Colin Hodge: News, Writing, Podcasts
Categories
I Got Kicked Off the App Store. Here’s What Happened Next.
Dean and Maxwell Rotbart had me on Monday Morning Radio to mark their 700th episode, and we spent nearly an hour getting into something I
I Harnessed My Jealousy and Built Something. Here’s How.
Rick Tocquigny had me on Success Made to Last Legends, and we covered a lot of ground in a short amount of time. Listen to
Your Brain Knows When You’re Faking It. So Does Your Customer.
Wrote a guest post for thoughtLEADERS on something I think about constantly when building products and brands: authenticity isn’t just a buzzword. It’s biology. Read
How Psychology Cracked the Code to Growing a Startup to 100 Million Users
The team at Founders Podcast had me on to talk about something I’ve spent the better part of 20 years figuring out: why some products
Marc Champagne Asked Me Why Some Ideas Spread and Others Die. Here’s What I Said.
Marc Champagne had me on Behind The Human — a podcast that unpacks the stories and mental fitness practices of people living at the top
Most Founders Think They Have a Product Problem. They Don’t.
Kayvon had me on The Vault Unlocked for a 45-minute conversation that got into the mechanics of why startups actually stall — and why the
Cornell Never Let Me Into Psych 101. It Didn’t Matter.
Honored to have written a guest post for Cornell’s alumni magazine Cornellians — and I ended up telling a story I don’t share often enough.
I Got Asked 9 Questions About Growth. I Had Answers for All of Them.
Eric Dye had me on Enterprise Radio, and we packed a lot into 16 minutes — the kind of questions I think every founder and
I Wrote About Selling Your Startup for a Magazine With 100K+ Monthly Readers. Here’s What I Said.
I recently published a piece in CEOWORLD Magazine on one of the questions I get asked most: how do you actually position your startup for
I Went on a Podcast and Said Empathy Is a Superpower. I Meant It.
I recently joined Dr. Richard Shuster on The Daily Helping podcast, and we got into something I think about a lot but don’t always say
Even a National Bestseller Can’t Get A Catchy Headline in Hometown Paper
After months of followups, my local area paper, the Williamsport Sun-Gazette, covered the news about my book. In a funny twist, the headline they went
May 2026 Reader Reviews for Outrageous Startup Growth
One weird thing about publishing a book in 2026: a lot of the conversation around it ends up trapped inside platforms. Amazon reviews. Goodreads comments.
I Built a Viral App From a Small Town With No Resources. Here’s the Philosophy Behind It.
Anika had me on Your Brand Amplified, and we got personal in a way I don’t always go in interviews. Listen on Apple Podcasts or
What a Day at Otto Bookstore — Thank You, Williamsport
I’ll be honest. I wasn’t sure what to expect going back to Williamsport. Book launches can be a lot. The performance of it, the signing
Tomorrow I’ll be at Otto Bookstore in Williamsport, PA — come say hi!
This Saturday, May 30th, from noon to 2pm, I’m heading back to Lycoming County for a book launch and homecoming at the Otto Bookstore, and
What Netflix Can Teach Small Businesses About Pricing
Your pricing page isn’t just a menu. It’s a decision environment. In my latest piece on Young Upstarts, I explore what Netflix’s tiered pricing strategy
6 Million Users. Zero Ad Spend. Here’s What Actually Drove It.
Sophia Matveeva had me on Tech for Non-Techies, and we got into something I don’t always unpack in this much detail: the exact psychology behind
5 crazy stats about books that blew my mind, and one that made me genuinely grateful.
I’ve been digging into the publishing industry numbers since my debut book landed on the USA Today bestseller list. I pulled the actual data. Here’s
What Your Customers Aren’t Telling You: Using Psychology to Close More Sales
Every conversion decision your customer makes is shaped by the environment you create around it. Get that environment right and growth follows almost naturally. Get
We’re #6 in the Country — USA Today Just Made It Official
We’re thrilled to announce that Outrageous Startup Growth: Uncovering the Secrets of User Psychology to Scale Your Success has officially landed on the USA Today
The Exit I Regretted: Why I Bought My Company Back
Selling your company is supposed to be the finish line. For me, it was the beginning of one of the strangest chapters of my career.
The 100 Million User Secret: What Psychology Can Teach You About Scale
Most app founders blame their ads, their budget, or their competitors when growth stalls. In this episode of App Masters, host Steve P. Young sits
We Built the MVP in 3.5 Hours. Then It Hit 1 Million Users.
Mark Wormgoor had me on the CTO Compass Podcast, and we went deep on the origin story I don’t always tell in full, from fixing
The Price of Rapid Growth: What I Learned After My Startup Crashed
What does it actually feel like to go viral before you’re ready? To hit a million signups in three and a half months, watch it
The Unicorn Delusion: Why Chasing a Billion-Dollar Myth is Breaking Your Brain
What if everything the startup world taught you about success is wrong? In this episode of Is Anything Real, I sit down with transition leadership coach
Catching the Catfish: How DOWN is Outsmarting Dating Scammers
Online dating has a trust problem. Scammers are getting smarter, so we decided to build technology that’s even faster. Featured in Women Love Tech, I
Why Self-Doubt is Actually Your Secret Weapon: 6 Lessons from Colin Hodge
Most people think perseverance is just about working harder. But after years of building DOWN, I’ve learned it’s actually about being brave enough to ask:
The 750% Surge: How Understanding Gen Z Transformed the Way We Design Apps
When the dating pool shifted—and Gen Z surpassed 50% of our users, we didn’t just watch the trends; we rebuilt for them. I recently spoke
The Apple HQ Incident: How I Nearly Ended Up in Handcuffs at One Infinite Loop
They say you should “move fast and break things,” but they don’t usually mention what happens when the thing you break is Apple’s patience. I
Creating the “Perfect” Dating Profile Pics (Part 1)
You know how the profiles you see on dating apps tend to repeat many of the same cliche photos & bios? For men’s profiles, you