_{ENTREPRENEURSHIP & VENTURE CAPITAL}

🛠️ Build Gen She With Me

I quit my $300K big tech job with no plan
Here’s What Really Happened:

It’s officially been over a year since I quit my job. I’ve shared a lot about how I landed a six-figure role as a PM straight out of graduation, and I’ve provided insights on building a successful business. But what about everything in between? What is it really like to quit your job and transition from a highly structured corporate environment to figuring everything out on your own? How do you decide what to do next? How do you pivot and get back up when you have bad ideas and hit walls? How do you do all that while keeping your friendships intact and setting the right expectations with your family? And most importantly, how do you navigate all of that while keeping your bank account and sanity afloat?

That’s what I share in this video: the good, the bad, the ugly, all the personal tea and conflicts—I hold nothing back. I discuss how Gen She started as a nonprofit, became a venture-backed software company for a bit, and has now taken on a completely different form. I reveal the reality of what that process looks like and where it’s headed now. Yes, it’s important to share success stories, learnings, and advice so people can feel inspired, but the truth is, it’s always way harder than we say. It's a lot more nuanced and complex than a single checklist or email template. The day-to-day is tough, and seeing how real people just like you navigate that is where the true learnings are.

If entrepreneurship is ever in your future, this video is definitely worth watching. As always, if you prefer audio, you can find it on Spotify or Apple Music!

 💰️ Mom, I Am a Rich Man
_{An interview series uncovering the stories and strategies of badass women on a quest to find richness in health and wealth.}

Michelle Kwok (26)

Michelle is currently pursuing her full-time MBA at Columbia Business School and works part-time in VC at SOSV on the investment team. Prior to this, she co-founded FLIK, a platform connecting female leaders and learners across the world via meaningful career experiences, which was acquired by Rumor Avenue in Oct 2021.

1. What's the most surprising thing you discovered about yourself after selling the company?

   Since I was so young when I started my company, my entire career identity was attached to being a founder. I felt quite lost after FLIK was acquired. Who was I if not a founder? Who could I work for? What could I build where I could feel purpose again?

   It was a whole journey to rediscovering myself and the paths I could take to find purpose. I realized that it's ok to have different chapters in life with different purposes, methods of fulfillment, and levels of effort. The ups and downs and twists and turns are what make this career journey and life exciting.

2. What advice would you give your younger self before starting your first company?

   Burn out is real. If you don't respond to every email within 10 minutes it's GOING TO BE OKAY. Take care of yourself. Your body is going to be your body forever. 

3. Best money advice you’ve ever received?

   Make sure you save enough for a rainy day, but be willing to spend on memories. Time goes by faster than you think.

4. What’s one non-negotiable for your mental health?
   I time block all my time so that my personal, social, fitness, and career goals are all being met and are equally weighted. If my calendar says I'm seeing my friends from 4-6pm, I will be there fully present. If my calendar says I'm answering emails from 1-2pm, I will be doing that. Each time block is as important as the next.

5. What's next for your career?
   I'll likely stay in venture for the next few years, but I know that becoming a founder again is in my path. I might be brewing on an idea now in fact...

🤝 Invest With Me
_{Turns out you don’t need to be crazy rich to own a piece of the trillions of dollars that flow through the tech industry every year! Wefunder is a platform that allows anyone to invest as little as $100 into startups, and each week, I’ll be sharing one company that I’m investing in with you!}

✨ Late stages of FDA approval of the first over-the-counter oral birth control to market, with 3 years of market exclusivity

✨ Already in market with 1st Morning After Pill in convenience stores - $3M revenue run rate in Year 1

✨ Exclusive partnership with #1 distributor of healthcare products in 150K+ convenience stores

_{RESOURCES + JOBS}

Don’t miss these 👀

^CAREER

🗽 We’re hosting our biggest event yet for NY Tech Week! Join me, Jade Beguelin, Nik Sharma, and Ankur Nagpal for a fireside chat + happy hour at Shopify’s HQ! Spots are limited and first come, first served. RSVP here!

✉️ Here’s a list of 25 early-stage startups (all are founded by repeat founders who sold their previous companies). Many haven’t posted public job postings, but all confirmed are hiring. Send that cold DM, and you never know, you might even land the job!

🎵 TikTok is doing a creator camp this summer for college students and new grads!

📔 Ariana Grande used the 1% rule from the famous book Atomic Habits to land her dream role. This might be the thing you need to hear right now to get to the next level of your career…

^WELLNESS

💉 Ozempic dupe now available for 10x cheaper? Ozempic, the "miracle weight loss" drug, is now available through Hims&Hers for just $199/month, compared to the original price of $2,000/month. This makes a drug that was mostly accessible to celebrities and wealthy individuals now practically accessible to anyone who can afford a gym membership. But if it’s really the same thing, why is it so cheap?

The primary reason is that a significant portion of the cost comes from the medical oversight and administration of the injection. With His&Hers, the medication is self-administered. The idea is that if people with diabetes can self-administer drugs, then why not weight loss drugs? It sounds plausible in theory, but in reality, whether you're using this or the real Ozempic, sustaining the accelerated weight loss after the medication is the hardest part. If not done correctly, you might gain all the weight back and more.

So maybe medical supervision is actually the most important ingredient for success? I guess we’ll have to wait and see! Plus, we’re still waiting for FDA approval on this one.

🧠 It’s Mental Health Awareness Month! There's no better time for organizations to prioritize employee wellbeing in the workplace. After all, it is the heartbeat of the company and its performance. Learn more here.

🧬 Want to live longer? Listen to Bryan Johnson, the “healthiest man alive,” and Trevor Noah chat easy ways to start your longevity journey tomorrow.

What’s new on our job board 🔥

1️⃣ Early Software Engineer @ Orb Labs

2️⃣ Business Operations Associate @ DoiT International

3️⃣ User Support Specialist @ Hinge

4️⃣ Bitcoin Software Engineer @ Custodia Bank

5️⃣ Data Scientist I @ Tinder

6️⃣ Research Internship @ The Block

… and more! 😉

❤️ Avni, Founder @ Gen She // Sponsor this newsletter