If Not Now Wen Podcast

Today we’re celebrating the 100th episode of If Not Now Wen. Thank you to all the listeners. Your support truly means the world to me.

In this episode we’re switching things up a bit, and I’m passing the mic to my dear friend Wendy Shew. People often ask to hear more about my story, so I thought it would be fun to have a conversation and dive more into my journey.

You may already know that I am the founder of the INNW Institute, a global accelerator supporting entrepreneurs from all over the world and helping them to articulate their story and their vision to get YES. We have served over 300 entrepreneurs globally. Our entrepreneurs have gone on to do amazing things and have raised over 10 million C capitals this year. Additionally, our institute is now raising a 40 million dollar VC fund to support and back those dreamers.

Thank you for allowing me to share my story and journey. I hope you enjoy today’s episode.

We talk about:

🔹 Following your own heart and not the path others see for you

🔹 Persevering in spite of repeated failures

🔹 Deciding what is non-negotiable for you

🔹 Making your own opportunities and giving yourself a chance

🔹 How finding what you are “meant to do” is an evolving process

Curious to hear more about my journey and how I got here today? Tune in to the full episode to learn more.

In today’s episode of If Not Now Wen, we’re excited to talk with special guest Jason Scharf. Jason is a bio strategy leader and active early-stage investor in the life science and digital health sectors. He has built and led teams in strategic planning, market intelligence, and innovation at large biopharma, genomics, and medtech companies.

In addition to his roles within the corporate environment, Jason has served as a co-fund manager of the San Diego Angel Conference, an investor with NuFund Venture Group, and a mentor with both the NexCubed Digital Health Accelerator and the Illumina Accelerator. He invests in startups at the intersection of the technology, biology, and the consumerization of health.

Jason is the creator and co-host of the Austin Next Podcast, an exploration of Austin’s transformation into the next great innovation powerhouse, and he serves on the Board of Directors for BioAustinCTX.

In this episode we talk about:

🔹 Having the courage to find what lights you up

🔹 How technology and biology are beginning to fuse and how the consumerization of health is changing the field

🔹 Innovation’s impact on the world

🔹 The unique opportunities that exist in Austin and other Texas cities

🔹 Why the storytelling element is so important to investors

Jason is a visionary and a leader who has become a catalyst for innovation. He is such an inspiration, and he has so much insight to share. I know you're going to love this episode and get so many amazing takeaways. I can't wait to hear what you think!

In today’s episode of If Not Now Wen, we’re excited to talk with special guest Wendy Shew. As a first generation Asian American, Wendy experienced firsthand how education can ultimately become the equalizer in anyone’s life. At an early age, she experienced the tragedy of losing her mother, which has become her catalyst for 25 years in social impact work.

Determined to break through gender barriers, Wendy studied aviation, learned to fly single engine prop planes, and worked in the international aviation business as a jet engine specialist.

After volunteering in 2014 at a girl’s orphanage in India, she quit her job four months later and sold all her things. She left the country to travel the world all across Asia, Europe, and Africa for six years, where she spent much of her time as a volunteer and mentor to young girls.

Three months after an earthquake hit Nepal in 2015, damaging 9,000 schools, Wendy traveled to Nepal to support in earthquake disaster relief. From there, she founded Building Education in 2017 with the vision to help others transform tragedy to purpose in rising out of poverty.

Wendy truly embodies what it means to become the change you want to see in this world, and she has such a beautiful journey to share with us today. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

We talk about:

🔹 Listening to your internal guidance and following your heart

🔹 Discovering yourself and your purpose

🔹 Recognizing the fundamental role education plays in empowering people all over the world

🔹 Stepping in when you see a need that is not being met

🔹 Wendy’s journey from aviator to founder and her impact along the way

To hear more from Wendy and her inspiring story, tune in to the full episode now.

My special guest in today’s episode of If Not Now Wen is Igor Vainshtein, a serial entrepreneur from Australia. Igor started his entrepreneurial journey at age 16 building websites in 1996, when most people didn’t even know what a website was.

When Igor was a child, his parents migrated from former USSR (Moldova/Ukraine) to Australia in search of a brighter future. Following in his father’s steps, Igor became passionate about tech and built a successful career in IT, later becoming CTO for several companies in the healthcare sector.

Just over a decade ago, Igor got hooked on golf and became an accidental entrepreneur and  co-owner of a virtual golf company in Melbourne, Australia. Eventually, that evolved into an e-commerce business that now has warehouses in Australia, Europe, and the United States. 24/7 Golf sells affordable golf simulator solutions for people’s homes, offices, garages, or barns that are self-assembly in just 15 minutes.

Igor also developed GolfTrak, a golf simulator app which allows people to play virtual golf using the cameras on their phones. He recently moved to Dallas, Texas to expand his business and democratize golf simulation.

Igor has had such an amazing and inspiring journey, and I know you will enjoy his story as much as I do!

In this episode we talk about:

🔹 Seeing the possibilities

🔹 Finding the spark from within

🔹 Embracing the entrepreneurial itch

🔹 Starting over after losing everything

🔹 Defining success for yourself

Curious to hear more from Igor and his inspiring story? Catch today’s episode right here!

What was your biggest takeaway? Let me know in the comments below!

In today’s episode of If Not Now Wen, we’re excited to talk with special guest Marc Nathan. Marc is an experienced leader in the technology startup community with a talent for connecting entrepreneurial business owners to customers, employees, investors, and partners.

Marc is the Vice President of Client Strategy of a law firm based in Austin, Texas where he helps his clients discover appropriate capital sources, and he founded T-Squared Agency to support selected clients with a comprehensive growth strategy and funding sources.

Throughout his career, Marc has assisted early-stage companies with business strategy, capital acquisition, digital and mobile marketing, customer development, strategic partnerships, and product development. Today, he publishes the weekly must-read Texas-Squared Startup Newsletter that offers news, opinions, and events across the entire startup ecosystem in Texas. Marc is passionate about connecting people, and he continues to create impact through service and leadership.

In this episode we talk about:

🔹 Marc’s biggest surprise in working with startups

🔹 Becoming an expert in something you do well

🔹 Defining success and psychological profit

🔹 How the Art of War relates to doing business

🔹 The critical aspect of being a successful company

Marc is such an inspiration, and he has so much insight to share. I know you're going to love this episode and get so many amazing takeaways! I can't wait to hear what you think!

Curious to hear more from Marc? Catch today’s episode right here.

My special guest in today’s episode of If Not Now Wen is Deanna Brown. Deanna is an early-stage innovation specialist and start-up strategist. She is recognized for delivering extraordinary growth and innovation for some of the world’s most influential brands such as Yahoo and AOL. Today Deanna is a managing partner for PMC Venture, a venture fund based in Austin, TX.

Deanna is passionate about supporting diverse teams and mission driven founders.  She believes that it’s time for more diversity in business and leadership and is excited about the opportunities that are becoming available for women.

Deanna’s ability to pay attention, ask the right questions, and listen well has helped her to become the leader she is today. Deanna is such an inspiration. I know you will love her story as much as I do!

In this episode we discuss:

🔹 Recognizing and developing entrepreneurial skills

🔹 Facing fear and failure

🔹 Hiring the right people

🔹 Why diversity and inclusion in business is so important

Curious to hear more from Deanna and her inspiring story? Catch today’s episode right here!

My special guest in today’s episode of If Not Now Wen is my friend and mentor, Satish Kambalimath. Satish is a serial entrepreneur who has over 25 years of experience in a vast array of leadership roles at IBM, AT&T Bell Labs, Lucent, Cadence and Niksun.

Satish has held senior leadership positions at Fortune 500 companies as well as startups, and he has a proven track record in taking emerging technologies from inception to market validation, customer acquisition and revenue growth. He is currently on his fourth startup venture as the Founder & CEO of Predecir, The Last Mile in Actionable Predictive Analytics to identify and eliminate waste and optimize cloud spend.

Satish defines himself as a technologist who likes to apply technology to real world problems and find solutions. He has an amazing sense of humor, humbleness, curiosity and authenticity that truly makes him special. Satish is such an inspiration, and I hope you enjoy his story as much as I do!

In this episode we talk about:

🔹 How entrepreneurialism is a learning exercise

🔹 An effective exercise to help you overcome fear

🔹 How to keep moving forward after failure

🔹 Keys of successful fundraising

🔹 Creating a good founding team

🔹 The importance of having gratitude in your life

Curious to hear more from Satish and his inspiring story? Catch today’s episode right here!

In today’s episode of If Not Now Wen, we’re excited to talk with special guest Heather Emerson.  Heather is a founder of Prep To Your Door, a food business serving Austin, TX and beyond organic, farm-to-table meals in zero-waste packaging.

Heather is passionate about the impact food has on human health as well as on the environment. Her mission is to change food through strengthening local food systems so that everybody wins: the community, our health, our planet.

In this episode we discuss:

🔹 Overcoming adversities and discovering your passion

🔹 Getting really clear on your “why”

🔹 Finding your inner compass and living your life for yourself

🔹 The importance of practicing self-care

Heather is such an inspiration, and she has so much insight to share. I know you're going to love this episode and get so many amazing takeaways! I can't wait to hear what you think!

Curious to hear more from Heather? Catch today’s episode right here.

In today’s episode of If Not Now Wen, we’re excited to talk with special guest and serial entrepreneur Daran Herrman. Daran is the founder and CEO of Goboto, a full-service marketing firm that brings efficiency to the online real estate marketplace. He is the host of the Establishing Your Empire show which is a podcast that inspires entrepreneurs, creatives, and future business owners to pursue their passions, grow their organization, and build their empire.  

Daran is a natural leader and visionary. He is such an inspiration, and I know you will love this episode as much as I do!

In this episode we talk about:

🔹 Celebrating your successes

🔹 One of the biggest lessons in decision making

🔹 Knowing your strengths and recognizing when to bring others in to help

🔹 Setting daily and long-term goals with intention

🔹 Determining what is most impactful

Curious to hear more from Daran and his inspiring story? Catch today’s episode right here!

My special guest in today’s episode of If Not Now Wen is Brian Beck. Brian is the Managing Partner and co-founder of Sabio Tech Partners, an Austin-based technology advisory firm focused on helping middle market private equity firms achieve greater investment valuation with reduced risk. Sabio has developed an innovative approach and toolset, called “Quality of Technology”, specifically designed to enable private equity firms to conduct robust and rapid technology diligence of their potential acquisitions.

Though Brian has worked and traveled extensively in Canada, Europe, India and Asia Pacific, he has called Austin home for the past 20 years and is passionate about the Austin food scene, its new professional soccer club (Austin FC), and grilling on his back porch.

Brian always likes to be learning, solving problems, investigating, and figuring things out. His desire and courage to embrace new and different challenges and experiences has helped him become the leader he is today. Brian is such an inspiration, and I hope you enjoy his story as much as I do!

In today’s episode we talk about:

🔹 Facing your fear and putting yourself in new or uncomfortable situations

🔹 Building confidence in yourself

🔹 Gaining new perspective through travel

🔹 Why you learn more from failure than from success

🔹 What to do when you experience failure after failure

🔹 What you need to know about the acquisition process and how you can prepare for it

Curious to hear more from Brian and his inspiring story? Catch today’s episode right here!