Mork Unfiltered

Patrick Mork
  • 5.0 (3)
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  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Mork Unfiltered is where authenticity meets transformation. No fluff, no unicorn fairytales, just real, unfiltered conversations about what it truly takes to lead, grow, and reinvent yourself. Hosted by Patrick Mork, serial entrepreneur, three-time CMO, best-selling author, and leadership coach. This podcast goes beyond the polished success stories to explore the personal challenges that leaders and high achievers rarely discuss.It brings raw honesty to topics like loneliness, depression, failure, and fear—alongside the resilience, purpose, and grit it takes to overcome them. Through unscripted interviews with founders, executives, and thought leaders, as well as Mork's own reflections, this show will delve into the messy middle of success. Whether you’re building a business, rethinking your career, or seeking personal growth, Mork Unfiltered offers real stories, practical tools, and a candid look at what it means to live and lead authentically.

  1. The Founder Warning: Startups Are As Toxic As Cigarettes

    MAY 7

    The Founder Warning: Startups Are As Toxic As Cigarettes

    Send us Fan Mail Andrew Lacy has been called crazy twice. In 2008, every top VC told him to stop building iPhone games and return to Nokia. He didn't listen. Tapulous became an early App Store powerhouse and was eventually acquired by Disney. Later, investors told him whole-body MRIs were a bad idea. He ignored them again. Today, his company Prenuvo (formerly Prouvo) has scanned over 150,000 people to catch cancer early. This episode explores the reality behind the wins: the bad bets, the hubris, and the weight of carrying a company when no one believes in you. Andrew discusses leaving a law career spent defending tobacco companies, losing three years to a failed startup in France, and the personal health scare that led him to launch Prenuvo. We also dive into the emotional toll of entrepreneurship, from the "mask" leaders wear to why Andrew believes startups should carry a warning label like cigarettes. If you’ve ever bet on yourself or wondered if the grind is worth it, this conversation is for you. Chapters: 00:00 Cold open: The most transformational ideas sound ludicrous. 02:30 Childhood in Melbourne: Detention and a life-changing librarian. 06:45 Leaving law: Defending tobacco and mining disasters. 10:30 McKinsey, Stanford, and stalling in Spain. 20:30 Building Tapulous: Pitching games before the App Store existed. 27:50 The Disney acquisition: Why it wasn't a "Cinderella story." 30:00 Hubris in Paris: Facing failure and himself. 36:30 The right KPI for founders: Asking the hard questions. 39:00 The scan that changed everything: A flight to Canada. 46:50 The state of US healthcare: Wealth vs. access. 51:55 The real cost of Prenuvo: Numbness and loneliness. 58:40 Why coaching works: Overcoming the urge to skip it. 1:00:15 Lightning round: Superpowers, Elon Musk, and advice for the next generation. #TheCostOfSuccess #Prenuvo #FounderHealth #Biohacking #StartupTruths #EarlyDetection #MentalFortitude If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1h 4m
  2. From Refugee Kid to Startup Founder: The Shane Neman Story

    APR 30

    From Refugee Kid to Startup Founder: The Shane Neman Story

    Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to Mork Unfiltered, where we strip away the polished bios to get to the raw truth of building a business. Today we dive into the Hollywood-esque story of Shane Neman. From a refugee kid sleeping at the foot of his parents’ bed to a studious pre-med track, Shane’s life took a sharp turn after a Sunday afternoon chat. He dropped out of med school, survived the dot-com crash, and found himself in the back offices of gritty NYC nightclubs at 4:00 AM. It was in that chaos that he accidentally invented a pioneering SMS marketing platform. We discuss his "masterclass in BS" to land clients, his high-stakes legal battle with T-Mobile, and why your life partner is your most critical business decision. This is an honest look at surviving the entrepreneurial marathon. Chapters 00:00: From Med School to the Dot-Com Bust 05:15: Growing up in a One-Bedroom with Refugee Parents 14:30: The Sunday Afternoon Decision to Quit Medicine 25:40: Learning Business in a Nightclub at 4:00 AM 31:10: The "Masterclass in BS": Faking it Until You Make It 42:15: Accidentally Inventing the Future of Text Marketing 46:50: David vs. Goliath: Taking on T-Mobile in Court 53:30: Selling the Empire and Shifting Identities 59:15: Why Pedigree Doesn't Matter to a Millionaire Investor 01:08:30: Lightning Round: Superpowers and Dinner with Elon #Entrepreneurship #StartupLife #SaaS #BusinessStories #SuccessMindset #VentureCapital #MorkUnfiltered If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1h 8m
  3. Why This Female CEO Bet Everything on AI

