In this episode, we sits down with Grant Watkins — founder turned venture capitalist at Generator, director of CS NEST at UW–Madison, and global startup ecosystem connector.

Grant shares his journey from accidentally discovering entrepreneurship in high school DECA to teaching himself how to code during COVID, launching his own startup, and eventually moving into VC. Today, he helps student founders make the mental shift from class project to real company.

We dive into:

• How to make the mental shift from student to startup founder
• Why every founder should read The Lean Startup
• The importance of traction
• Lessons from working with Japanese startups

This conversation is packed with practical insights on validation, traction, global startup trends, and what founders actually get wrong.