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Arman Assadi is on a mission to democratize wisdom. He is the founder and CEO of Steno.ai, where he is building an AI-driven business platform to extract market intelligence from podcasts and video content. He is also the co-host of the Alfalfa podcast, a top 50 Business News show, and host of FLOW with Arman Assadi.
In his previous ventures, Arman raised over $1 million on crowdfunding for the record-breaking EVO Planner™ and created the Elements Assessment™ and Brain Type Assessment™ personality tests, which have been taken by over 1 million people.
As the chief strategist behind 13 separate 7-figure product launches, Arman has generated tens of millions of dollars for startups, celebrity thought leaders, influencers, pro athletes, and NYT bestselling authors.
His accomplishments led him to be featured on the cover of Foundr Magazine, alongside prominent figures such as Richard Branson, Mark Cuban, Gary Vaynerchuk, and Arianna Huffington.
I’m delighted to meet you. Connecting with new people is one of my favorite things because, ultimately, all we are left with is our experiences and relationships. This little moment is special to me.
The fact that we exist is a miracle. And I intend to enjoy this experience as much as possible. At the root of my being lies an insatiable hunger for knowledge. And life itself.
However, let me be clear — I was not born with all this hunger. A piece of it may be innate. But as far as I can tell, most of it is a product of circumstance. It manifested through challenges, traumas, and even tragedy. And for that, I am grateful.
Today, this means I pursue what I find fascinating and meaningful. I have learned to fall in love with the process and believe that the conventional definition of success is one of the biggest and most dangerous lies ever sold.
I continually attempt to align my efforts toward a single north star — ”what would I do if money were no object?”
After years and years of being obsessed with achievement, I’ve learned a very difficult lesson. Something only the great masters of the world truly know and embody. I no longer believe in having an external purpose as a primary vehicle for meaning. And I don’t care how many blogs, books, or internet gurus insist on me having one. What I care about is my moment-to-moment experience and state of fulfillment. And I believe this only comes through the acceptance of this very moment. Through the power of flow.
Then — and only then — after you have accepted this moment, and perhaps even begun to find joy in it, can one even begin to think about having an external purpose. In other words, it all begins and ends with realizing who you really are. Otherwise, life will be spent on the roller coaster hamster wheel of achievement-oriented success that society has created for you. I am completely done with that lie. It’s a hard pass for me.
I’ve always been a bit of a non-conformist and can be quite philosophical. Think Dumbledore from Harry Potter — just as good-looking, a little younger, with a few more magical powers.
What I truly enjoy most in life is connecting with others. Nothing lights me up more than seeing someone have an aha moment. If I wasn’t learning, sharing, and helping people I’d feel empty inside. In fact, for a while, I was. Honestly, I was just trying to survive and get through it all. I had very few positive figures in my life and was disconnected from my potential. At times this resulted in cynicism, but deep down I continued believing there was more for me and developed a strong will and rational optimism.
I had my first awakening experience at the age of 16. From that point, I began applying myself and developing my conscientiousness. Eventually, I got into a decent university (SDSU), and after a lifetime of disliking school, I suddenly loved it. I found myself deeply engaged in Socratic and self-directed learning. I immediately became the most active, passionate person in the classroom.
This opened many doors, one that led to a special opportunity to get a high-level job at 3M upon graduating. I moved to New York City, lived in the heart of Manhattan (East Village 4 Life!) for 2 unforgettable years before I got recruited and was offered a dream job at Google at the headquarters in California.
The first year or so was great. But things changed in our organization and the non-conformist inside me wanted to continue growing. Eventually, I had no choice but to break it all apart and leave my “successful” life.
I quit my six-figure job at Google, bought a ticket to Cuba, and drank Hemingway daiquiris until I found myself in a semi-intoxicated, inspired state and decided I was going to become a “solopreneur”. I had no business idea, no backup plan, and zero technical experience.
Somehow, I survived. Barely. At one point I had $18 USD in my bank account and tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt. I was living in San Francisco, one of the most expensive cities in the world, trying to survive as a brand new, inexperienced solopreneur.
It was incredibly challenging. But I knew all I needed was time.
Time to learn the rules of the new game, but more importantly, time to discover many of the things I’ve mentioned to you above. That none of that stuff really matters and that everything is actually okay. In fact…
By now, you might be getting a sense of who I am. People often tell me I’m an “old soul”. My favorite movie is Midnight in Paris, so this adds up.
I have a lot of sides to my personality and love connecting with just about anybody as I travel the world — young students in Myanmar, aspiring country music singers in Nashville, brutally honest New Yorkers, mountain-climbing locals in Tanzania, curious backpackers from Scandinavia, traditional hikers in Salzburg, smiling rickshaw drivers in Cambodia, future Presidents in South Africa — it doesn’t matter. I’ve learned that everyone has an incredible story and if you’re curious and genuine enough they just might share it with you.
Which makes me realize… that is more than enough about me. Now I’d love to learn about you.
What’s your story?
What makes you excited?
What are you working on?
How can I help?
