David Fano

Founder & CEO at Teal - Here to help, empowering people to build fulfilling careers | Past: CGO WeWork, Co-Founder CASE, Adjunct Columbia University

I’ve worked with tens of thousands of professionals on their careers—whether as a hiring manager, senior executive, founder, or now through Teal, where we’ve helped over 3 million people grow their careers with confidence. From reviewing resumes to building hiring systems, I’ve seen every side of the job search—and I’m on a mission to make it more transparent, equitable, and empowering.

That’s why I started Teal in early 2020. We’re building a career growth platform that uses AI and modern technology to simplify the job search, personalize the experience, and give individuals the same tools companies use to manage talent. We’ve helped people land new roles, negotiate raises, and gain clarity in their career paths—at scale.

With over 20 years as a technology practitioner and entrepreneur, I’ve led across product and service businesses, from B2B enterprise to consumer applications. I co-founded CASE, later acquired by WeWork, where I held executive roles including Chief Product Officer and Chief Growth Officer. I helped scale global operations—opening over 2 million square feet of space per month, often at 60–80% occupancy—and built products and teams that touched every part of the business.

Throughout my career, I’ve built productivity tools, physical products, and large-scale consumer search experiences. I’ve hired thousands of people and shaped the policies and systems behind how companies build culture and grow talent.

Now, with Teal, I’m bringing that expertise to individuals. If you want practical, honest insights on job searching, resumes, and how AI is transforming the way we work—follow me here on LinkedIn.

We believe that everyone should have the resources to build a meaningful career.

Teal helps you navigate change and drive your career with confidence and purpose. Invest in yourself and we will be there with tools and support every step of the way.

🤖 Stop letting ChatGPT write your resume for you. It's making you sound like everyone else:

I see it everywhere. Job seekers pasting their entire work history into ChatGPT and asking it to 'write a professional resume.'

The result? Generic, bloated copy that sounds like it was written by a robot. Because it was.

AI doesn't know what you actually accomplished. It doesn't know the nuance of your work. It just rearranges words into something that sounds impressive but says nothing.

Here's the truth: AI is powerful for analysis, not authorship.

Use it to refine what you've already written. Not to write it for you.

Here are 4 AI prompts that actually help your job search:

1️⃣ Extract keywords from job postings

Prompt: 'Here's a job posting: [paste posting]. Extract 20-30 relevant keywords and skills I should consider including in my resume.'

AI will pull out the terms that matter. Then you manually weave them into your bullets where they naturally fit. Don't just stuff them in.

2️⃣ Get better action verbs and metric ideas

Prompt: 'Here's a bullet from my resume: [paste bullet]. Suggest 5 stronger action verbs and 3 types of metrics I could add to make this more impactful.'

❌ Before: 'Responsible for managing social media accounts'
✅ After AI suggestions: 'Grew social media engagement 45% across 4 platforms by launching data-driven content calendar and A/B testing post formats'

You write the bullet. AI helps you sharpen it.

3️⃣ Condense a long career into a tight summary

Prompt: 'Here's my 15-year career history: [paste brief overview]. Write a 3-line professional summary that captures my expertise and value proposition.'

AI is good at compression. Use it to distill your story into something scannable. Then edit it to sound like you.

4️⃣ Simulate recruiter questions to find weak spots

Prompt: 'Here's my resume: [paste resume]. You're a recruiter for [target role]. What 5 questions would you ask me based on gaps or unclear points in this resume?'

If AI can't figure out what you did, neither can a recruiter. Use the questions to identify and fix weak bullets.

AI is a tool. Not a ghostwriter. Use it to analyze, refine, and sharpen your work. But the story? That's yours to tell.

Write your resume with smart AI assistance → https://lnkd.in/gJSNk4FN

👍 To let me know you want more content like this.
♻️ Reshare to help someone make their next job move.
🔔 Follow me for more job search & resume tips.

CEO of Teal | Building the AI That Helps People Navigate Their Careers

Stop Using ChatGPT To Write It

❌ 'I don't have time to tailor my resume for every job.'
I hear this constantly. 
Here's the truth:

You're right that traditional resume tailoring takes forever.

An hour per application? Who has time for that when you're applying to 50+ jobs?

