Polina M. Pompliano - How to master the art of asking insanely great questions!

👉🏼 About the Guest:

Polina Marinova Pompliano (131K followers!) is the founder of The Profile, a new media company that features long-form profiles of successful people and companies each week. Previously, she spent five years at FORTUNE where she wrote more than 1,300 articles and earned the trust of prominent investors and entrepreneurs.

As the author and editor of Term Sheet, FORTUNE’s industry-leading dealmaking newsletter, Polina interviewed the industry’s most influential dealmakers, including Melinda Gates, Steve Case, Chamath Palihapitiya, Alexis Ohanian, and more. She is the author of Hidden Genius, a phenomenal book where she deconstructed and unpacked the habits and mindsets of the world's most successful people so you can navigate how to live and lead a fulfilling life.

👉🏼 About the Host:

Sharath is a founder, creator, and community builder. He is also a serial maker who built and shipped 15+ projects using no-code tools. His SaaS product Shoutout generated $30k ARR, which was sold to a UK-based product studio. Prev, Sharath worked for world-changing startups like Product Hunt and On Deck, where he helped build and nurture communities. He also grew his audience on Twitter from 200 to 22,000 using give-first principles and creating high-value content. Currently, he is the Head of Community + Brand at Threado, building a side project called GuestLab, and runs a newsletter called YC Founder Stories alongside hosting this podcast.

👉🏼 Sponsor Corner:

Shoutout to Acquire.com for being the first sponsor of The Undefeated Underdogs podcast! They’re the best online marketplace to buy/sell startups and I know many founders who have sold their businesses there. If you're looking to wind down your business and cash in some of your founder chips, check them out - https://try.acquire.com/sharath/

👉🏼 Description:

Tune in as Sharath and Polina discuss growing as a journalist, the importance of being uncomfortable, and creating as an immigrant.

👉🏼 Timestamps:

• 00:00: Episode Highlight
• 00:40: Shoutout to Acquire.com
• 04:07: Introduction to Polina
• 05:17: Polina's sideways journey to journalism
• 09:07: Introversion in the world of journalism
• 10:20: Mastering the art of research
• 14:18: Creating an excellent interview out of research rabbit holes
• 17:59: Going from thoughts -> the perfect article
• 20:41: How to choose the best people for profiles
• 22:15: Polina's biggest life challenges
• 26:14: What Polina has in common with her 8-year-old self
• 25:41: Do one thing every day that sucks
• 30:53: The art of asking great questions
• 34:40: Different definitions of success
• 36:52: Imposter syndrome is different for everyone
• 41:41: How humans should push their own boundaries
• 47:58: Being comfortable with being uncomfortable
• 49:28: What makes a human a top performer?
• 50:22: Rapid Fire 5 round

👉🏼 Resources:

• Get Hidden Genius book: https://www.amazon.com/Hidden-Genius-secret-thinking-successful/dp/1804090034⁠
• James Clear: https://twitter.com/JamesClear
• Sara Blakely, the Self-Made Billionaire: https://theprofile.substack.com/p/the-profile-dossier-sara-blakely
• Francis Ngannou, MMA champion: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Ngannou

👉🏼 Where to find Polina:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/polina_marinova
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/polinampompliano/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/polinamarinova/
• Substack: https://theprofile.substack.com/

👉🏼 Where to find Sharath:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/5harath
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@5harath
• Website: https://5harath.com/
• Newsletter: https://5harath.substack.com/