469. “Empathy Is a Superpower” | Outrageous Startup Growth with Colin Hodge

Thank you for joining us on The Daily Helping with Dr. Shuster. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts and Spotify to download more food for the brain, knowledge from the experts, and tools to win at life. -- Today, we are joined by Colin Hodge, startup founder, author, and co-owner of Down, a top 10 dating app in the U.S. Colin has led companies and growth teams responsible for more than 100 million users, and his new book, Outrageous Startup Growth, distills the hard-won lessons behind that success. In our conversation, Colin shares how personal loss shaped his willingness to take risks, move across the world, and build companies through uncertainty. He explains why the best growth does not come from gimmicks, but from understanding user psychology, creating authentic brands, and designing environments that help people make better decisions. We also explore the mindset behind “outrageous growth,” from resilience and discomfort to ethical marketing, FOMO, and what Colin calls “magic moments.” At the heart of it all is empathy: the ability to truly understand what people are going through so we can build products, messages, and businesses that actually serve them. The Biggest Helping: Today’s Most Important Takeaway “I would return to empathy and it is such a quintessential part of being a great entrepreneur and doing something that feels good at the end of the day”