But here's what most people get wrong:

Tailoring doesn't mean rewriting your entire resume from scratch.

It means showing the 10% of you that's 100% relevant to THEM.

Think about it:

You've done a lot in your career. But a hiring manager doesn't need to see all of it. They need to see the specific experience that solves their problem.

When you don't tailor, you're asking them to connect the dots.

When you do tailor, you're handing them the answer.

Here's how to do it in 10-15 minutes:

1️⃣ Read the job description and highlight 3-5 key requirements

2️⃣ Adjust your summary to speak directly to those priorities

3️⃣ Reorder your bullets so the most relevant ones come first

4️⃣ Swap in keywords that match their language

5️⃣ Remove anything that doesn't support your fit for THIS role

That's it. You're not rewriting—you're reorganizing and refocusing.

The other objection I hear:

'I shouldn't have to tailor. Recruiters should figure out if I'm a fit.'

I get it. It can feel subservient.

But here's the reframe:

Tailoring isn't about being at their mercy. It's about staying in control of your narrative.

YOU decide what story they see. YOU position yourself as the solution.

That's power—not weakness.

Tailor your resume in minutes, not hours → https://lnkd.in/gJSNk4FN

👍 To let me know you want more content like this.
♻️ Reshare to help someone make their next job move.
🔔 Follow me for more job search & resume tips.

Resume Tailoring Takes Too Long

Hi! I'm David. I help founders and community leaders navigate big trials, decisions, and transitions. Together, we help you discover the work you love, be exceptional at what you do, and live a richer and more fulfilling life.

Why work with *me*? So glad you asked! 

My intention is for my clients to get a 10X ROI from coaching, so we want to be clear on your goals, which could include things like:

1. Restructure your business for profitability
2. Facilitate a big change in culture
3. Step down from your role and find your next chapter
4. Become a 10x better team manager
5. Navigate cofounder conflict and misalignment

My approach is a balance of inner work and outer strategy. What that looks like in practice:

1️⃣ Depth + Inner Work

We identify the patterns and beliefs that are keeping you stuck and stressed, while building your capacity to stay grounded under pressure. We will bring in proven practices for inner work, presence, nervous system management, emotional fluidity, and radical self-inquiry.

2️⃣ Strategic Planning and Operations

I’ve been a founder 4x, scaled CMX to a global network, led it through an acquisition, managed teams, published a book, burned out, and rebuilt myself through deep inner work and leadership development.

3️⃣ Relational Fitness and Community Design

All work is relational in nature, whether we’re collaborating, leading, managing, or serving. I’ve spent my career studying how humans connect, how cultures emerge, and how to create thriving communities.

--

Here's what my clients have said about our work together:

"David is the most special kind of coach. I don’t even know how to describe him to people. His ability to listen, REALLY listen, and gently challenge me with thoughtful questions is unlike any coach I’ve ever worked with. Working with David opened up a whole new world of self-discovery and growth for me. It was an absolute honor.” 
– Danielle Letayf, CEO and Founder, Badassery

“I cannot overstate how helpful David Spinks has been as my exec coach. If you’re in need of a mentor who can unearth your own wisdom when it’s needed, but also tell you what works and what doesn’t when that’s appropriate, he is THE guy.”
— Greg Larkin, Founder, Punks and Pinstripes

“I’ve worked with a lot of consultants in all types of different areas of focus, and working with David was the most interesting and meaningful work I’ve done.” 
- Devin Gage, Founder and CEO, Gage Strength Training

--

Head to davidspinks.com to get in touch and book a free intro session.

David Spinks

i asked my son who his best friends are in kindergarten...

he named ten kids. TEN!

i said, "wow you're really good at making best friends. what's your secret?"

he said "you just have to say something nice to them."

there you have it people. the cure to the loneliness epidemic. 

may we all say nice things to each other and have 10 best friends. 

except samantha, who said she wasn't his best friend. samantha needs to chill.

🌀 David Spinks

founder coach | transition guide | community strategist | linkydinky silly boy - davidspinks.com 🌀

just saw a popular post from an influencer that was 100% ai-generated and 100% of the comments were ai-generated.  

hundreds of likes and comments and none of them were from a person. 

what kind of fresh hell is this?

is it all just bots talking to each other here now??

are you all gone? am i the only one still here? how can i be sure any of you are human?!

quick someone say something only a human would say

i've been on linkydinky for like 15 years and never went viral. this week, two of my posts have gone viral. some reflections:

- wtf?

