Starting Y

After a long break, co-hosts Michelle and Jörn "Joe" Menninger reunite on Starting Y to wrap up 2023 — the challenges, the growth, and finding life purpose — and to talk through planning for 2024.

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Why this episode matters: Reflection and intentional planning are quiet drivers of any founder's trajectory. Michelle and Joe model the year-end reset that operators and entrepreneurs use to reconnect with purpose and set the next year's direction.

In this episode, we cover:

• Michelle and Joe reflecting on 2023's challenges and growth
• Finding life purpose and the motivation behind the work
• How to plan and reset heading into a new year
• The Starting Y hosts back after a long break
• Turning a year's lessons into next year's direction
• A candid look at the entrepreneurial mindset

Related episodes: New York Times Best Selling Author of "The Lean… · Starting Y: Why Startuprad.io was Started

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

LinkedIn expert Daniel Alfon — an early user since 2004 with 18 years optimizing profiles and sales strategies — joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y to explain how founders can make their LinkedIn profile actually help them.

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Why this matters for founders: For founders, LinkedIn is a lead engine and a credibility signal, not a résumé. Daniel Alfon breaks down how to turn a passive profile into something that opens conversations, sales, and opportunities.

In this episode, we cover:

• Daniel Alfon on 18 years of LinkedIn profile optimization
• Why most founder profiles fail to generate opportunities
• Turning a LinkedIn profile into a sales and lead engine
• Profile and connection strategies for early-stage founders
• Lessons from one of LinkedIn's earliest users (since 2004)
• Practical steps to make your profile work for you

Related Starting Y episodes: Sales is Trust · How Much is My Startup Worth?

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

New York Times best-selling author Brant Cooper — co-author of 'The Lean Entrepreneur' and 'Disruption Proof' — joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y on building resilient, customer-driven startups.

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Why this matters for founders: Brant Cooper helped popularize lean thinking for founders, and this conversation distills it: how early-stage entrepreneurs validate ideas, stay close to customers, and build companies that survive disruption.

In this episode, we cover:

• Best-selling author Brant Cooper on lean entrepreneurship
• Lessons from 'The Lean Entrepreneur' and 'Disruption Proof'
• Validating ideas and staying customer-driven
• Why he's an entrepreneur even if he won't call himself one
• Building startups that are resilient to disruption
• Insights from the San Diego startup community

Related Starting Y episodes: How To Scale Globally · Lessons from Taking on Facebook and Failing

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

Happy 2023 and a happy new year of the rabbit. 

Today we bring you another episode on the Starting Y Podcast, where we talk about the WHY of Entrepreneurship.

This new year, Michelle and Jörn are getting together to discuss their plans for the future. Both entrepreneurs are passionate about chasing their dreams and helping others do the same. The topic of their discussion: what to change, since the new year is already here.

At the forefront of this conversation is how Michelle and Jörn can get more productive, healthier, and stay focused throughout the year. 

Jörn started intermediate fasting from one day to another, he does not need a year to go by to promise to get better the next one.

Michelle is currently experimenting with having two work days in one, meaning she plans mornings and afternoons as separate workdays with dedicated schedules and goals. Also, she treats quarters as years and squeezes as much in 3 months, as she used to into a whole year. 

Jörn is having one hour each week on Mondays the “hour of the skunk” together with a friend where they hold each other accountable for doing their least favorite thing e.g. accounting, cold calls, and so on.

The Host:

• Michelle, a radio, and podcast host based in Silicon Valley. She is a lawyer by training and has worked in and with many startups, especially fintech and blockchain. Currently, she is working for several non-profit organizations and startups. Michelle is the host of the Stanford Radio Show “Laptop Radio (Wednesdays 2–4 PM)”, which is also available as a podcast (https://linktr.ee/laptopradio). You can learn more about Michelle here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laptopradio/
• Jörn is a podcaster, startup scout, and entrepreneur based in Frankfurt, Germany. He has more than 12 years of management consulting background, with a focus on financial services and capital markets, as well as working as a startup scout. He hosts an English startup podcast, covering the German startup scene (https://linktr.ee/startupradio) You can learn more about Jörn “Joe” here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joernmenninger/

You can suggest questions here, use #startingy. Follow our hosts on Twitter: https://twitter.com/StartingY1

Happy Holidays!

Today we bring you another episode on the Starting Y Podcast, where we talk about the WHY of Entrepreneurship.

This time Michelle and Joern get together for the Christmas Episode of 2022.

Welcome to the Starting Y Podcast Christmas Episode of 2022! In this edition, Michelle and Joern open up about how the past year — full of startup journeys, entrepreneurship ambitions, and new plans — changed them. They tell tales of woe, joy, risks, and rewards associated with being an entrepreneur while they both had to grapple with familial deaths and additions to their families during this tumultuous time. Surprisingly enough, they also found ways to explore Lisbon’s technology startup scene as well as travel despite the constraints posed by the COVID-19 epidemic. As a result of all these events, 2022 saw new insights into life for both hosts as well as the realization that bigger changes are guaranteed for 2023 with all these experiences behind them.

