Reboot Podcast Episode #131 – Connecting to Your Past and Your Future – with Leslie Feinzaig

The Reboot podcast showcases the heart and soul, the wins and losses, the ups and downs of startup leadership. On the show, Entrepreneurs, CEO’s, and Startup Leaders discuss with Jerry Colonna the emotional and psychological challenges they face daily as leaders.

Guests

Leslie Feinzaig

Leslie Feinzaig

Founder & CEO of the Female Founders Alliance

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Episode Description

Joining Jerry on this episode of the Reboot Podcast is Leslie Feinzaig, Founder & CEO of the Female Founders Alliance, whose mission is to accelerate the success of venture-scale, women, and non-binary founded companies. In this conversation, Leslie shares how attempting to lead and manage her team amongst the fallout of a global pandemic has led her to shift her thoughts to family in distant countries. The granddaughter of Holocaust refugees and a Costa Rican native, Leslie left her country of origin when greater opportunities opened up abroad. Now a naturalized citizen of the United States, Leslie admits to feeling out of place and unwanted in her adopted home.

In hearing her story, Jerry reminds Leslie that in turbulent times, often the best gift we can give ourselves is to search for and connect to a greater sense of purpose. For Leslie, the question “Why do I do what I do?” leads her back to family —past, present and future. Jerry encourages Leslie to remember the sacrifices of her ancestors (as well as her own) and to draw on that connection as a source of strength and inspiration. In connecting to her past and holding her wishes for the future, Leslie comes to realize her purpose will see her through this challenging present.

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Show Highlights

Top Quotes:

“Even in the midst of what has been a super high anxiety period for me, I can tell that I’m gonna look at this period of my life with longing.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“It’s such a challenge managing a team and a community when everybody is just imploding on the inside.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“I don’t know how to be a CEO right now. Somebody give me instructions.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“It just feels like this world doesn’t want me here anymore. This country doesn’t want me here anymore.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“I’m a naturalized American and a proud one, there’s so many echos of the past. So many echos. It’s like we’re not learning.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“One of the most universal experiences, cross-culturally, is the experience of a baby resting in the nook of your shoulder.” – Jerry Colonna

“You don’t risk your life trying to get yourself safe if your life isn’t fundamentally threatened.” – Jerry Colonna

“Bringing a child to this world gives you this empathy towards others and a purpose unlike anything if you really let it.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“I measure my life by what I create for the girls that I brought into this world, and hopefully leave it a little better than I found it.” – Leslie Feinzaig

“We are not the first generation to battle mendacity and the forces of evil, and we won’t be the last.” – Jerry Colonna

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