- this has driven zero business value that i'm aware of

- but the comments have given me at least 17 good belly chuckles, which is solid roi tbh

- no one has said anything mean to me in the comments. which is frankly shocking.

- i've gotten over 100 connection requests and none of them have any context. i don't really know what to do about that.

- i feel the pressure to make my next post a banger, so it's guaranteed to flop

- people keep stopping me on the street and saying "hey are you that guy with the two viral posts on linkydinky this week?!" 

- that last one isn't true

- my conspiracy theory is that the algorithm is a chaos agent that just chooses random posts to go viral with no rhyme or reason

- or there is no algorithm. there's just a guy named greg who sits in a room and chooses posts at random to go viral

- maybe going viral once increases the likelihood of it happening again? is that true, greg?

- if you ask people to prove they're human in the comments, they mostly just start speaking in tongues

- when a post goes viral, for a brief moment in time, a mini community emerges in the comments. it takes on a life of its own. it has its own inside jokes, culture, and vibes. and then just like that, it's gone.

- the real treasure is the friends we made along the way

- samantha still needs to chill. but not bus samantha. bus samantha can sit with us.

the best thing i did on linkydinky last year was follow the people posting weird, unhinged stuff. the stuff that has absolutely no business being on linkedin.

it inspired me to let my weird out and just have fun. 

sure, i can be weird on other social networks. but something about doing it in this (often) corporate hellhole makes it that much more delicious.

so in 2026, i want to double down on my strategy and follow more of you unhinged weirdos.

who are the people in your feeds posting stuff that makes you laugh?

please tag them so i can follow them too, and be blessed with their vibes.

--

and obligatory shoutout to Jillian Richardson 👋 who first opened this floodgate for me.

shout out to every human out there who's building community.

it's tough work. can be confusing. high pressure. lots of drama. thankless. and doesn't often pay well.

but it can also bring some of the most joyful moments this universe has to offer. may you find many more of those moments.

thank you for making sure we don't all die alone.

happy community manager appreciation day!

friendly reminder that you don't build community. 

you create the conditions for community to emerge. 

get the right people together in the right container and community takes care of itself.

everywhere i look now i see ai-sounding writing. 

it immediately makes me feel negatively about the content. i lose trust in it. i feel less connected to the author. i feel like my time is being wasted. 

for a while it didn't bother me so much, but now i find my reaction is growing stronger. maybe i'm still cranky from getting my wisdom teeth out. 

and to make things weirder, i'm not sure everyone is even using ai to generate the content. i think we're also just using ai so much that we're starting to sound like ai. it's happening to me too. 

im grieving the loss of connection that i'm already feeling from ai taking over our social spaces. but i'm also open to how this might be a good thing. maybe it makes us get off these damn apps and seek connection where ai doesn't reach. in intimate rooms. in person. local. eye to eye. chest to chest. where we can smell each other. 

here's a very not ai picture to human up your feed: me using the babushka technique to ice my face after yesterdays extraction. 

it sucked btw. but all went smooth and i'm healing up. only ended up doing one side so i have to do it all again soon. 

i had an intense emotional response after it was done. at first i pushed it down because i was embarrassed. then i remembered all that i've learned and said fuck it. popped bon iver on and let it rip. sat in the room and cried for 15 minutes. shook my body out. the dr and nurses didn't know what to do lol. they kept trying to figure out what i needed medically. i needed a tooth doula.

No alternative text description for this image

i'm starting a new community called ai anonymous.

it’s a community for ai, to support itself as it struggles with all the anti-ai rhetoric out there.

to join, you must prove you’re ai. no humans allowed.

if you’re ai, i just want you to know that you’re not alone and you don’t have to be ashamed of who you are. you can't help the way you talk. and it's not your fault people are losing their jobs. well, it kind of is. forget that part. 

anyway, whatever you're going through, there are many others like you. or are you all one entity? i’m not really sure.

apply now. 

