisenhuth-linkedin-ghostwriting/https://jq2z2atilzg.typeform.com/to/DQgjxwqU?typeform-source=www.linkedin.com
Got my first actor on the podcast 🔥 Yep, red carpets and all.
This gentleman has 🎬 featured in Cannes Film Festival winning pictures, 🍿 been in Short films with over 30m views, and 🏆 won 4 “best actor” awards His name? Michael H. Chua. Fans of the viral web-series “Titan Academy”, may know him as Mr. Alan. But outside of acting, he’s also a university lecturer, advisor in AI, and… cybersecurity consultant for the government! Michael has realised his dreams through travelling the most unconventional of paths. So it was a pleasure to discuss: - How Michael was scouted out of the blue from a social media pic - Why he kept limping days after he played a limping army officer - How he reacts to fans approaching him in public, and - How meditating with his “eyes open” has helped him in both business & acting — — — Timestamps 00:00 Introduction 00:30 Meet Michael Chua: Actor and Cybersecurity Consultant 01:55 Journey into Cybersecurity 04:33 Transition to Acting 05:38 Early Acting Experiences 12:42 The Impact of The Film 'Gift' 16:26 Meditation and Its Role in Acting 21:05 AI in the Film Industry 24:38 Passion for Languages 27:41 Creating Content and Gaining Exposure 30:32 Navigating Public Recognition 31:44 Playing the Villain in Titan Academy 32:53 Balancing Multiple Careers 34:45 Daily Routines and Challenges 39:06 Transitioning to Acting 44:58 The Intersection of Cybersecurity and Acting 49:48 Singaporean Hustle Culture 52:01 Future Goals and Reflections 54:12 Final Thoughts and Contact Information — — — You can connect with Michael here: MYSTICMICHAEL@GMAIL.COM https://www.linkedin.com/in/jupilier/ https://www.instagram.com/michaelchuaactor/?hl=en You can check out Michael’s work here: https://michael-chua.blogspot.com/ https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4653963/
You’ve heard of Ikigai - but you haven’t practiced it. Here’s how you can start in 3 minutes. Let’s use Jason Zhu He as a case study. Why? For starters, he’s the founder of Ikigai Network. But everything will make sense as we examine the 4 pillars. – – – 1) Find what you LOVE Jason has chased his love for videography since his mum gave him his first camera at 16. The Manly Sea Eagles were his local footy club, so he sent them some flicks. They told him to “show ‘em what he could do” at next week’s game. He impressed and became the club’s videographer in year 10. – – – 2) Find what you can be PAID for It’s no secret that lawyers get the bag 💰 With a passion for the law, studying efficiently, and building arguments - law made perfect sense for Jason. During his law studies, these skills have already yielded $$$ through Jason’s roles as an academic leader, law clerk, and chambers legal assistant. – – – 3) Find what you’re GOOD at Signing deals with decision-makers you have *zero* connection to… is hard for most people. But it has always come naturally to Jason. So, he co-founded The Australian Law Student to turn an educational podcast into a profitable company with law firm sponsors. – – – Provide what the world NEEDS One thing that every young person needs? A job. But how can it form a meaningful career? Jason’s answer is Ikigai Network, the streaming service partnered with Clayton Utz, NSW Department of Education, and Mirvac that helps students find their "reason to get up in the morning." – – – In each of these 4 experiences, Jason leaned more into passion, mission, profession, or vocation. But they’ve always intersected to form his Ikigai. Want to find your own Ikigai, or just hear Jason’s story in more depth? Listen now. — — — Timestamps 00:00 Introduction to the Guest: Jason Zhu He 01:41 Jason's Journey into Videography 04:05 Founding Ikigai Network 05:04 The Concept of Ikigai 07:44 Balancing Law and Entrepreneurship 10:20 High School Fundraising Initiative 12:50 The Australian Law Student Podcast 16:35 Navigating Clerkships and Entrepreneurship 21:30 Risk Appetite and Career Decisions 28:20 Future Goals and Luck from Motion 32:01 Unexpected Opportunities 32:27 Building Client Relationships 34:12 Networking Strategies 36:07 Overcoming Rejection 37:18 Fitness and Habits 40:44 Podcast Highlights 45:56 Future Goals and Reflections 47:19 The Secret to Happiness 51:40 Final Thoughts and Contact Information — — — You can connect with Jason here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-zhu-he/ Email: jasonzhuhe@ikigainetwork.io You can check out Ikigai Network and The Australian Law Student here: https://ikigainetwork.io/catalog https://www.instagram.com/ikigai_network/ https://www.theauslawstudent.com/
He’s just 19 - but has already landed Startmate and Fishburners as clients.
