“Listen, Iterate, Repeat”: My interview with Dominik Grolimund (Founder of Refind)

Dominik studied computer science at ETH Zurich in Switzerland then founded, built, and sold 3 startups.

Refind is his fourth company.

It’s a smart daily newsletter with 500,000+ subscribers, and it runs on an algorithm he coded himself which scans thousands of articles and sends you only the best ones tailored to your interests.

What started as a passion project to solve his own problem quietly spread to his friends… then their friends… and before long, it grew into a thriving business.

At this point, you might be thinking… “Ahhh, so that’s why you interviewed him?”

Fair guess, but no. I asked him for an interview because every single time I emailed him, I ended up even more impressed than the last time. He’s quick to respond, open to feedback, genuinely helpful and most importantly doesn’t make me suffer through 3 layers of chatbot purgatory just to solve a simple 2-minute issue (which, in this era of “submit a ticket and pray,” is saying something).

What can I say? I’m a sucker for incredible customer care… treat me like a human being and I’m all yours.

Anyway…

Here’s my interview with Dominik Grolimund:

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1. What’s one thing you’ve done consistently that’s made the biggest difference in your business?

One of the most impactful things I’ve done consistently is listen closely to user feedback. Before optimizing any part of my business, I do everything manually and pay close attention to what users are saying. I iterate based on that feedback—rinse and repeat—until I stop hearing new, meaningful suggestions for improvement.

2. What do you tell yourself on the days you want to give up?

I remind myself of my goals. When I feel doubt creeping in, I revisit my plan and the reasoning behind it. Sometimes that process gives me new insight; other times it reaffirms my direction. Either way, it helps me reset and keep going.

3. When you drop the ball, what helps you get back on track?

Running a business means some tasks are more exciting than others. When I drop the ball or get stuck in grind work, I zoom out and look at the bigger picture. That perspective usually helps me reset. I stay organized around clear goals, broken down into subgoals, so even the boring tasks feel connected to something meaningful.

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Dominik’s clearly the kind of person who makes every word count.

Maybe it’s because, last time I checked, he lives in Bali with his wife and 4 small kids and right now, family is his #1 priority.

But maybe it’s also because he’s been an entrepreneur for over 13 years, with enough experience to understand his own productivity style and lean unapologetically into it to get things done.

I’ll leave you with one final quote from Dominik that made me laugh… but it’s okay if you don’t find it funny (my sense of humour is an acquired taste after all).

“Refind is a passion project so I never had the feeling of wanting to give up… I never really had any issues with motivation. Actually, I realise now, more than ever, that I’m very motivated by ticking off check boxes from my own daily task lists. :)”

In case you’re curious, here’s where to subscribe to Refind: https://refind.com/