Joys of Compounding

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Oct 2026

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This 'podclass' is a series of discussions with the world's best investors, company builders, academics, athletes, artists and human beings devoted to exploring the joys of compounding in all its forms.

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October 26, 20261 hr 32 min

Christian Harrison: From Overcoming a Lost Decade to U.S. Open Champion - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 41]

Our teacher today is Christian Harrison, the reigning Australian Open and US Open men’s doubles champion.  Christian grew up in a tennis family, learning the game from his father and lifelong coach Pat alongside his older brother Ryan, and by 14 he was one of the top-ranked players in the world for his age. Then a misdiagnosed bone infection started a decade of setbacks that included eight major surgeries. What stands out is that he never lost his joy for the game, and that thread runs through the whole conversation.  Rick and Christian talk about what his parents did to keep him going, why he played his first Grand Slam singles win at Wimbledon on a chipped heel bone, his pivot to doubles and grind back up through the Challenger circuit, the partnerships with Evan King and Neal Skupski that took him to two major titles, and how he handles success after so many years defined by adversity.  Please enjoy class with Christian Harrison. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep. The new Pod 6 is a smart mattress cover that fits on any bed and automatically cools or warms each side through the night, with an AI called Autopilot that learns your sleep patterns and adjusts every night to help you get deeper, more restorative sleep. It has nine times the biometric sensors of the Pod 5, tracks heart rate at 99% accuracy compared to a standard ECG, reaches your set temperature 20% faster, and runs on a hub that's half the size and fits under most bed frames. No wearables required. The Pod 6 now starts at $1,999, the lowest starting price Eight Sleep has ever offered, and comes with a 30-day home trial and free returns. Go to https://www.eightsleep.com/joys and use code JOYS for up to $200 off. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠.  Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠  | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Winning the US Open on home soil (00:03:45) Staying relaxed through a two-week tournament (00:05:41) Holding on to joy through doubt and injury (00:08:11) Parenting lessons from Pat and his mom, and midnight fishing trips (00:11:38) Earliest tennis memories in Shreveport(00:13:59) What drew him to the game (00:15:14) His grandfather’s legacy and the family work ethic (00:19:06) Specialization vs. generalization (00:20:54) Growing up a few steps behind his brother Ryan (00:22:13) Early heroes: Sampras and Hewitt (00:23:04) Moving the family from Louisiana to Texas to Bradenton (00:25:10) How the academy model is changing (00:28:26) What makes a father-son coaching relationship work (00:31:21) Why Pat had his sons play doubles as juniors(00:33:01) College tennis vs. turning pro (00:38:05) The first injury: a misdiagnosed bone infection (00:41:44) Nick Bollettieri’s role (00:45:33) Eight major surgeries, and what he’d do differently (00:50:15) Why comparison is negative (00:52:37) Wimbledon 2022 on a broken foot (00:57:05) What he’s learned from Novak Djokovic (01:00:41) How doubles differs from singles (01:03:04) Rebuilding through the Challenger circuit (01:04:24) Breaking through with Evan King (01:07:06) Partnering with Neal Skupski and winning the Australian Open (01:09:22) Why the first major is the hardest (01:11:00) Handling success as a Grand Slam champion (01:14:25) Training and recovery (01:16:01) How to improve your return of serve (01:19:05) Volleys and net play (01:20:08) What made the Bryan brothers so good (01:24:51) What he’s better at today than 10 years ago (01:25:57) How he defines success, and life after tennis

October 7, 20261 hr 0 min

Luca Ferrari, Bending Spoons: Compounding Through Operational Excellence and Acquisitions - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 40]

