Cindy Eckert (formerly Whitehead) (@cindypinkceo) is an entrepreneur with 1.5 billion dollars in exits who currently serves as the founder and CEO of The Pink Ceiling, an investment firm and consulting enterprise nicknamed the Pinkubator with a mission to invest in, launch, and build other women-led or focused businesses. She believes that access to good advice alone is not enough to change the ratio of men to women in business, and that is why she personally invested more than 15 million dollars in 2017 alone to support the development of nine portfolio companies.I should mention right off the bat that if you're a guy, don't let this bio turn you off in any way — in the sense that I wanted to have Cindy on the show because she is a good CEO and entrepreneur, very much irrespective of gender. The negotiating techniques, the approaches to deal-making, everything that we talk about applies to entrepreneurs, period, full stop.Earlier in her career, Cindy was the founder of Sprout Pharmaceuticals, home of Addyi, the first and only FDA-approved treatment for low sexual desire disorder in women, which was sold for one billion dollars and then reacquired in a crazy story with incredible terms that we will discuss in this conversation.Please enjoy this wide-ranging conversation with Cindy Eckert!This podcast is brought to you by Peloton, which has become a staple of my daily routine. I picked up this bike after seeing the success of my friend Kevin Rose, and I've been enjoying it more than I ever imagined. Peloton is an indoor cycling bike that brings live studio classes right to your home. No worrying about fitting classes into your busy schedule or making it to a studio with a crazy commute.New classes are added every day, and this includes options led by elite NYC instructors in your own living room. You can even live stream studio classes taught by the world's best instructors, or find your favorite class on demand.Peloton is offering listeners to this show a special offer. Visit onepeloton.com and enter the code TIM at checkout to receive $100 off accessories with your Peloton bike purchase. This is a great way to get in your workouts, or an incredible gift. Again, that's onepeloton.com and enter the code TIM.This episode is also brought to you by LegalZoom. I've used this service for many of my businesses, as have quite a few of the icons on this podcast — such as Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg of WordPress fame.LegalZoom is a reliable resource that more than a million people have already trusted for everything from setting up wills, proper trademark searches, forming LLCs, setting up non-profits, or finding simple cease-and-desist letter templates.LegalZoom is not a law firm, but it does have a network of independent attorneys available in most states who can give you advice on the best way to get started, provide contract reviews, and otherwise help you run your business with complete transparency and up-front pricing. Check out LegalZoom.com and enter promo code TIM at checkout today for special savings and see how the fine folks there can make life easier for you and your business.***If you enjoy the podcast, would you please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes? It takes less than 60 seconds, and it really makes a difference in helping to convince hard-to-get guests. I also love reading the reviews!For show notes and past guests, please visit tim.blog/podcast.Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter (“5-Bullet Friday”) at tim.blog/friday.For transcripts of episodes, go to tim.blog/transcripts.Interested in sponsoring the podcast? Please fill out the form at tim.blog/sponsor.Discover Tim’s books: tim.blog/books.Follow Tim:Twitter: twitter.com/tferriss Instagram: instagram.com/timferrissFacebook: facebook.com/timferriss YouTube: youtube.com/timferrissPast guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Tim Ferriss, the author of The 4-Hour Workweek, discusses finding and following your calling, making smart investments, and questioning conventional wisdom with Adam Grant on the Ted WorkLife podcast.
Entrepreneur Cindy Whitehead shares her experience navigating the business world as a woman, including negotiating techniques and launching women-focused companies. The discussion includes her success as the founder of the first FDA-approved treatment for low sexual desire disorder in women and the acquisition of her company for $1 billion.
The guest speaker shares her love and admiration for Wegmans grocery store due to its family-held business with loyal employees instilled by their appreciation for their workers.
In an unusual interview approach, Tim Ferriss asks interviewees to tell him about themselves and their motivations, and looks for adaptability and willingness to be open about themselves as key characteristics. Ferriss, a bestselling author and podcast host, also discusses his own career path and entrepreneurial journey with his guest in this episode of his podcast.
