Meet Lindsay Ruiz, the Founder and CEO of human as usual, a scaling studio transforming how companies achieve revenue targets while upholding their team’s dignity and values.
Human as usual was born out of Lindsay’s vision of a business world where operational health and human values are not sacrificed for financial targets. Drawing on her own experiences and insights into the challenges hyper-growth companies face, she crafted a model focused on sustainable, people-centered growth. Her studio emphasizes values like ethics, authenticity, and courage, pushing companies to not only scale financially but also to inspire positive change within their industries and beyond. This mission aligns with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 8, promoting economic growth that supports full, productive employment and decent work for all.
During our conversation, Lindsay shared the underlying mission of human as usual, how she personally defines success, and the advice she would give women looking to intentionally grow businesses.
What is the underlying mission of human as usual? How does your work make a difference in people’s lives?
The mission behind human as usual is to “scale generatively, advancing humankind” by leaving behind the old “business as usual” model and embracing a new paradigm where scaling is about human expansion as much as it is about financial growth. We’re equipping companies to scale with humanity, self-reliance, and adaptability at the core—values that don’t just enhance operations but also elevate the people and ecosystems they touch. Our work aligns closely with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 8 to “promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.” With scaling failures so often tied to internal tensions or reactive strategies, we’re reimagining scaling and hypergrowth to be healthy, purposeful, and deeply human, inspiring companies to raise the bar not only for themselves but also for their industries.
What core values guide human as usual? How do these principles reflect your personal values and how do they influence your leadership?
Our core values are ethics, uniqueness, authenticity, courage, principles, and peace. These serve as the bedrock of everything we do in our pursuit of wholeness both individually and collectively. These values don’t just guide our approach to business but also reflect my personal commitment to standing for integrity, champion original thinking, safeguard human generativity, and create meaningful change. I believe in resisting the cookie-cutter path, building something elegant and inspiring that truly moves the needle for people. Leading with courage and authenticity means I’m all in when it comes to following my own heart, upholding fairness, and honoring peace as the truest measure of success. This philosophy not only influences my leadership but also shapes how we support clients in building businesses that are as principled as they are powerful.
“True leadership is about being the person others can trust, holding space for them, and validating their humanity by making sure they feel seen, heard, and advocated for.”
Can you share a time when staying true to your mission or values required you to slow down or take a different path in your growth journey?
A defining moment for me was transitioning from our beta phases to focusing on securing our first enterprise client. This task required me to step back, pause our active LinkedIn engagement, and join the Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center’s Milestones Circle program to strategize with intent. During this time, I realized my online presence was beginning to feel more like a performance of success rather than a true reflection of where we were. Slowing down allowed me to realign with our core values, especially authenticity, principles, and wholeness. Taking this time was critical to ensure that our next steps, especially this first major milestone, would be genuinely aligned with the integrity I want to bring into every aspect of our work.
How do you personally define success? In what ways does this definition guide both your business and personal life?
I personally define success by peace: the deep sense that every decision I make aligns with my values and fills me with energy and purpose, rather than fear or anxiety. This definition of success guides me in making choices in both life and business that are in lockstep with my principles, ensuring that I’m building something that feels whole, grounded, and genuinely impactful. When I feel that calm confidence, I know I’m creating something meaningful. This idea of success allows me to remain congruent not only with my values but also with what I want human as usual to stand for.
Which personal relationships or life experiences have had the greatest influence on your leadership style?
My leadership style is deeply influenced by close relationships and experiences with people who have suffered under leaders with narcissistic traits. Witnessing the harm caused by self-serving leadership completely shifted my perspective on what it means to lead with integrity. For me, true leadership is about being the person others can trust, holding space for them, and validating their humanity by making sure they feel seen, heard, and advocated for. I carry this understanding into human as usual, where our mission is to create a culture that values safety, ethics, and genuine human connection. The courage I’ve seen in victims of narcissistic abuse inspires me to use my role to build infrastructures that protect and uplift others, ensuring people never feel like they are only resources or means to an end.
What advice would you give to other women wanting to start or grow businesses in an intentional way?
Don’t get caught up in the pressure to look successful. Focus instead on creating, evolving, and bringing something into the world that feels generative and aligns with what you stand for. This approach may not give you a quick route to what seems more glamorous on the outside but, in the long run, it will honor your vision and respect the people around you. Become the kind of leader others can trust, who holds space for their voices, and advocates for what’s right. Ultimately, build a business that you’re proud of; one that feels like you never have to escape from.
Lindsay is a member of Dreamers & Doers, an award-winning community that amplifies extraordinary women entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders by securing PR, forging authentic connections, and curating high-impact resources. Learn more about Dreamers & Doers and get involved here.