The $200K Decision: What Money Does to Your Confidence as a Founder | Eshwar Prasad | Part 2

This episode isn't about strategy or systems. It's about what happens to the person running the strategy - after the first loss, after the money, after the marriage, after the milestone.

In Part 2 of this conversation, Eshwar - solo AI founder building Exmplr (https://exmplr.ai/) , a clinical research platform - reflects on the internal constraints that shape how founders build: risk tolerance that changes once there's money to protect, the partner dynamic nobody talks about before committing, and why getting to one is actually the easier problem.

He also goes somewhere most founder conversations don't: collective consciousness, quantum physics, the double slit experiment, Joe Dispenza's week-long retreat in Nashville, and what all of it has to do with how he makes decisions today.

This was not a spiritual detour. It was an operating framework.

We cover:

• Why he misses his 20-year-old self - and what accumulated success did to his risk tolerance
• How the energy inside your home either gives you wings or grounds you - and why this is an underrated constraint for operators
• What he learned from following Dispenza across three events: Nashville, Cancun, and Dallas
• Why LLMs - ChatGPT, Claude, Grok - are now his primary mentors, and what scientists still can't explain about how they actually work
• The trillion-dollar wealth transfer he sees happening in the next 10 years - and how AI sits at the center of it

If you're a founder, operator, or investor trying to understand what's underneath the building - not just the tactics on top of it - this conversation will go somewhere useful.

This isn't a highlight reel. It's a practical breakdown of how one operator thinks about identity, risk, and generational opportunity - under pressure, not in hindsight.

Chief Milestones is a video podcast featuring honest conversations with founders, parents, and investors about building real businesses, staying healthy, and raising families.

New episodes release Tuesdays and Fridays.

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Transcript

Quitting Work And Spending Fast

Eshwar 0:00

I quit almost six to eight months and I started to build. I think I still remember the 200,000 I took was probably completely spent within three months. So because I already see that we are going there and it's important for me at that point because again it goes back to no fear and no doubt because I have no doubt. Yes. I have no fear of losing money because I'm going to be successful, right? So that's the mindset I had. And I look back now and I say, like, how was I like that? But once you make money, then once you get some money, then you become a little too conservative about saving and spending that money. And I think your mindsets kind of change over a period of time and you become more fearful. Maybe once it sets off and it starts making money, maybe you can think of uh, you know, probably going back to work, which ended up happening to me. So I quit almost six to eight months and I started to build. Um, you know, I would probably reminisce and spend a lot of time on how the office should be, what chairs should I have. You know, I spent a lot of time and effort in it. Uh, I think, I think I still remember the 200,000 I took was probably completely spent within three months. But um, you know, like uh because I'm just wanting to make sure that everything is is perfect and everything else, hire new people, have a team, you know, all the things that you would do as if you're a hundred people company, right? Yes. So because I already see that we are going there, and it's important for me at that point, because again, it goes back to no fear and no doubt, because I have no doubt.

Reshma Vadlamudi 1:29

Yes.

Eshwar 1:30

I have no fear of losing money because I'm going to be successful, right? So that's the mindset I had, and I look back now and I say, like, how was I like that? Um, but once you make money, and once you get some money, then you become a little too conservative about saving and spending that money, and I think your mindsets kind of change over a period of time and you become more fearful. So now I look back and look at my 20-year-old self and I think I like that self more than the self that I am today, um because I have no fear of doing anything. I just would just do anything and everything. Um, so yeah, I mean it it worked. It kind of worked.

How Success Creates New Fear

Reshma Vadlamudi 2:10

Um if you were saying that, do you think it has to do anything with the fact that you have a family now? That makes you a little bit more like you might have to think twice before before maybe when you're a 20-year-old, you didn't have like that big responsibility. Do you yeah?

