In this Business Blast Podcast episode, host Tyler Wagner interviews Matthew Vega‑Sáenz, co‑founder of the shared‑mobility startup Lula. The conversation begins with Matthew sharing a personal comeback story: after suffering concussions at 14 that doctors said would end his basketball career, he persisted, eventually earning varsity play and college scholarships, illustrating the power of patience and perseverance. He then shifts to his professional expertise, explaining the shared‑mobility sector—car sharing, bike sharing, and ride‑hailing—and urging listeners to research alternatives to Uber/Lyft, citing Lime as a low‑cost example. Matthew offers broader business counsel, emphasizing that founders should treat investor advice with a grain of salt, as investors may lack deep industry knowledge. He also shares personal life philosophy: don’t stress over issues that won’t affect you in a year, and maintain balance among family, work, and health to achieve happiness. Regarding learning resources, he recommends the book Traction for entrepreneurs and cites A Series of Unfortunate Events for creative problem‑solving. A favorite quote from real‑estate mogul Bill Cummins about recognizing and acting on opportunities is highlighted. Finally, Matthew directs listeners to connect with him via LinkedIn or email, and the episode concludes with a brief sponsor and production note about Anchor.
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Welcome to the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with all the resources you need to become a successful author. You can learn more about Authors Unite and join the free community at authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner. Today I have Matthew Vega-Sáenz with us. He is the co-founder of Lula. So welcome to the show, Matthew.
Thanks for having me, it's a pleasure.
Of course, thanks for joining us. The first question I have for you is, what's the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
Yeah, so growing up, I started playing basketball probably at 7 years old, and at the age of 14, I had a couple concussions and doctors told me I could never play basketball again. And that just left me heart-wrenched. I mean, I was totally distraught, but I always had faith that I'd one day play basketball again. I had a twin brother, and throughout this whole incident, he would always be practicing and he would always encourage me, and him along with my older brother would also encourage me to just keep practicing, that you never know what opportunity comes up down the line. And fast forward to my senior year of high school, about 3 years later, I got the opportunity to play varsity basketball. And it was my first time playing— essentially my first time playing organized basketball since the concussions had happened. And I was able to get a couple of scholarship offers to go play in college. And what's really incredible about that, my favorite part about the story is it just really shows everybody out there, particularly me, that if you're just patient and you keep working towards your goals, regardless of how insurmountable the obstacles may seem, you never know what happens. And if you're patient enough, opportunities that you once dreamt of and seemed like they wouldn't come about they might actually come back into circle and help you fulfill your dream.
Yes, man.
Thank you for sharing that. That's an amazing story. The next question I have for you is, what's the most valuable piece of information we should know that's within your expertise or industry?
Yeah, so my field of expertise is essentially shared mobility, things like car sharing, bike sharing, ride-hailing, things of that nature. And I think the most What my most valuable piece of information in this industry is, just for everybody out there, do your research and really look at what's out there as a means of transportation apart from Uber. I'm not saying this to hype up my own startup, Lula, but if you really do your research, you can actually end up saving a lot of money and access more convenient and affordable ways to get around than things like Uber and Lyft. A great example that isn't Lula is Lime Bike. Their rides start as little, or their bicycle rentals start as little bit, or as low as a dollar. So really do your research because you'll end up saving a lot of money and maybe even some time during your next commute.
Yes, thank you for sharing that, man. And what is your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
Yeah, so I was speaking with an investor one day and I'll never forget, he told me investors don't know everything, so you don't have to do everything they suggest. And that changed me forever, my perspective on business, because entrepreneurs and founders like myself, we often get so caught up in trying to please investors because they're the ones that have the money, but we have to realize that we can't listen to what every single investor tells us to do in regards to our business because they often are guessing without really knowing the specifics of the industry or their business. So although it's a lot of times they can give us advice that's priceless, take everything with a grain of salt because oftentimes they haven't studied the industry as much as you have and they might not know as well as you do. So it's great to take their advice, but always be careful not to try and take the advice of what every single person tells you to do because they can often leave contradictions and just stressing yourself out.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
My number one piece of advice, not only for my younger self, it's actually something I tell everybody that comes to me for advice, is that if something won't affect you a year from now, don't stress over it. Life is too hectic to focus on like the little things. And if it won't affect you a year from now, I'm Don't allow that to stress you out.
And in your opinion, it might actually tie in, in your opinion, what's the key to happiness?
I'd have to say the key to happiness, I'd have to say is balance. Too much of anything can become a bad thing. So I firmly believe it's necessary to balance the important things like your family, work, your health, and anything else that's of importance to you. I think too much of an emphasis on one particular aspect of life which disrupts that overall balance and negatively impact your happiness. So to me, balance is the key to happiness.
And what is the best book that you've read and what's the number one thing you learned from that?
In regards to business, the best book I've read that I'd recommend every single entrepreneur read is Traction by Gabriel Weinberg. But it may sound a little silly, my favorite book, or in this case, my favorite series of books ever, that forever impacted me is Series of Unfortunate Events. It really taught me that no matter how difficult overcoming a certain obstacle may seem, if you think out of the box and you get creative, there's typically a solution to your problem. That's something that I've applied to a variety of areas of my life.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
Not probably A couple weeks ago, I saw real estate mogul Bill Cummins speak, and he said what separated those who are successful from those who aren't is that those who are successful learn to, when to distinguish when opportunity comes knocking on the door and when to open that door. I think that quote, what stuck with me, that quote, and why I liked it so much and why it's my favorite is because I think that quote can be applied to any aspect of life, and I think it can be applied by everyone. Its relevance to everyone in everyday life is, I guess, why I like it so much.
Awesome, man. Thank you so much for coming on. The last question I have for you before we let you go is, where is the best place for people to find you online?
The best is LinkedIn. I'm pretty good about answering my LinkedIn messages, but my email is also there. So if you want to shoot me an email, feel free to do so. I'm great answering email as well.
Awesome, brother. Thank you again. We appreciate it.
Likewise.
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