Jun 11, 2026
Shiv Gettu didn't find his big idea in a boardroom. He found it in a basement, 45 minutes deep in meditation.
That moment of stillness sparked a decision that would define the next decade of his life — convincing his co-founder Kendrick to quit his job, become a leasing agent for free, and spend nine months learning the real estate industry from the ground up. The hustle earned them their first $500K check. And then COVID wiped it all out.
From burning $100K a month with no travelers and a mountain of leases, Shiv and his team did what most founders can't — they pivoted fast, built an AI leasing agent from scratch, and turned a crisis into the foundation of Zuma.
In this episode, we get into:
The mentor who meditated, invested, and changed everything
Why the best company decisions come from silence, not spreadsheets
How COVID destroyed their business — and forced them to build a better one
The RV tour: driving across the country with a podcast studio to get close to customers
Why relationship first, transaction second is the only enterprise sales strategy that works
Naval's framework for picking the right problem — and why most founders skip this step
Paul Graham's essay on doing great work and what it actually takes
If you've ever made a leap that looked crazy from the outside but felt completely right on the inside — this one's for you.