Pilot Episode from 'Research to Impact' by Dr. Samar Aad - Part of the Podcast Incubator Summer 2026 Series

We're sharing a draft. An unfinished product for a podcast series that will be released very soon. In keeping with our mission on 'The Draft', we celebrate this pilot episode and the mission of its creator, Dr. Samar Aad.

Dr. Aad, an Assistant Professor of Management at the Lebanese American University, wants to make research more accessible to a general public, allowing everyone to benefit from unique insights.

Here's the description of the first episode in her new podcast. Enjoy!

The Freedom Myth: What Really Makes Entrepreneurs Happy?

Ask any entrepreneur why they left a stable job, and you will almost always hear the same word: freedom. We studied 3,757 entrepreneurs across six countries in the MENA region. Autonomy was essential in exactly zero pathways to satisfaction. Not one. What appeared in every single route was something far more personal: who is standing beside you.

In the pilot episode of Research to Impact, Dr. Samar Aad sits down with Dr. Moustafa Haj Youssef to unpack the research behind the freedom myth.