Our teacher today is Luca Ferrari, co-founder and CEO of Bending Spoons. Luca spent more than a decade quietly building Bending Spoons in Italy into one of the best operators and acquirers of software businesses in the world, and we talk about why going slow early helped, how they hire people who act like owners, why they would happily buy shrinking companies at high returns, how AI lets small teams run big businesses, and what drives him to keep building.  Please enjoy class with Luca Ferrari. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep. The new Pod 6 is a smart mattress cover that fits on any bed and automatically cools or warms each side through the night, with an AI called Autopilot that learns your sleep patterns and adjusts every night to help you get deeper, more restorative sleep. It has nine times the biometric sensors of the Pod 5, tracks heart rate at 99% accuracy compared to a standard ECG, reaches your set temperature 20% faster, and runs on a hub that's half the size and fits under most bed frames. No wearables required. The Pod 6 now starts at $1,999, the lowest starting price Eight Sleep has ever offered, and comes with a 30-day home trial and free returns. Go to https://www.eightsleep.com/joys and use code JOYS for up to $200 off. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠.  Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠  | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:00:53) Becoming the Best Operator in the World (00:03:33) How Bending Spoons Measures Success (00:05:58) Why Bootstrapping Was an Advantage (00:10:30) Aiming for Something Massive (00:13:35) Delayed Gratification (00:14:53) Hiring for Extreme Ownership (00:20:08) Scaling Without Centralizing Decisions (00:25:03) How AI Changes the Work (00:27:23) Why They Buy Instead of Build (00:31:08) Why the Market Fixates on Organic Growth (00:33:31) Ignoring What the Market Likes (00:37:35) Happy to Buy Shrinking Companies (00:40:56) Avoiding the Law of Large Numbers (00:45:09) Reinventing Every Decade (00:49:42) Keeping Ownership as Teams Shrink (00:51:40) Finding the Right Shareholders (00:53:29) Why Going Public Helped (00:55:20) What Drives Luca

September 17, 20261 hr 11 min

America at 250: The Ideas of 1776 - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 39]

Our teachers today are Frank Cogliano, Brendan McConville, and Patrick Griffin, three of the world's leading historians of the American Revolution and contributors to The American Revolution at 250, a new collection of essays Frank edited for UVA Press. Frank, Brendan, and Patrick compare the bicentennial they watched as kids in 1976 with the mood of 2026 and explain why almost nobody saw independence coming in 1774. They make the case that the Revolution succeeded because it paired Enlightenment optimism with a hard-eyed view of human nature, never promising a perfect republic, and they trace how committees built for resistance quietly became a government. They unpack what Dunmore's Proclamation did to the system of slavery, debate whether a country can hold together without its founding myths, and close with Frederick Douglass, a naturalization ceremony at Mount Vernon, and what gives each of them hope for America at 250. Please enjoy class with Frank, Brendan, and Patrick. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Get $500 off when you go to https://www.eightsleep.com/joys and get their biggest discount of the year.  ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠.  Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠  | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:00:53) Episode Intro: America at 250 (00:02:06) A rare combination of humility, humor, and intellect (00:05:06) How the book came together and what 1976 felt like (00:09:45) Watching the tall ships from the Jersey City waterfront (00:16:00) A republic that never aimed for perfection (00:21:19) Jefferson has more faith in us than we have in ourselves (00:24:35) Bewilderment and living through history without knowing it (00:26:02) A golden age of understanding the Revolution's global impact (00:27:13) Was the Revolution inevitable? (00:31:50) How institutions built for resistance became a government (00:36:35) Dunmore's Proclamation and the disruption of slavery (00:44:43) Are founding myths necessary or dangerous? (00:49:37) Anyone can become an American (00:53:23) Holding the tension between ideals and failures (00:58:37) A Case for Redemption and Frederick Douglass (01:02:06) What gives you hope about America right now? (01:09:35) Closing thoughts

August 3, 20261 hr 27 min

A.J. Rohde: Living in the (Software) Limelight [Joys of Compounding, Ep. 38]

