This week I spoke with Fred Hoch from TechNexus, which is a firm located in Chicago that focuses on constructing venture strategies for Fortune 500 companies.

Fred is a highly respected individual in our ecosystem. Throughout his career, he’s worked with thousands of tech companies to drive their growth through strategic insight partnered with a keen focus on execution.

During our conversation, he shared valuable insights on networking in your 20s, the early days of SaaS (which he was super involved in), and his aspirations for Chicago's future.

🧠 For Episode #112, we spoke with Keith Houlemard, the Former President of Jordan Brand.

Keith spent 30 years at Nike and helped found Jordan Brand. He attended San Diego State University, where he earned a BS in Business Finance and played Aztec baseball. It was there that Keith realized his athletic passion, and made it a goal to have a career in the sports business.

His passion for sports led him to the Jordan Brand where he served as President from 2008-2012. With 25+ years at Nike and as VP/GM of Olympics, Keith led the Nike Brand through the Rio 2016 Games, which turned out to be an amazing success. With all of his travel to Rio these last few years he’s hoping the Portuguese he learned stays with him. His business focus is now on the 2018 Winter Olympics in Korea and the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, along with Strategic Projects that capture new opportunities for Nike. Keith then was VP/GM of Running for Nike Europe/Middle East/Africa before retiring from the company.

Keith is now busier than ever as a co-founder of the FOODe app.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• Lessons from Michael Jordan

• Harnessing competitiveness in your 20s

• The benefits of working at a startup in your 20s

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• The Future of Twitter with Elon Musk in Charge

• Quantum Technology in Chicago

• Using Venmo to Purchase Items on Amazon

🧠 For Episode #111, we spoke with Ben Weiss from CoinFlip.

Ben co-founded CoinFlip in 2015 and served as the Chief Operating Officer before being appointed as Chief Executive Officer in April 2021. Since its inception, Ben has led the company’s strategy and helped CoinFlip surpass $1B in transaction volume.

Under his leadership, CoinFlip was named the #1 fastest-growing company in Chicago by Crain’s in 2021 and 2022. In 2022, Ben was named the Midwest Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst and Young. He is a Trustee for the New Jersey Blockchain Coalition, and Board Member of the Blockchain Advocacy Coalition.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• Lowering the barrier of entry to crypto

• Scaling as a leader

• Meditating in your 20s

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Consumer startups are back!

• The Rise of Generative AI

• Spotify new Podcasting hire

I want to help people to rethink their 20s. 

We’ve all been told that there’s only one path to success. This is false. 

What worked for someone else, might not work for you.

I also want young people to find comfort in uncertain moments. Life has a lot of ups and downs 🎢  

Keep going!

— Landon

🧠 For Episode #109, we spoke with Francesc Miralles, who is the author of IKIGAI: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Healthy Life

IKIGAI is a Japanese philosophy that roughly translates to “your reason for being.”

It focuses on the intersection where your passions and talents converge with the things that the world needs and is willing to pay for. Your IKIGAI is your life purpose or your bliss. It's what brings you joy and inspires you to get out of bed every day.

Francesc Miralles is a lecturer and award-winning author of bestselling books in the areas of health and spirituality. Born in Barcelona, he studied journalism, English literature and German philology, and has worked as a translator, editor, art therapist and musician.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• How to find your own IKIGAI

• Meditation DOs and DONTs

• Francesc’s personal advice for people in their 20s

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Gen Z is drinking less

• Spotify adds audiobooks

• Ye West vs Adidas and Gap

We’re back!

😎 For Episode #6 of our new segment, we spoke with Justin Fineberg about his company: Reclists.

Reclist is a customizable newsletter where you can subscribe to different thought-leaders and get all the articles, podcasts, videos and books they recommend. 

The Curator Economy is where curators can make a living out of experimenting and sharing the best products out there for everyone. They act as a bridge between the Creators and the Consumers, bringing the best of the best products into the light.

🚙 I started a new role at Drive Capital.

I’m building out our Seed Program in Chicago.

If you’re a Chicagoland founder with a BIG idea that hasn’t raised money just yet, let me know :-)

🏀 Congratulations to our podcast alum, Tim Hardaway Sr, on his induction to the NBA Hall of Fame.

Last week, I spent time in Springfield, MA to celebrate the induction of Tim Hardaway Sr.

Tim’s a 5-time NBA All Star and 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist. Drafted by the Golden State Warriors in 1989, Tim went on to have a legendary career in the NBA. In his 20s, He played against NBA greats like Michael Jordan, Karl Malone, Gary Payton, and many more.

Here’s our interview with Tim from 2020.

😎 For Episode #5 of our new segment, we spoke with Chris Brown and Dylan Duke, the Co-Founders of Glewee.

Glewee is an Exclusive Marketplace that connects brands with creators.

Influencer marketing is expected to be $15-20B industry in the next 5 years. A major driver of success is coming from platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitch.

The term Creator Economy is everywhere these days, focused on by brands, marketers, investors, and content creators, but it is really only a subset of the "Attention Economy". Consumers give more time and attention to social platforms than ever before and of that, more time is given to content creators on platforms like TikTok and YouTube than anything else, even games. Brands pay to be where the attention is, content creators garner it and get paid for brand integrations. The ecosystem is accelerating and the way to hold consumers' attention is changing -- and now, so is the tech they use.'

Glewee just announced $9 Million in Seed Funding to continue providing value to influencers!

😎 For Episode #4 of our new segment, we spoke with Veeraj Mehta, the Co-Founder of Puzzl App.

Puzzl is building work management for digital service businesses AKA Gig Workers.

Gig workers are independent contractors, online platform workers, contract firm workers, on-call workers, and temporary workers. They enter into formal agreements with on-demand companies to provide services to the company's clients.

Veeraj believes that a lot of tech exists for gig workers, but none of the tools actually help gig workers.

The Gig Economy is one of the fastest growing markets in the US.

Here are some stats:

• It’s worth $500B

• The gig economy in USA is 5% of GDP

• There are 50M registered freelancers

😎 For Episode #3, we spoke with Kyle Brastrom, the CEO of DiveChat.

DiveChat is an all-in-one social messaging app built by GenZ for GenZ. 

It’s two main features include: interactive channel-based messaging and a powerful end-to-end events experience.

The product is simple to navigate and much more fun to use compared to current group message products that exist for GenZ.

😎 For Episode #2, we spoke with Casey Adams, the Co-Founder of MediaKits

Casey Adams is a 22 year old entrepreneur and co-founder of MediaKits. At the age of 17, Casey started his podcast, The Casey Adams Show, which has quickly become a top 100 business podcast. Over the years Casey has interviewed over 300+ world class individuals including the late Larry King, Rick Ross, Maye Musk, Robert Greene, and David Sacks.

🚙 My New Role

I’m excited to share that I’m starting a role with Drive Capital as their General Manager in Chicago.

My focus is on growing Chicago’s tech ecosystem through our brand and community.

I love this city and I’m excited to continue driving change. Big things coming.

What’s going on everyone!

🆕 I’m super excited to launch a new segment on inTheir20s called: New Kids on the Block!

I’ll be interviewing an awesome group of Gen Z builders that I’m extremely bullish on.

These builders include:

• Founders

• Operators

• Creators

On the segment, we’ll dive into their products; competitors; funding history; market dynamics; and unique insights.

😎 For Episode #1, we spoke with Blake Michael, the Co-Founder of Creator Led Ventures

Blake Michaels is a multi-faceted Gen Z. He’s the Chief Evangelist of Lumanu - fintech for creators which recently raised 12M Series A from Origin Ventures & 500 Startups. He’s starred in Disney’s Lemonade Mouth and Dog with a Blog, which earned 4 Emmy nominations. He also has over 5 million followers on social media.

He’s now the Co-Founder and GP of Creator Led Ventures, which is an LP base of the world’s top influencers. They have an unparalleled insight into the creator market and help founders navigate the fastest-growing customer acquisition channel in the digital space

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• How Blake built a community of over 5 million social media followers

• Predicting the creator economy in 5 years

• Creators becoming investors

🗣 I gave my first TedTalk this week

It was a message to people in their 20s on how to rethink their 20s… I can’t wait to share the full video! Coming soon.

🧠 For Episode #108, we were joined by Lara Hodgson, who is the CEO and Co-Founder of NowAccount

NowAccount pays businesses their invoices now, while they await their  clients’ payments for their services/products. 

