Catch The Upswing

Jessica Espinoza | Catch The Upswing

Catch The Upswing - Turn energy into action. Catch The Upswing is a business and leadership podcast exploring how people build, lead, and navigate complexity in a rapidly changing world. Hosted by global finance leader Jessica Espinoza, the show features candid conversations with global leaders, entrepreneurs, and emerging voices shaping today’s economy. Each episode explores the real journeys behind leadership — from setbacks and reinvention to resilience and purpose — while translating these experiences into practical insights listeners can apply in their own work, decisions, and lives.

  1. 1 day ago

    Why “Nice” Doesn’t Move Capital

    For years, investing in women was treated as the "nice" thing to do — rather than a serious market opportunity. But nice doesn't move capital. Opportunity does. In this Walk With Me, I share what happened when we set out to mobilize $3 billion into the women's economy through the 2X Challenge — and how that number ultimately grew to $34 billion, including through a moment when we feared the pipeline might disappear altogether. So what opportunities are we still calling "nice" simply because we haven't recognized their market potential yet? Chapters: 00:00 Nice vs. smart 00:50 Launching the 2X Challenge 01:17 What happened when COVID hit 02:14 $34 billion, and counting 🎙️ Walk With Me is an invitation to step away from the noise for a few minutes. Join me for short reflections on leadership, technology, decision-making, and the ideas shaping our future. Subscribe for more episodes from Catch The Upswing. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing #Investing #WomenInBusiness #GenderLensInvesting #Leadership #WalkWithMe #CatchTheUpswing

  2. 1 day ago

    The Stories We Mistake for Facts

    “Oh, they’re not interested.” Most of us have thought it about someone. Very few of us stop to ask whether it’s actually true. In this episode of Walk With Me, I reflect on how quickly we turn stories into facts, and on a second level of this habit that reveals itself just when we think we've figured it out. I share a moment from just before Christmas, when I walked into one of the most important investor meetings of my career with little more than a PowerPoint and a vision. It's a short reflection on assumptions, certainty, and the rules we believe other people are playing by. Chapters 00:00 How quickly stories become facts 00:31 The second level 01:03 An investor meeting before Christmas 01:43 The part I didn’t expect 02:00 What had actually happened 02:25 The twist worth sitting with I’d love to hear your perspective: What’s one assumption about someone else that turned out not to be true? 🎙️ Walk With Me is an invitation to step away from the noise for a few minutes. Join me for short reflections on leadership, technology, decision-making, and the ideas shaping our future. Subscribe for more episodes from Catch The Upswing. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing #Leadership #DecisionMaking #CriticalThinking #Mindset #Assumptions

