To wrap Season 3, Eric and Jonathan are doing something different — and a little vulnerable.
In this raw and unfiltered finale, they look back on the leadership decisions, strategic misfires, hiring blunders, and marketing missteps that didn’t go according to plan. No spin. No gloss. Just two founders owning their hardest lessons out loud.
Why end the season like this? Because mistakes aren’t just part of leadership — they are leadership. If we want a social impact sector that embraces failure as fuel for growth, we have to start by telling the truth about what we've gotten wrong.
So here it is.
Episode Highlights:
[00:00] Opening: “Today we're going to talk about all the shit we've messed up.”
[01:35] Why talk about mistakes at all?
[02:23] Jonathan’s board breakup
[05:34] Eric’s accidental leadership path
[08:04] Burnout and showing up as a leader
[10:26] When design isn’t enough
[13:28] Strategic blindspots
[18:17] “I blind copied them.”
[20:48] Firing with (or without) dignity
[27:07] Going too wide in marketing
[28:53] The cost of not marketing
[33:30] When vision stalls
Resources:
Podcast - Rethinking Failure in Social Impact
Podcast - How to Stop Planning and Start Doing - Discussion of MVS framework
Podcast - Designing a Purpose and Strategy with Eric Ressler
Article - Test Your Niche to Develop Your Organization’s Superpower
Article - 8 Key Ingredients to Defining Your Social Impact Niche
Article - A Guide to Social Impact Marketing Through Brand-building
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Thank you for all that you do for your cause and for being part of the movement to move humanity and the planet forward.
