Joys of Compounding

Our teacher today is Sebastian Mejia. He combines intellectual range with emotional depth and is the co-founder of Rappi, the on-demand delivery platform that has become one of Latin America's most influential tech companies. In this episode, we discuss resilience, identity, intuition, and building companies with a sense of urgency and wonder. We will go from Sebastian’s immigrant hustle in New York to billion-user ambitions in India, from early-stage chaos to the challenge of scaling a tech company across hundreds of Latin American cities. Now, Sebastian is entering a new chapter, one that blends investing with company building. He's been asking bigger, more personal questions like what's enduring, what's authentic, and where can I bring my full self to the table? Please enjoy our class with Sebastian Mejia. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. —-- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Follow us on Twitter: @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to The Joys of Compounding (00:01:22) Sebastian's Early Life and Influences (00:11:15) The Turning Point: Loss and Resilience (00:17:06) Adventures in Spain and Beyond (00:36:52) Building Rappi: From Concept to Reality (00:46:06) Building a Multicultural Team (00:53:30) The Intersection of Operating and Investing (01:01:43) Building Tako: A Payroll Infrastructure Company (01:06:46) The Impact of AI on Business (01:17:45) Balancing Speed and Quality in Startups (01:21:10) Zeal: Integrating Interests and Talents (01:28:20) The Importance of Kindness and Purpose

Today’s teacher is Jacqueline Morby. She may well be the greatest investor you've probably never heard of. For anyone who invests in software or participates in the now nearly trillion dollar global growth equity industry, chances are Jackie helped to shape and give rise to the professional world you inhabit. In 1978 at the age of 40, and with her only professional experience to date being a few years of substitute teaching, Jackie joined TA Associates, the largest venture capital firm in the world at that time. Within just a few years, she would revolutionize her industry, effectively originating the concept of cold calling profitable bootstrap technology companies not actively looking for funding. While the concept seems so simple, this truly was a radical innovation and in effect pioneering the art of looking for talented people in companies that don't necessarily want to be found, sparking a movement that created what we now know as growth equity. As if that's not enough, Jackie was also one of the very first investors of any kind to recognize the inherent business quality of software companies. Over the next two decades, as software would begin to eat more and more of the world, Jackie would have a front row seat as one of the most important capital partners to the industry. This is Jackie's first podcast of any kind, and we feel so honored to bring this conversation to you, mainly because hers is a story that merits so much more attention. Please enjoy this class with the queen of software, Jacqui Morby. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by EightSleep, the temperature-controlled mattress cover that heats or cools your mattress to transform your sleep. The Pod 4 Ultra is the new gold standard in intelligent sleep systems. It can be added to your current mattress like a fitted sheet and is been clinically proven to give you up to an hour more quality of sleep every night. The cooling capability can cool your side of the bed to 20 degrees below room temperature, all managed by the pod's autopilot feature, which adjusts the temperature throughout the night. Go to eightsleep.com/joys for $350 off. —-- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Follow us on Twitter: @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:00:00) Learn About EightSleep (00:05:00) Introduction to Jacqueline Morby: The Queen of Software (00:06:35) Early Life and Education (00:07:44) Jacqui’s Family Life and Early Career (00:11:04) Joining TA Associates and Industry Innovations (00:13:13) Early Days at TA Associates (00:15:17) Impact of Teaching and Overseas Experience (00:16:52) Pioneering Cold Calling in Venture Capital (00:19:05) Cold Calling Success Stories (00:23:17) Missed Opportunities and Big Wins (00:25:45) Investing in Software: A Revolutionary Idea (00:40:07) Philanthropy and Cure Alzheimer’s Fund

