Beginner's Mind
Blueprints for Builders and Investors
Hosted by Christian Soschner
From pre-seed to post-IPO, every company lives or dies by the frameworks it follows.
On Beginner’s Mind, Christian Soschner uncovers the operating principles behind the world’s most successful companies—through deep-dive interviews, strategic book reviews, and patterns drawn from history’s greatest business, military, and political leaders.
With 35+ years across M&A, company building, board roles, business schools, ultrarunning, and martial arts, Christian brings a rare lens:
What frameworks actually work at each stage of scale—and how to implement them to build durable, high-value companies.
🎙 Expect each episode to deliver:
- Founder & Investor Blueprints: Real-world lessons from Series A to IPO and beyond
- Historical & Biographical Frameworks: Actionable insights from the playbooks of giants
- Operating Clarity: No fluff—just what moves the needle
Whether you're leading a company, scaling one, or investing in the next great one—this podcast gives you the strategic edge.
Listen in. Apply what matters. Build companies that last.
📬 Join the newsletter & community: https://lsg2g.substack.com/
Episodes
200 episodes
#159: No Rules Rules — 7 Culture Principles That Made Netflix Unstoppable
Most founders add layers to gain control. Reed Hastings built an empire by removing them. This episode unpacks No Rules Rules—the leadership playbook behind Netflix’s rise from a...
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Season 6
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Episode 11
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52:52
EP 158 - Rafael Rosengarten: Why 90% of Cancer Drugs Fail — and the Radical AI Fix You’ve Never Heard Of
Most cancer drugs fail. Not because the science is wrong—because we’re solving the wrong problems.The cost? Over $2 billion per failure. And for the patient waiting on a miracle—there’s no second chance.Behin...
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Season 6
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Episode 10
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2:00:48
EP 157 - Fabrizio Conicella: Why Europe Keeps Losing the Next Breakthroughs in Medicine
Europe has the science. The talent. The breakthroughs.But when an idea feels too uncertain, our systems shut it down before it has a chance to breathe.And with every safe bet… we quietly lose the next cure, the next Car-T, ...
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Season 6
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Episode 9
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2:00:46
EP 156 - Janos Pasztor: The Most Controversial Fix for Climate Change
What if the only way to save the planet... is to cool it? Not figuratively—literally. Because the heatwaves, floods, and fires you’ve seen so far? They’re just the beginning.🌍 Emissions keep rising. Global coopera...
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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2:59:21
#155: Ray Dalio’s Playbook — 7 Principles for Building Scalable, Resilient Companies
What if your business ran like a well-designed machine—one that could evolve, self-correct, and outperform your competition over decades?In this episode, I unpack Principles by Ray Dalio
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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56:56
Suzanne Heywood | From Shipwreck to Boardroom Leadership (SPARK20 - 133)
What does it take to turn extreme adversity into extraordinary leadership? Suzanne Heywood’s life reads like a novel—shipwrecked at seven, isolated at sea for a decade, forging her fathe...
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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21:26
EP 154 - Kristina Levan: Why Life-Saving Therapies Aren’t Reaching Patients—And How to Fix It
ATMPs, gene therapies, and cancer breakthroughs are here—but outdated regulations, high costs, and logistical bottlenecks are blocking access. What needs to change for hospitals to deliver these cures to patients who need them most?💡 ...
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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1:51:29
EP 153 - Christopher Uhde: The Biotech IPO Boom is Over. Now What?
In 2021, biotech IPOs were soaring. Valuations hit record highs. Investors were throwing money at anything that moved.Then… the market crashed. Funding dried up. Growth stalled. Biotech founders and investors were left scrambling....
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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2:02:20
EP 152 - Alex Dang: Billion-Dollar Bets: Why VC’s Best Decisions Go Against the Crowd
🚀 Most investors chase consensus. The best ones? They bet against it.If everyone agrees on an investment, it’s probably not bold enough. That’s why the greatest venture capitalists don’t just follow trends—they seek out the hidden...
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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2:06:51
#151: Mastering Uncertainty – 7 Venture Secrets to Thriving in Chaos
What if your greatest asset in business was how you think under pressure?In this episode, I dive into The Venture Mindset by ...
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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46:53
Dan Bowyer: Rethinking Venture Capital with Superseed VC (SPARK 20 – 125)
What does it take to redefine venture capital while empowering founders to disrupt industries and drive meaningful change? Meet Dan Bowyer, a bold investor from Superseed VC ...
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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23:14
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EP 150: 2024 in Review: 9 Bold Steps Toward a Brighter 2025
What makes a year unforgettable? Is it the challenges conquered, the bold ideas pursued, or the connections that shaped us?As 2024 comes to a close, this special episode celebrates the lessons, breakthroughs, and visionary insights that ...
