Just Grow With It with Natalie Barbu

Latest Episodes:

Inside Forbes 30 Under 30: The Truth About Making the List Dec 22, 2025

Show notes

Ever wondered what it really takes to make the Forbes 30 Under 30 list? In this candid conversation, we sit down with Zoya Hasan, Forbes editor and curator of the iconic list, to uncover the real process, the myths, and the hustle behind the headlines. From her journey as a chemistry major to leading one of the most competitive lists in the world, Soya shares insider stories, the importance of resilience, and why not everything you hear about Forbes 30 Under 30 is true. Whether you’re an aspiring founder, a young professional, or just curious about what goes on behind the scenes, this episode is packed with insights on entrepreneurship, hustle culture, and the power of networking. We also dive into the infamous “under 30 to prison pipeline,” the role of diversity, and what makes a founder truly stand out. 00:00 Intro 02:39 Interview Begins: Zoya's Journey to Forbes 06:39 The Real Forbes 30 Under 30 Selection Process 14:39 Debunking Myths: Can You Pay to Get on the List? 22:39 What Makes a Standout Founder & The Role of Hustle Culture 32:39 Zoya's Advice for Aspiring Founders & Closing Thoughts Follow Zoya: https://www.linkedin.com/in/byzoyahasan/

Thanks to Squarespace for sponsoring todays video. Use code NATALIEBARBU or go to https://squarespace.com/nataliebarbu to get 10% off your domain or first purchase.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

5 Businesses You Should AVOID Starting in 2026 (And Why!) Dec 03, 2025

Show notes

Thinking of starting a business in 2026? In this episode, I break down the business models I’d avoid, from influencer marketplaces to novelty AI startups. Learn from my experience, discover what makes a business sustainable, and get tips for success in the new year. Share your thoughts in the comments and don’t forget to subscribe for more founder insights every week! Subscribe to my substack: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com 00:00 - Intro: 2026, Year of the Entrepreneur 01:17 - Why I Wouldn’t Start an Influencer Marketplace 03:45 - The Problem with Targeting Enterprise First 06:52 - Recurring Revenue: Why It’s Essential 08:58 - The Harsh Truth About Social Media Startups 12:00 - Novelty AI Startups: A Cautionary Tale 13:45 - Final Thoughts & Community Q&A

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

6 Lessons That SAVED My Business in 18 Minutes 💡📈🚀 Nov 26, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, I reflect on the monumental lessons learned in 2025 as a founder and creator. Get 10% off your Squarespace purchase using code NATALIEBARBU or go to https://squarespace.com/nataliebarbu From nearly shutting down to hitting $2M ARR, I share the real, raw journey of building Rella, the power of niching down, why customer obsession is more than a buzzword, and how staying small can be your biggest advantage. Plus, I reveal the #1 trait every founder needs to succeed (hint: it’s not what you think). Sign up for my substack: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/ If you’re ready to grow, learn, and get inspired for the year ahead, hit subscribe and join the community. Share your biggest lessons from this year in the comments! Timestamps and key takeaways below 👇 00:00 – Intro & Year-End Reflections 02:00 – The Turning Point: From Near Shutdown to $2M ARR 04:24 – Lesson 1: Niching Down Saved Us 07:15 – Saying No to Grow 09:07 – Sponsor: Squarespace 10:21 – Lesson 2: Customer Obsession in Action 13:20 – Lesson 3: Small Teams, Big Results 16:00 – Stop Comparing Your Journey 18:30 – The Power of Consistency 20:30 – Final Thoughts & What’s Next

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We Spent 2 Years (and $1 Million) Building the Wrong Product! - Here's What We Learned Nov 19, 2025

Show notes

What does product-market fit really look like? In this episode, I share the raw, unfiltered story of how we spent two years building the wrong product, the painful lessons we learned, and how we finally found true product-market fit with Rella. You’ll hear about the metrics that fooled us, the pivots that saved us, and the real signals that your product is actually working. If you’re a founder, creator, or just curious about the startup journey, this episode is for you. Timestamps and chapters below! 00:00 – What is Product-Market Fit, Really? 02:34 – The Early Days: Rella 1.0 and False Signals 06:26 – The Slack & Figma Stories: Real Product-Market Fit 10:20 – Vanity Metrics That Fooled Us 14:21 – The Pivot: Rebuilding from Scratch 18:07 – How to Know When to Pivot vs. Persevere 21:00 – Metrics That Actually Matter 23:41 – What to Do After You Find Product-Market Fit 25:38 – Final Thoughts & Where to Find Me Subscribe for more honest founder stories and business growth tips. Subscribe to my Substack: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From 200+ NOs to $1 Million: The Real Startup Fundraising Journey Nov 05, 2025

Show notes

After 200+ investor rejections, we finally raised $1M for our startup. In this episode, I share the real story behind our fundraising journey, lessons learned, and practical tips for founders facing rejection. Whether you’re starting out or deep in the process, this is the advice I wish I had.

