Every Sign From the Universe Said Yes. Her Startup Still Failed.

Gary Vaynerchuk wrote Sehreen Noor Ali a check after a 5-minute meeting, and President Biden heard her pitch. Sleuth still didn't make it. Sehreen Noor Ali co-founded Sleuth, a venture-backed pediatric AI platform Fast Company recognized as a World-Changing App in 2024. The startup eventually closed. The reckoning that followed shaped what she now teaches senior leaders through Te Cura Labs about positioning and identity. In this conversation she traces the hospital moment that opened her up, the years of inner work that followed, and the reframe of purpose that emerged on the other side. In this episode: • The moment in her daughter's hospital room when she chose meaning-making over collapse • Why "every cosmic sign said yes" didn't mean Sleuth would succeed • The reframe: life is more interesting than chasing one purpose • How anger becomes a teacher when you let it move through you instead of holding it • The shift from measuring success by what you produce to how present you can be • Recalibrating to yourself as the filter for what's true, instead of outsourcing it to experts ▶️ Watch the full episode now. Subscribe to Heartful Wonders for new conversations every other Tuesday about following your heart when the path isn't clear. 👤 About Sehreen Noor Ali: When Sehreen Noor Ali's daughter was diagnosed with a confusing medical condition, she did what many mothers would do: left her career and dove in. That search for answers led her to build Sleuth, a venture-backed pediatric AI platform Fast Company recognized as a World-Changing App in 2024. Between building Sleuth and eventually closing it, she began noticing a pattern. The most capable, purpose-driven leaders she met weren't struggling with balance or execution—they'd outgrown the systems and roles that once rewarded them, without yet having language for what came next. That unresolved tension showed up everywhere: in how they allocated energy, described their work, and stepped into new opportunities. Today, through Te Cura Labs, she works with senior leaders, founders, and operators at those inflection points—when clarity about direction unlocks everything downstream, including revenue, thought leadership, and positioning. Before this, Sehreen worked on digital diplomacy at the U.S. State Department, founded an award-winning edtech network, and spent years as an early hire at several startups. She lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters. 💻 Sehreen can be found: Website: https://www.sehreen.com/ Instagram:   / sehreennoorali   LinkedIn:   / sehreennoorali   ✨ About Vlada Bortnik: Vlada Bortnik is the CEO and co-founder of Marco Polo, the video messaging app designed to help people feel close without sacrificing time, privacy, or wellbeing. A Ukrainian refugee who arrived in the U.S. at 11, she built the company alongside her husband Michał while raising two young children, guided by her belief that technology should strengthen human connection, not exploit it. Today, she leads Marco Polo as a profitable, mission-driven company and speaks candidly about balancing parenthood and entrepreneurship while building ethical technology that scales. 💻 Vlada can be found: LinkedIn:   / vlada   Substack: https://heartfulwonders.substack.com/ Instagram:   / vladabortnik   Marco Polo: https://www.marcopolo.me/ 📎 Resources mentioned: Sleuth: https://www.sleuth.com Te Cura Labs: https://www.sehreen.com/ Abraham Hicks: https://abraham-hicks.com/ Michael Pollen's "How to Change Your Mind": https://michaelpollan.com/books/how-t... 🎧 This episode is also available on Spotify and Apple: Apple → https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/episode/5vM8... Episode is produced by: Mun Yee Kelly:   / mun-yee-kelly-769868   #HeartfulWonders #PersonalDevelopment #SelfDiscovery #HealingJourney #LifeLessons #Mindset