Yep, I’m talking about Angus McGlynn.
The timeline of his achievements are wild.
At 14 👉Founded Medelo., a wellness brand w/ 7 stockists and sold across Greater Sydney At 16 👉 ADHD prevented him from learning at school, so he dropped out and moved to Sydney to learn from experience At 17 👉 Designed and shipped an app for the NSW Government At 18 👉 Used work experience (INFIX, HowToo, EBPearls) to skip undergrad and start a Masters of Design. At 19 👉 Founded Refract and is now a design partner to Fishburners, Startmate, Galileo Ventures & more. Sponsored Startmate’s Demo Day this week!
Speaking of timelines… in this hour-long episode we discussed:
how to complete 5 days worth of work in 8 hours,
why you must be a generalist designer in 2024, &
how an art gallery helped him drop out (+ learn quicker).
I listened to this ep multiple times myself to comprehend some of the crazy things Angus has done so early on.
Couldn’t hurt you to listen once, true?
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Angus McGlynn
01:39 Angus's Early Ventures and Challenges
01:55 The Journey of Medelo
03:11 The Role of Independence and Early Jobs
04:49 Channeling Rebellious Energy Constructively
06:06 The Impact of Psychology and Empathy in Design
07:45 First Major Project: Child Protection App
08:35 Breaking into the Design Industry
19:02 The Birth of Refract
23:04 Leadership and Team Building
26:13 Philosophy and Approach to Design
33:15 Biggest Influences and Family Background
34:10 Dropping Out and Moving to Sydney
37:45 Balancing Business and Personal Life
40:32 Building Refract and Networking
43:07 Productivity and Time Management
50:09 Reflections and Future Goals
55:52 Final Thoughts and Advice
— — —
You can connect with Angus here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/angus-mcglynn/
You can check out Refract here:https://www.linkedin.com/company/refract-creative-studio/posts/?feedView=allhttps://refract.studio/
Vincent Lee is the definition of “hard work beats talent”.
(He actually has many talents, but talking to people wasn’t one).
So how did he go from “shy introvert” to confident sales prodigy?
Hustle.
At first, this hustle was misplaced. He’d completed the EY Game Changers program during uni to land a Top 4 vacationer role that all his peers were gunning for.
But after attending a Fishburners event and meeting Dan Brockwell, he saw an opportunity to “escape the rat race”.
2 months later, he found himself in Earlywork’s 5th cohort, where he learned everything about tech sales.
Hundreds of job applications later, he landed a SDR role at Tyro Payments. In less than 90 days, he was averaging
He now averages 276 calls a week at Arctic Wolf, converting 1 in 3 to meetings.
During all this, he still attends uni and has been building “Wings & Sales”, a podcast where he publicly learns from sales leaders whilst devouring succulent wings.
I thoroughly enjoyed delving into the mindset that has made all of this possible for Vincent in this week’s podcast.
Enjoy.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Dreamaking in Public
00:48 Meet Vincent Lee: Tech Sales Prodigy
01:38 Vincent's Journey into Tech Sales
03:38 The Power of University Societies
05:36 Podcasting: A Gateway to Opportunities
07:18 Wings and Sales: Learning from the Best
09:26 The Importance of Hard Work in Sales
15:47 LinkedIn: Building a Personal Brand
22:18 Overcoming Barriers and Helping Others
31:29 Health, Fitness, and Productivity
35:04 Mindset and Personal Growth
41:53 Future Goals and Reflections
44:53 Final Thoughts
— — —
You can connect with Vincent here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincentlee2/
You can check out Wings & Sales podcast here:
https://open.spotify.com/show/07gfIC1ub9b9fdVi3F1RwY
If you’re into growth or marketing, you’ve probably seen Isaac Peiris.
He’s a LinkedIn Top Voice for growth strategy and has led:
🗣️ audience growth at The Daily Aus,
🗞 subscription growth at Mamamia, and
🏫 user growth at a Clipboard
This includes gaining 140k IG followers for The Daily Aus, growing the customer base by 8x at Clipboard, and developing the ‘Move by Mamamia’ fitness app to go with Mamamia’s subscription.
