Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel

The Ryan Meetup group has nearly 2,000 members whose common bond is simple: their first name! David sits down with founders Ryan Rose, Ryan Cousins, and Ryan Le to hear the amazing origin story of these three partners spreading the Ryan gospel. The Ryans reveal how they were able to take a Meetup of just three members—themselves—and turn their first big event into a viral blowout with hundreds of attendees including journalists from the New York Times, NPR, and The New Yorker. Plus, the Ryans discuss how they’ve actually helped people legally change their name to Ryan, and their future plans to break the world record for the largest gathering of people with the same first name. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Before he was a co-founder of General Assembly and founder of Common co-living spaces, Brad Hargreaves was a Meetup organizer hosting tech events in New York. In this conversation with David Siegel, a legendary entrepreneur talks about how he’s made community building an essential part of his business strategy. Learn how the right community can help you make a major change in your life, whether it’s a long-distance move or a career change. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Aldwyn Altuney’s path took her from a rebellious teen who ran away from home to a world-class journalist working with major news organizations on multiple continents. Her latest effort is Good News Day, a campaign to change the tone of the contemporary news cycle that always skews toward fear, panic, and negativity. Aldwyn sits down with David to discuss the influence of negative news on our daily state of mind, and how to make space for focusing on the light amid so much darkness. Their conversation also includes the ongoing presence of censorship and the value of creating alternative media. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Amnoni Myers has persevered through addiction, abuse, abandonment, homelessness, and the many difficulties of the foster care system to become an author and nationally recognized child welfare advocate. Her success story (recounted in the new memoir You Are The Prize) is not only a tale of resilience and self-discovery but a brilliant guide for anyone struggling to thrive after a difficult past. Amnoni and David sit down to discuss how to be proactive in your own healing, the truth about safe spaces and why they matter, interdependence as a core value, and so much more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Kat Vellos is a certified connections coach and the author (plus illustrator!) of We Should Get Together: The Secret to Cultivating Better Friendships. She and David sit down to discuss why platonic relationships between adults are so important, why they’ve become difficult to maintain in the modern social landscape, and how to buck that trend through intentionality. Their conversation includes everything from the growing fear of awkwardness and online parasocial relationships to original ideas for replacing the old small talk and overlaying friend time with your other commitments. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Tara Schuster was Vice President of Talent and Development at Comedy Central, and much of her identity and self-esteem was founded on that Emmy and Peabody Award-winning work. But when she was laid off during the pandemic, a severe identity crisis followed. Now, Tara is the author of Buy Yourself the F*cking Lilies and the forthcoming Glow in the F*cking Dark, two nonfiction powerhouses that use Tara’s life story to explore universal truths about finding internal validation. She and David sit down to discuss “unlearning” negative behaviors rooted in childhood trauma, silencing your inner frenemy, the beauty of journaling in the morning, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer.

Bakari Akil is a self-described scrappy entrepreneur bridging the gap between the corporate world and homegrown success stories. He’s also the organizer of two Meetup groups. His first, the Alternative Investment Club, has more than 5,000 members and is officially the largest private equity and hedge fund Meetup group in the world! Bakari and David sit down to discuss the keys to this club’s great success, as well as how the intense focus on business made Bakari want to lead another community for a more casual connection. That Meetup group, Black People Who Love Being Black, is dedicated to the pure celebration of Black culture through fun outings. Bakari and David’s conversation centers on making your own luck in life by being intentional and being bold. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Ximena Vengoechea listens for a living, as an expert in UX Research for Pinterest, and previously for Twitter and LinkedIn. She is also the author of Listen Like You Mean It: Reclaiming the Lost Art of True Connection. Her book is a practical and immediately-applicable guide to empathy and understanding of your fellow humans through conversation. Ximena and David sit down to discuss the United States’s cultural hangups with listening as purely a means to an end, and how to transform this dynamic with just a little bit of effort and curiosity. Their conversation touches on tips for staying engaged with a topic that’s not your strong suit, the subtle mastery of interruption in group settings, avoiding questions that begin with Do or Is, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Less than one year ago, Anthony Paul moved from Brooklyn to the Boston area without a single previous social connection. Today, he’s the organizer of the Cambridge "Finer Things" Culture Club, a Meetup group with more than 760 members! Anthony and David sit down to discuss the key elements behind this community’s meteoric rise and its place within a larger “human empowerment” movement. Topics include the often misunderstood connection between fulfillment and happiness, how to take small steps toward a big vision, and pursuing “edu-creation” as a path toward deeper friendships. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Dr. Marisa G. Franco is a psychologist, an interdisciplinary professor at the University of Maryland, and a top writer on Psychology Today. In her new best-selling book, Platonic, she shares her expertise in the subtle art and social science of adult friendship. Marisa and David sit down to discuss the value of platonic relationships, and why they ought to be treated with as much care and responsibility as romantic relationships. Their conversation ranges from teachable friendship skills (like intention-setting and follow-through), the alchemy of mixing different groups of friends, how to not confuse conflict with combat, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Dr. Rick Hanson is a renowned psychologist and a New York Times best-selling author of several books, translated into over 30 languages with more than a million copies sold worldwide. His latest work, Making Great Relationships, shares the wisdom Rick has gained through a half-century as a professional psychotherapist, 40 years of marriage, and decades of parenting. David and Rick sit down to discuss the neurological angle on the benefits of daily meditation, even when done for as little as 60 seconds at a time. Their conversation lands on the intersection of compassion and assertiveness, “therapy talk” topics like empathic attunement and delivering social supplies, as well as learning to re-evaluate past relationships and inhabit self-forgiveness. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Ann Marie Rakovic and David first met on an eight-mile walk she organized through Meetup. Today they sit down to talk about the transformative power of her group, Central Park NYC Ever Walk, and “the collective effervescence” that springs naturally when people get together to socialize through physical activity. David seeks advice for fellow organizers who want to literally and/or figuratively follow in Ann Marie’s footsteps. Ann Marie shares the journey from her first event where four people attended, to present day when as many as 87 people have joined her outing. Other topics include how to persevere through awkward moments, the importance of celebrating milestones both big and small, and the bio-psycho-social benefits of group walks. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Before becoming the world famous singer-songwriter, Jewel was a teen in rural Alaska surrounded by people in pain. Performing in bars with her father, she became acutely aware of the unhealthy ways people deal with their emotions. After leaving home at 15 and facing her own struggles including anxiety and bouts of homelessness, Jewel learned to prioritize mental health over everything else. In this special two-year anniversary episode of Keep Connected, Jewel sits down with David Siegel to discuss her mission to bring free therapeutic resources to those who need them most. Learn about using meditation to get perspective, staying present, and the profound importance of connecting with others. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Brenda Bea grew up being described as “shy” and “quiet.” In her adult life, she’s owned her identity as an introvert, and helped many other women do the same as an organizer of Introverted Girlfriends of Dallas & Surrounding Cities. This Introverted Girlfriends Meetup group is just one of fourteen different chapters around the United States. David sits down with Brenda to discuss her mission to inspire and educate introverted women by giving them the tools to be confident, take charge of their lives, and put themselves out there. Conversation topics include the beauty and necessity of introverted people, how to admit when there’s room for improvement as a leader, why bigger isn’t always better as an event planner, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Known as the Renaissance Rabbi, Dovid Cohen is a spiritual leader, lawyer, therapist, writer, public speaker, and part of an organization that services individuals with special needs throughout the United States. In the course of these many roles, he hasn’t “got it all figured out,” but he has learned a tremendous amount about people’s ability to transform themselves and their ways of thinking, as well as how they grow from painful experiences. Rabbi Dovid Cohen sits down with David to discuss the intersection of perspective and empathy, how relationships from the past can still feel present, why you should be listening 80 percent of the time, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Monique Rhodes was adopted into a difficult situation in New Zealand. By her early teens she was quite depressed, and at 19 years old hit rock bottom when she attempted to take her own life. Since then, she’s been on a journey of resilience and self-discovery that has utterly transformed her experience as a human being on Earth. From a four-year motorcycle trip through India, to studying with the Dalai Lama, and moving to Costa Rica without a single prior connection, Monique’s path continues to unfold in a way that values firsthand experience, novelty, intentionality, and audacity. She and David sit down to discuss the revolutionary role of meditation in Monique’s life, friendship and spirituality crossovers, how world travel can be a practice of gratitude, and much more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

From investment banker, to four-time CFO, to operating partner at a top venture capital firm, to board of directors member, to lecturer at Stanford University—Jeff Epstein has done it all. Over the years, his experience, contacts, and willingness to both teach and learn have helped him become what David refers to as “the trillion dollar connector.” In fact, Jeff has facilitated nearly 9,500 high-level business connections, leading to hundreds of executive hires, sales, and startup investments. He and David reflect on their 20 years of friendship, then reveal some insider knowledge about executive leadership. Topics include the “win-win-win” power of professional introductions, why the best CEOs make as few decisions as possible, what a board of directors actually does, and more. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Andrew Horn is the co-founder and CEO of Tribute, a company that has been called “Hallmark 2.0” because its modern technology is keeping the old tradition of showing appreciation alive. With nearly 6 million collaborative videos created, Tribute has brought 82% of its customers to tears of joy! Andrew and David sit down to discuss the relevance of appreciation in both professional and personal life. They touch on the habit of gratitude, the concept of positive peer pressure, the importance of building social rituals when you’re in a leadership role, and how sharing our imperfections actually brings us closer together and demonstrates strength. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

JeVon McCormick has a success story for the ages. The son of an orphaned sex worker and a drug dealer, JeVon grew up poor in the 1970s without reliable access to food, water, and electricity. Experiencing an identity crisis and lack of belonging as a mixed-race person, he also faced long periods of abandonment and several stints in juvenile prison. Today, JeVon is not only a mentor to high-risk youth, but the CEO of Scribe, a publisher whose company culture has been ranked #1 in the United States. Named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, Jevon is also the best-selling author of Modern Leader, in parts memoir and outside-the-box business strategy. Jevon and David sit down to discuss personal definitions of success, the connections between possibility and responsibility, as well as the corporate world’s changing tides in regard to the leadership “playbook.” Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!

Alysia Allen is the founder of Mocha Girls Read, a Meetup book club that began with 12 women in Inglewood, California, and now has more than 10,000 members across the United States in 14 cities and two virtual communities. 11 years ago, Alysia was an introverted bookworm who never quite saw herself as a leader. Now she sits down with David as an award-winning organizer to share her own personal transformation and the “secret sauce” that makes her book club so successful. They discuss the finer details, like membership expansion through social media photos, as well as how reading stretches your independence and empathy muscles. Ranked as one of the top 25 CEO podcasts on Feedspot, Keep Connected with Meetup CEO David Siegel is a podcast about the power of community. For more details on other episodes, visit Keep Connected on the Meetup Community Matters blog. We hope you’ll keep connected with us. Drop us a line at podcast@meetup.com. If you like the podcast, be sure to subscribe and leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts and Spotify! Learn more about Keep Connected host David Siegel’s experience as a leader and decision maker in his book, Decide & Conquer. Order your copy today!