Before we turn the page on 2024, we wanted to shine one more light on the man behind our most popular class of the last year. And that's Mitch Rales, co-founder of Danaher, one of the most impressive businesses to have been built anywhere in the world this past century. Having co-founded Danaher 40 years ago alongside his brother and best friend Steve, the Rales boys have strung together a track record of compounding that might even make Buffett blush. Consider that Danaher has annualized at over 21% for four decades, resulting in an 1800-times multiple on invested capital! You’ll learn from Mitch about the key inputs to his outlier success: why greatness is a journey that takes an unusual time horizon, the role benchmarking plays in standing up any winning organization, why it is essential to cultivate learning agility and embrace transformational pivots over time, and also the qualities Mitch looks for both in the leaders and businesses he looks to support. While Mitch is a natural teacher, this is actually his first recorded, long-form interview of any kind, and so we feel especially honored to share with you our candid conversation with someone who has shaped and transformed us and the business world in so many positive ways. Please enjoy today’s class with Mitch Rales. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by EightSleep, the temperature-controlled mattress cover that heats or cools your mattress to transform your sleep. The Pod 4 Ultra is the new gold standard in intelligent sleep systems. It can be added to your current mattress like a fitted sheet and is been clinically proven to give you up to an hour more quality of sleep every night. The cooling capability can cool your side of the bed to 20 degrees below room temperature, all managed by the pod's autopilot feature, which adjusts the temperature throughout the night. Go to eightsleep.com/joys for $350 off. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Art of Investing, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Show Notes (00:00:00) - Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:04:32) - The Philosophy Behind Glenstone's Creation (00:11:57) - Benchmarking and Continuous Improvement: Lessons from Danaher and Glenstone (00:20:22) - The Influence of Mitch’s Father and Upbringing (00:27:43) - Transforming Danaher During The George Sherman (00:29:39) - Embracing Long-Term Vision and Patience (00:35:47) - The Role of Leadership in Navigating Change (00:41:21) - Danaher's Evolutionary Journey: From 1.0 to 4.0 (00:55:37) - Building a Culture of Internal Growth and External Innovation (00:57:42) - The Art of Successful Acquisitions and Integration Strategies (01:02:03) - Seeking Leadership Qualities and Business Traits for Long-Term Success (01:05:14) - The Journey from Personal Experience to Philanthropy (01:12:10) - Investment Philosophy: Concentration vs. Diversification (01:28:46) - Operational Expertise as a Catalyst for Company Growth (01:33:17) - Identifying and Supporting Talent in Business (01:42:02) - The Impact of Secular Trends on Long-Term Investments (01:48:53) - Revitalizing the Washington Commanders (01:56:36) - Engaging with Fans and Building a Winning Culture (02:04:16) - The Importance of Long-Term Vision

Today’s teacher is renowned historian Patrick Griffin. Patrick is the former chair of the Department of History at the University of Notre Dame. In 2021, he was named the Harold Vivian Harmsworth Visiting Professor of American History at the University of Oxford, perhaps the highest honor an American historian can receive. He joined us to explore “The Lessons of History” by Will and Ariel Durant, a book that has been repeatedly recommended to us over the years by some of the world's most compelling investors, leaders, thinkers, and builders. To quote the late great Charlie Munger, who was also a student of Durant, “There is no better teacher than history in determining the future.” This 100-page book is a masterful distillation of Durant's 11-volume 10,000-plus page magnum opus, “The Story of Civilization.” Whether you're looking to develop better pattern recognition in your work, or perhaps more existentially how to begin to even think about how and what to paint on this precious canvas that we call a human life. We hope you enjoy this class on “The Lessons of History” with the esteemed Patrick Griffin. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by EightSleep, the temperature-controlled mattress cover that heats or cools your mattress to transform your sleep. The Pod 4 Ultra is the new gold standard in intelligent sleep systems. It can be added to your current mattress like a fitted sheet and is been clinically proven to give you up to an hour more quality of sleep every night. The cooling capability can cool your side of the bed to 20 degrees below room temperature, all managed by the pod's autopilot feature, which adjusts the temperature throughout the night. This holiday season go to eightsleep.com/breakdowns and use code JOYS for up to $600 off the Pod 4 Ultra when bundled. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Follow us on Twitter: @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to the Joys of Compounding (00:01:17) The Importance of History (00:04:14) The Historian's Toolkit (00:07:17) Will Durant's Journey (00:09:18) Lessons from 'The Lessons of History' (00:23:08) Human Nature and History (00:34:29) The Role of Economy in History (00:38:01) The American Revolution in Context (00:38:20) The Irony of National Exceptionalism (00:39:00) Revolutions and National Belonging (00:42:17) Geography and the Age of Revolution (00:43:50) Human Ingenuity and Overcoming Geography (00:45:53) The Role of Common People in History (00:47:12) The Immigrant Experience and Personal Reflections (00:50:49) Yankee Sullivan: A Prizefighter's Tale (00:55:55) Boxing as a Metaphor for Human Nature (00:58:49) The Inevitability of War (01:03:10) The Concept of Progress (01:07:14) The Power of Compounding in History

Today's teacher is Ravi Gupta, a partner at renowned venture firm Sequoia Capital. Ravi has had a fascinating and meandering career on his way to becoming a VC, from consulting at McKinsey to private equity at KKR to operations at Instacart as both CFO and COO. All along the way, Ravi was gathering and cultivating a unique set of skills that's equipped him to now identify and support some of the most daring founders striving to build legendary companies. Ravi's life and career are teeming with trials, successes, and applicable lessons for all of us. He's such a thoughtful and deep thinker, and I'd encourage you to check out his personal site, RKG.blog, for more of his musings. We hope you enjoy class with the ever-joyful Ravi Gupta. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- This episode is brought to you by EightSleep, the temperature-controlled mattress cover that heats or cools your mattress to transform your sleep. The Pod 4 Ultra is the new gold standard in intelligent sleep systems. It can be added to your current mattress like a fitted sheet and is been clinically proven to give you up to an hour more quality of sleep every night. The cooling capability can cool your side of the bed to 20 degrees below room temperature, all managed by the pod's autopilot feature, which adjusts the temperature throughout the night. Go to eightsleep.com/joys for $350 off. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (https://thepodcastconsultant.com). Follow us on Twitter: @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:05:00) Aspirations and Career Beginnings (00:07:21) The Impact of Indian Heritage (00:12:53) The Notre Dame vs. Duke Rivalry (00:20:51) Lessons from Coach K and Leadership (00:24:18) From McKinsey to KKR (00:44:33) Learning and Humility in Private Equity (00:47:09) Finding Purpose Through Family (00:49:42) Motivation and Desperation at Instacart (00:56:04) The Role of a Supportive Leader (00:58:24) The Instacart Turnaround (01:04:41) Lessons from Sequoia and Venture Capital (01:23:57) Measuring Life by Relationships

