My First Million
My First Million

David Rubenstein: We took $5M and turned it into $500B

September 14, 2026 · 47 min

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Show notes

Sam's database on how long it takes to become a millionaire: https://clickhubspot.com/pnlv

Episode 861: Sam Parr ( https://x.com/theSamParr ) sits down with David Rubenstein ( https://x.com/DM_Rubenstein ) to talk about turning Carlyle into $500B, his $14B miss, and the greatest business lessons in history.

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Show Notes:

() Turning $5M into $500B

() Scrappy private equity

() Don’t fool yourself

() Turning down 20% of Amazon

() Recruiting big shots

() Finding the right partner

() Trade-offs

() Witnessing ascents to power

() The Greatest Sentence Ever Written

() History that repeats itself

() Recommended Reading

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Links:

• Carlyl - https://www.carlyle.com/

• David’s books - https://www.davidrubenstein.com/books/

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Check Out Sam's Stuff:

• Hampton (joinhampton.com): My community for founders. Average member does $25m/year. Many of the guests are members. Get after it...apply: http://joinhampton.com/mfm

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• Shaan's weekly email - https://www.shaanpuri.com

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Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group, Column, N.A., Members FDIC

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My First Million is a HubSpot Original Podcast // Brought to you by HubSpot Media // Production by Arie Desormeaux // Editing by Ezra Bakker Trupiano /

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