Timestamps: 0:00 — Introduction & Podcast Background 3:30 — Fundraising Journey: Rella’s Pre-Seed Story 8:15 — Reflections on Fundraising vs. Bootstrapping 11:06 — How to Pitch: Storytelling & Investor Outreach 21:08 — Tactics: Finding, Contacting, and Tracking Investors 27:48 — Mindset, Rejection, and Getting the First Check 30:08 — Alternative Funding & Closing Thoughts Sign up for my newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We Burned $1M Before Learning This Pricing Lesson (Don’t Make Our Mistake) Oct 29, 2025

Show notes

Welcome to "Just Grow With It"! In this episode, I share the biggest mistake we made as founders: not charging customers soon enough. We wasted two years and nearly lost our company before learning the hard truth about pricing. If you’re a creator, founder, or entrepreneur, this episode will save you time, money, and heartache.

Newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

00:00 – Why not charging was our biggest mistake

01:00 – The myth of traction vs. real revenue

02:30 – Why free users rarely convert to paid

04:00 – Our failed freemium launch and what went wrong

06:20 – The painful pivot: relaunching with a paywall

08:00 – How charging saved our business

09:30 – Should you charge from day one?

11:00 – Free trial vs. freemium vs. paid: what works

13:00 – The psychology of pricing and perceived value

15:00 – How to set your price and test your model

16:30 – Final lessons and advice for founders

If you enjoyed this episode, don’t forget to subscribe, leave a review, and sign up for my newsletter for more founder stories and lessons every week!

Get 10% off your first purchase using code NATALIEBARBU or go to https://squarespace.com/nataliebarbu

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How We Hit $1M ARR in 11 Months: The Real Secret to Finding Customers Oct 21, 2025

Show notes

In this episode, I reveal the real secret to finding your first customers and how we scaled to $1M ARR in less than 11 months. Get actionable steps for startup growth, customer acquisition, and building a loyal audience.

00:00 - Intro & Why Finding Customers Is Hard

01:10 - The Customer Adoption Lifecycle

05:30 - Focusing on Early Adopters

09:21 - Squarespace Sponsor

10:30 - Steps to Find Your First Customers

18:00 - The Power of Social Media & Viral Growth

23:00 - Cold Outreach & Referral Programs

29:00 - Lessons Learned & Final Thoughts

Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share if you found this helpful!

Get 10% off your first Squarespace order by using code NATALIEBARBU or go to htps://squarespace.com/nataliebarbu and sign up for my newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How We Built Our MVP in 2 Months: Lessons from Launching a Startup Oct 15, 2025

Show notes

In this episode of "Just Grow With It," I share the real story behind building and launching our MVP (Minimum Viable Product) — from taking a whole year the first time to just two months the second time around. Learn the biggest mistakes founders make, why launching early matters, how to get your first users, and what to focus on to build a product people actually want. Whether you’re a startup founder, product manager, or just curious about entrepreneurship, this episode is packed with actionable advice and honest lessons from the trenches.

Timestamps / Chapters:
00:00 – Intro: Our MVP Journey
00:19 – Welcome to Just Grow With It
00:36 – What is an MVP?
01:01 – The Earliest Version: Solving the Core Problem
01:20 – Why Start Simple?
01:43 – Our First MVP: The Perfection Trap
02:48 – Launching Too Late: What We Learned
03:09 – Building Fast: Our 2-Month MVP
03:27 – Don’t Overspend: Using AI Tools for MVPs
03:50 – No-Code & AI: Building Without Developers
04:29 – How AI Tools Can Help You Build
04:45 – Simple, But Usable: Avoiding Overcomplication
05:09 – Competing with Big Players
05:27 – Project Management vs. Content Scheduling
05:44 – Finding Your Unique Value
05:45 – Getting Your First Users
06:02 – Why Marketing Matters from Day One
06:20 – Building a Waitlist & Social Sharing
06:41 – Launching to Early Adopters
07:06 – Community Building: Facebook & Slack Groups
07:48 – Treating Your First Customers Well
08:05 – Learning from Real Users
08:24 – What to Look for After Launch
08:41 – Is Your Product Intuitive?
09:08 – Watching Real Users Onboard
09:24 – What Features Do People Actually Use?
09:42 – Decoding Customer Feedback
10:01 – User Experience: Less Clicks, More Value
10:46 – Embracing Feedback & Avoiding Churn
11:29 – Is This a Real Problem or a Nice-to-Have?
12:13 – Going Deep, Not Wide: Focus Your Product
12:50 – Saying No to Feature Creep
13:46 – Our Short-Term Goal: Be the Best at What We Do
14:48 – Q&A and Outro

