
How One Phone Call Raised £6.5M in 7 Days | Mai Le - SAPI
About this episode
After 70 rejections and six months of pain, Mai Le made one phone call that changed everything. She asked for help for the first time in her life, and raised £6.5M in seven days.
This is the unfiltered story of how a hyper-independent founder learned that sometimes all it takes is one person with conviction.
💡 What You'll Learn
▪️ How to turn 70 rejections into a £6.5M round in one week
▪️ How to handle co-founder breakups with respect and generosity
▪️ The "smart but nice" hiring framework that builds unshakeable trust
▪️ The three pillars of authentic leadership: respect, abundance, consistency
▪️ Why masculine "giving" energy must balance with feminine "receiving" energy
📖 Chapters
00:00 - Intro
01:03 - From Vietnam War to Entrepreneurial Mastery
03:48 - "You Can Never Fail Until You Quit"
09:09 - Project Bold: The £10K Learning Disaster
16:05 - The "Smart but Nice" Hiring Philosophy
20:20 - The Biggest Struggle as a Leader
27:23 - When Logic Meets Intuition in Leadership
35:24 - The Remote vs Hybrid Hiring Strategy
42:14 - 70 VCs, 6 Months of Pain, Then Magic
52:31 - The Practical Side of Resilience No One Talks About
61:25 - Mai's Ask: Take Care of Yourself First
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