Podcast
From the Ground Up
Hosted by Grit Daily - John Boitnott · EN
Building something from nothing isn’t for the faint of heart. It takes vision, relentless determination, and a willingness to push through the unknown. Join John Boitnott on From the Ground Up, a podcast from Grit Daily, where founders, creators, and industry leaders share their raw, unfiltered stories about making it — or sometimes, barely surviving the ride. From the pivotal moments to the unexpected lessons, this is where real talk meets real experience.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Mary Howerton
3w ago00:32:41Tap to summarizeMary Howerton, founder of La Belle Route Custom Tours, joins From the Ground Up to discuss how intentional travel can create deeper cultural connection and more meaningful experiences. She shares how her decades in educational and experiential travel led her to build a company focused on immersive journeys rather than checklist tourism. The conversation explores literary trips, fandom travel, student programs, accessibility, and how travelers can design trips around purpose, story, and connection.
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Janese Murray
3w ago00:37:49Tap to summarizeJanese Murray, founder of Inclusion Impact Consulting, joins From the Ground Up to discuss how workplace culture, feedback, and inclusion shape professional growth. She explores why playing small can become a career trap, especially for women navigating rooms where they may be underrepresented. The conversation covers imposter syndrome, perfectionism, mentorship, speaking up, and how professionals can better understand the value they bring.
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Anthony Vinci
Apr 2700:35:24Tap to summarizeIn this episode, Anthony Vinci, founder and CEO of VICO, explains how his company is using AI, mathematics, and data science to forecast global events and improve high-stakes decision-making. Drawing on his background in intelligence, technology, hedge funds, private equity, and his book The Fourth Intelligence Revolution, Vinci breaks down why leaders need to think in probabilities rather than binary outcomes. The conversation explores prediction markets, geopolitical risk, supply-chain resilience, AI’s impact on startups, and why modern entrepreneurs need to build forecasting into how they run their businesses.
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Kirsty Sharman
Apr 2100:35:06Tap to summarizeKirsty Sharman, founder and CEO of Referral Factory, shares how she built a company around one of the most overlooked growth channels in business: existing customers. This conversation explores her entrepreneurial journey from South Africa to Europe and Armenia, along with her views on referral marketing, SEO, and building an AI-first company. It is a candid look at what it takes to grow a modern business in a fast-changing digital world.
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Andy Hedrick
Apr 1300:33:05Tap to summarizeAndy Hedrick shares what has changed in sales and why so many deals are lost before a real conversation ever happens. He explains his 2V2R framework and how companies can improve close rates by showing value, proof, and credibility earlier. This episode is a practical look at what modern buyers respond to and how sales teams can adapt.
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Greg Whalen
Apr 200:32:02Tap to summarizeGreg Whalen, CTO of Prove AI, joins the show to explain why the biggest challenge in generative AI is not just building models, but making them observable, governable, and supportable at scale. The conversation explores telemetry, AI governance, and why leaders need to get closer to the details as software development changes under GenAI. It is a practical look at what enterprises must do now to avoid operational pain later.
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“Mo” Maureen Cowie
Apr 200:38:24Tap to summarizeMo Maureen Cowie, founder of Seahorsegal Designs, joins the show to share how a passion for handmade jewelry grew into a brand centered on affordability, individuality, and beauty. From custom pieces and natural stones to her philosophy on confidence, creativity, and self-trust, Cowie brings a refreshing perspective on building a business with heart. The conversation also explores positivity, social media, and how small acts of generosity can spark something much bigger.
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Ed Dua
Mar 900:35:02Tap to summarizeSilicon Valley investor Ed Dua shares the journey from coder to venture capitalist and the lessons he has learned backing more than 100 startups. He explains how IAC Ventures evaluates early-stage companies, why vertical AI is attracting serious investor attention, and what founders often misunderstand about raising capital. The conversation also explores how artificial intelligence is reshaping industries and why the best opportunities may come from entrepreneurs who deeply understand the problems they are trying to solve.
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Taiefa Tabassum
Feb 1800:35:32Tap to summarizeIn this episode of From the Ground Up, Taiefa Tabassum shares how lean SaaS teams can compete by prioritizing positioning, disciplined experimentation, and founder-led storytelling over vanity metrics. Drawing from her journey from visual design to tech marketing at MyWorks, she explains the 70–30 rule, the importance of narrative-driven campaigns, and how small teams can validate demand before scaling spend. She also breaks down how marketers should think about AI today, using it as an efficiency layer and analytical companion rather than a replacement for human strategy.
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Will Cady
Feb 1000:34:32Tap to summarizeWill Cady, founder of HEAL MVMNT and former Reddit executive, joins From the Ground Up to discuss why culture, story, and human values are becoming essential leadership tools in an increasingly data-driven world. He explains how his HEAL framework helps organizations align decision-making with purpose, uncover blind spots, and build stronger communities both inside and outside the business. Cady also shares practical insights for founders looking to lead with greater clarity, define their “north star,” and create companies people genuinely want to be part of.
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