Melanie Perkins
CEO & Co-founder at Canva
Melanie Perkins is CEO and co-founder of Canva, valued at $42B+ with $3.3B in revenue, who was rejected by over 100 investors before building one of the most successful design platforms in the world.
Dimension Profile
Key Themes
Episode Summary
Melanie Perkins shares the extraordinary journey of building Canva from a yearbook platform rejected by 100+ investors into a $42B design powerhouse that's been profitable for eight years. She reveals her approach to 'crazy big goals,' how she used every investor rejection as fuel to improve her pitch, and why every project at Canva starts with a vision deck.
Leadership Principles
- → The thing about crazy big goals is that you feel completely inadequate before them — that's the point
- → Investor rejections are helpful feedback: each 'no' becomes a new slide in your pitch deck
- → Start by imagining the future you actually want, then work backwards to make it happen
Notable Quotes
"The thing that I love about a crazy big goal is that you feel completely inadequate before it. You want to work really hard to will it into existence."
— On Canva's value of 'Crazy Big Goals'
"It was really clear in my mind that it was the future and I thought the investors were wrong. But they also gave really helpful feedback, often in the form of rejection."
— On being rejected by over 100 investors and using each rejection to improve
"I have a wall in my house in my office, which is my vision for what I'd like the world to look like in 2050."
— On her personal practice of long-term vision setting
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