Today we are replaying our classroom session with Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal, founders of Acquired, the podcasting sensation telling the stories and strategies of the world's great companies. In this episode, we turn the tables on Ben and David in order to discover their own stories and the fairy dust behind acquired success. We'll cover the history of the formation of one of the most successful podcasts in the world, why having a co-founder & friend is vital to building an enduring company throughout the highs and lows, and their most valuable lessons learned from dissecting the greatest stories in business, investing, and entrepreneurship. Please enjoy our class with Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Art of Investing is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Art of Investing, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @ArtofInvest | @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:05:36) First question - Acquired podcast's journey, founders' insights, and entrepreneurial lessons (00:11:00) David Rosenthal's journey from 80s Pennsylvania to entrepreneurship (00:23:12) How David's exposure to entrepreneurship shaped his beliefs and co-founder dynamics (00:14:12) How Ben and David forged a unique friendship through their shared passions (00:30:54) Exploring side hustles & transforming hobbies into career opportunities (00:42:07) Why building success requires nurturing intrinsic compounding factors (00:52:15) The roles of luck and persistence in achieving success (00:56:35) Prioritizing product over monetization for long-term success (00:60:57) The importance of staying authentic amidst success (01:08:15) Balancing success and well-being with Acquired's freedom-driven approach (01:10:37) Recognizing the value of ownership in the journey to success (01:15:32) The power of optimism in overcoming challenges and achieving success (01:19:27) The significance of authenticity in long-term success (01:25:07) Upholding integrity in interactions as an essential component of success (01:35:04) Why successful companies often mirror the founder's personality (01:43:17) Acquired's biggest strength and the potential risk on the horizon

Today, we are revisiting our class with David Senra in honor of our upcoming event together. David is an absolute force of nature who is taking the world by storm with his podcast "Founders." In this class, we enjoy access to the full spectrum of learnings from his decade-long study of history's greatest entrepreneurs, artists, athletes, and leaders. The library David's built reflects a range of study that is completely boundless. From Alexander the Great, to Catherine Graham, to Alexander Graham Bell, from Warren to Jimmy Buffet, and from J. Gold all the way to Jay Z. He helps us gain an understanding of why virtually all of the greats in history devote themselves to the study of those that came before them. Please enjoy today's class with David Senra. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. Join us for the Art of Investing X Founders Event! ----- This episode is brought to you by Summus. Summus is a revolutionary health benefits solution, driving superior employee engagement while dramatically lowering your company's enterprise-level healthcare spend. They're completely transforming the world of health benefits by providing employers and their employees in any location, fast access to over 5,100 of the top medical specialists from America's very best medical centers for support across all health questions. If you're looking for a benefit that drives your employee engagement, truly takes care of your people in their most scary and vulnerable times, all while improving your healthcare ROI, visit GoSummus.info/AOI. This episode is brought to you by Hunt Club. Hunt Club unlocks relationships and helps companies grow. Whether it's recruiting your next hire, landing your next big partner, or financing your business, a trusted introduction always works more effectively. Hunt Club’s tech-enabled search model leverages the largest community of its kind to refer amazing talent on your behalf. Additionally, its software program, Atlas, helps organize the entire network of a company or fund and assists in streamlining the right introductions. If you're looking for the ideal solution for all of your talent needs, visit HuntClub.com/AOI. ----- Art of Investing is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Art of Investing, visit joincolossus.com/episodes. Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @ArtofInvest | @Buhrman_Rick | @PaulBuser | @JoinColossus Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to Art of Investing (00:08:23) First question - Understanding the need to devote oneself to something (00:013:10) The profound and helpful insights gained from learning about historical figures (00:20:05) Advice for a 22-year-old about the value of relentless effort (00:30:14) Hard work as a prerequisite for achieving greatness (00:36:37) How time and effort influence the compound interest equation (00:45:34) Factors that hinder the pursuit of greatness (00:51:40) Seeking voices that guide you toward the right path (00:59:02) Curiosity as an innate talent or a cultivated skill (01:03:44) Letting go of interests that obstruct your goals (01:12:45) Striking a balance between work and family for a fulfilling life (01:18:50) Basic steps within our control to become the person we aspire to be (01:23:10) The unique appeal of podcasting as a business (01:28:19) Turning information from biographies into actionable knowledge.