Brad Feld

This Season 2 Finale features an extended conversation (2+ hours) between Brad Feld and Ben McDougal, recorded in the wild, LIVE from the mountains of Boulder, Colorado!

We begin with a rewind on Brad’s own journey, then shift into entrepreneurship, leadership within startup communities, and venture capital in the first hour. Ben teleports to narrate a break with two writings inspired by Brad, then we dive back in for so much more. The origins of Techstars, technology, mentorship, and philosophy is how we land this milestone moment.

As you’ll hear/see, EP100 brews timeless insight for founders and the entrepreneurial lifestyle. Enjoy the full experience, and to make key takeaways easier to share, bookmarks for this extended experience are highlighted below. Cheers to another remarkable season of You Don’t Need This Podcast and let’s keep building… together.

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0:00 – Ben in Boulder
1:30 – Hello Brad Feld
2:30 – Early Experiences
5:15Writing First Book
7:00 – Incubator to Accelerator
12:40 – Random Days
29:30 – Startup Communities
36:15 – Entrepreneurial Ecosystems
37:30 – Too Many Referees, Not Enough Boxers
38:15 – Rural Startup Communities
43:30 – Astronomy
45:30 – Positive Sum Games
46:15 – Give First Intrapreneurs
50:45 – J-Curve
52:00 – Venture Capital Timelines
54:00 – Investor Metrics
56:30 – The Measurement Trap
1:01:15 – 5 Why’s
1:03:50 – Cliffhangers

1:04:50 – Break ☕ #GiveFirst
1:08:18 – Break ☕ Intrinsic

1:11:50 – Welcome Back
1:12:25 – Founders of Techstars
1:23:00Startup Community Partnerships
1:33:20 – Guitar Hero in Times Square
1:38:15 – Bigger Isn’t Better
1:41:00 – Sclerotic Thoughts
1:42:00 – Contentment
1:42:50BEN BOT
1:44:05 – Digitized Consciousness
1:45:12 – Vibe Coding
1:46:45Dinostroids
1:49:40 – Quantified Self
1:54:16 – Biohacking
1:56:30 – AI Notetaking
1:59:55 – Founder’s Interest in Philosophy
2:00:50The Entrepreneur’s Weekly Niche
2:07:10 – Obsession over Passion
2:10:20 – Affinity as an Investor
2:11:35 – Fight to the End
2:11:50The Dip -Seth Godin
2:12:20 – Successful Companies Experiment
2:13:15 – Evolution of Work
2:14:30 – Quickfire
– Spell Check
– Ant Hills
– Signal to Raise Capital
– Long Run Epiphany
– Being Alone
– Pinball Wizard
– Music & Concerts
2:23:15 – Fine Art
2:24:30You Don’t Need This Book
2:26:00 – “They can’t kill you, and they can’t eat you.” Len Fassler

Give First.
People like us.
Do things like this.

BONUS MATERIALS

https://feld.com

https://foundry.vc

https://techstars.com

Break: #GiveFirst + Intrinsic

http://BradFeld.YouDontNeedThisPodcast.com

EP14 – Drams of History 🎙️ Tej Dhawan

EP18 – Fourteeners 🎙️🎞️ Jeff Reed

EP29 – Borderless 🎙️ Kerty Levy

EP56 – Caffeinated Manifesto 2 🎙️🎞️

EP99 – Traveled 🎙️🎞️ Trevor Carlson

https://BenMcDougal.com/tag/Brad-Feld

https://BenMcDougal.com/tag/Techstars

http://YouDontNeedThisPodcast.com

By Ben McDougal, ago

Care Directly

Dr. Jon Van Der Veer took a path less traveled. He shifted gears later in his practice as a doctor, and Examplar Care has since activated a direct primary care experience brewed to provide patients more personalized healthcare. We chat about transparency, affordability, access, and convenience in healthcare, but also get nerdy with zero knowledge proofs, DNA computing, and life extension.

After a quick break that invites you to enjoy the feel of finished with the Collector Hardback Edition of You Don’t Need This Book, Dr. Van Der Veer talked with Ben about their aquisition process and tips for others to build with exit strategiesin mind. Yes, EP73 will help you stick to those new year resolutions, but we close with health hacks to help you dance with your own inspired life.

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BONUS MATERIALS

https://Exemplar.Care

http://Care-Directly.YouDontNeedThisPodcast.com

YDNTB – Collector Hardback Edition

https://BenMcDougal.com/intrinsic

https://BenMcDougal.com/career-nirvana

http://RoastedReflections.com

http://BENBOT.ai

By Ben McDougal, ago

Always Growing

“Behind mountains, there are more mountains.”

Well spoken by Chief Farmer of Clayton Farms, Clayton Mooney. This dude runs a kabillion miles by running 20+ ultrarunning, went through Y Combinator, stays stoic with painting, writes, illustrates poetry books, played poker professionally back in the day, enjoys boxing, and has felt the summit of many mountains. Clayton arrived in his Tesla Cybertruck, so we tightened our driving gloves and cruised inside the Pour Over Publishing studio. You’re gonna love this early episode of Season 2 for You Don’t Need This Podcast!

As you’ll see/hear, the team at Clayton Farms have been growing technology on a thesis of providing food that people deserve. They’ve been building with aeroponics for indoor farming, delivered ultra-local greens directly to people’s doors, and are now converting closed restaurants into 24/7/365 farming. You’ve heard of farm-to-table. This is the future of farm-to-window.

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BONUS MATERIALS
https://ClaytonFarms.com
https://substack.com/@openclayton
https://x.com/MooneyMillions
Following October – Poetry Book
http://Always-Growing.YouDontNeedThisPodcast.com
http://YouDontNeedThisKeynote.com

http://CollectorHardbackEdition.com
http://RoastedReflections.com
http://BENBOT.ai

By Ben McDougal, ago

Health Equity

Corey Dion Lewis is a health equity advocate and experienced podcaster. Together, we talk about activating heartfelt health care outside of the clinic. We also chat about the localized value of bringing people together through events like My City My Health. After the break, we shift gears and dive into the art of podcasting. Have you thought about starting a podcast? Here’s how this podcast was produced and EP33 is just for you.

BONUS CONTENT: Ben was on The Healthy Podcast!

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By Ben McDougal, ago