nonlinear

Epizodes

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  From Canva PM to seven-figure design studio | Audrey T 20.07.2026 39min

  Audrey runs Mapo Studio, offering product design for AI-first startups and scaleups like Heidi Health, Relevance AI, Eucalyptus and Lorikeet. She's also grown to over 100K followers across social media platforms, posting about working in tech, freelancing and running a business. In this episode, Audrey and Saurav talk about the importance of asking for what you want, what good AI product design looks like, the mindset you need to be a content creator and increasing your surface area for luck.Timestamps:00:00 - Cold open00:54 - Introduction02:29 - Childhood and early lessons05:03 - Early career experimentation08:24 - What makes good product design09:47 - The freelancing journey13:38 - Working at Lorikeet16:20 - Relaunching Mapo Studio18:33 - Why chat is a lazy default in AI product design21:02 - A week in Audrey's life22:08 - Habits for successful content creation28:49 - Retirement as freedom from money-first decisions31:21 - The importance of luck33:19 - Writing cold emails that work37:00 - nonlinear's 3 closing questions
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  From VC investor to debut novelist | Jessy Wu 07.07.2026 46min

  Jessy Wu spent seven years as a management consultant and VC investor before walking away to do two things: start a business and write a novel. A year and a half later, she's done both — running her comms agency, Encour, and publishing her debut novel, Good Intentions.In this episode, Jessy and Saurav talk about why she left a stable career in finance to chase writing, how she turned her real experience in VC, consulting, and journalism into fiction, why she's willing to be a "trailblazer and a firebrand" on LinkedIn even when it invites backlash and how she's trying to make a full-time career as a writer.Timestamps:00:00 - Cold open and Intro03:42 - Early reactions to Good Intentions05:10 - The pivot from VC/consulting into the arts 08:24 - The intersection of art and commerce11:39 - How Jessy's experiences shaped Good Intentions13:00 - The purpose of good writing17:29 - The early drafts of Good Intentions20:26 - The writing and publishing process28:08 - Personal branding and being outspoken online31:59 - Making a career as a writer39:38 - What's next40:59 - Advice for anyone with a creative itch and a corporate job43:52 - nonlinear's 3 closing questions
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  From redundancy to 600K+ podcast listeners | Vidit Agarwal 15.06.2026 1h

  Vidit Agarwal is the Founder & CEO of Curiosity Centre, an Insights, Marketing & Consulting Firm trusted across the USA, Australia, India and New Zealand. He also hosts The High Flyers podcast, releasing over 250 episodes with senior leaders in tech, government, sports and beyond.But the path here was anything but linear. A below-average ATAR, a pathway diploma at RMIT, three years at Coles, a quick jump into startup land, a stint at P&G and then a move to Sydney just weeks before COVID hit — losing two jobs in eight weeks in a city where he barely knew anyone.That was the fuel to start The High Flyers Podcast, the lockdown project that soon became a calling.Timestamps:00:00 — Introduction03:00 — Vidit's formative years 05:15 — Vidit's influences growing up08:15 — A low ATAR and finding the "third door"13:30 — The Coles internship16:24 — What a mentor saw in Vidit in his early career20:20 — Heading to startup land22:30 — The P&G experience at Gillette24:30 — Moving to Sydney; COVID and two lost jobs26:00 — Why he started the High Flyers Podcast30:35 — The craft of interviewing: curiosity-first 37:30 — How Vidit's concept of a "high-flyer" has evolved39:40 — Building The Curiosity Centre49:10 — Balancing the different verticals of The Curiosity Centre51:00 — The value of having a financial safety net56:00 — Luck and the surface area of opportunity57:30 — nonlinear's 3 ending questions
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  Build Australia, startup marketing and sabbaticals | Franko Ali 01.06.2026 1h 9min

  Franko Ali has spent over a decade in marketing and storytelling, from growing YouTube channels at Discovery Media in San Francisco to brand-building for one of Australia's leading venture capital firms. This year, he's taking a sabbatical to reset while still staying in motion. He's helping to launch Build Australia: a grassroots movement turning collective anxiety about the future into something optimistic.Timestamps:00:00 - Opening highlight and introduction01:39 - The link between marketing and optimism03:50 - Growing up in California, Steiner schools and accidental stoicism10:13 - How the early internet influenced Franko17:30 - Going viral on Facebook while in college19:00 - Franko's early career in media at Discovery25:24 - The move to Australia29:44 - Finding community as an outsider32:15 - Working in tech and VC in Australia45:00 - Franko's sabbatical experience49:08 - Build Australia: turning anxiety into a national optimism movement59:27 - AI content overload and the fear of losing our humanity1:04:12 - nonlinear's 3 ending questions---🎙 ABOUT NONLINEARnonlinear is the podcast about the messy, winding path to doing meaningful work. Each episode, host Saurav Risbud sits down with someone who took an unconventional route, whether that's starting a company, taking a sabbatical, or finding meaning beyond a job title.Subscribe and share with someone who's figuring out their next move.