Our teacher today is A.J. Rohde, senior partner at Thoma Bravo, one of the largest software-focused private equity funds in the world. A.J. shares stories and lessons learned from his time investing in private equity - including why Thoma Bravo hires tennis players like him, and how playing in a band when he was younger helps make deals happen today. He talks through the fundamental disconnect between software company fundamentals and valuations in the market, and why he expects investors to reallocate toward SaaS when the AI trade cools off. Plus, why Thoma Bravo hires tennis players. Please enjoy class with A.J. Rohde. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by Portrait Analytics - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Use the code JOYS at  for up to $350 off the Pod 5. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠.  Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠  | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:03:24) Why Thoma Bravo Recruits Tennis Players (00:13:45) A Detroit Kid Finding His Sport (00:18:01) Drumming as an Outlet (00:26:08) The Spirit of Philadelphia (00:31:26) Complimenting a Blind Spot (00:35:32) Buying Licenses for Air (00:45:04) Constants Across Five Decades of Software (00:51:00) Underwriting a Ten-Year Hold (00:59:24) The Death of Playbooks (01:05:34) Data That Survives Hype Cycles (01:13:50) Proof of Resilience (01:22:01) How Range Makes a Better Investor

June 29, 20261 hr 31 min

Nilam Ganenthiran: Building a Beacon in the Fog of AI - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 37]

Our teacher today is Nilam Ganenthiran, founder and CEO of Beacon, a centrally managed technology holding company that acquires the vertical software businesses serving the real economy. Nilam shares the immigrant story that shaped him and why trust becomes the scarce resource as AI turns competence into a commodity. He revisits the hard lessons of his eight years building Instacart, from leading in wartime to the morning Amazon bought Whole Foods. And he lays out the thesis behind Beacon, the bet that distribution and trust hold their value even as the cost of building technology falls, and why he sees a holding company as the right vessel to serve the parts of the economy that technology too often forgets. Please enjoy class with Nilam Ganenthiran. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Now through July 12th, get $500 off when you go to https://www.eightsleep.com/joys with Eight Sleep's Fourth of July sale and get their biggest discount of the year. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:04:38) Episode Intro: Nilam Ganenthiran (00:05:46) Why trust outlasts competence in the age of AI (00:07:48) From Kuala Lumpur to Canada (00:11:08) Why Canada (00:14:16) From grocery cashier to P&G to HBS (00:24:09) Parenting, serendipity, and the loss of free play (00:27:11) Joining Instacart and selling a vision (00:30:02) The hard lessons of eight years at Instacart (00:35:24) Leading in wartime (00:39:15) The day Amazon bought Whole Foods (00:45:08) Becoming the unlikely ambassador for an industry (00:47:05) Leaving Instacart and learning to invest at D1 (00:51:29) Building Beacon (01:00:15) Permanent capital (01:03:36) Building a founder-led team (01:10:02) Is software dead (01:14:03) The M&A machine and the operating system (01:19:50) The right tail and the blurring of software and services (01:24:22) Innovating with Main Street customers (01:29:33) Advice for the young and ambitious

May 18, 20261 hr 17 min

Annalise Dragic & Zoe Zhao: Software Pioneers in the Dawn of AI - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 36]

