What if the setbacks you face early in life are the exact fuel you need to build a legacy of lasting leadership? In this episode, Scott talks with Ziff Davis CEO Vivek Shah about the power of personal vision, bootstrapped ambition, and the habits that keep him grounded as a leader of 4,000+ people. From stacks of rejection letters to transforming a single tech site into a billion-dollar portfolio, Vivek shares how strategic self-management laid the foundation for exponential growth and how he leads with clarity, confidence, and heart.

(02:04) Vivek’s leap: Leaving Time Inc. to buy Ziff Davis
(03:36) Scaling from 50 employees to 4,000
(06:42) Why vision alone wasn’t the goal — and what really drove the deal
(10:47) The grind: rejection letters, temp jobs, and relentless effort
(17:32) Fortune Americas: How 24-year-old Vivek invented something big
(19:28) Confidence vs. calculated risk: How he bootstrapped bold ideas
(27:04) Lessons from journalism icon John Huey
(29:29) Vivek’s high-leverage routine: squash and the roles that matter most
(34:00) Proportionality: Taking bad news in stride and keeping perspective
(37:32) Reality + hope: Connecting the dots in uncertain environments
(46:58) Pattern recognition as a strategy superpower
(49:36) What Vivek’s listening to: Podcasts, R.E.M., and deep cuts

Check out Ziff Davis: ziffdavis.com

Connect with Vivek on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/vivekshah2/

👉 Connect with Scott Eblin
Website: www.eblingroup.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/scotteblin

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