The speaker shares her experience of starting a pharmaceutical company without a scientific background and emphasizes the importance of having an extraordinary scientific team.
The founder of Slate, Katie Bienenstock talks about her journey in the use of Testosterone for libido and how it led her to create a business that gives people access to hormone optimization on their own terms with a better delivery system than what is currently available.
The founder of The Motley Fool, David Gardner, shares his six core values for hiring which include choosing to be an owner, bold, quirky, learning, family, and appreciative. He believes cultural fit is key to success and that listening and observing during the interview process is essential to finding the right fit.
The host discusses the tradition of giving nicknames in her family and how it creates a sense of family spirit, sharing a quirky story of how a job candidate's boldness earned her a nickname.
The use of nicknames, even if they may not be politically correct, can foster a sense of camaraderie and allow people to be themselves in the workplace.
The speaker emphasizes the importance of having a sense of humor and constructive irreverence in life and work, as it helps in dealing with offensive situations and not taking oneself too seriously. The speaker also describes how giving permission to fire an underperforming employee can be productive in sales environments.
This podcast episode features advice for entrepreneurs to go out and sell something to learn from other businesses and the coffee challenge exercise to get comfortable with discomfort. The speaker also shares their experience with customer relationship building in the pharmaceutical industry.
The drug industry initially created a drug for depression, but it was discovered to have a pro-sexual effect. This led to further research on this condition, which relies on the restoration of key chemicals in the brain.
A discovery for a female sexual dysfunction drug was put on the shelf, not because of the lack of scientific understanding, but due to the societal narrative around women and sex. Developing a medication for an issue like diabetes would not have met the same stigma.
Cindy Eckert, a pharmaceutical entrepreneur, discusses the FDA approval process for new drugs and the role of the patient's voice in it.
In this episode, the speaker emphasizes the importance of having a plan to launch a company and being self-reliant instead of relying on someone else to sell the idea, which could lead to running out of money in the bank. Additionally, having a well-defined 'best efforts clause' in contracts can avoid hidden pitfalls in future partnerships.
The key to successful business negotiations lies in the ability to get out of one's own way, recognize biases, and look at the data with empathy. Celebrating the victory of selling the company is essential, but the next day it's back to work as usual.
After selling her first company, Cindy Whitehead made team retention a priority in selecting a buyer. She received several offers for her second company, which she selected based on a commitment to making it affordable for women globally, but after the deal closed, the acquirer faced a crisis, and Whitehead was able to regain control of her business.
CEO of Ellevest, Sallie Krawcheck, talks about how women are bound by more unwritten rules than men in business and the importance of breaking them in order to instigate change, even if it means leaving an organization.
The Pink Ceiling is an investment firm that focuses on early-stage health tech companies, primarily for women. Their aim is to invest in disruptive and innovative products or companies that can generate broader social impact.
Women don't need a voice, they need power - and money is power. The CEO of Venture Capital firm IDEA Fund Partners highlights the importance of supporting female entrepreneurs and increasing diversity in business by investing in a more diverse pool of talent
Cindy Eckert, known for her work advocating for women's health, shares her experience in the industry and how she made her voice heard among male-dominated spaces. She encourages founders to embrace the workhorse mentality and focus on executing their ideas before declaring their genius.
In this snippet, the speaker and his guest discuss their unusual habits, such as rearranging sandwiches, as well as potential TED Talk topics, including growing up in a third-world country and learning how to play the fiddle.
In this episode, the host provides links to all the resources discussed during the podcast and gives two ads at the end - one for LegalZoom and the other for Peloton.
Get $100 off accessories, including the needed clip-in shoes, with your Peloton bike purchase by visiting onepeloton.com and using the code 'tim' at checkout. Peloton offers live and on-demand indoor cycling classes with elite instructors, making workouts convenient and entertaining for any schedule.