Why? Companies are more likely to grow out of business than they are to go out of business. 

Prior to Now, Lara co-founded Nourish (the manufacturing company), and Insomnia, LLC, a firm specializing in investment, development, and management of complex and innovative “world-changing” projects.

She also co-wrote a book about business with her good friend and business parter Stacey Abrams.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• Balancing your personal and professional lives

• Creating the best solution for your customers

• Increasing your productivity while building a business

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Instagram vs the Kardashians

• Mr. Beast Tops 100M Subscribers

• Miami’s New NFT

My TedTalk is happening this Thursday at Wrigley Field!

Purchase Tickets Here

🧠 For Episode #107, we were joined by Cate LeSourd who is the Author of Coming of Age.

Most books about the post-grad years are written by psychologists and business leaders who offer recommendations based on their professional expertise. While helpful, it is rare to hear the voices of those currently living through this season of life. 

That's why I spoke with Cate LeSourd, the Author of Coming of Age. Her book exposes the realities of the pivotal transition from college into adulthood from the perspective of other twenty-somethings and thirty-somethings.

Based on a survey sent to over a thousand individuals nationwide ranging from college seniors to those in their early thirties, Cate LeSourd uncovered their common experiences and emotions during these tumultuous years. Coming of Age: Our Journey into Adulthood examines the impact of this life transition on our careers, relationships, finances, community, social media, and mental health.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• Dealing with Imposter Syndrome

• Ways to rebuild your community post-college

• Qualities of Happy Twenty-Somethings

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Let’s be real about BeReal

• FazeClan on the NASDAQ

• Netflix Negativity

🆕 New Kids on the Block

An exciting new segment presented by inTheir20s is launching soon!

New Kids on the Block will feature Gen Z founders that are building the future.

Check out a sneak peak of the new podcast below 👇🏽

🧠 For Episode #106, we were joined by Frank Mong from Helium and Nova Labs.

Frank Mong is COO of Nova Labs (formerly Helium Inc.), where he is responsible for sales, marketing and business development for the company. Before Helium, Mong spent 20 years in cyber security including CMO at Hortonworks, SVP of Marketing at Palo Alto Networks, and VP/GM of security at HP.

The Helium network is one of the best known plays on Web 3.0 and IoT technology. It sells hotspots to users, which, once activated, provide wireless internet to other users in geographic proximity. The hotspot is best described as similar to a wireless router that anybody can connect to. The best part is that the project is decentralized, meaning the users themselves control the future of the network. Also, the users have full ownership over their own hotspots, meaning the collective of hotspot operators own the network.

🎙 In this episode we spoke about:

• What is decentralization and why you should care

• Owning mistakes in your 20s

• Getting involved in fast-moving industries

🚀 On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Chris Brown’s NFT flops

• Rising podcast listenership draws advertising dollars

• Google exec says IG and TikTok are eating into google search and maps

🆕 New Kids on the Block

An exciting new segment presented by inTheir20s is launching soon!

New Kids on the Block will feature Gen Z founders that are building the future.

Check out a sneak peak of the new podcast below 👇🏽

For Episode #105, we were joined by Henri Pierre-Jacques from Harlem Capital.

Henri’s firm is focused on changing the face of entrepreneurship. He has led 22 investments and sits on 7 company boards. He was presented awards for Forbes 30 Under 30, Inc 30 Under 30, EBONY Power 100, Root 100, Crain’s New York Rising Star and Business Insider Rising Star. He has also been featured in WSJ, Black Enterprise and PitchBook.

In this episode we spoke about:

• If you need to sacrifice in your 20s for a successful life

• Time Management Tips

• The Current State of Venture Capital

On this week’s segment of Top 3 Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Gen Z is Indifferent about the Metaverse

• Amazon Partners with Grubhub

• Elon VS Twitter

One more thing!

I’m searching for all Gen Z founders that are building tools in the:

• Creator Economy

• Gig Economy

• Web3

If this is you, or someone you know, please DM me ASAP!

• Twitter.com/landon20s

• Instagram.com/landon20s

Happy 4th of July weekend!

For Episode #104, we were joined by the legendary Tim Draper.

