{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"When You\u2019re in a Hole: Tony Stubblebine on the Strategy, Psychology, and Lessons of a Business Turnaround","description":"In this episode, I\u2019m digging into the messy reality of business turnarounds, the kind where survival isn\u2019t guaranteed and leadership is more about doing the hard, boring things than dazzling with big ideas. My guest is Tony Stubblebine, CEO of Medium, whose recent post \u201cFell Into a Hole and Got Out\u201d made the rounds for being one of the most honest and actionable stories about company rescue I\u2019ve ever read. Tony\u2019s background runs deep: founder of Coach.me, architect of the Better Humans publication. This is what it\u2019s really like to take over a company bleeding millions, shrinking fast, and staring down insolvency. But it\u2019s also a story about staying steady, balancing the financial reality with the need to restore quality, purpose, and confidence to a battered team. There\u2019s no sugar-coating here, just real talk about layoffs, difficult investor negotiations, and why the business model has to come before your \u201cnext big thing.\u201d Tony walks us through the psychological and strategic ladder he and his team built, one rung at a time, to claw Medium back from the brink. He shares candid lessons for founders, hard truths about startup mythologies, and the personal practices that kept him sane when the stakes were highest. Here\u2019s what we cover: The \u201chole\u201d no one talks about: what it\u2019s really like to inherit a company in crisis Brutal financial realities, cutting costs, and restoring a culture\u2019s sense of purpose Why the business model now comes before the product The Goldilocks problem of innovation and finding the \u201cjust right\u201d middle ground How to negotiate with investors when a prior deal is dead and nobody wants to say it out loud Lessons on hiring, layoffs, and having the hard conversations with a team that\u2019s seen too many pivots The psychological \u201cladder\u201d out, how to focus everyone on small wins The power of slow, steady self-improvement (meditation, journaling, therapy) for surviving big challenges Why Tony thinks each of us, just by living our lives, accumulate wisdom that can help others This is more than a highlight reel, it's a toolkit for anyone who\u2019s had to make the tough calls or wondered if they could. Enjoy the show.   ","author_name":"Bounce! Conversations with Larry Weeks","author_url":"http:\/\/www.larryweeks.com\/podcasts\/","html":"