TLDR - Our mission is to bend the curve for CEOs; we are building the largest library of CEO how-to guides and no fluff stories.
If you are receiving this, you’re a part of our community. Whether you’re a CEO, aspire to be one, or support CEOs, this is for you. Of course, if you would prefer to not be included feel free to unsubscribe.
The Backstory
David: Over my 20-year career as a founder, executive, operator, advisor, and investor in enterprise SaaS companies, I’ve seen a lot of ups and downs.
I was an executive at three companies at inception, serving as CEO twice including at BetterCloud. These companies generated $100s of millions in ARR and hired thousands of people. We raised money from some of the best VCs in the world. But we also faced cash crunches, bad hires, and near-death moments.
After stepping back from a day-to-day operating role, I’ve spent the last 18 months advising and speaking with hundreds of early-stage founders/CEOs. Many are encountering these challenges for the first time.
One of my ways to give back was to write the write the Startup Founder Survival Guide and start Not Another CEO Podcast. The positive feedback and momentum of these initiatives inspired me to invest more time and energy into them, and find someone I trust to help make Not Another CEO into something that can have a big impact.
Nick: Since 2008, I have worked at some of the fastest-growing technology companies in the world. I was employee 200 at Tesla and ran Finance for the Roadster and Model S programs. I was one of David’s first business hires at BetterCloud, serving as VP of Operations from pre-revenue through scaling.
I founded Workstream.io in 2020. I’m proud of our work: we built an amazing product, team and customer base. We raised $7 million, successfully monetized, and for a fleeting moment found what appeared to be our flywheel. Ultimately, the company did not make it — we shut down in May 2024.
In the aftermath, I’ve become passionate about paying my failure forward: I started writing Failing Forward, and started advising other founders.
Through it all, we have both taken a closer look at how and how not to do things. We believe our mistakes have taught us the most powerful lessons.
We are excited to come back together to help current and future CEOs bend the curve of learning and growth.
Not Another CEO is more than just our voices
Today we’re launching Not Another CEO, a mashup of David's podcast with Nick's Failing Forward substack.
So what should you expect?
We promise to never publish anything that we do not ourselves find valuable as Founders and CEOs. We aspire to bring you no fluff, real stories that contain tactical and specific takeaways. We know that the best lessons come from a multitude of voices, not just our own.
We are going to experiment, and we want to hear from you — what’s valuable, what’s not, and whose voices should we highlight? But to start, here is what we are planning:
📽️ Not Another CEO Podcast (Tuesdays):
David will continue speaking with growth stage CEOs about their success & struggles.
Soon you can expect Failing Forward editions of the podcast; on these Nick will interview others who have gloriously fought but lost.
New Episode with Kyle Porter, former Founder and CEO of Salesloft, is live today!
✍️ Written Content (Thursdays): These will highlight the stories & lessons of others, not just own, including:
Lessons Earned: Stories from those who have crawled through the trenches. (Note: Failing Forward now lives here).
Playbooks: Deep Dives into actionable topics such as managing investors, team communication, product strategy and delighting customers.
Watch out for our first Deep Dive: Narrow your ICP and Transform Your Company dropping this week.
Not Another CEO Belongs to the Community
If you’re reading this, you’re part of our community. Whether you’re a CEO, aspire to be one, or support CEOs, this is for you. We would love for you to get involved, so please:
🎙️ Nominate yourself or a CEO/founder you know for the podcast here.
↩️ Want to to contribute written content to help others? Just reply to this email.
📣 Share the Substack and spread the word
💬 Give us feedback on what you would like to see. Just reply to this email or comment on this post, we will reply to everything.
We want to help foster real relationships that move the needle for people. We hope to eventually do in-person gatherings; be it smaller more intimate formats for curated groups, or larger formats covering deep dives on important topics.
To kick things off, we are hosting a live stream this Friday, March 14th at 11AM ET. We will be talking about our road here, where Not Another CEO goes next, and what we hope to learn. Please join us, we would love to see you.
Forward Together
To the nearly 1,000 people receiving this — thank you for being part of our community. To the 50+ contributors who have already shared their insights — thank you for trusting us with your stories.
And to everyone who let us play a role in their journey — we could not be more excited to serve you.
Let’s bend the curve together.
David Politis & Nick Freund
Co-Founders, Not Another CEO