Tim is a notable venture capital investor, and founder of Draper University, Draper Venture Network, and Draper Associates. Some of his investments include early bets in companies like Hotmail, Skype, Tesla, SpaceX, Twitch, Carta, Webflow, Robinhood, and Coinbase.

Tim is regularly featured on major networks, in publications, and in social media as a proponent for entrepreneurship, innovative governance, free markets, and Bitcoin. He has received various awards and honors including the World Entrepreneurship Forum's "Entrepreneur of the World." He has also been highly ranked on several notable lists including one of the top 100 most powerful people in finance by Worth Magazine, the top 20 most influential people in Crypto by Crypto Weekly, #1 most networked venture capitalist by AlwaysOn, #7 on the Forbes Midas List, and #48 most influential Harvard Alum.

In this episode we spoke about:

• The Formula for Risk Taking in your 20s

• Tim’s Honest Thoughts on Bitcoin

• What Originally Peaked his Interest about Venture Capital

On this week’s segment of Need To Know Things for Twenty-Somethings, we spoke about:

• Gen Z making cash cool again

• Jeff Bezos VS President Biden

• Shell, the oil and gas company, is searching for a TikTok Manager

One more thing!

I’m searching for all Gen Z founders that are building products in the:

• Creator Economy

• Gig Economy

• Web3

If this is you, or someone you know, please DM me ASAP!

• Twitter.com/landon20s

• Instagram.com/landon20s

Happy Monday!

For episode #103 of inTheir20s, we spoke with CNBC Contributor and Author of “The Principle of 18: Getting the Most Out of Every Stage in Your Life”: Eyal N. Danon.

According to Eyal, we’ve been taught to plan our lives based on a very stressful pattern: Decide what you’ll do for a living in your 20s, focus on making money in your 30s, work into your late 60s, then retire fatigued — and, perhaps, unfulfilled.

But as a life coach who was worked with several major clients, including executives at Amazon and Dell, Eyal discovered an alternative life-system that can minimize your regrets, decrease your worries, and enable you to live a happier, more meaningful life.

You can do this by realizing the potential of five interconnected stages:

• The Dreamer

• The Explorer

• The Builder

• The Mentor

• The Giver.

  Eyal calls it the “Principle of 18,” because each stage lasts for 18 years.

Happy Monday!

On this week’s episode of inTheir20s, we spoke with Amanda Goetz, who is the Founder and CEO of House of Wise, which is a luxury CBD brand for women.

Amanda understood first-hand the toll the pandemic took on people, especially women, and created a community and products to support them and improve their lives. She started researching cannabis as a solution, despite her own personal hesitations and beliefs about it, not to mention, the blurry legalization of CBD vs. THC. She decided to try CBD, but the entire industry was so overwhelming and there wasn’t clear transparency around the products or where they came from.

We spoke about:

• The Pros of CBD

• How to use your technology better

• The evolution of marketing

Happy Monday!

On this week’s episode of inTheir20s, we spoke with John Pompliano about mastering Twitter in your 20s.

John is a member of the Best Business Show, an internet show produced by his brothers Anthony and Joe Pompliano.

In less than a year, John has grown his Twitter account from 0 to 69,000 followers. He does this by consistently sharing content about “business, statistics, and cool stories.”

A lot of people don’t realize the benefits of having a curated Twitter feed in your 20s. Not only are you able to learn new things everyday, but you’re also able to build your personal brand in a unique way that isn’t offered on other social media platforms.

John also shares his overall stance on other social media platforms like TikTok and LinkedIn.

We added a new segment to the beginning of this week’s episode:

“The Top 3 Things Twenty-Somethings Should Know This Week”

Let us know what you think!

Subscribe now

🎧 Listen to this week’s episode on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Welcome to Episode 100 of inTheir20s.

For the past 2 years, we've shared iconic episodes with the World's most influential people about what they did in their 20s.

People like Steve Wozniak, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks, Ev Williams, Beto O'Rourke, Chantel Jeffries, Mayor Francis Suarez, Kat Cole, Dr. Meg Jay, Tim Hardaway Sr, and more.

This episode will be a little different than what we usually do.

This is a reflection on building inTheir20s.

In this 3-part episode, we speak about:

1️⃣ Life before the podcast.

2️⃣ Landon’s personal advice for building your own top podcast.

3️⃣ Dealing with the passing of our co-host and the moments that followed.