Our teachers today are Annalise Dragic and Zoe Zhao, co-founders of Azlin Software, a next-generation serial acquirer of B2B vertical software companies focused on the providers of essential services and care for families. Annalise and Zoe share how their friendship evolved into a co-founding partnership, the 150 conversations with founders and investors that shaped Azlin from a blank page, and the four values they distilled into the acronym CARE. They explain why they chose family services as their first vertical, what culture-led and technology-led growth look like inside a company of companies, and the role of their AI agent Lumos in keeping the team intentionally lean. The conversation also covers their first acquisition of Fusemetrix, a UK software business serving leisure and attraction operators, the shareholder base they have assembled including Nic Humphries of HG Capital, Mitch Rales, and Will Thorndike, and the equity-efficient permanent capital structure they have designed to align every party for the long term. Please enjoy class with Annalise Dragic and Zoe Zhao. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Use the code JOYS at https://www.eightsleep.com/joys for up to $350 off the Pod 5. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:04:38) Episode Intro: Annalise and Zoe (00:06:00) Friends First, Co-Founders Second (00:07:45) How Annalise and Zoe Met (00:08:53) Should Co-Founders Be Similar or Complementary? (00:10:06) Tech & Investing Backgrounds (00:12:57) Annalise's Journey From LinkedIn to Investing (00:14:08) When Entrepreneurship Took Hold (00:16:29) Building With a Close Friend (00:18:33) Defining & Managing Burnout (00:20:46) Beyond the Resume (00:24:25) The Mentors Behind the Founders (00:27:34) The Nic Humphries Effect (00:29:34) Lessons From Visma (00:31:48) The Co-Founder Questionnaire (00:34:36) Why Choose B2B Software? (00:35:51) The 150-Person Benchmarking Exercise (00:37:14) Pioneering as Female Founders (00:39:25) The Name Behind Azlin (00:40:58) Azlin's Vision in Two Words (00:42:10) Why Acquire, Not Just Invest (00:45:40) What Makes a Great Target (00:46:16) The CARE Values (00:47:44) Investing in Family Services (00:51:28) Culture as a Multiplier (00:53:21) Building AI-Native From Day One (00:58:15) The Case for Equity Efficiency (01:02:49) When AI Isn't the Answer (01:04:58) Surprises From the AI Wave (01:06:52) Aligning Incentives for the Long-Term (01:11:35) Acquiring FuseMetrix (01:12:32) Life After the First Deal (01:14:27) The Levers of Compounding (01:17:24) A Compounder of Compounders

April 27, 20261 hr 12 min

Justin Yoshimura - Resurrecting & Rolling Up Retail - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 35]

Our teacher today is Justin Yoshimura, founder and CEO of CSC Generation, a profitable commerce platform doing over a billion dollars in annual revenue across brands including Sur La Table, Backcountry, and One Kings Lane. As we explore what it takes to build an enduring company in a sector most investors have written off, we turn to Justin's unconventional path, one that challenges familiar assumptions about credentials, capital structure, and the future of retail. Justin shares how he stopped attending school around the age of sixteen and built his own curriculum through entrepreneurship, selling cell phones on eBay as a teenager before founding a loyalty program SaaS company that was acquired by Merkle in his early twenties. He describes the influences that shaped CSC's design, including a Warren Buffett obsessed father and the long term holding company model he watched David Williams build at Merkle, and explains why he rejected the traditional buy and flip playbook in favor of permanent ownership backed by patient, contrarian capital. This special session explores Justin's approach to acquiring retail brands in transition, the AI native operating system called Genesis that has turned loss making companies profitable within the first year of ownership, and the lessons he has carried through COVID, tariffs, and a decade of building a contrarian business in an industry many had written off. Please enjoy class with Justin Yoshimura. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Use the code JOYS at https://www.eightsleep.com/joys for up to $350 off the Pod 5. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:04:20) Episode Intro: Justin Yoshimura (00:07:02) Justin's Early Life and Childhood (00:10:20) Developing an Entrepreneurial Spirit (00:12:08) Building a Cell Phone Marketplace (00:14:39) Resilience as a Skill (00:16:26) Lessons from Y Combinator & Merkle (00:19:25) Why Choose Retail (00:22:12) Brands That Hit a Growth Wall (00:25:18) CSC's Founding Story (00:27:33) Direct Buy: CSC's First Deal (00:29:29) Justin's Fundraising Journey (00:32:15) Navigating the COVID Boom-Bust (00:36:19) Death by a Thousand Cuts in Retail (00:38:06) Competing for Deals (00:40:41) Lessons from the Tariff Shock (00:43:00) Backcountry Case Study (00:45:23) CSC's Genesis Platform (00:49:31) How AI is Changing Companies (00:52:01) Building an AI-First Culture (00:55:57) Hiring Well in the AI Era (00:58:09) Incentive Structures & Retention (01:01:40) Looking Ahead: CSC's Next Decade (01:05:08) Solving the Biggest Risk in Retail (01:08:30) The Decline of Search Traffic to Retailers (01:10:56) Closing Advice for Young People

