“There is no such thing as risk-free greatness.”

When Arnold Schwarzenegger wrote this in support of Olympian Lindsey Vonn, it deeply resonated.

As someone who has lived both sides — venture capitalist and founder — I’ve seen firsthand that the people who build anything meaningful all share one thing in common: they are willing to enter the arena.

In this solo episode, I unpack:

• Why greatness is never risk-free

• The psychological warfare of leadership

• What separates spectators from builders

• And the mindset patterns I observed after meeting 4,000+ founders and CEOs

This episode is for first-time founders and first-time leaders leveling up into the next version of themselves.

New episodes every two weeks — sometimes with guests I deeply admire, sometimes just honest thinking in progress.

“If you assumed it was real, what would you do?”This question has quietly shaped every major chapter of my career since business school and from venture capital, to founding a healthcare company, to now writing my first novel.

I first learned it from a founder we invested in - the founder of Zola, the wedding registry company that reaches millions of couples - and it’s a question I keep coming back as I embark on an ambitious goal. In this solo episode, I reflect on:

1) Why “believing in yourself” is vague and why I prefer this question

2) How assuming something is real changes the quality of feedback you get

3) Why conviction is built through action, not affirmation

4) What it means to assume the identity you want next — founder, athlete, writer, creator, whatever

I share reflections from my founder and VC journey interacting with 4,000+ CEOs and founders - some of whom have brought their companies public, and some of who have to sunset their company.

The solo episodes isn’t advice. It’s a weekly reflection that I want to remember and share in the pursuit of building a world where we all take that bet on ourselves, whatever it may be.

New episodes every two weeks — sometimes with guests I deeply admire, sometimes just honest thinking in progress.

Talktrack is a podcast where we have honest conversations with entrepreneurs who turned their most wild and creative dreams — in this case, a disco ball experience — into reality.

In this episode, I sit down with Carson Lee to unpack the real story behind NYC's Light Leaks — an immersive disco ball art installation that became, according to Time Out, “one of the best things to do in New York City in 2021,” selling thousands of tickets. Ultimately, this experience then led to creating disco-ball stages for music festivals like Bonnaroo and DJs like Porter Robinson, Dillon Francis, and Channel Tres.

Carson shares:

• How a single cold email to a Grammy-nominated performer unlocked a broader dream

• Why fear is often a signal, not a stop sign, when leaning into what you really want to do

• How he stayed calm when everything could have broken the night before launch

• What 50 rejections taught him before the “yes” when landing venues for his exhibitions

• Why loving what you build changes how you sell, lead, and persist through months of working until 3am

These are honest, unpolished conversations for builders, operators, and creatives figuring it out in real time — when all you might have is your own talktrack to lean on as you take a creative bet.

Hosted by Wendy Tsu, a former VC turned VC-backed founder who has lived both sides.

Follow along on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/the.talktrack