The Making of “Unfinished Business” — And Your Sign to Get It Going

Since launching the podcast, the question we get most regularly is: How did we get started? What steps did we take when we were going after our first ventures?

If Unfinished Business is something of a time capsule for the years we’ve had so far, this episode is a tribute to the very beginning of it all. You’ll hear us yap about our first project together, Artsetters, to present-day “how we built this” reflection.

For those who don’t know: We first met at a dinner in Tel Aviv, brought together by mutual friends. We didn’t really stay in touch for almost a year after, as those passing social connections go. And then we met again at a wine bar in Yafo. We barely knew each other, and we weren’t experienced, but that night we bonded over our deep desires to build something impactful.

And thank goodness we went to that wine bar. Because that simple action — which we could’ve just as easily not done — changed the trajectory of our lives.

That’s the lesson in our story, and what we’re exploring today: When, how, and why to go. To do it. To push yourself out of where you want to be and take action.

Welcome back to the podcast. Let’s get into it.

On getting over the “perfect plan”

Alex: I'm thinking back to our early days with Artsetters, which was the very, very first concept we came up with. We had no experience, but very quickly, without any capital even, we launched a landing page. We started hosting events with ambassadors that started spreading the word about our company. We talked to every entrepreneur we could find. We talked to every advisor we could find. We shared our idea with everyone. We opened up a Shopify site for 79 bucks. We found an unpaid intern on a Facebook group, and we got fucking going.

Lee: Really, you need to get going with your idea and you need to do daily little tasks that put your idea out there. So if you are listening to this and you've been flirting with an idea, I want you to do something for me. Stop thinking about it, and take an action towards making this idea a reality. Your idea doesn't need to be perfect. How it gets perfect is you launch it and you get feedback from others. The longer you hold it just in your brain, tortured by how to launch it, your idea is going to go nowhere. Your one advantage as an early-stage founder is to move quickly and to get going.

Alex: Exactly. I feel like people get hung up on needing a cofounder or technical skills. But actually in this day and age, you can launch a company within days. So it's about removing those mental blocks.

Lee: I also think the idea that you need to be all in in those early days, that you need to leave your corporate job or you need to leave being in the transition of being a stay-at-home mom to want to go do this idea. No, you can flirt with both. You can multitask. Getting started can just be an hour a day of your time.

On our go-to tools for business building

Alex: Canva, hands down. We've never had in-house design teams for anything. All of our marketing materials we do on Canva because it's that simple and we can control that process so much more easily.

Second, either Squarespace, if you're doing a simple landing page website, or Shopfy, if you're doing an e-comm.

Third, obviously social media. Just build a page on Instagram. It's the easiest thing. Leverage that.

Lee: I'd say the paid version of ChatGPT. That's so helpful when you're just a solo entrepreneur trying to move quickly. It's gonna save you a lot of time.

On how we started Unfinished Business

Alex: I'd love to double tap a little bit more on how we started this podcast because this is the perfect example for our listeners. We were both transitioning out of Clay. We knew we had a lot to share on our journey and what better way to do that than through a podcast? We somehow came across a production company that's doing incredible founder-led podcasts. Within a couple of weeks, we had a producer and got started. But I don't think we even were very clear — and I don't think we still are — on what the podcast is going to be about.

Lee: We wanted the process to help influence that decision. We are in an active exploration process of what this podcast will ultimately be about. And that's going to be driven by what you all want. This could be an absolute failure and no one might be listening, but it was still a very worthwhile failure because we're learning from this experience together.

And this is what I think people forget — all great ideas need to evolve. But the only way ideas evolve is once you put it out there. Your current idea could be a failure, but it could also open a door to an even better idea.

Alex: I think a lot of women are going through all these questions. Our kids are getting older, they're getting to school. What do I do with my life? How do I move on from being a mom or doing other things to actually maybe doing something for myself? So I feel that our generation just is in that position.

Lee: And I can’t stress this enough — it is so invigorating to start building a business, even if it is a little side hustle that you dedicate one hour on the weekend to. Like it fills me. To just even have those 15 minutes of working on something new, it’s such a burst of energy.

Alex: And own it. Own that you’re building a business, talk about it with people. I see all these women tiptoe around the fact that they’re building something.

Lee: I think women in general are just sometimes insecure about the power that they have and their abilities. I know I am. Even if you don’t think you can do it, I guarantee you can. You just need to start trying.

On building confidence

Lee: Honestly, it’s just really faking it until I make it. Because if I listen to my internal voice, then I wouldn’t be doing anything.

Alex: Likewise, I think it’s embracing the lack of comfort and understanding. You’re going to have to get out there, even if it means you’re a little bit embarrassed, and be okay with that because that’s part of a business.

Lee: And surround yourself with doers. If you’re surrounding yourself with people that are just happy being in the status quo, it’s much harder to push yourself forward. I’m not saying get a whole new set of friends — just ask someone for a 15-minute chat who inspires you.

Alex: And you’ll be surprised at how generous people are with their time. People that have made it actually really enjoy coaching other founders, inspiring founders. So don’t hold back. DM them on Instagram. Reach out to them on LinkedIn.

Lee: That’s a great point. If you have an idea, I want you to create a landing page, send it to us, and we will give you feedback on it. And you know what? I want the landing page to truly be a work in progress because what matters is that you have it.

So send us your ideas, show us what you’ve been working on, and we’d love to share our two cents on how to help you further get going.

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