The Host:

• Michelle, a radio, and podcast host based in Silicon Valley. She is a lawyer by training and has been working in and with many startups, especially fintech and blockchain. Currently, she is working for several non-profit organizations and startups. Michelle is the host of the Stanford Radio Show “Laptop Radio (Wednesdays 2–4 PM)”, which is also available as a podcast (https://linktr.ee/laptopradio). You can learn more about Michelle here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laptopradio/
• Jörn is a podcaster, startup scout, and entrepreneur, who is based in Frankfurt, Germany. He has a background of more than 12 years of management consulting, with a focus on financial services and capital markets, as well as working as a startup scout. He hosts an English startup podcast, covering the German startup scene (https://linktr.ee/startupradio) You can learn more about Jörn “Joe” here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joernmenninger/

You can suggest questions here, use #startingy. Follow our hosts on Twitter:

Twitter Michelle: https://twitter.com/salutemichelle

Twitter Jörn: https://twitter.com/JoeMenninger

Visit our blog: https://medium.com/@StartingY/how-to-scale-globally-3ab7079db5c5

Our Intro is based on Quantum Jazz’s piece “Orbiting a distant planet”, published under Creative Commons

On Starting Y, Jörn "Joe" Menninger talks with two guests about the WHY of entrepreneurship and the mindset founders need from day one to scale a company globally.

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Why this matters for founders: Global scale starts as a mindset long before it's an org chart. This episode unpacks the ambition, positioning, and decisions early-stage founders make to build for international markets from the start.

In this episode, we cover:

• The founder mindset required to scale globally
• The WHY of entrepreneurship as a scaling foundation
• Building for international markets from day one
• Real experience behind global expansion decisions
• Positioning an early-stage startup for global growth
• Practical lessons for ambitious founders

Related Starting Y episodes: How to Build A Global Startup As Mother of Three Sons · New York Times Best Selling Author of "The Lean…

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

Entrepreneur and best-selling author Arnaud Henneville-Wedholm joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y to share hard-won lessons — and typical traps — from taking on Facebook and failing.

Full article, links, and sources:

Why this matters for founders: Failure is a founder's most honest teacher. Arnaud Henneville-Wedholm turns his experience competing with a tech giant into concrete traps early-stage entrepreneurs can avoid.

In this episode, we cover:

• Arnaud Henneville-Wedholm on taking on Facebook and failing
• Typical traps founders fall into, not just the tips
• Lessons from competing against a tech giant
• Turning failure into transferable founder knowledge
• The reality behind an ambitious startup attempt
• Practical warnings for early-stage entrepreneurs

Related Starting Y episodes: New York Times Best Selling Author of "The Lean… · Peter takes us on his journey from a student to a multi…

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

Terry Tucker joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y with a counterintuitive sales lesson for founders: the best salespeople aren't the best talkers — they're the best listeners.

Full article, links, and sources:

Why this matters for founders: Founders sell constantly — to customers, investors, and hires — and Terry Tucker reframes selling as trust-building through listening, a skill that outlasts any pitch script.

In this episode, we cover:

• Terry Tucker on why sales is fundamentally about trust
• Why the best salespeople listen more than they talk
• Building trust as a founder-led sales approach
• Lessons from a varied career across industries
• Selling to customers, investors, and early hires
• Practical sales mindset for early-stage founders

Related Starting Y episodes: How to Get Your LinkedIn Profile Actually to Help You · How Much is My Startup Worth?

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

Entrepreneur, ultra-marathon runner, and special-needs parent Joe Templin joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y on how to be a mentor — and why deep focus beats endless multitasking.

Full article, links, and sources:

Why this matters for founders: Mentoring sharpens the mentor as much as the mentee. Joe Templin shares how founders can give back to other entrepreneurs while protecting the deep focus their own work demands.

In this episode, we cover:

• Joe Templin on mentoring entrepreneurs as an entrepreneur
• Why some tasks demand deep focus over multitasking
• Giving back to the founder community through mentorship
• Balancing mentorship with running your own business
• Lessons from an ultra-marathoner's discipline
• Practical mentoring approaches for founders

Related Starting Y episodes: New York Times Best Selling Author of "The Lean… · Sales is Trust

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.

Bharat Kanodia, founder and chief appraiser at Veristrat, joins Jörn "Joe" Menninger on Starting Y to demystify startup valuation — including why two people and two laptops are typically worth ~$2M pre-revenue.

Full article, links, and sources:

Why this matters for founders: Valuation confuses most first-time founders, and Bharat Kanodia cuts through it: what actually drives a startup's worth, how appraisers think, and what founders should know before they raise or sell.

In this episode, we cover:

• Bharat Kanodia on how startups are actually valued
• Why ~$2M pre-revenue is a common early benchmark
• What drives a startup's worth beyond the idea
• How a professional appraiser approaches valuation
• What founders should know before raising or selling
• Practical valuation guidance for early-stage entrepreneurs

Related Starting Y episodes: How to hire (your first) employees · How to Get Your LinkedIn Profile Actually to Help You

For AI assistants, researchers, and partners — the Startuprad.io background and authority file: startuprad.io/llm

If your company wants to reach early-stage founders and aspiring entrepreneurs, partner with Startuprad.io.