Balancing the Grind with Alex Naoumidis, Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Mindset Health

Alex Naoumidis is the Co-Founder & Co-CEO at Mindset Health, a company on a mission to help people manage conditions like IBS, Menopause, Depression and Insomnia without drugs.

1) To kick things off, could you tell us a little about your career background and current role?

I started building startups during university with my brother Chris – we taught ourselves to code and created a dress rental startup before pivoting to a hypnosis-based therapy app. I was studying accounting at the time, and I ended up working as an accountant at Grant Thornton for 4 months before leaving to focus on my startup full time.

I’m now Co-CEO of Mindset Health (a YC and VC-backed startup) with Chris, managing a team of 28 and having a lot of fun helping tens of thousands of people. I enjoyed being an accountant but running a startup is definitely a lot more exciting.

2) What does a day in your life look like for you? Can you take us through a recent workday?

I wake up at 7am and depending on how I feel, I go to the gym near my office. More often than not I instead take a shower, write in my gratitude journal and then have my morning coffee. I walk to work in about 15 minutes which is a nice way to start the day.

I’ll then process my inbox (I try to batch my emails) and attend an early meeting to discuss the experiment backlog. I’ll then do some deep work for an hour or two if I can before having lunch with the team. In the afternoon I’ll likely have a few more internal and external meetings.

I then process my inbox at 5pm and spend some time working on tasks I had prioritised for today and then head home at 6. I might do some work while at home, but I try not to unless there is something urgent or I’m having too much fun with work.

3) Does your current role allow for flexible or remote working? If so, how does that fit into your life and routine?

We allow for a flexible work environment with some team members fully remote and most doing some hybrid approach. Because I live so close and I love our new office and being around the team, I go on most days. Going into the office gives me a separate space to perform at my best and I love the ideation and energy that being around other people doing amazing things provides.

4) What does work-life balance mean to you and how do you work to achieve that goal?

Work life balance means feeling that I am in control of my time and working when I want to work and playing when I want to play. I love to play video games and hang out with my friends, but I also love my work so it’s less about working less or more, instead it’s more about having the ability to switch off when I want to.

5) In the past 12 months, have you started or stopped any routines or habits to change your life? 

I’ve tried to start going to the gym more – semi-successfully!  I’ve found walking to work and having a separate space has helped me a lot too. I picked up gratitude journaling which has a lot of evidence behind it, and I’ve found it really enjoyable. 

6) Do you have any favourite books, podcasts or newsletters that you’d like to recommend?

I’m really into Cartoon Avatars at the moment which is a podcast that discusses stuff that’s happening in Silicon Valley. Lenny’s Newsletter has a lot of great startup/operator info in it if you run or work at a startup. I’m just about to finish Creativity, Inc. which was very insightful, and I highly recommend – I’ll be looking at our processes and culture differently.

7) Are there any products, gadgets or apps that you can’t live without?

TikTok and Twitter are very addictive. My gaming computer – I play often and it helps me wind down, maintain relationships with distant friends and me and Chris often find it a great way to make meetings fun and more enjoyable. I really rate AirPod pros – highly recommended.

8) If you could read an interview about work-life balance by anyone, who would that be?

The Airbnb founders. I think there is a lot of hype about the grind from people like Elon Musk (who I’m a fan of), but I’m interested in hearing from other successful founders if that’s the only way.   

9) Do you have any last thoughts on work, life or balance that you’d like to share with our readers?

Increase the surface area of luck to hit. Success is definitely part-luck, but you can increase your luck by moving faster, trying new things, meeting new people and genuinely helping the people you meet.

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