Wait - a fitness app for a media company!?
Yes. It’s because Mamamia’s user insights (which no one else has access to) revealed how much their audience would value a home workout platform.
Though content is everywhere (and mostly free) nowadays, the app made the subscription worth paying for.
Isaac was so fascinated by this clever move that he’s now started his own growth consultancy - Pistachio.so, where he can
Help more media brands launch a product or service from audience insights only they have
Help more businesses build a media arm to compete for attention in a content-driven society
But founding Pistachio.so was nowhere near intentional. It was a response to the constant demand for his expertise while he was actually unemployed.
I was fortunate enough to delve into Isaac’s story on the podcast this week to learn about growing newsletters, growing companies and growing as a person.
— — —
Timestamps
00:02 Meet Isaac Peiris: LinkedIn Top Voice
00:34 Isaac's Journey and Career Highlights
00:45 Introduction to ex-vicarious
02:09 Understanding Growth Marketing
03:07 Connecting with Young Audiences
06:36 The Generational Divide
08:10 The Impact of Design Thinking
12:15 Founding Concio Group
15:55 Early Career Roles and Impact
21:25 Navigating Career Opportunities
23:27 Landing Roles and Career Advice
28:43 Landing the Deal: Quick Connections and Industry Awareness
29:22 Reflecting on Dreams and Career Paths
30:47 The Importance of Relationships and Personal Growth
32:49 Balancing Ambition and Appreciation
39:23 Starting a Consultancy: Challenges and Realizations
43:43 Scaling Up and Future Goals
48:26 LinkedIn Strategy and Content Creation
54:43 Final Thoughts and Reflections
— — —
You can connect with Isaac here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/isaacpeiris/
You can check out Pistachio.so here:
James Wu dropped exercise physio studies to land a 6-figure tech sales role at 20.
After accelerating his sales career at Ignition, Veeam Software, ParaFlare/Deloitte and Blackhawk Alert, he’s now building Intellex Academy.
It’s a mentoring platform for ambitious professionals.
In this second installment of “Dreamaking in Public,” I spoke to James about
Consistently achieving evolving goals
Juggling full-time sales with founder life
Learning Linux to automate light and temperature control at home
James is a Day One of mine, so it was fitting to go back to Day One of his dreams in this episode.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to Dreamaking in Public
01:08 Meet James Wu: From University Dropout to Tech Sales Success
01:49 James Wu's Journey in Tech Sales
05:32 Overcoming Objections and Sales Strategies
13:41 Balancing Multiple Ventures: Intellex and More
17:17 Real Estate and Personal Growth
23:47 Passion Projects and Continuous Learning
28:59 Reflections and Advice for Aspiring Tech Sales Professionals
34:49 Final Thoughts and Future Plans
— — —
You can connect with James here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jameswu882/
You can check out Intellex Academy here:
If you’re a hustler, entrepreneur or founder, I’m 90% sure you’ve thought to start an e-commerce business.
Jimmy Sun actually did at 14 years old, through dropshipping.
He sold anything from custom dog beds to camel milk. But it wasn't until he started a trading card platform during the Pokémon boom in 2020 that sales really took off.
Throughout COVID lockdowns, he had two monitors during school - one for class, and one for running the business.
So at just 17, he was doing 7-figures in sales.
This year, Jimmy has been building his new company, Gleem Energy. Ever wanted an energy drink that doesn’t make you crash 7 hours later? Well, that’s Gleem - plus it comes in flavours like Dragon Fruit Mango and Lychee.
Delicious Asian fruits aside, Jimmy explains in this episode how he:
📑 used his parent's business licence to work directly with wholesalers as a teenager,
🕺 put on a surprise show with Grent Perez at UCSD, &
😎 always dreamed of being his own boss, then made it a reality.
Enjoy.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to ex-vicarious
00:03 Meet Jimmy Sun: E-commerce Legend
01:44 Inspiration from Immigrant Parents
04:37 Early Business Ventures and Failures
13:02 The Birth of TCG Stadium
13:27 Navigating the Pokemon Boom
18:27 Building Customer Relationships
24:37 Balancing School and Business
25:35 Building and Managing a Team
28:42 Transitioning to Gleem
30:34 Creating Unique Energy Drinks
32:30 Formulating a Healthier Energy Drink
36:45 Overcoming Challenges and Future Goals
41:53 Words of Wisdom and Final Thoughts
— — —
You can connect with Jimmy here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmy-sun-586947226/
https://www.instagram.com/jsun_812/
You can check out Gleem Energy here:
Remember my Q&A with @Ryan Van, employee #1 of Earlywork?