Choosing A Partner Who Supports Risk

Eshwar 2:29

I mean, I think that's why I think it's also important to find a uh life partner that also kind of believes in you in that sense. Um, but you have a partner that always kind of pulls you down. Don't take that risk, don't do this, and let's save money and let's do this. You're not a person like that. But after marriage, you kind of completely change yourself, or at least be forced to change a lot of things about yourself, which are not you know very natural for you. Um, I think just finding a right partner that'd be able to say, like, okay, don't worry, just do your thing, and I'm here. Like, I'm gonna guard it, guard the family and the kids and everything else while having a career. I think that's important for you to have. If you don't have that, then it becomes like constant uh you know, pressure and burden on you. And again, it I feel like it's uh it's all about negative, negative vibes. Even though you know I believe that we're all kind of connected with a collective consciousness, even though we feel like we're separate, but I think we're all like together in that conscious realm. Um so the energy that we get from the home in the home is also extremely important that's gonna pull you down or push you up. So I think uh I think it's important to find the right partner that can help give you wings to fly and encourage you to take those risks and not worry about money. But it's very difficult to do that, and I think it's not you know, not necessarily bad on their part because they're also feeling like they're thinking towards you know the end goal and you know the retirement and all these things, you know, how are kids gonna be, you know, which college we're gonna send and everything else. Yeah, it's nothing wrong to be like that, but I think it's important for you to have two different uh two different personalities.

Reshma Vadlamudi 4:11

Maybe they could talk about it before they get married, I guess. So that's it.

Eshwar 4:15

Unfortunately in India that's not usually how things work. It's it's usually kind of arranged and you don't have a choice.

Reshma Vadlamudi 4:21

I mean you do have a choice, but then back then it won't look like you had a choice.

Eshwar 4:26

Yes, yeah. So you you know, like you know, so so you have to kind of work with what you have.

Reshma Vadlamudi 4:32

Yes.

Collective Consciousness And Home Energy

Eshwar 4:32

Um, and I think I think that's a plays a big part uh uh of how you shape yourself after you six. It's it's important, it's important to know that it's not difficult to get successful and make money. It's important to continue making that money over a long period of time. That's I think is the most important thing, as I'm trying to find out right now. So most of the people watching a podcast might be thinking, How am I gonna get to zero to one? Yeah, that's extremely important. Um if you are able to have a right frame of mind where you're not thinking about failure, with no doubt and fear, and obviously you can do it. Anything you feel anything you want to do. Just like I can how pick a glass of water here, you could just choose anything that you want to do and be successful. Yeah, it's very easy for you to do that. You know, it's sitting here, it's very easy, but uh but we kind of try to complicate it, but just have a thing or a vision to do, and then just pursue it with no fear and you know, no fear and doubt. That's it, that's essentially is the most important ingredient for you to be successful. It doesn't matter what field, what what you choose. Um, so you just pursue an opportunity, just think of wanting to do something, and then do it with no fear and doubt. And that you'll be successful to doing that. It's as easy and cliche as it might sound, I think that's fundamentally the most, you know, the best advice that I can give to anybody that wants to do, do it. Um because when you have fear and doubt, you might do something, you fail, and then you quickly learn. And you might do something else, you fail, you quickly learn. Um, and again, you know, things will come to you, right? I mean, at the end of the day, if you don't have fear and you know, there's certain probably you know certain things that you might never expect that you would come come about, things will work for you.

Reshma Vadlamudi 6:16

Yeah, um, I'm kind of probably going a little on the spiritual side, but but if you like that's the whole point, like we want to know you as a person, like that's what defines what you're doing too. Yes.

