Ex-corporate operators don’t fail because they’re dumb.
They fail because they try to play entrepreneurship like a safe promotion instead of a thousand-run swing of the bat.
In this episode of Second Life Leader, I sit down with Roger Martin—former pharma COO who walked away at 46 from the “sharp suit + stock options” life to wake up on a Monday with no salary, no benefits, and no safety net. Since then he’s co-founded RockBox Fitness, Beam Light Sauna, and ThriveMore Autopilot, and he’s brutally honest about what it actually takes to survive that transition.
We get into:
Why survival is wildly underrated as a business strategy—and why just staying in the game longer than everyone else becomes a superpower.
How to think about exponential learning as your real edge (not your idea, not your funding).
The difference between pulling the slot machine lever and building offers that can hit “thousand-run” grand slams.
Why most management jobs are going to be eaten by AI agents—and what that means for your next decade if you’re still hiding in middle management.
Corporate as a paid training ground vs. a life sentence, and how to know when you’ve shifted from learning to just turning the crank.
The conversations we’re having with our kids about college, creative careers, and being broke on purpose while you chase something real.
Roger’s simple, ruthless advice to his son chasing music—and to any founder on the edge of quitting.
If you’re in your own second act—post-layoff, post-burnout, post-“this can’t be my legacy”—this one is a mirror and a map.
Connect with Roger:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/realrogermartin/
