In this conversation with David Barnett, Founder and CEO of PopSockets, LLC, you’ll hear about David’s career before inventing PopSockets, his accidental success, the struggle of protecting the brand, innovating to stay current, PopSockets’ strategy and mission, the importance of self-expression, and get David’s advice on facing challenges. After spending his childhood as a serial entrepreneur, David’s interests led him into a career as an academic, eventually becoming a philosophy professor for around 10 years. In 2014, out of his garage, David invented PopSockets to solve his problem of tangled headset cords. The company has since expanded to over 70 countries and shows no signs of slowing down. David holds a BSc in Philosophy from Emory University, a Degree in Physics from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and a PhD in Philosophy from New York University. Episode Outline [00:49] About David and PopSockets [03:45] The early days of David Barnett [07:08] Growing into an entrepreneur [08:15] Putting the pieces together [10:39] Protecting the brand [14:24] Keeping innovation alive [18:51] PopSocket’s eCommerce strategy [20:30] PopSocket’s mission [22:50] Innovating to stay current [28:14] Navigating self-expression [31:24] PopSockets packaging [33:53] Challenges and advice