  3. 2 Sept

    How to Make Better Decisions When There Is No Right Answer | Nikola Ilic

    What do you do when you don't know what to do? Not in the abstract — in the moment. When the meeting is happening, the decision is due, and every option in front of you costs you something you actually value. Most advice assumes there's a right answer waiting to be found. Nikola Ilic has spent years working with people making difficult decisions in very different environments — from business leaders and executives to activists and changemakers — and what he's learned is that being right is rarely the point. Nikola is a leadership expert, educator and founder of Change Lab. His work spans executive leadership, organizational change and grassroots movements, shaped by his own experience in Serbia's nonviolent resistance movement, years of working with leaders around the world, teaching at Georgetown, and facilitating sessions with President Obama. This isn't a conversation about having better answers. It's about what to do when there isn't one. Together, we explore what courage actually requires when it's not the absence of fear, why trying to be the smartest person in the room is often the wrong instinct, and how a simple question to Nikola's young daughter reshaped the way he thinks about giving people answers at all. We also get into a story Nikola calls his "heroic death" — a moment when speaking up felt courageous, but taught him the difference between being right and actually changing something — and the four-point compass he uses to navigate difficult decisions when values collide. 🎙️ In this episode: What to do when you genuinely don't know what the right answer isWhy uncertainty makes us crave certainty — and surrender more control than we realizeThe leadership mistake behind trying to be the smartest person in the roomThe one question that turns telling people answers into teaching them to thinkWhat courage looks like when you're actually afraidWhy being right can stop you from changing anythingHow your emotional triggers can make you easier to manipulateA four-part compass for making hard decisions when your values collide ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 Trailer 01:04 Welcome to the Show 02:02 What Do You Do When You Don't Know What to Do? 04:11 The Oldest Trick in the Book 06:18 Why We Seek Authority to Feel Safe 07:09 Teaching Agency Over Dependency 08:09 Dancing With Uncertainty 21:37 Stop Trying to Be the Smartest Person in the Room 23:48 "What Do You Think?" — A Lesson From His Daughter 26:55 Presence, Not Power: What Obama Taught Him 31:33 The Point Guard Who Sees Everything 35:33 Courage Is Not the Absence of Fear 46:36 The Heroic Death 56:59 How Do We Overcome Polarization? 01:01:59 Don't Be Played Like a Violin 01:09:32 The Four-Part Compass for Hard Decisions 01:14:45 Compromise vs. the Perfect Solution 01:22:44 What Keeps Him Hopeful 01:26:19 Where to Follow Nikola 🔗 Follow Nikola's work: Newsletter: pulsesofchange.org Nikola is also working on a book, currently titled The Uncertainty Advantage, which he hopes to publish in February 2027. 📺 Watch more episodes: Catch The Upswing is a podcast for people building meaningful things in a rapidly changing world. Honest conversations with leaders, founders, investors and changemakers about what it actually takes to keep going, lead well and stay hopeful about the future. New episodes every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing 🎥 B-roll footage courtesy of Nikola Ilic.

  4. 21 Aug

    The Most Dangerous Sentence in Business

    "That's just how it's done." I think it might be one of the most dangerous sentences in business. Not necessarily because of the words themselves — but because of what happens right after we hear them. In this episode of Walk With Me, I reflect on why questioning the way things have always been done matters — and what can happen when we stop. From building a global team to some of the ideas we now take completely for granted, this is a short reflection on curiosity, convention, and the questions worth asking when an old answer starts to sound like a fact. Chapters: 00:00 The most dangerous sentence in business 00:38 Not the sentence, the shrinking 01:12 What curiosity really means 01:28 Questioning how things are done 02:12 The questions worth asking 03:00 The real danger I'd love to hear your perspective: What's one "that's just how it's done" you've learned to question? 🎙️ Walk With Me is an invitation to step away from the noise for a few minutes. Join me for short reflections on leadership, technology, decision-making, and the ideas shaping our future. Subscribe for more episodes from Catch The Upswing. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswingInstagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswingTikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing #Leadership #Curiosity#Innovation #CriticalThinking #FutureOfWork

  5. 12 Aug

    How to Build a Meaningful Career (Without Starting Over) | Chintal Barot

    If you've ever wondered whether your work truly matters, this conversation is for you. Whether you're just starting your career, considering a transition, or simply questioning whether you're on the right path, Chintal Barot shares practical advice drawn from more than a decade of coaching professionals and MBA students at leading business schools. Together, we explore how to build a meaningful career, why you don't need the "perfect" background to move into sustainability or impact, how to navigate career transitions, and the simple question Chintal asks herself every year to make sure she's still doing meaningful work. We also dive into one of the biggest questions of our time: AI. Beyond learning how to use new tools, what does it mean to remain human in an AI-driven world? How do we preserve judgment, exercise our agency, and ensure that technology serves society — not the other way around? Whether you're looking for your next role, building your own business, or simply reflecting on what meaningful work looks like, we hope this conversation gives you both practical ideas and a fresh perspective. In this episode: How to build a meaningful careerWhy you don't need the perfect backgroundHow to know when it's time for a career changeHow to identify your transferable skillsThe mindset shift from employee to entrepreneurHuman judgment in the age of AIWhy we all have agency in shaping AI's future Chapters 00:00 Trailer 00:52 Welcome, Chintal Barot 02:42 From medicinal chemistry to a career in sustainability 08:03 The biggest myth about "meaningful work" 09:45 Stuck between two worlds: How do you know it's time 12:09 The leap: Leaving PwC to build her own consultancy 15:01 Do you actually need another degree? 20:41 The skills that matter most right now 29:12 Prospera: Courses for purpose-driven careers 32:09 Human judgment, AI, and why she built a learning network 44:19 The questions AI still can't answer 47:25 Books and resources that shape Chintal's thinking   🔗 Follow Chintal's work: Website: https://www.cosustainconsulting.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chintal-barot-a528a14/   Resources mentioned: Essentialism by Greg McKeownProphecy: Prediction, Power, and the Fight for the Future by Carissa Véliz Prospera: Prospera is an online learning platform co-founded by Chintal and Jessica, offering bite-sized courses in sustainable finance, sustainability consulting, and corporate impact careers. It's designed for people entering or transitioning into purpose-driven work. Learn more: https://learn.prosperacareers.com Use code UPSWING for 40% off any course.   📺 Watch more episodes: Catch The Upswing is for people who believe work can beboth meaningful and ambitious. Each week, Jessica Espinoza sits down with leaders, founders, investors and changemakers to explore what it really takes to build a better future — and a fulfilling career along the way.   🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing   TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing

  6. 5 Aug

    When You Follow Your Dreams, You Don't Lose | Carolina Suárez

    What does it actually cost to walk away from a career everyone tells you not to leave? What does it take to build trust across an entire continent — when the thing you're building doesn't exist yet? And how do you hold onto hope when the geopolitical context keeps shifting beneath you? Carolina Suárez Visbal is the CEO of Latimpacto — the leading impact investing network in Latin America, connecting foundations, impact investors, academia, and families working toward the same goal across the region. Twenty years ago, she was a corporate lawyer with a successful career ahead of her. She chose a differentpath. In this conversation from Lima, she shares what it took to make that decision, what she learned building a regional network from scratch, why the best leaders get closer toreality, and why she believes the most important thing we've learned in impact investing is that we cannot work alone. 🎙️ In this episode: Why she left corporate law — and what she saw that changed everything What it actually takes to build trust across an ecosystem Why the best leaders get closer to reality What gives her hope in uncertain timesWhat she would say to anyone wanting to leave a conventional career to build something that matters ⏱️ Chapters   00:00 Trailer 01:09 Introduction — Carolina Suárez and Latimpacto 02:00 Why she left corporate law — and chose a different path 06:16 "When you follow your dreams, you don't lose" 11:53 Building Latimpacto — creating a movement from the start 17:56 Why building a network is harder than building a project 23:15 Trust — the foundation of every ecosystem 24:51 What gives her hope for Latin America? 26:48 "We cannot work alone" 28:07 How she stays grounded — and lives in the present 29:08 Why she brought her network to the Amazon 36:41 How success has changed over time 45:05 Advice for the next generation of leaders 46:53 Staying patient when change takes time 49:32 The legacy she hopes to leave behind 50:07 Thinking about leaving your career? Start here. 🔗 Follow Carolina on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mar%C3%ADa-carolina-suarez-visbal/   🌎 Learn more about Latimpacto: https://latimpacto.org/   📅 Join Impact Minds 2026: https://impactmindsconference.com/ 📺 Watch more episodes: Catch The Upswing is a podcast for people building meaningful things in a rapidly changing world.Honest conversations with leaders, founders, investors, and changemakers about what it actually takes to keep going, lead well, and stay hopeful about the future. New episodes every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing

  7. 27 Jul

    Why Success Doesn't Feel Like Success | Simon Alexander Ong

    What happens when you finally achieve the life you've been working towards... and something still feels missing? Build the career. Reach the goals. Tick every box. And still find yourself wondering why success doesn't feel the way you thought it would. How does that happen? And how do you know whether you're building a life that's truly yours — or simply becoming successful at someoneelse's definition of success? Simon Alexander Ong is the bestselling author of Energize, an award-winning coach, and an internationally sought-after keynote speaker whose work on energy, leadership, and purpose has built a global following. This isn't a conversation about becoming more productive. It's about asking whether the version of success you've been chasing is actually your own. Together, we explore what happens after success — when everything looks right on paper, but something doesn't quite feel right inside. We talk about the difference between achievement and fulfillment, the stories we inherit about what success should look like, and the quieter questions that often emerge only after we've reached the goals we once believedwould make us happy. We also get into a story involving Richard Branson that Simon rarely tells — and a strange decision-making exercise he still uses before making hard choices, involving a room that doesn't exist and six people, some living, some dead. 🎙️ In this episode: Why success doesn't always feel the way we expect it toThe subtle difference between achievement and fulfillmentHow to tell whether you're pursuing your own ambitions — or someone else'sWhy two people can work equally hard and experience work completely differentlyThe four dimensions of energy that shape how we live and leadThe role courage plays in changing the direction of your lifeA simple exercise Simon returns to whenever he's facing one of life's biggest decisions ⏱️ Chapters: 00:00 Trailer 01:15 From Investment Banking to Finding Purpose 03:20 "On Paper, I Had It All" 06:00 The Signs You're Living the Wrong Life 10:00 The Four Types of Burnout 15:45 Why Purpose Gives You Energy 20:14 Create an Environment That Makes Success Inevitable 28:30 Journaling & Closing the Loop 33:50 The Loneliness of Reinventing Yourself 36:20 The Imaginary Room with Six Mentors 38:02 Stop Saying "Should" 42:45 The Wormhole Effect 43:35 Richard Branson, a Paper Airplane & Courage 46:15 Ambition Without Losing Your Peace 53:00 Is Hustle Culture Doing More Harm Than Good? 58:00 Recharge Yourself Like Your Devices 1:01:15 Plan Tomorrow the Night Before 1:04:40 Can You Have Energy Without Purpose?  1:08:40 Where to Follow Simon   🔗 Follow Simon's work: Website: https://www.simonalexanderong.com/ Instagram: @simonalexanderong LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonalexanderong/ Simon’s best-selling book Energize: https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/321571/energize-by-ong-simon-alexander/9780241502761 📺 Watch more episodes: Catch The Upswing is a podcast for people building meaningful things in a rapidly changing world. Honest conversations with leaders, founders, investors, and changemakers about what itactually takes to keep going, lead well, and stay hopeful about the future. New episodes every week. Subscribe so you don't miss one. 🔗 Follow & connect: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswing Instagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswing TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing

  8. 21 Jul

    What Becomes More Valuable in the Age of AI?

    What becomes more valuable in the age of AI? Everyone is asking what AI will replace. But I think there's another question that's just as important: What becomes more valuable because of AI? In this first episode of Walk With Me, I reflect on why judgment — not information — may become one of our greatest competitive advantages in an AI-powered world. Drawing on an experience from a senior leadership meeting, I explore why the hardest decisions are rarely about having enough data. They're about weighing competing priorities, making trade-offs, and deciding what matters most. AI can summarize. It can compare. It can analyze. But leadership begins where the data ends.   Chapters 00:00 Everybody's asking what AI will replace 00:00:19 What becomes more valuable because of AI? 00:00:42 A leadership meeting that changed how I think about judgment 00:02:17 Why data alone doesn't make decisions 00:03:00 What AI can't replace 00:03:21 Why judgment is becoming the ultimate leadership skill 00:03:47 The question we should also be asking   I'd love to hear your perspective: What human skill do you think becomes more valuable as AI becomes more capable?   🎙️ Walk With Me is an invitation to step away from the noise for a few minutes. Join me for short reflections on leadership, technology, decision-making, and the ideas shaping our future.   Subscribe for more episodes from Catch The Upswing. #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Leadership #FutureOfWork #DecisionMaking #CriticalThinking 🔗 Follow & connect:YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CatchTheUpswingInstagram: https://instagram.com/CatchTheUpswingTikTok: https://tiktok.com/@catchtheupswing

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About

Catch The Upswing - Turn energy into action. Catch The Upswing is a business and leadership podcast exploring how people build, lead, and navigate complexity in a rapidly changing world. Hosted by global finance leader Jessica Espinoza, the show features candid conversations with global leaders, entrepreneurs, and emerging voices shaping today’s economy. Each episode explores the real journeys behind leadership — from setbacks and reinvention to resilience and purpose — while translating these experiences into practical insights listeners can apply in their own work, decisions, and lives.

Information

  • Creator
    Jessica Espinoza | Catch The Upswing
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    30
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Jessica Espinoza | Catch The Upswing
  • Show Website
    Catch The Upswing