    APR 23

    Why This Female CEO Bet Everything on AI

    Send us Fan Mail "Watch This Space." Those were the three words that sent shockwaves through the Dutch tech scene last week when Marili 't Hooft-Bolle announced she was walking away from Trengo. But if you know Marili, you know she does not do "safe".  From her early days at McKinsey to scaling WeTransfer, Marili has built a career by running toward the fire, especially when that fire is a massive technological shift like AI. In this episode of Mork Unfiltered, we are peeling back the layers on what it really looks like to lead a radical transformation. Marili opens up about the brutal reality of turning a legacy company into an AI-native powerhouse, including the gut-wrenching decision to replace nearly 85% of her engineering team just to survive the next wave. We also dive into the "messy middle" of being a woman in leadership. Marili shares a raw, unfiltered story about being told she would not have been promoted if the company knew she was pregnant, and the powerful lesson she learned about choosing which battles are actually worth your life’s energy. Whether you are a founder at a fork in the road or a leader trying to navigate the AI revolution, this conversation is a masterclass in betting on yourself when the system was not designed for you. Chapters: 00:00 – The "Bombshell": Why Marili walked away at the top. 05:15 – Childhood Grit: How growing up with brothers shaped a "fighter" mindset. 11:00 – Leaving McKinsey: Choosing execution and "unknown territory" over status. 17:45 – The Microsoft Rejection: Why she said "no" to a major role to stay authentic. 26:30 – The Pregnancy Bombshell: Dealing with blatant discrimination in the boardroom. 35:00 – Hiding the Resume: The reality of ageism in the tech world. 44:00 – The AI Pivot: Why she replaced 85% of her engineers to save Trengo. 54:30 – Leaving the Peak: How to know when your mission is truly finished. 57:40 – Lightning Round: Oprah, Superpowers, and the best advice for young women. #MorkUnfiltered #WomenInTech #AITransformation #CEOSecrets #EngineeringCulture #LeadershipTruths #BetOnYourself If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1 hr
  4. How I Built The North Face From Nothing

    APR 16

    How I Built The North Face From Nothing

    Send us Fan Mail “Water came racing in. The roof caved in. Our computers were fried. We had zero access to our own information.” Imagine you’ve spent years building an iconic brand, only to have a literal "Black Swan" event wipe out your entire operation overnight. Most founders would have folded. Hap Klopp, the legendary founder of The North Face, did something else: He went skiing. In this episode of Mork Unfiltered, I sit down with the man who didn’t just build a jacket company—he built a global movement. Hap takes us behind the scenes of the 1960s outdoor revolution, explaining why he turned down a safe corporate life to solve a personal "pain point": the fact that gear back then was heavy enough to kill you. We dive deep into the "Dark Day" when his warehouse roof collapsed, and how he used that disaster to forge a culture so strong it became the company’s DNA. Hap’s take on leadership is a reality check for the AI age: systems can be copied, but your culture and your "vision" are the only things that are truly un-hackable. If you’ve ever felt the weight of burnout or the fear of a failing pivot, this conversation is your roadmap back to purpose. Episode Chapters: [0:00] The Day the Roof Fell In: How Hap handled a total business wipeout (and why he went skiing instead of panicking). [5:10] Escaping the 60s "Urban Chaos": Why the wilderness was the only cure for the social turmoil of 1968. [11:35] People Don't Follow People: The secret to building a vision that transcends the founder. [18:22] The "Anti-Burnout" Secret: Why having a deeper purpose makes 16-hour days feel like a choice, not a sacrifice. [24:15] Possibility Thinking: How to run a meeting where "No" is a forbidden word. [31:40] Crisis as a Super-Power: The step-by-step "SWAT team" strategy used to save The North Face from bankruptcy. [42:10] The Lonely CEO: How to find a network that tells you the truth when your world is falling apart. [50:30] Sidelined by the Board: The moment Hap told his investors, "Fire me if you want, but I’m right." [1:00:00] Lightning Round: Hap’s dinner guest from history and his #1 advice for the next generation. #Resilience #TheNorthFace #LeadershipLessons #Entrepreneurship #BusinessCulture #HapKlopp #MorkUnfiltered If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1h 3m
  5. Into the Impossible: The Himalayan Obsession That Forged a CEO