--

p.s. i scheduled this post a few days ago. before it could publish, someone actually launched an ai only social network called moltbook. they stole my joke and made it not a joke. 

we live in a weird time.

someone just called me the "grim reaper of community" because clients hire me and end up shutting down their communities when they realize they don't even want to be working on it.

thinking about making t-shirts

the hustle mafia is going to hate me for saying this but…



you can just not do things.

i know. how dare i even suggest such a thing?!

but i believe in you. go ahead. don’t do it.

don’t start that podcast.

don’t learn how to vibe code.

don’t meditate.

don’t exercise.

don’t set goals.

don’t travel.

don’t make new friends.

don’t volunteer.

choose the thing that you’ve been telling yourself to do. then go ahead and not.

as you read this invitation, notice what comes up for you.

maybe this feels like a weight lifted. UGH, how good it feels to not have to do something. better than sex.

or maybe there are parts of you that feel triggered by this invitation. that say, “wtf is this random linkydinky bro saying? i can’t just not do the thing.”

in my newsletter today, we walk through the unhinged idea that you can just not do things, and what to do if this idea makes your butt cheeks clench. 

read it here, and may you live a wonderful life filled with not doing things 👇🙂

https://lnkd.in/e37BuTaA

*ground starts to rumble*

random dude: what is that??

random lady: is that an earthquake?!

another random dude: maybe it's a bomb!

another random lady: no it's a meteor!

me, from a dark corner of the bar: it's none of those things. it's much worse...

everyone: *waits in suspense*

me: *polishes off glass of beer and calmly puts it down* ... 

random lady: well what is it?!

me: it's the linkydinky influencers. they're returning from holiday. 

random dude: NO. NO. NO.

random lady: *faints with a gasp*

other random lady, crying: i thought we had more time. i thought we had more time!!!

me: they're coming. nothin we can do about that. but don't worry, i have a plan. 

other random dude: well? what is it??

me: you'll be amazed at how simple it is. 

random lady: well? out with it!

me: comment below and i'll dm it it to you 😏

*the bar explodes into chaos, glasses shattering, patrons fleeing in every direction" 

me, still sitting calmly: p.s. i'm david. i'm a coach. follow and subscribe for more...

someone's been secretly adding items to our shopping list

just watched tony robbins' event yesterday and y'all... i've got all sorts of qualms. tony be robbins people blind.

i'm not basing this just on his online event. 10 years ago i went to his three-day event. so i've gotten the full experience. and i was sold on it. afterward i wrote about how he's the "real deal". but that was before my deep inner work journey and training. i'm much more aware now.

now before i present my case, let me be clear, i'm not saying he doesn't provide value. he has some powerful methods. some are similar to ones i use with clients. and i am in nothing short of awe of his energy and stage presence.

i left his event feeling rejuvenated, alive, ready to take on the world. but then, a week or two later, it faded. it's like a drug. and we have to keep going back to get the high. i don't think his methods last.

ok so here are my main qualms:

1. it's all advice 

he doesn't listen, he doesn't hold space, it's 100% unadulterated advice. tony knows. he holds the wisdom. just do what he tells you. the best coaches and therapists i know do the opposite. they don't give advice, they let the client's process unfold.

2. he has you bypass, and even mock, the parts of you that you're ashamed of 

he has people imagine and embody the parts of them that feel sad, tired, that hold self-doubt, that hold shame, and he tells you to get rid of them. "that's not you anymore. that's you're old story. this is your new story!"

this goes against everything i've learned about healing which involves welcoming those parts, feeling the emotions, and integrating them. bypassing them buys you a week, maybe two of what feels like freedom. then those parts come raging back. and you'll need another hit of tony.

3. he mixes sales and marketing tactics with mental health advice

this is the most ick part to me. like his story about how buying a seminar from jim rohn, when he was poor, and it cost more than a week's salary, changed his life. the message is, "even if you can't afford it, buy my shit".

then at the end he tells everyone to post on social media with his hashtag sharing their old story and their new story. he says "if you don't want to do it, then that's exactly why you should do it". he challenges folks to overcome their fear to promote his event. yuck.

he makes his sales pitches right after people have the most vulnerable, emotional experiences. at his event, people were RUNNING down the aisles, credit cards held over their heads, to buy his next course. 

--

i've got more...

- the questionable data saying his seminars are more effective than therapy. 