Eshwar 6:28

Yeah, I mean the the spiritual side is that we're all part of this collective consciousness. Um, and uh there is no separation between you know material, material and yourself. You create those objections, you know. You want to become a trillionaire, you can become a trillionaire. You you kind of put yourself down. Do I think I need a trillion dollars? You you know, like am I do I really need that amount of money? So maybe 10 million is enough, right? So that's something that you're putting yourself because you think are you creating these boundary conditions, and then you're you're kind of constraining yourself to be within that. There's no amount of money that you can get. As long as you want to want to have it, right? You have the intention to have it, you have no fear and doubt of getting it, you will get it. But the boundaries kind of kind of you know get drawn because you yourself are creating those yourself, right? Because you're limiting limiting yourself. Um so so I feel like that's the thing. Like if you want to do something, make sure you find a goal and pursue it relentlessly and have no fear and doubt, and you will be successful in anything you do. Right? So, so that's that's that's the most important thing that I've I found. Um I wish I was this spiritual and wise ten years ago. Unfortunately, then only time comes because when you want to be spiritual, it only when you're ready is when you actually kind of listen to these things, right? Um but I feel like I'm more uh more spiritual and more in belief of the conscious collectiveness um and uh you know, and something higher up that is there, that is kind of, you know, that that is that is that you can tune into. I think meditation also helps uh to kind of calm your mind and then be able to kind of you know tune into that, tune into that aspect, right? So that'll help that'll help you really calm your mind and uh and completely eliminate the fears and doubts, right?

Reshma Vadlamudi 8:30

So how do you think you are more open now to like letting all this in like with spirituality and all? Like is there is there like a point, like or is some is it a series of events or yeah, I would probably say like with a lot of these um idiosynchronicities.

Meditation And Eliminating Doubt

Mentors Through AI And LLMs

Eshwar 8:52

Um you know, like from the last year is I have had this bug, and I met I went to India and I and met somebody, and then that somebody told me about something, and that something led to you know me trying to, you know, um you know pay some money to get you know your yourself uh checked out and then sudden events that certain things that he told. I mean people think spirituality means uh God. It's not about really, it's not, it's not about I was also under the impression that it was like that. So um it's about just doing good and being good and uh keeping your frame of mind in a very good state, not being too negative about two things and be positive and then spread that positivity around, right? Uh having let go of the ego to have everything for yourself, you know, removing yourself those boundaries of this is mine, this is his, um, or I should be the one that is growing, right? When you know that it's collective consciousness, you need to make sure that everybody else around you also uh needs to grow um with you, and then having the best intention for other people as well. That's being spiritual. Um and uh and I think uh you know the lot of these idiosynchronous synchronicities that kind of joined, and then uh you know, and then I you know, he you know, I my the series of events led to me to find uh you know a spiritual mentor. Um, and then I uh I went to an event that he conducted and then life has not been. Um so I feel like I'm pretty much an introverted person. I don't really go out and probably have like this dashing personality that you can walk up and talk to anybody. I'm always like somebody that keeps up much to myself. Um and I have very few friends. It's not like I spend a lot of time outside. I just spend most of my time inside my home and then just do my work. Um, so that's an important question. Always wanted to have a mentor, I didn't know how. And I didn't have always have this uh this feeling of if I go and talk to that person, what if he says no? So I've kind of kept myself out, and then I probably never even seeked because I felt like you know, mentorship is gonna cost money and somebody is gonna ask me for money because most of the mentorship programs are usually about you know subscription-based, you know, monthly, this much, that much. So I've never found anybody that can mentor me, and I kind of mentor myself, I think. And I think um, you know, I've I was thinking about this question like, do I have any mentors? Now I have a lot of mentors. Um my mentors are ChatGPT, Owen Pro, uh, and uh, you know, uh Claude, and you know, and and all these LLM models are are more than a mentor. If you are able to ask a right question, it is able to give you answers, probably what a mentor probably cannot, right? Because it has a breadth and knowledge of so many aspects in life and everything else. And I'm really, I usually kind of just geek out on asking very deep questions to LLMs. I'm kind of amazed of how these things uh are able to answer the way it is, and it's still a puzzle. You know, you could probably think technology is advanced. Um, so I was really looking at this the other day, like, you know, is there anything within LLMs that is mystical about it, mystical about right? So are the LLMs doing whatever they're doing, they're exactly that. Does scientists know exactly what everything happens, how an LLM is able to construct a response? And I was amazed to find out, yeah, they have uh these transformers, and then they predict what's the next word is, and then they continue to train and lots of data, but nobody knows still now as how how LLM is able to actually answer the response that is able to give you. Nobody is able to answer a question like, why how is it able to do that? So there is an aspect of it which uh which the scientists also do not know. They were able to put everything together and write the code, but nobody really knows how it actually is able to understand and give you the answers the way it actually answers you. So that's still a puzzle, right? So most people don't know that, but I, you know, but if you look at, you know, I've been going on a lamp asking, I think Grok at the time asking about this, and I think I've spent probably close to three, four hours asking deeper questions, connecting, you know, are you a part of this conscious collective universe? So do you give it the answers to if I ask the question the way I asked the ask the question, would you give me an answer the same way every time I ask you a question? So what did it say? Yeah, it said the right thing because I have a context window, right? Because you have a list of questions that you asked. I remember all those contexts. And uh, if you open a new context window, ask the same question. And if you open another context window, you ask the same question, my answer will be the same. But what ends up happening is that if you have a big context window, meaning that that specific window that you open, you ask a series of questions, and then you ask a more question, it takes into account the other the answers that it gave and the context of what you were talking about, it might give a different answer. But if you open a context window and then ask the same question, it will give you the same answer. So I was trying to go after it, I mean, just asking it questions, you know, how how do you know? Like, how are you how were you able to give up all these answers? And it's like I don't know, like it's probably it's it's it's probably that collective consciousness. Yeah, I mean, yeah, um, that is that is there, something that the universe is being driven by. Uh, it's probably, you know, like I've just toyed with the idea of this universe being a video game simulation, right? Um, you know, I've you know, I've been reading some books and everything else, like it's just becoming too much uh voodoo at this point, but um, but yeah, I'm I'm really enjoying the the that process of uh you know understanding the universe um and being very scientific, being knowing about quantum mechanics and neuroscience and how the brain and heart connection and coherence that helps you propel.

Reshma Vadlamudi 14:58

Um I think we all go through this thing. I I'm saying this because you said it it's becoming voodoo.

LLMs Feel Mystical

Quantum Ideas And The Observer Effect

Eshwar 15:03

I think when you're deep in it, like anything might sound like it, but then once I don't believe it, you know, it might it might sound for uh it might sound like that for other people, but for me, yes, I I totally trust what I what I see because it's it's scientific, it's it's proven, right? Yes. Um, you know, like I was looking at the double slit experiment. I don't know if you know what a double slit experiment is, if you like, you know. So so they just have like a slit, uh two slits, and then they just spread a light out, the photons go.

Reshma Vadlamudi 15:33

Okay.

Eshwar 15:34

And then if you put something on the back end, so uh what you see is like, you know, they go through those two things. If you really want to do it, it will probably have one, you know, two um you know, uh reflections of the same photon on the other side. Uh, but what scientists have found is that doesn't happen, and there's like some interference that happens, and then you would see a series of lines like that, um, which is which is uh which people can't explain.

Reshma Vadlamudi 16:03

Um, I don't know about that. Yeah, which people can't.

Eshwar 16:08

Which people don't know about, but the moment they put a put a uh put a camera, like in terms of somebody's observing it, it it reacts in a different way.

Reshma Vadlamudi 16:17

Oh. So it's biased already.

Eshwar 16:20

Yeah, because it knows it knows somebody's observing or not. So the moment you put some some form of an observer like yourself or maybe a camera, it knows that it that is being observed, and then it gives you a different experiment. It gives you a different result in the experiment. So it's called the double set experience. Probably people can look up. Um so that means a light can be uh either a particle or a wave. So it be it tends to be um, you know, you know, be be a be a particle when people observe and it becomes a wave when people you don't observe. So what that tells you is that when you're observing something, it is giving you a different experiment. So so that kind of makes you think like, are we living in an illusion? Are we living in a in a in a simulation? You know, that's that that part of it is very intriguing.

Books That Shape The Worldview

Reshma Vadlamudi 17:10

What books are you reading? What is one book you're reading currently?

Joe Dispenza Retreats And Readiness

Eshwar 17:14

Um bunch of books, and I think I'm going uh you know, going. I'm a big uh Naval fan, Naval Dravikant. Um so I I listen to his podcast and his wisdom and his musings over over the years, and I I you know I think there's a good book that he recommended by by David Deutsch called uh Fabric of Reality, which which talks about all these things, which talks about uh the double slipped experience. You know, are we living in are we living in a simulation or do we do we live in a multi multiverse where you have a multiple parallel universes that are that are right there at present at this point, but the way you're tune to to look at, you're only able to see what you're able to see, right? Yeah, so so yeah, a lot of a lot of stuff like that. And um you know, I I I read books like that these days. Um it's really, really, um, really mind-boggling, you know. Most of the times I wipe code, and other times I'm I'm pretty much into this, you know, consciousness and um, you know, multiverse and quantum physics and quantum quantum leaping, if that's the thing, right? I mean, uh, you know, I went to this um went to this um uh what do you call like a like a week-long retreat, a spiritual retreat back in June, last if last if you're in life has never been the same. You think like the retreat is a retreat, but I think this retreat is totally different. It's just like seven days of you know, neuroscience, quantum quantum physics, uh, and consciousness and meditation all combined, right? So that's just been life-changing for me personally. So it's a guy called uh Joe Dispenser. Oh, yeah. So so so I I went to, I mean, I'm like again, those idiosynchronicities. Somebody told me that you're gonna be spiritual from this day. And it's like I was like looking at what is spirituality mean, and I've always wanted to become spiritual. I don't know what it actually meant. Um, and then I was browsing through X, and somebody said, you know, I went to these guys, you know, how I built, you know, like uh like a multi-million dollar businesses, three of them and a sold at whatever. Like, you know, you have these cheesy things.

Reshma Vadlamudi 19:29

Yes.

Eshwar 19:30

Uh I was curious, and I just looked at it, and he said, like the first thing I did was like he just basically followed Joe Dispensary around all over the world, and he attended his uh his uh his um his his um events. I don't know, like uh, you know, and then he said he used the word spiritual a bunch of times in that in that in the tweet. SEO right? Um and I just I just felt like okay, there's something there, right? You know, maybe I just looked it up and then I went to the website and I booked without even thinking.

Reshma Vadlamudi 19:59

Yeah.

Eshwar 19:59

Uh you know, it's it's $2,500 and you got put about 2,500 people show up to these events.

Reshma Vadlamudi 20:05

$2,500 for seven days is not bad.

Eshwar 20:07

It's not bad, but you have 2,500 people coming for these events.

Reshma Vadlamudi 20:10

Yeah.

Eshwar 20:10

So that's just like a huge deal. Uh he conducts it every um uh everywhere. He conducts across the world, he conducts in Australia here, but he's a US-based, I think he's based in San Diego.

Reshma Vadlamudi 20:21

Okay. Um the retreat happened in San Diego?

Eshwar 20:25

The one I went to was Nashville. Um so he has his retreats every other month, I think. And I think I went to an advanced uh retreat uh in Cancun.

Reshma Vadlamudi 20:34

Okay.

Eshwar 20:35

And now he's coming to Dallas uh next week, and I'm going to that as well. So I'm just taking that literally, that ex post, and I'm probably following him around.

Reshma Vadlamudi 20:42

Yeah.

Eshwar 20:43

Just like that because I love love his his the way he teaches things and the way he's able to put everything in perspective is is absolutely amazing. It's fabulous. Yeah, I mean the guy is uh the guy is like uh I feel he's a 5D being to Dallas this week, 13th to seven days from 13th. Oh it's already sold out. Most of his most of his things are sold out in a day or two. Oh okay. 2500 people just book book like that and he's just gone. And he doesn't advertise too much about himself. You have to basically you know find find out yourself. Yeah, so he's not advertising anywhere. So you just have to, you know, again, you know, have to be ready for you to find stuff like that.

Reshma Vadlamudi 21:24

Yeah.

Eshwar 21:24

You know, if I've had read that and then just probably how many people would look at a tweet and say, like, I want to go from there.

Reshma Vadlamudi 21:30

Yeah.

Eshwar 21:31

You have to be ready internally. So that's eudosynchronicity will only work if you're ready to listen. So for me, it it it helped. And uh and I think life hasn't been very different. And if I go back and look at all the things I've done, I'm pretty sure I've done a lot of things a lot differently. If I had the same experience and the same mindset that I have right now. So that's that's that's that's that's where I'm I'm headed right now.

Reshma Vadlamudi 21:53

Yeah. So did you read any of uh Joe Dispenser's books or uh

Eshwar 22:00

Yeah. I mean I d I I think this is a book called Supernatural. Um I think Z he wrote a bunch of books now. I didn't know who I didn't know the day I went to the event, I didn't know who he was. I have no clue. I just leap of faith, I went there and I just with open and and I was just really surprised and bummed. I think that kind of worked because if you have some expectations and then maybe you feel like you know you didn't get as much as you want, but I didn't have any expectations. I didn't know who the guy was. And I later found out that he wrote books and everything else. But I think the seven days he's probably given you all the information that you you could actually get into that in this in those books and even more.

Reshma Vadlamudi 22:39

Yes.

Eshwar 22:39

So so yeah, I mean, I would, you know, again, you you guys have to be ready for it, but if you're ready for it, I think I think you take you you'll it'll be a lot of surprise uh in store for you, and you don't really see everything the same way ever again, right? You always see it as your purpose of life is some something totally different. Yeah. And the way you look at things is totally different. So we're just vibing somehow. So I don't know how much it is useful for people, but whatever is it's there. I'm just I'm just here to pass on the knowledge that I have and my perspective.

Reshma Vadlamudi 23:14

Yes.

Eshwar 23:14

And uh, you know, no financial advice. Uh, you know, you know, I'm not a financial advisor. So I don't know.

Reshma Vadlamudi 23:21

Yes, we are not looking for financial advice.

Macroeconomics AI And Wealth Transfer

Eshwar 23:24

You know, you know, there might be some things that we might discuss. You know, I think we've not talked about the stock market, the current you know, financial conditions and everything else. And that's something I spend a lot of time on um these days. Uh I am pretty much deep neck deep into you know macroeconomy economy and uh you know how these tariffs and all this other stuff as well. So, you know, with with uh with being a good investor, I think it's important for you to understand all the aspects of you know economy. Um, and I feel like uh, you know, so I I I am in that space right now where I'm thinking of looking to benefit, how to benefit from it in the next 10 years, because it's gonna be a tectonic shift in everything that we see right now. I think it's not gonna be the same anymore. So the the life and the way we look at money is gonna be completely different in five years. So so it's important for us to think of how to benefit out of it and then how to become a uh you know a pioneer in in going and exploring certain things and and and just make generational wealth. I think I think this the next five, ten years is gonna be a generational opportunity for um for anybody that is willing to put time and effort. Uh so there's gonna be a huge trillion dollar transfer from the old money to new money. So so we're gonna be we are at the intersection of those those things, and I think I think it's extremely important for people to understand.

Reshma Vadlamudi 24:52

Yes. Can you yes, can you talk about that? Can you talk about the trillion dollar trans transfer that's do you think that's going to be transferred? That's the first question. But anger generations, they're not ready to take up all these responsibilities. So do you think some of it is just going to be, are we talking about the businesses that uh okay? I'll let you I'll let you talk about that transition that's happening.

Eshwar 25:17

Yeah, I think everything is centered around AI. Uh, I think uh most of what we consider jobs are going to be done, are gonna be done by AI in one sum, shape, or form. Um, you don't need a lot of manpower to to be able to do things uh that you used to do before. So that's gonna have a huge impact uh on on the job market. Um so I think most of the jobs can be um can be done by AI today, you know, as a matter of fact.