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Not Founders - Failures Podcast

Not Founders - Failures Podcast

By: Nathan Pali
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About this listen

Not Founders – Failures Podcast is a history podcast about leadership that didn’t work.

While most business and leadership shows obsess over founders, visionaries, and success stories, this podcast looks in the opposite direction—at the leaders who failed, the decisions that backfired, and the moments in history when authority, ambition, or confidence went disastrously wrong.

Each episode explores real historical cases of bad leadership, strategic failure, organizational collapse, and power miscalculation. From governments and armies to companies and movements, these are stories where leaders ignored warning signs, surrounded themselves with yes-men, chased the wrong incentives, or confused confidence with competence.

This isn’t a podcast about hustle culture or inspirational leadership myths. It’s about leadership mistakes, failed decision-making, hubris, mismanagement, and the uncomfortable truth that most failures come from very human, very common errors.

If you’re interested in leadership failures from history, why organizations collapse, how power distorts judgment, and what actually happens when leadership ideas meet reality—this podcast is for you.

Not Founders – Failures Podcast Because history isn’t written only by the winners. It’s shaped just as much by the mistakes.

© 2026 Not Founders - Failures Podcast All rights reserved.
Economics Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • Nikolai Vavilov: Science vs. Ideology and Starvation
    Feb 15 2026
    In this episode, we explore the compelling story of Nikolai Vavilov, a botanist and geneticist who risked everything to collect seeds and prevent famine in the Soviet Union. We examine his conflict with Trofim Lysenko and illustrate how ideology and the pursuit of certainty can lead to devastating consequences when prioritized over scientific truth and reality.          Chapters    00:00 Introduction to Vavilov    00:37 Vavilov's Vision and Work    03:33 The Rise of Lysenkoism    08:21 Vavilov's Arrest and Legacy
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    8 mins
  • When Neutrality Chooses a Side: James Buchanan and Presidential Paralysis
    Jan 17 2026

    James Buchanan believed neutrality would preserve peace. Instead, it emboldened extremism and fractured the nation. This episode explores how restraint, legalism, and fear of confrontation quietly picked sides in America’s most dangerous moment.

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    10 mins
  • The Irish Brigade at Fredericksburg's Mary's Heights
    Feb 14 2026
    In this episode, we explore the devastating leadership failure during the Battle of Fredericksburg, focusing on the Irish Brigade's doomed advance at Mary's Heights. We discuss the strategic missteps, the immense casualties, and the lingering questions about why the brigade was sent forward into an unwinnable battle.          Chapters    00:00 Introduction to Fredericksburg    00:43 Burnside's Ill-Fated Plan    04:44 The Irish Brigade's Advance    10:55 Lessons in Leadership Failure
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    9 mins
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