Subscribe to my newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How to Find the Right Cofounder (and Spot the Red Flags Early) 🚩 Oct 08, 2025

Show notes

65% of startups fail because of co-founder issues—don’t let yours be one of them! In this episode of "Just Grow With It," I share my personal journey as a founder, the hard lessons learned about co-founding, and actionable advice to help you find (and keep) the right co-founder for your business. We’ll cover: The pros and cons of having a co-founder Where to find the right co-founder (even if you don’t know anyone) How to know if your co-founder is “the one” Red flags to watch out for Navigating equity conversations and vesting Legal tips to protect your business Whether you’re just starting out or looking to restructure your founding team, this episode is packed with real stories, practical tips, and honest advice to help you build a strong foundation for your startup. Timestamps: 00:00 – Why most startups fail: The co-founder dilemma 00:18 – Welcome to Just Grow With It 00:36 – My co-founder story: The early days of Rella 01:15 – Do you really need a co-founder? 02:20 – The pros and cons of co-founders 03:55 – Emotional support and shared responsibility 04:50 – The cost of giving up equity 05:50 – Control, decision-making, and team dynamics 06:30 – Picking the wrong co-founder: Why it’s so risky 07:13 – Where to find your co-founder: Networks, events, and online 09:48 – How to know if your co-founder is the right fit 11:00 – Red flags: Communication, trust, ego, and motivation 14:16 – The equity conversation: How to split and vest 17:05 – Legal musts: Vesting, agreements, and lawyers 18:49 – Final thoughts and community shoutout

Subscribe to my newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 Harsh Truths I Learned the Hard Way as a Founder 🚫📉👀 (watch this before launching your business) Sep 30, 2025

Show notes

We spent two years and a million dollars building the wrong product. The first 500 people to use my link in the description or scan the QR code will receive a one month free trial of Skillshare! Get started today! https://skl.sh/nataliebarbu09251

In this episode of "Just Grow With It," I break down the essential steps every founder should take before starting a business—so you can avoid our mistakes and set yourself up for success. Whether you’re a creator, entrepreneur, or aspiring founder, you’ll learn how to validate your idea, find your niche customer, structure your team, and launch with confidence.

🔔 Subscribe for more founder stories, business tips, and real talk about building startups: https://www.youtube.com/@NatalieBarbu 📧 Sign up for my weekly newsletter: https://thegrowthlist.substack.com/

Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro: Our $1M Mistake & What We Learned 00:35 – Welcome to Just Grow With It 00:51 – The Rella Story: Launching & Learning 01:17 – Subscribe & Newsletter Shoutout 01:49 – Step 1: Write Out Your Idea 02:40 – Why Writing Clarifies Your Vision 04:00 – The Power of Clear Messaging 04:22 – Sponsor: Skillshare 06:01 – Step 2: Tell Everyone About Your Idea 07:04 – Who to Listen to (and Who Not To) 08:08 – Building Community & Getting Feedback 09:25 – Defining Co-Founder Roles & Equity 10:41 – Why Roles & Equity Matter Early 12:21 – Step 3: Find Your Niche Customer 13:16 – The Dangers of Building for Everyone 14:36 – Is Your Market Big Enough? 15:16 – Step 4: Funding Your Business 15:55 – Choosing the Right Funding Path 16:55 – Step 5: Charge Early & Validate 17:54 – Why Monetization Can’t Wait 18:58 – Step 6: Launch Quickly & Simply 20:24 – MVPs & Starting Small 21:08 – Your Startup Checklist 21:32 – What Happens After Launch? 21:52 – Outro & Next Steps

If you found this episode helpful, please like, comment your questions, and subscribe for new episodes every Wednesday!

#StartupTips #Entrepreneurship #JustGrowWithIt #BusinessAdvice #Founders #StartupMistakes #HowToStartABusiness

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

Just Grow With It with Natalie Barbu

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected