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The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

E141: Classpass Founder: Quitting My 9-5 Led To A $1 Billion Business: Payal Kadakia

The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett

FlightStory

Society & Culture, Business, Education

4.613.2K Ratings

🗓️ 9 May 2022

⏱️ 73 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Payal is the founder of Classpass, the app that’s helped millions of users find their passion. Her own love of dancing encouraged her to start a business which enabled anyone, anywhere to find something they loved to do.

When Payal’s parents moved to America with no money and no connections, they had to completely start their life from scratch. Payal grew up in a home where her mother often wasn’t home, working late-night shifts to keep her family going. 

How far Payal has come. Today she shares exactly how she got there. The sheer determination with which she ruthlessly sets her goals and priorities, and then systematically chases after them with everything she’s got, was hugely inspiring to me, and I’m sure it will be to you too.


Topics:

  • What made you different?
  • Batling between your passion and 9-5 job
  • Rebelling for your purpose
  • Changing careers and finding new communities
  • Confidence, purpose, and drive to success
  • Why did you start ClassPass?
  • What difficulties did you face starting your business?
  • Living in line with your values
  • What were you like as a manager?
  • Why did you step away from Classpass?
  • Work and family balance
  • Therapy sessions
  • Our last guest’s question


Payal:

https://twitter.com/payalkadakia

https://www.instagram.com/payal


Payal's book: 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/LifePass-Groundbreaking-Approach-Goal-Setting/dp/1399706756


Watch the episodes on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDiaryOfACEO/videos


Follow us on Telegram: https://t.me/diaryofaceo


Sponsors:

Huel - https://my.huel.com/Steven

Myenergi - https://bit.ly/3oeWGnl

Vodafone Business - https://bit.ly/3NIM35n

https://bit.ly/3AuPKsA

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Could you do me a quick favor if you're listening to this please hit the follow or subscribe button

0:03.6

It helps more than you know and we invite subscribers in every month to watch the show

0:07.1

I think society goes successes get this job get married get a house

0:11.9

What does that do to you? It just really makes your life feel small the founder of class boss and monthly fitness program a billion dollar

0:19.9

Founder file

0:22.1

When I would watch my parents not really fit in it sort of made me realize maybe I don't fit it and then be told I

0:28.8

Smelt or I didn't belong somewhere. Everyone wanted to box me into something and I just refused to be boxed

0:36.4

Who spent half a million dollars building a product that didn't work was I exhausted?

0:41.9

Yes, was I

0:43.4

Lonely yeah, I missed family things I missed weddings. I was just not around

0:47.9

I have learned at this point like time means more to me than money

0:51.6

I want to make sure my priorities are more reflective of the human I want to be in my life

0:55.4

If you go towards purpose I guarantee your life will be more fulfilling do you believe that everybody has a purpose beyond the nine to five?

1:02.9

I do. How do you find it? So first of all

1:07.3

So without further ado, I'm Stephen Bartlett and this is the Diro of a CEO USA edition

1:13.0

I hope nobody's listening, but if you are then please keep this yourself

1:25.9

When I read someone's story one of the first questions I try and answer when I'm reading through that especially that early is is I'm trying to identify

1:32.5

What it is that made them either an anomaly or?

1:36.6

Hungry I have a kind of a thesis that much of people's drive and their ambition especially the people that I sit here with comes from kind of some kind of pain or trauma or early experience that molded them

1:47.8

So my question to you is what made you hungry?

1:52.6

You know when I was younger I got to taste something that was so magical which was

1:59.0

dance and

...

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