Reboot Podcast Episode #151 – The Heartbreak of Every Day – with Nitin Agrawal

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

Nitin Agrawal

Co-founder & CEO, Interstride

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Episode Description

The Reboot Podcast has hosted a wide variety of conversations around the complexity and diversity of the co-founder experience, such as the importance of communication, the power of mindfulness in partnerships, and shared our advice for navigating co-founder conflict. Co-founders looking to meet the day to day challenges of running a business must commit to consistent work in aligning their vision and purpose for the organization, but what happens when an unforeseen tragedy throws all your preparation out the door?

In this episode, Nitin Agrawal, Co-founder and CEO of Interstride, describes the loneliness and pathlessness he experienced in the wake of the sudden death of his dear friend and fellow co-founder, Christian. Nitin details the experience and soul searching it took to rediscover his purpose and recounts how his journey through grief restored confidence in his own ability to lead. Jerry and Nitin explore what it means to manage the heartbreak of the everyday and share advice for finding the strength to land on your feet when your foundation gets shaken to its core.

Show Highlights

Top Quotes:

“The energy between two individuals is so unique that it’s hard to replicate. It’s a fortunate accident that you meet some people in life where you click with them so well; and when that magic is gone, it’s just gone.” – Nitin Agrawal

“What I’m sensing is a man who never forgets his friend but has learned how to move beyond the grief. Who has learned that beyond resilience is a sense that you’re gonna be okay.” – Jerry Colonna

“In some way, this unfortunate event gave me the opportunity to find my own base.” – Nitin Agrawal

“I feel a lot of distraction comes from so many different things in life, like monetary, social acceptance, validation, but all those are noise, right? Ultimately your focus needs to be on the vision because that’s the ultimate North Star for anyone.” – Nitin Agrawal

“True grit is the grit that comes from understanding purpose, and understanding that beyond failure or success is the labor towards the mission.” – Jerry Colonna

“Things can go wrong, and things will go wrong, but I have that ability now to at least manage myself and manage my emotions around it.” – Nitin Agrawal

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Podcast Topics

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