Why Los Angeles Traffic Is a Mess

Ben explains LA's historical development, transit roots, and how sprawl creates brutal commutes.

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Episode notes

In this episode of Mostly Growth, CJ, Kyle, and Ben start with Carl’s infamous “AWS from the car” rant before diving into a sharp, funny breakdown of corporate title inflation and the slow death of middle management. From “Founding BDRs” to self-proclaimed “VPs of vibes,” the crew dissects why org charts are flattening and how that changes leadership, accountability, and hiring. Then, in a classic Pricing Model Roast, they unpack why hybrid and usage-based models are both brilliant and broken, what outcome-based pricing gets wrong, and why take rates might secretly be the future. The trio closes with thoughts on momentum, AI urgency theater, and how to manage teams without burning them out—or yourself in the process.

Timestamps:

00:00 Carl from the Car on AWS

01:04 Mostly Growth intro theme

01:27 CJ’s flight back from LA (and the fake Wi-Fi warning)

02:00 “I finally learned where Mississippi was”

02:45 LA traffic and Nobu dinner with Ben

04:08 Ben’s history lesson: why LA is a transportation nightmare

06:34 “Clip it down” — segue to the main topic

07:20 Title deflation and the death of middle management

09:12 “Founding BDR” and generic LinkedIn titles

11:00 The problem with VP title inflation

12:31 The vanishing middle manager