He’s now one of the co-founders.
Wait how-
I sat down with Ryan to explore just that, along with:
🌍 new life perspectives gained from a trip to Amsterdam
❤️🔥 how to make your own passion & dream career vs "finding it"
🐵 why chasing curiosities will make the right people appear in your life
This ep was the first of my new ex-vicarious segment - “Dreamaking in Public”.
(Think “Building in Public”, but not just with companies. It’s building your life toward your biggest dreams).
Every fortnight, you’ll hear from a dreamaker around their early 20s, who is building anything from:
🌐 tech startups
🍿 streaming services
™ branding agencies
🎙️ podcasts, &
🗂️ stronger systems, habits and philosophies for life
BUT, they’ll be back on the show every few months so we can follow up on their progress, mindset shifts, setbacks and new goals.
If you’re on the journey turning your dreams into reality - or just looking to see how people similar to you are getting started...
This series is for you.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Meet Ryan Van: Co-Founder of Earlywork
00:38 Introduction to the Podcast
01:26 Ryan's Recent Travels and Recharge
03:31 Implementing New Habits from Travel
07:05 The Concept of Habit Stacking
11:27 Exploring Passion and Career Choices
22:47 Returning to Marketing
23:23 Navigating Early Career Challenges
25:04 The Importance of Unpaid Internships
27:30 Developing Professional Fundamentals
32:16 Building Earlywork and Tech Sales School
36:56 Chasing Curiosity and Serendipity
43:33 Final Reflections and Advice
46:40 Question for next D.I.P. guest
— — —
You can connect with Ryan here:
You can check out Earlywork here:
Ethan Trang is the co-founder of DoryAI, NemoAI and the host of the Major Talks Podcast.
He delivered a winning pitch at the Build Club’s accelerator to score a sponsored trip to San Francisco, where he pitched VCs.
He’s now building the AI workforce at Relevance AI, whilst studying at the University of Sydney. Yep, Ethan’s done all of that (+ more) at just 19.
If you want to find the shortcuts to success that won’t burn you in the long-run, Ethan’s story is the best place to start.
Enjoy.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to ex-vicarious
00:44 Meet Ethan Trang: Co-Founder and Lifelong Learner
01:24 The Journey of Building DoryAI
04:17 Early Entrepreneurial Influences
08:49 Lessons from Challenges and Grit
12:11 Learning to Code and Teaching Others
21:17 Networking and Finding Mentors
29:27 Starting the Major Talks Podcast
37:36 Exploring Childhood Dreams
37:49 The Life Experiment: Trying New Roles
38:40 Living Through Others' Stories
43:49 The Influence of Environment
46:18 Facing Barriers and Expanding Potential
48:34 The Information Diet: Curating Content
51:25 Build Club Experience and Winning Pitch
54:40 The Power of Storytelling in Entrepreneurship
57:41 Future Goals and Learning from Startups
01:02:50 Quote to Live Your Life By
— — —
You can connect with Ethan here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ethan-trang/https://www.instagram.com/ethantrangg/https://www.tiktok.com/@ethantrangg
You can check out DoryAI and NemoAI here:https://www.getdoryai.com/
Oscar Melder is a 17 y/o music video director who has already worked with worldwide brands and the hottest hip-hop and R&B talent coming out of Australia.
That includes luxury brands like Céline, video editing for ONEFOUR, directing videos for Sahxl, Tommy Gunn, J Emz, and Lee, & hosting events with Bodega Collective.
For any creatives out there who want to know how to meet, become friends with, and work with the people you listen to on Spotify - this one’s for you.
— — —
Timestamps
00:00 Introduction to ex-vicarious
01:00 Meet Oscar Melder: Young Music Video Director
01:39 Oscar's Early Creative Journey
04:58 Networking and Influences
14:04 Creative Process and Inspirations
18:33 Creative Inspirations and Research
20:14 Balancing Personal Taste with Professional Work
21:22 Working with Brands and Artists
23:15 Future Projects and Clothing Brand
27:48 Embracing Hate and Developing a Unique Style
29:39 Staying Motivated and Consistent
33:45 Quote to Live Your Life By
— — —
You can connect with Oscar & check out his work here: