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Beyond Unicorns: Sami Inkinen on Health, Family, and Mental Sustainability
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If I only used my able body—my legs, arms, and hands—to move my brain from one meeting or Zoom call to another, it would be a very limited human experience. (Sami Inkinen)
(0:00-06:51)
In this episode of Experience-focused Leaders, Alex Shevelenko speaks with Sami Inkinen, the co-founder of Trulia and now CEO of Virta Health. The conversation goes beyond financial success and company building, focusing instead on what sustains a person over decades of high performance. Sami shares how Virta Health is on a mission to reverse type 2 diabetes and obesity in one billion people, and how his own life has been shaped by endurance sports, mindfulness, and family.
He describes racing in Ironman World Championships and why training and competing are more than hobbies—they are essential for his health and clarity of thought. He reflects on the importance of carrying multiple identities, from father and husband to athlete and founder, explaining how this balance provides resilience when challenges arise in one area of life. The discussion also touches on his journey into meditation, which began even after achieving what many would consider the ultimate professional dream. Success alone didn’t silence the small frustrations, but mindfulness helped him find a deeper sense of stability and focus.
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Training the Mind: Sami Inkinen on Why Success Isn’t Enough
I’ve trained every muscle in my body as an athlete. I’ve educated my brain. But I haven’t really trained my mind. (Sami Inkinen)
(06:51-13:01)
After Trulia’s IPO, Sami found himself financially secure, happily married, and living in New York with no pressing obligations. Yet he was suddenly furious over something as trivial as a broken washing machine. That moment made him realize he had spent years training his body and brain but had never actually trained his mind.
Determined to change that, he signed up for a ten-day silent meditation retreat in Taiwan. What began as a way to fix what felt “broken” became a daily practice that he has now kept up for over a decade. Sami explains that meditation wasn’t about hours of sitting in silence but about cultivating awareness in small, consistent ways.
Alex relates with his own story of reaching big milestones—marriage, a new baby, a successful company exit—only to still feel unsettled by small arguments and everyday stress. Together, they reflect on the trap of “I’ll be enough if…” thinking and how real fulfillment comes not from external milestones but from adjusting along the way, enjoying the journey, and realigning when needed.
Authenticity, Urgency, and the Pie-Eating Contest of Leadership
In a professional setting, it’s like a pie-eating contest — the winner gets more pie to eat. So you’d better enjoy eating pie today. (Sami Inkinen)
(13:01-17:53)
Sami Inkinen reflects on what it really takes to lead. He pushes back against the endless advice that leaders should model themselves after “wartime CEOs” or “peacetime CEOs,” calling it “complete BS.” For him, the only approach that works long-term is authenticity—showing up as yourself, rather than trying to copy someone else’s playbook.
He also explains that motivation inside a company is tricky because everyone is driven by different things: fear, ambition, financial security, or the desire to prove themselves. As a leader, he doesn’t try to fix those drivers. Instead, he looks for people who are naturally self-motivated. From there, his role is to give the team meaningful challenges. When the business isn’t facing an existential threat, he creates urgency by setting milestones that feel exciting and real—just like signing up for the next marathon after the thrill of the first one fades.
Finally, he reminds his team that success isn’t just about the next promotion or title. Moving up the ladder, he says, is like entering a pie-eating contest: the winner just gets more pie. In other words, more responsibility also brings more problems. The key is learning to enjoy the process, not chasing an illusion of happiness at the next level.
What If It Goes Right? Sami Inkinen on Optimism and Building at Scale
Everything can fail for 20 reasons. But if you’re going to build something great, you have to ask: What if it goes right? (Sami Inkinen)
(17:53-18:00)
Sami explains that at Virta Health, the mission itself is a powerful motivator. The company only succeeds if it truly reverses diabetes and obesity, which means people who join are usually driven by purpose rather than quick financial gain. As he puts it, you want “missionaries, not mercenaries.”
When Alex asks about Sami’s bold statement that “Virta will not fail,” Sami clarifies that while he never makes absolute promises, optimism is part of his wiring. He believes that successful founders focus less on the many reasons things could go wrong and more on imagining what success could look like. For him, it’s about asking, “What if this works? How big could it be?”
He shares that Virta has grown to 900 employees, hundreds of millions in revenue, and is on track for profitability, which gives him confidence that the company has moved past survival mode. Now the question is not whether it will exist but how high it can climb—Mont Blanc or Everest. His mindset is to picture the positive outcome and then work relentlessly to make it real.
Your Edge Is Love: Sami Inkinen on Motivation, Health, and Lasting Change
Unless you unexplainably fall in love with the idea or mission, I don’t think the entrepreneurial journey is worth it. (Sami Inkinen)
(18:00-38:04)
Alex Shevelenko asks Sami Inkinen how he motivates people to make real changes in their health—especially since so many blame themselves when diets and exercise programs fail. Sami explains that most people struggling with obesity or diabetes have tried countless approaches, only to feel like failures. At Virta Health, the first step is to tell patients: “It’s not you who failed. It was the program and the lack of support that failed you.” Instead of relying on willpower, Virta focuses on science and sustainable nutrition, helping people eat until they’re full with the right foods, rather than constantly restricting themselves.
Sami also talks about convincing broader stakeholders—insurers, HR leaders, and especially doctors. While scientific papers are important, he says the most powerful proof is a single patient’s transformation. A doctor who sees their own patient reverse diabetes and come off insulin is far more persuaded than by reading hundreds of pages of research. That human story becomes the real driver of change.
As the conversation closes, Sami shares advice for founders. He believes success comes from “falling in love” with a mission in the same way you fall in love with a person—where nothing feels too difficult if it means being closer to it. That deep, unexplainable passion is what fuels grit and persistence over the long haul.
Check out the episode's Transcript (AI-generated) HERE.
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Author
Experience-focused Leaders is the #1 Multimedia Podcast! We talk to senior business & tech leaders about the experiences that move forward organizations, customers and society at large. True to form, we mix audio, video, web and eBook formats to turn these authentic conversations into personalized nuggets you'll remember & use.
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