In this episode of The Seat, host Ray Erickson sits down with Jeff Pabst, a seasoned media and technology revenue leader who has built and scaled teams across radio, ad tech, music streaming, gaming, and the creator economy. Jeff shares how curiosity shaped his career moves, why mentorship and coaching are force multipliers, and how to build repeatable systems that drive revenue growth.

From his early days selling radio at Interep to leadership roles at ShareThis, Shazam, and FaZe Clan, Jeff breaks down the mindset and operating principles he uses to hire, develop, and scale high-performing teams, plus the simple question a CTO asked him that still guides how he thinks about success: are you a builder or a seller?

In this episode, we cover:

• The “builder vs. seller” framework and why sales matters to company health
• Why curiosity is the trait Jeff hires for (and can’t teach)
• How to build a repeatable system for scaling revenue teams
• Mentorship, coaching, and creating a feedback loop that actually works
• The “learning years vs. earning years” idea and career pacing for future leaders
• Why investing in your network is even more important in a remote-first world

00:00 - Cold Open: Builder or seller?

00:41 - Intro: Jeff Pabst and what we’ll unpack

01:48 - LA / morning routine / getting started

03:04 - The early days: Radio sales, training, and mentorship

05:17 - Negotiation + the pull toward digital

06:20 - UC Davis, “nepo baby” origin, and first break into media

08:58 - Quarter-life crisis + traveling the world

09:27 - Specific Media: early digital + cold-calling muscle

12:02 - ShareThis: first-time manager, scaling fast, building systems

16:40 - Scaling revenue orgs: spotting trends before they happen

18:04 - Leadership: hiring mistakes, diverse teams, toolkits, training

22:13 - Hiring filter: curiosity, coachability, competence, execution

26:03 - Failure → opportunity: the interview that changed everything

27:48 - Mentors, peers, coaching, and managing pressure

30:20 - Advice that stuck: builder vs. seller + the power of phone calls

34:40 - Mentorship story: building alongside a key leader

37:01 - The through line: interest + people + culture

39:25 - Creator economy + where media is headed

41:07 - Advice to future leaders: learning years vs. earning years

44:44 - Speed round: Surfline, Chicago, and Pivot

46:28 - Wrap

Keywords

career journey, media advertising, digital media, leadership, high-performing teams, mentorship, sales growth, communication, networking, sales advice, creator economy, ad tech, programmatic, go-to-market, revenue leadership, sales management, coaching, building systems, radio to digital, Shazam, ShareThis, FaZe Clan

Guest bio (Jeff Pabst)

Jeff Pabst is a seasoned media and technology revenue leader with 20+ years of experience building and scaling high-performing commercial teams across ad tech, music streaming, gaming, and the creator economy. He has held senior roles at Interrep, Specific Media, ShareThis, Shazam, Loaded, and FaZe Clan, and is known for his people-first leadership style, curiosity, and ability to create repeatable systems that scale revenue. Jeff currently provides executive strategy at FaZe Clan and is Managing Partner at Second Point Advisors, where he advises founders and growth-stage companies on go-to-market and commercial strategy.

Host bio (Ray Erickson)

Ray Erickson is the host of The Seat and a sales leader in media, marketing, and advertising with deep experience across CTV, programmatic, streaming, and digital video. Ray has built and led revenue teams across the ad ecosystem and is passionate about unpacking the real stories behind revenue leadership, the mentors, setbacks, and defining moments that shape how executives lead.

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Connect with Jeff:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffrey-pabst/
• Company/Advisory: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-point-advisors/

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