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Season 5
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Episode 35
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1:24:26
EP 149: Marina Schmidt - How Do We Feed 10 Billion People Without Destroying the Planet?
Our global food systems are at a breaking point. Climate change, geopolitical tensions, and industrial farming are pushing us closer to food insecurity every day. Can we find a way to feed 10 billion people while safeguarding the planet?...
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Season 5
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Episode 34
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2:04:31
Doerte Hirschberg: Investing in Climate Solutions and Transforming Industries (SPARK20 - 114)
What does it take to tackle the world's biggest challenge—climate change—while driving profit and innovation? Meet Doerte Hirschberg, a visionary investor reshaping industries ...
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Season 5
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Episode 33
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22:11
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#148: Think Long-Term, Thrive Always: 7 Lessons From Investing Titans
What if your greatest advantage in business was how you think about the future?In this episode, I explore Richer, Wiser, Happier by William Green, unpacking seven actionable lessons inspired by legendary investors like Warren Bu...
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Season 5
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Episode 32
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41:09
SPARK 20 - 109: Philipp Baaske, CEO of Nanotemper
What does it take to lead a global biotech company tackling diseases like cancer and Alzheimer’s—and still treat every team member, from executives to production staff, as equals?In this 20-minute highlight episode, we meet
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Season 5
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Episode 31
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20:28
EP 147: DC Palter - Why Startups Face the 'Pit of Hell': The Truth About Securing Funding
Startups promise innovation, but why do so many fail to secure the funding they need?Investors demand results before committing, yet startups require resources to build. This paradox leaves founders stuck in what angel investor DC Palter...
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Season 5
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Episode 30
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2:30:22
EP 146: Bio Europe - Will Europe’s Biotech Future Survive? Inside the Funding and Talent Exodus
Europe’s biotech sector is facing a crisis: despite its scientific achievements, it struggles with funding gaps and an exodus of top talent to the US. As biotech innovations drive global healthcare, Europe risks losing its edge—and the potentia...
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Season 5
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Episode 29
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50:21
EP 145: Shlomo Noy - Why Healthcare Innovation Fails Without the Right Strategy
Healthcare investment is booming, but why do so few initiatives actually deliver lasting impact? While funding flows into biotech and life sciences, many leaders overlook the complex strategies needed to bridge research and real-world applicati...
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Season 5
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Episode 28
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2:18:41
#144: 9 Life-Changing Principles from Charlie Munger: Smarter Investing and Decision-Making
What if you could rewire your thinking to solve life’s toughest problems? In this episode, we dive into Charlie Munger's timeless insights from Poor Charlie's Almanack, revealing 9 core principles for smarter investing, better decision...
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Season 5
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Episode 27
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1:35:40
EP 143: Jordi Ferrer Rendé - Is Healthcare Destroying the Planet? The Shocking Truth About CO2 Emissions
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing healthcare, but what if the real danger lies in the industry's carbon footprint?Despite healthcare’s purpose of saving lives, the industry contributes up to 10% of CO2 emissions in developed cou...
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Season 5
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Episode 26
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2:05:26
EP 142: Angeli Moeller - Why AI Isn’t Transforming Healthcare Like It Should
Artificial intelligence is heralded as the future of healthcare, but why do so many innovations fail to make a tangible impact? Despite the hype, countless companies are missing critical opportunities to leverage AI effectively. What’s ...
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Season 5
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Episode 25
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2:10:31
EP 141: Alessandro Morra - How AI-Powered Robotics Will Transform Security—Are You Prepared for the Future?
Many companies today face increasing security challenges, yet few are leveraging the power of AI and robotics to protect their most critical assets. But what if these groundbreaking technologies could not only reduce costs but also provide a mo...
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Season 5
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Episode 24
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1:50:46
#140: Customer Obsession Isn’t Enough—What Jeff Bezos Knows That Most Leaders Miss
What’s the secret to building a trillion-dollar company from scratch? In this episode, we uncover Jeff Bezos' game-changing strategies from Invent and Wander, revealing how Amazon became a global powerhouse....
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Season 5
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Episode 23
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1:29:50
EP 139 - Marc Penkala - Why European Startups Must Think Bigger: Lessons from a Top VC on Turning Failure into Fortune
Many European startups are trapped in a mindset that limits their potential, aiming for millions when they should be thinking in billions. But what if this conservative approach is holding them back from global success? In this episode, Marc Pe...
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Season 5
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Episode 22
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1:59:07
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