Sondre Rasch takes us on his journey growing up in Norway, starting to travel the world, and eventually leaving his job to become a location-independent entrepreneur and digital nomad. He shares his experience founding two companies, going through the “Y-Combinator” accelerator twice, and gives his tips on how to get accepted to the program. Sondre then talks about founding Safety Wing with a mission to build a global social safety net and to solve the fundamental problems that exist with traditional health insurance companies. He gives an overview of Safety Wing’s “Nomad Insurance” (global travel medical insurance for nomads) as well as Safety Wing’s “Remote Health” insurance product for remote workers and nomads. He then takes us behind the scenes and talks about how he selected his business partners, how they raised $13 million, and how they scaled Safety Wing to 100,000 customers in under 4 years. Sondre shares Safety Wing’s strategy on marketing and branding, and also shares his leadership style, productivity tactics, and stress management techniques. He reflects on what makes a great CEO and shares executive leadership tips for managing a fully distributed team. Sondre then talks about his future vision for creating a borderless country on the internet, and the steps he is taking towards making it a reality. And, finally, he reflects on what travel means to him. FULL SHOW NOTES AVAIALBLE AT: www.TheMaverickShow.com
Episode #175: Health Insurance for Digital Nomads, Building a Global Social Safety Net, and Scaling Safety Wing to 100,000 Customers with Sondre Rasch
Episode Summary
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About the Guest
Sondre Rasch
Sondre Rasch is a co-founder and CEO of SafetyWing – a fully remote team that is building a global social safety net. Safety Wing offers Nomad Travel Insurance that covers you while traveling worldwide, including Covid-19 quarantine coverage, medical and political evacuation, and even lost luggage and trip delay coverage. They also offer Remote Health Insurance for Nomads, that includes comprehensive coverage in your home country, such as vision, dental, and pre-emptive screenings. Safety Wing also offers a comprehensive health insurance solution for remote companies that covers all team members globally, no matter where they are in the world. Safety Wing’s long term vision is to remove the role of geographical borders as a barrier to equal opportunities and freedom for everyone by creating a home country on the internet, as well as bundling the financial security of global health insurance, disability insurance and pension savings into one global membership. Born in Bergen, Norway, after getting a degree in economics and computer science, Sondre worked for the government of Norway advising on social policies, and then left and founded his first company, SuperSide, as a platform for freelance designers. It was here he discovered the lack of a safety net for online remote workers, and he subsequently co-founded SafetyWing in 2018. Safety Wing has since raised over $13 Million and has grown their community to nearly 100,000 happy customers.
What You'll Learn
- How to Get Health Insurance Through Safety Wing as a Digital Nomad
- How to Start and Scale a Company to 100,000 Customers in 4 Years
- How to Experience the Dramatic Nature and Beauty of Norway
Links From the Episode
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LEARN MORE ABOUT SAFETY WING’S INSURANCE PROGRAMS FOR NOMADS:
#1 BOOK THAT SONDRE RECOMMENDS
#1 PERSON WITH WHOM SONDRE MOST WANTS TO HAVE DINNER
TOP 3 FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
TOP 3 BUCKETLIST TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
LOCATIONS WHERE THE INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE
OTHER PLACES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
OTHER COMPANY MENTIONED IN THIS EPEISOE
CONNECT WITH SONDRE
Time Stamped Show Notes
**Click the time stamp to jump directly to that point in the episode.
[4:04] Growing up in Norway and Developing an Interest in Travel
[6:05] Recommendations for Visiting Norway
[9:28] Traveling to Cuba as a Teenager
[11:35] Sondre’s Path to Entrepreneurship
[14:16] Sondre Shares his Experience and Tips on Y-Combinator
[17:18] The Path to Founding Safety Wing
[20:08] Building a Global Safety Net and Solving the Problems with Traditional “Insurance”
[23:28] Overview of Safety Wing’s Digital Nomad Travel Health Insurance
[27:41] Overview of Safety Wing’s Comprehensive Remote Health Insurance Plan
[32:52] How to Select the Right Business Partners
[36:18] Raising $13 Million and Scaling Safety Wing to 100,000 Customers
[39:33] Safety Wing’s Marketing and Brand Building Techniques
[42:01] Tips on Great Executive Leadership
[43:49] Managing a Fully Distributed Team
[46:01] Productivity Techniques
[48:49] Stress Management Techniques
[50:07] Building a Borderless Country on the Internet
[57:18] What Travel Means to Sondre
[58:51] The Lightning Round
[1:04:30] Follow and Connect with Sondre