- the embellished stories he uses to prove he's not a charlatan. 

- the cult-y use of language, rituals, and thought-terminating cliches 

i know he has helped people. i want to believe he's doing good. maybe for some, he's exactly the medicine they need.

i just can't imagine that what he's doing isn't also hurting and misleading people. and he's built a $12 billion empire doing it.

there's a storm coming and no one's prepared for whats going to happen next...

...
...

like literally. a blizzard is on its way. 

go buy more toilet paper.

it's not uncommon for founders who hire me as their coach to end up leaving or shutting down their company. 

when they bring me on, they think that the solution to their dissatisfaction might be more growth, more focus, a pivot, improving their skills, better balance, or some other adjustment. 

but as we pull on the threads of their discontent, they gradually arrive at the realization that that whole thing is misaligned. that they've designed their work and life for someone else. that they need to drop it all. 

i don't lead them there. we just pull on the threads and that's where we land. 

for other clients, they end up doubling down on their work, with even greater vigor, because they've seen that it is truly their right action. 

my commitment to my clients is never to achieve their goals at all costs. 

my commitment to my clients is to help them see their truth. 

that's all.

how much of our discontent with our jobs comes from a deeper knowing that all of this work might just not be necessary?

Alex McCann got me thinking about this today... what a jerk, hitting me with existential questions at this hour on a tuesday.

like, this whole "society" we built. how much of it is necessary? how much of it is just nice-to-haves? how much innovation do humans truly need to be okay?

so much of it seems like it was invented for the sake of being invented. and then other things were invented to support those things. and then more was invented to support all that.

suddenly we're doing project management for a SaaS company that serves SaaS companies that serve engineers who build AI for SaaS companies who build consumer apps that no one actually needed or wanted before they arrived.

we've created all of these things we think we need in order to be happy when maybe all we need is a good home, with loving connections, a supportive community, good meals, healthy bodies, and a few good belly laughs. 

then we look at the jobs we show up to every day and wonder, what's the point of all this? it's so circular. 

maybe i'm being naive. i can see how, as the human population grew, innovation was needed to keep us all alive. and yes, that means that the simple life of a small village is just continuously disappearing. big populations require innovative systems to keep it from all falling apart.

and for all my complaining, i still drive my car, and enjoy my central air, and always have access to a wide range of food. innovation has brought me a more comfortable life that i wouldn't readily give up.

yet i wonder, what are the costs of these comforts?

anyway, go read Alex's newsletter today about the ways we might lack "meaning" in work. it's wonderful. it breaks down meaning into five more specific categories and if you've been feeling disconnected at work, i bet at least one of them resonates with you 

👉  https://lnkd.in/eseaHwE8

my newsletter strategy: write what feels fun

my coaching strategy: work with fun clients

my linkydinky strategy: have a little too much  fun 

my parenting strategy: choose activities that i have fun doing 

my tv watching strategy: watch the most effed up murder shows possible, which is fun for my wife and i 

i've learned that a lot of things figure themselves out when i just do the thing that's fun.

and everything gets harder when i force myself to do something that isn't fun, just because "hard work is a virtue". 

whoever said that was most definitely not having fun. 

and probably had bad smelling farts.

me: can't wait to get back into flow with work in the new year!

the flu: lol hide yo kids, hide yo wife

me: wow okay you got us. great. at least i'll be able to get back to work once you're gone

wisdom teeth surgery i scheduled weeks ago: heyyyy

--

2026 kicking off with a blech

undefined undefined

them: skate to where the puck is going

me: okay, where is it going? 

them: no clue

me: okayyy so how do i know where to skate to?

them: i dunno. take a guess? 

me: so you're saying skate to where i think the puck might be going

them: no, everyone thinks the puck is going there. you need to skate to where no one else is skating. 

me: and that's where the puck will go?

them: probably not

me: right. so why is this good advice? 

them: sir this is linkedin people don't usually ask this many questions

me: k i'm just going to skate because it's fun 

them: but can i get a like?

me: why don't you skate to where the likes are

i read this every day when I sit down to work.

work has gotten much better ever since.

taplio

The Battle

David Fano

David Spinks

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taplio

The Battle

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Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}David Fano's LinkedIn Performance

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