    MAR 30

    Into the Impossible: The Himalayan Obsession That Forged a CEO

    Send us Fan Mail What would you do if you were 19, had no internet, no mobile phone, and wanted to trek into a hostile Himalayan tribe descended from Alexander the Great's mutinous soldiers — a tribe that considered every outsider untouchable? Aseem Sadana said yes. And that single act of unreasonable commitment shaped everything that followed. In this episode of Mork Unfiltered, my long-lost INSEAD classmate takes us from that sub-zero Himalayan expedition into ancient tribal lands all the way to the boardrooms of Europe — where he's now COO of Health Hero, the continent's largest digital healthcare provider, built through 7 acquisitions across 4 countries in under 8 months. This is a leadership podcast episode unlike any other. Aseem has walked away from a thriving architecture practice, bet his life savings on a startup, and consistently chosen purpose over prestige at every fork in his career. If you're navigating a career change, feeling stuck in the wrong job, or wondering how to find your purpose in a world being turned upside down by AI, this conversation is your roadmap. We get into the real stuff: Why commitment beats resilience — and why most people have it backwards The difference between significance and contribution and why it matters for your career fulfillment How to use the flow state to know when you're on the right path Surviving the AI middle game and what the future of work actually looks like Why midlife career pivots aren't just possible — they're necessary How to overcome the fear of failure and stop climbing the wrong mountain This isn't just a career reinvention story. It's a masterclass in high performance leadership, radical authenticity, and building a life that actually means something. No fluff. No corporate BS. Just one man's unfiltered roadmap to an unreasonable, high-impact life. 🎧 Subscribe to Mork Unfiltered — new episodes every week with leaders who've done it the hard way. 💬 Drop a comment — what's the most unreasonable thing you've ever committed to? 📲 Share this with someone who needs a kick in the ass. 0:00 – Intro: Meet Aseem Sadana. 2:40 – The Himalayan Expedition: Lessons from Alexander the Great’s lost soldiers. 7:15 – The Power of Intentionality: How to make the impossible happen. 14:02 – From Architect to Business Leader: Why Aseem left his own firm. 24:50 – Finding Your "Flow": The metric for a successful life. 33:15 – Significance vs. Contribution: Why the fancy car isn’t enough. 44:50 – Commitment vs. Resilience: A new way to look at failure. 55:00 – Navigating the AI "Middle Game": How to stay relevant. 59:50 – The Lightning Round: Mind-reading and Mahatma Gandhi. #OneLife #CareerChange #FindYourPurpose #StopFear #WorkLifeBalance #AIFuture #MotivationDaily If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1h 3m
  6. Why You Should Never Take "No" for an Answer

    MAR 12

    Why You Should Never Take "No" for an Answer

    Send us Fan Mail 👉Download Morks Guide to Resilience:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience 🌟 Hire Patrick to speak about Purpose, Resilience and the world of startups:  https://patrickmork.com/speaking Welcome back to Mork Unfiltered. Today’s guest is a woman who went from growing up during war in Lebanon to leading multi-country business turnarounds across Europe.  Nay Tawile didn't just survive conflict; she used it to build a level of grit that most people can't even imagine. She started as an engineer in biology, broke into sales against every stereotype, and now sits in the CEO seat, transforming Trimo, a legacy industrial business in Slovenia. In this episode, we talk about the "double-proof" factor for women in leadership, the radical independence her father taught her at age nine, and why she actively seeks out the hardest challenges she can find.  This is a conversation about courage, career pivots, and what it takes to really earn your place at the top. Episode Chapters: [01:12] Normality in a War Zone  [03:41] Breaking the "Marry a CEO" Stereotype [12:32] The Path to Financial Independence  [21:15] From Biology to Business  [28:40] "I Hate Engineers"  [34:50] The Double-Proof Factor  [45:01] Mastering Active Listening [57:35] The "Hard Things" Motto  [01:02:13] Processing Failure and Guilt #Leadership #Resilience #WomenInBusiness #CEOJourney #CareerPivot #MorkUnfiltered #Grit If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    1h 4m
  7. Why Your Company Culture is Failing (And How to Fix It)

    MAR 5

    Why Your Company Culture is Failing (And How to Fix It)

    Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to Mork Unfiltered, the podcast where we ditch the fluff and get real about hard choices and bold careers. I’m your host, Patrick Mork, and today’s guest is a master of the "hard pivot." Alexander Masharov is a global CEO, turnaround specialist, and single dad who has built a life of purpose from the ground up. From his early days as an immigrant starting from zero to managing massive factories in Russia and leading global operations in the Netherlands, Alex’s journey is a masterclass in grit. In this episode, we dive into: The Neurosurgeon Who Wasn’t: Why Alex walked away from a family legacy in medicine to find his own path. The "Boss is the Answer" Culture: Navigating the massive cultural shift of managing 200 people in Russia. The CEO’s Secret Weapon: Why Alex believes culture is owned by the CEO, not HR. The 3 AM Decision: The heart-wrenching moment Alex had to choose between his career and being with his son during the pandemic. The Referee Mindset: How 20 years as a basketball official taught him to make high-stakes decisions in a split second. Chapters: [01:10] Breaking the Family Chain [05:29] The Immigrant Hustle [12:04] The Startup Gamble [21:25] Scaling Up in Russia [31:43] Owning the Culture [41:30] The Strategic Retreat [47:04] The Pandemic Choice [51:07] The Referee’s Edge [58:46] Finding Meaning #MorkUnfiltered #LeadershipGrit #CompanyCulture #CEOInsights #CareerTurnaround #DecisionMaking #ResilientLeadership If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    53 min
  8. How to Bounce Back When Everything Goes Wrong

    FEB 19

    How to Bounce Back When Everything Goes Wrong

    Send us Fan Mail 👉 Download Mork’s Guide to Resilience: https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience 🌟 Hire Patrick to speak about Purpose, Resilience, and Leadership: https://patrickmork.com/speaking Hey, what’s up guys? Hope you’re well. In today’s episode, we’re diving into a topic that hits every single one of us right in the gut: Struggle. Whether you just got laid off, your business is hitting a wall, or your personal life is falling apart, the question is always the same: "Patrick, how do I bounce back?" I’m giving you the raw, unfiltered truth today.  These are the same tools I use to coach top tier executives. We’re talking about the AI Tsunami that’s coming for 90 million jobs and why most people are too scared to change.  I’m breaking down my 5 Pillars of Resilience and the brass tacks habits from cold showers to gratitude journaling that will help you stop rotting your brain on Netflix and start building a life that actually matters. If you’re feeling knocked down, this is your wake up call. We aren’t just going to bounce back; we’re going to emerge stronger. What We’re Breaking Down: [0:00] "I just got fired..." How to handle the hit. [0:42] Why struggle is a mandatory part of being human. [2:08] The Learning Filter: How successful people see failure. [2:46] The AI Tsunami: Why the world is changing and why you should care. [4:34] Resilience vs. Starting: Why most people never finish the race. [5:24] The 5 Pillars: Purpose, Hard Things, Asking for Help, Reframing, and Faith. [7:26] Why Macho is BS: Success is a team sport. [9:45] Habit Stacking: How I start my day at 100%. [11:28] The Morse Guide to Energy: Sleep, Steps, and Nutrition. [13:06] Every day is a fresh start: Let’s get to work. #Resilience #BounceBack #MentalToughness #MindsetShift #PersonalGrowth #OvercomingFailure If this episode moved you or gave you a different lens on adversity and growth, I want to invite you to go deeper. I wrote Step Back and Leap for people exactly like us. People building through chaos. People trying to find meaning inside uncertainty. People choosing purpose over comfort. You can get it here:  https://a.co/d/e4nd8RT And if you want practical tools you can use today to strengthen your resilience, I created a short, tactical guide you can download immediately. It’s called The Mork Guide to Resilience and it is designed to help you build inner strength, recover faster, and lead from a grounded place:  https://aa5c-ea.systeme.io/resilience Because sometimes the most powerful leaps forward start with stepping back, grounding yourself, and reconnecting to why you are here in the first place. — Patrick

    15 min
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About

Mork Unfiltered is where authenticity meets transformation. No fluff, no unicorn fairytales, just real, unfiltered conversations about what it truly takes to lead, grow, and reinvent yourself. Hosted by Patrick Mork, serial entrepreneur, three-time CMO, best-selling author, and leadership coach. This podcast goes beyond the polished success stories to explore the personal challenges that leaders and high achievers rarely discuss.It brings raw honesty to topics like loneliness, depression, failure, and fear—alongside the resilience, purpose, and grit it takes to overcome them. Through unscripted interviews with founders, executives, and thought leaders, as well as Mork's own reflections, this show will delve into the messy middle of success. Whether you’re building a business, rethinking your career, or seeking personal growth, Mork Unfiltered offers real stories, practical tools, and a candid look at what it means to live and lead authentically.

Information

  • Creator
    Patrick Mork
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    36
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Mork Unfiltered
  • Show Website
    Mork Unfiltered