March 30, 20261 hr 40 min

Brent Beshore - Adventures in Permanent Equity - [Joys of Compounding, EP. 34]

Our teacher today is Brent Beshore, founder and CEO of Permanent Equity, a firm that backs family-owned businesses across North America with no intention of ever selling. As we explore what it means to build enduring companies and live a meaningful life, we turn to Brent’s unconventional path – one that challenges the core assumptions of modern private equity and the incentives that shape it. Brent shares how his background in liberal arts and early experiences with success led him to question the traditional models of achievement, wealth, and performance. He describes why he rejected the “buy, lever, and flip” playbook in favor of permanent ownership, and how designing the right incentives can protect against short-term thinking and misaligned behavior. This special session explores Brent’s journey from studying poverty and politics to building a different kind of investment firm, alongside deeper reflections on faith, introspection, relationships, and the pursuit of the good life. Please enjoy class with Brent Beshore. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here. ----- Become a Colossus member to get our quarterly print magazine and private audio experience, including exclusive profiles and early access to select episodes. Subscribe at ⁠colossus.com/subscribe⁠. ----- This episode is brought to you by https://www.portraitanalytics.ai/ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at https://www.portraitresearch.com ----- This episode is brought to you by Eight Sleep — the Pod is a smart mattress cover designed to improve sleep by automatically cooling or heating your bed throughout the night. Built on the science that your body needs to cool down to reach deep sleep, it tracks your sleep and adjusts in real time to help you get better rest, recovery, and overall sleep quality. No wearables required. Use the code JOYS at https://www.eightsleep.com/joys for up to $350 off the Pod 5. ----- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ colossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@colossusmag Timestamps (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:04:22) Washington & Lee and Finding Mentor Harlan Beckley (00:07:27) Liberal Arts Education in the AI Era (00:09:23) Why Brent Writes and Communicates Online (00:11:40) Being the Same Person Everywhere (00:15:29) Starting the 2025 Letter (00:16:46) Performance Culture and Almost Losing It All (00:18:23) God's Love vs. Performing for Approval (00:21:25) Building Permanent Equity (00:24:54) What is the Good Life? (00:26:56) Joy in Relationships Over Circumstances (00:29:43) Peace, Wholeness, and Lou Holtz on Happiness (00:32:28) Vacation Misery and the Performance Trap (00:34:58) Introspection vs. Rumination (00:37:51) Peter Kaufman's Influence and Compounding Ideas (00:42:31) Studying the Investment Greats (00:55:49) The Notre Dame Meeting That Changed Everything (00:59:36) Self-Education Through Reading and Study (01:09:39) Fee Structure: 2% vs. Performance-Based Incentives (01:13:16) Never Be a Forced Buyer or Seller (01:16:01) Building Your Own Investment Mosaic (01:19:15) Standing Out vs. Becoming a Commodity (01:21:09) AI Transformation in the Last 18 Months (01:24:14) Technology, Inequality, and Human Flourishing (01:28:26) Change Management and Upskilling Teams (01:31:34) Building Community at Main Street Summit (01:37:08) Tennis: From Childhood to Identity Transformation (01:42:40) Closing Reflections on Friendship

November 24, 20251 hr 35 min

Julian Flannery - Building a Medical Miracle Factory - [Joys of Compounding, EP.33]

