It always fascinates me when people have so much resilience and creativity to build their life on their own terms regardless of how many obstacles life throws at them. This conversation brought out a lot of insights on how to get oneself up after a failure, find a new perspective in life, get creative with your choices and being open to what can unfold.

Please give a warm welcome to my friend Tasha: a serial entrepreneur, a master of tech startups, a nomad, a visionary, a constant learner, an inspiration to me and many others. Originally from South Korea, having studied in Canada, she moved to San Francisco and made it to “500 Startups” list within 2 years of launching her startup Tackl that helped employers and students get matched with job opportunities in a new way. At the peak of her success she was forced to leave the country and drop her business. Trying to rebuild herself from being shattered in pieces and seeking new possibilities, Tasha started meditating and moved to London where she’s started another startup Highre and had an Ivy League School (Columbia University) as her first paying client before she even had the product! This time it’s a virtual career fair helping students discover career options from any part of the world without being constrained to where the fair is taking place and being physically there.

Tasha shares her lessons learned from the ups and the falls, her thoughts on and experiences from practicing mindfulness, and new unexpected opportunities from keeping an open mind.

A few quotes that stood out to me when talking to her:

“When you’re devastated, you’re not necessarily making smart choices or trying to think long-term because [this] is all you can see.”

“Falling doesn’t mean I’m never gonna get up.”

“Failure is gonna happen, it’s just part of our life, so not to be afraid, and it’s okay.”

– Tasha

Key video time stamps:

  • The new startup – 00:01:34
  • Timeline from inception – 00:08:40
  • How she got Columbia University as a client before having a product – 00:10:30
  • Daily activities as a founder – 00:14:50
  • How do you get ideas? 00:17:31
  • Being shattered, feeling like a failure – 00:21:53
  • Why meditate and how? – 00:24:53
  • Thoughts on language and mind – 00:32:41
  • 500 startups and SF – 00:35:58
  • Getting up from the fall – 00:40:00
  • “Meant to be” moment when invited to Prime Minister of UK office for tech event – 00:43:56
  • Theresa May and empowering women – 00:45:16
  • Lessons for younger self – 00:49:59
  • Wrap up – 00:54:38

Tasha’s resources and contact details:

  • Changing the way that employers discover university talent. (500 Startups Batch 18)
    www.tackl.co
  • Helping universities innovate career services with the dynamic virtual career fair platform.
    www.highre.co
  • LinkedIn