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Erika Ayers Badan is best known as the former CEO of Barstool Sports, but her story is about far more than one company or one massive exit.
In 2016, Erika stepped into a 12-person operation valued at roughly $15 million and became Barstool Sports’ first CEO. During her time there, the company grew into one of the most recognizable media brands in the country and was eventually acquired in a deal valued at approximately $550 million.
But this episode is not a step-by-step breakdown of how Barstool scaled.
It is the story of the woman who agreed to lead it.
In Season 1, Episode 5 of Fine, I’ll Do It, Faith and Jenn explore Erika Ayers Badan’s career, her leadership style, her experience as a working mother, the lessons from her book Nobody Cares About Your Career, and her next chapter at Food52.
We talk about:
• Why Erika accepted a job almost everyone warned her not to take
• What her years at Barstool Sports reveal about leadership, risk and resilience
• How she handled criticism, failure and working in a highly public role
• The career lessons behind Nobody Cares About Your Career
• How ambition and motherhood shaped her decisions
• Why leaving a successful chapter can be just as important as building one
• What we can learn from her move from Barstool Sports to Food52
• The takeaways mothers, founders and women in business can apply to their own careers
Erika’s story is a reminder that your career will rarely follow a clean, predictable path. Sometimes the biggest opportunities are the ones that make the least sense on paper.
This episode is about betting on yourself, doing the uncomfortable work, learning as you go and taking ownership of the career you want to build.
Fine, I’ll Do It studies the real stories of successful mothers in business—the risks, decisions, failures and lessons behind what they built.
Listen to Season 1, Episode 5 wherever you get your podcasts.Resources Mentioned in This Episode
Read Nobody Cares About Your Career by Erika Ayers Badan
Erika’s book is an honest, practical guide to navigating work, failure, difficult bosses, unexpected opportunities and the reality that no one will take greater ownership of your career than you.
https://www.erikaayersbadan.com/book
Subscribe to Erika’s Substack, Mule Media
Read Erika’s thoughts on work, leadership, motherhood, career changes and building a life that works for you.
https://erikaayersbadan.substack.com/
Join Work Like a Girl
Work Like a Girl is Erika’s community for professional women who want to connect, learn from one another and create value for each other at work.
https://www.worklikeagirl.com/
Support Fine, I’ll Do It
Enjoying the podcast? You can support Fine, I’ll Do It through Buzzsprout. Your support helps us continue researching, recording and producing in-depth business stories for mothers.
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2614319/support
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https://www.gohighlevel.com/?fp_ref=vineyard-village-12
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