Our teacher today is Julian Flannery, co-founder and CEO of Summus, a company democratizing access to the world's leading doctors to drive better health outcomes and cost savings for employers and health plans. As we explore the future of human health, we turn to specialty care, where U.S. healthcare's spiraling costs, inadequate speed, and care disparities are most acute. Yet our system's greatest strength remains the expertise of our leading doctors—a national treasure that Summus was designed to connect with patients through an ecosystem of over 5,000 of the world's best physicians. This special session explores Julian’s fascinating journey from the White House and Morgan Stanley to pioneering the expert economy at GLG, and ultimately building what we can only describe as a miracle factory that's having an extraordinary impact on humanity. Please enjoy class with Julian Flannery For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page⁠ here.⁠ —-- This episode is brought to you by⁠ ⁠Portrait Analytics⁠⁠ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at⁠ ⁠portraitresearch.com⁠⁠ —-- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ joincolossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@JoinColossus⁠ Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to Joys of Compounding (00:02:09) Julian's Personal Healthcare Journey (00:02:41) Julian's Career and Leadership Insights (00:06:14) Julian's Early Life and Influences (00:13:18) Julian's College Years and Challenges (00:15:27) From the White House to Business School (00:22:03) Navigating the Business World (00:35:46) Building Summus: The Vision and Impact (00:42:51) Understanding the Healthcare System (00:49:42) Navigating Complex Healthcare Costs (00:50:44) Finding the Right Specialist (00:51:45) Building an Expert Marketplace (00:52:37) Challenges of Starting a Healthcare Startup (00:54:06) Trust and Expertise in Healthcare (00:56:02) How Summus Bridges Healthcare Gaps (00:58:32) The Role of Technology and Service (00:59:25) Creating a Doctor-First Culture (01:00:33) Summus' Impact on Employers and Employees (01:24:44) The Future of Healthcare and AI (01:29:04) Leadership and Building a Great Team (01:33:02) Personal Reflections and Gratitude

November 12, 20251 hr 7 min

Matteo Franceschetti - The Sleep Maestro - [Joys of Compounding, EP.32]

Our teacher today is Matteo Franceschetti, co-founder and CEO of Eight Sleep, whose Pod technology ranks among the top five products that have meaningfully improved my quality of life. This conversation launches our series on founders and investors revolutionizing human health, covering everything from diagnostics to longevity science to biotechnology. Matteo's story is fascinating—he's an unlikely health tech founder who grew up in Italy pursuing law with little scientific or medical background, yet he's combined the discipline of an elite multi-sport athlete with the resilience of a serial entrepreneur to build a category-defining company. We discuss the challenges of building a consumer hardware company and how his team raised capital from world-renowned investors while achieving cash flow positivity to control their destiny. Please enjoy class with our friend Matteo Franceschetti. For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page⁠ here.⁠ —-- This episode is brought to you by⁠ ⁠Portrait Analytics⁠⁠ - your centralized resource for AI-powered idea generation, thesis monitoring, and personalized report building. Built by buy-side investors, for investment professionals. We work in the background, helping surface stock ideas and thesis signposts to help you monetize every insight. In short, we help you understand the story behind the stock chart, and get to "go, or no-go" 10x faster than before. Sign-up for a free trial today at⁠ ⁠portraitresearch.com⁠⁠ —-- Joys of Compounding is a property of Pine Grove Studios in collaboration with Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Joys of Compounding, visit⁠ joincolossus.com/episodes⁠. Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant (⁠https://thepodcastconsultant.com⁠). Follow us on Twitter: ⁠@Buhrman_Rick⁠ | ⁠@PaulBuser⁠ | ⁠@JoinColossus⁠ Show Notes (00:00:00) Welcome to The Joys of Compounding (00:00:57) Meet Matteo Franceschetti: The Sleep Maestro (00:01:48) Matteo's Journey: From Italy to Health Tech (00:02:45) The Science and Impact of Sleep (00:05:57) Personal Stories and Early Ventures (00:15:23) From Law to Entrepreneurship (00:27:54) The Birth of Eight Sleep (00:32:20) Thought Partners and Business Ventures (00:32:42) The Importance of Sleep: Insights from Experts (00:34:29) The Evolution of Sleep Awareness (00:35:22) Innovating Sleep Technology (00:36:37) Building Eight Sleep: Challenges and Vision (00:40:04) Understanding Sleep Stages and Optimization (00:45:01) Balancing Execution and Vision in Business (00:47:39) Fundraising Journey and Lessons Learned (00:52:20) The Role of AI in Eight Sleep's Future (01:00:09) Future Ambitions and Product Roadmap