A podcast about the rejections and setbacks that shaped extraordinary careers.
Hosted by Kristina Vazovsky: a Forbes 30U30, licensed pilot, podcaster and a founder of Hidden Jam, an adventure travel company that designs immersive group trips for entrepreneurs, creatives, and high-achievers.
She Built a 6-Figure Food Brand. Then Went Bankrupt. Now She’s Building a Video-First Travel Discovery App
Erica Rankin is the founder of Doozi, a video-first travel discovery and planning app that helps people find and plan where to eat, stay, and explore through real video content.
She explains:
— Why her first successful business still led to financial collapse
— The reality of personal bankruptcy and what people don’t talk about
— What it feels like to carry a part of your life as a secret for years
— Why you can’t expect people to accept you if you don’t accept yourself
— What it takes to build Doozi in an industry she had no experience in
Doozi app: https://www.doozi.app (https://www.doozi.app )
Doozi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doozi.app/ (https://www.instagram.com/doozi.app/ )
Erica Rankin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/acceptingerica/ (https://www.instagram.com/acceptingerica/ )
6 Jul 2026
Anxiety Ended Her Wall Street Career. Escorting Built Her First Million — Mia
Mia is a licensed CPA, former forensic accountant at top multinational firms in New York, high-end escort, exotic dancer, and Chief Financial Officer of Petit Mort magazine.
She explains:
- Why she chose escorting over another corporate job when anxiety ended her finance career - What 12 years on Wall Street and 6 years as an escort have in common - What it's like to not experience fear, shame, or grief and how she learned to fake them
- Why she faced more judgment for working in finance than for being an escort
29 Jun 2026
From NASA Physicist to 500% Returns Flipping Dirt — Tigran Kalaydzhyan
Tigran spent 10 years in theoretical physics, worked at NASA, got rejected by over 100 companies before landing a job at a hedge fund, earned enough to invest, and quit.
He explains:
- Why he kept a rejection resume with 100+ failures and what it taught him
- The one rule he uses to decide whether any idea is worth trying
- Why it took a year to get one job offer after NASA
22 Jun 2026
You Don't Deserve Love. You Earn It — Anna Morgenstern
Anna Morgenstern is a New York City-based dating coach and matchmaker with nearly a decade in the industry. She works with single professionals worldwide, built an entirely referral-based client roster, and will tell you to your face that you don't deserve a relationship, you earn one.
She explains: - Why the most successful, good-looking people in NYC can't find relationships on their own - Why she fired a client for splitting the bill on a lunch date - The month she couldn't pay rent and called her mom with one condition attached - Why telling yourself "I deserve love" is the most dangerous thing you can do in dating
Find Anna at annamorgenstern.com or on Instagram @annamorgenstern
15 Jun 2026
No Film School. Unpaid for 18 Months. 70 Awards — Koura Linda
Koura Linda is the founder and CEO of Space Dream Productions, an independent film and media production company she started in 2013. A self-taught filmmaker with nearly 30 years of experience across film, marketing, and event production.
She explains:
- Why she fires clients the moment they get weird about contracts and why she's never been wrong
- What knowing every job on set does to the way you manage people under pressure
- Why almost 50% of consumers won't buy from brands using generative AI and what that means for creatives
- The Snow White moment in 2020 when the savings ran out — and why she turned the page anyway
8 Jun 2026
Fired From Every Job. Featured in Vogue — Mallory Dana
Mallory Dana is a serial entrepreneur, founder of a children's clothing brand featured in Vogue Magazine, and creator of Play Day — a lifestyle brand built around reconnecting adults with childhood joy.
She explains:
- Why she was fired from every corporate job she ever held and what that told her about herself
- The night she had $18 in her bank account, her car got towed, and no one would help her
- Why leaving a financially successful business felt like the biggest failure of her life
- Why success can feel just as destabilizing as failure and what your nervous system has to do with it
- The voice that told her she wasn't good enough for 10 years and why she's still fighting it
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