What if your business could predict the future — even with barely any data?

In this episode, I sit down with Dash Tabor, founder and CEO of TUBR, a predictive analytics platform turning small data into big insights.

Dash started TUBR after one too many packed Tube rides in London — and ended up building a deep-tech company using a physics-based machine learning engine that helps small businesses forecast demand, sales, and staffing needs with minimal data.

But her journey wasn’t smooth.

She’s lost £500k in a day, rebuilt her team after losing her co-founder mid-fundraise, and turned down “life-saving” investor cash on moral grounds — all while keeping TUBR alive and growing.

We get into the raw parts of being a founder:

- Fundraising in a volatile market

- Building deep tech without a technical background

- Understanding investor psychology

- Rebuilding after disaster

- And why she left London for Sheffield

This is one of the most brutally honest founder stories yet.

Chapters:

00:00 - Why founders should never take “trenched” investor money

00:41 - Introducing Dash Tabor & the TUBR story

02:11 - The London Tube moment that sparked the idea

03:47 - From overcrowded trains to AI innovation

05:05 - What “machine learning” really means for small businesses

07:09 - Predicting croissants, customers, and chaos

08:57 - How much data is really needed for AI to work

10:21 - Sponsor: Opus — the network for entrepreneurs

10:41 - How Dash built deep tech without being a coder

12:28 - Leaving a stable job to build something from scratch

14:19 - When Liz Truss’ budget wiped out her customers overnight

18:09 - Losing her co-founder mid-fundraise

20:24 - Rebuilding the team from zero

21:09 - Hitting rock bottom — and the “keep going” moment

25:16 - The near-collapse and the £10K that saved TUBR

26:17 - Fundraising lessons: quantity over tranches

28:22 - The reality of raising as a female founder

31:13 - How to “build the house you want to live in” with investors

32:32 - Saying no to bad money — even when desperate

35:14 - Choosing Sheffield over London

38:48 - Building community and talent outside the capital

39:28 - Finding balance (or trying to) as a founder

43:10 - Who TUBR serves today & their new product “Pulse”

45:57 - What’s next: partnerships, scale, and profitability

47:53 - The real answer: talent vs luck in startup life

49:49 - Where to follow Dash & TUBR

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In this episode of The Everyday Founder, James sits down with Tomas Helgaš, founder and CEO of Sutro — the AI platform that turns a single text prompt into a full production-ready app.

Before Sutro, Tomas worked at Facebook (helping power the “People You May Know” feature), then went on to build and sell Sphere to Twitter after raising $30M.

Now, he’s back for round two — building Sutro to change the way the world builds software. This conversation dives into the mindset, mission, and mechanics behind one of the most fascinating builders in AI today.

We discuss:

- Why Tomas left his dream job at Facebook to start Sphere

- How he built a company that became the foundation for X (Twitter) Communities

- The early days of Sutro and building secure, production-grade AI tools

- The tradeoff between shipping fast vs. building safely

- Co-founders, hiring mistakes, and second-time founder lessons

- How AI will reshape how software is built — and why security is the next big frontier

Chapters:

00:00 – Mission: change how the world builds software

01:18 – Intro: Tomas Halgaš, Sutro, Facebook → Sphere → Twitter

02:08 – Why go back after a successful exit

03:10 – Early bet on OpenAI (GPT-2) and text-to-app ideas

04:02 – Viral demos: prompt → live front- & back-end, fully deployed

05:12 – Sphere origin story & community product

07:42 – From partnership talks to Twitter acquisition

09:24 – Post-acquisition & starting Sutro (overlap period)

11:05 – Co-founder transition; going solo as CEO

12:21 – Sutro thesis: production software with guarantees

14:02 – Security horror stories & why prototypes don’t cut it

15:42 – Comp landscape: “shipping fast” vs “building safely”

16:57 – The mission (again): security-first software at scale

18:13 – Sponsor: Opus

18:38 – From prompt links to better human–computer interaction

19:13 – Product/LLM inflection points; scaffolds & reasoning

21:13 – Moving upmarket: serious, enterprise use cases

21:39 – Raising capital: when VC makes sense

23:16 – What a “good VC” actually does for founders

28:15 – Second-time founder perspective on investor value

28:42 – Family roots, teenage hacking, first sparks

30:16 – Silicon Valley internship & mindset shift

31:01 – Leaving Facebook: parental push & perspective

33:02 – Hiring mistakes at Sphere: brilliant but hard to work with

34:12 – New bar at Sutro: great humans, ex-founders

35:04 – Remote vs in-person; hiring uncommon talent

37:41 – Advice to younger self: read deeply, then build deeply

41:01 – Working with people: persuasion vs. coaching

42:03 – Coaching someone with a “dream job” to leap

43:18 – Calibrate at the best; then go build

45:21 – CTO vs CEO: different learning curves

46:04 – Big tech cycles & urgency vs comfort

47:03 – Co-founders: marriage, commitment, alignment

49:13 – The “F-you number” & exit alignment

51:21 – Host anecdote; aligning on outcomes

52:19 – Post-acq reality: agency & decision-making changes

54:21 – Corporate planning constraints & politics

55:24 – How to set better terms for future acquisitions

56:10 – Where Sutro is going

57:16 – Better models, but HCI is the hard problem

59:16 – English is ambiguous: need precise interfaces

1:00:19 – The compliance/security wave is coming

1:01:27 – Sutro’s advantage: guarantees, compliance, real software

1:01:54 – The next interface: text + visuals + flows

1:02:17 – AI moves fast; strategy expires quickly

1:02:39 – Luck vs talent vs hard work

1:03:39 – Where to follow Tomas & try Sutro

1:04:03 – Outro

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Riham Satti was on track for a life in academia — Oxford PhD, research papers, professorship.

Then she met her co-founder, built an app to get him a job at Microsoft, and accidentally uncovered a billion-dollar problem: human bias in recruitment.

Today, she’s the CEO and co-founder of MeVitae, an AI platform using neuroscience and data to make hiring fairer and faster.

In this episode, we go deep into what it really takes to go from academia to entrepreneurship — without the safety net of VC money or a Silicon Valley network.

Riham’s story is one of grit, grants, and growth — building a mission-driven business the long, hard, but sustainable way.

💬 Watch this episode if you want to learn:

- How to turn research into a real business

- The neuroscience of bias and decision-making

- When to expand to the US (and how to know if you’re ready)

- Why compassion is a founder’s superpower

- How to stay in “startup mode” after 10+ years of building

🎧 CHAPTERS

00:00 – Intro: From Oxford to Entrepreneurship

02:00 – Falling in love with STEM and academia

05:30 – Building an app to hack into Microsoft

08:00 – The first 50k downloads that changed everything

10:30 – Discovering bias in hiring and founding MeVitae

13:00 – Bootstrapping with grants (no VC, no network)

16:20 – Early lessons in startup survival

18:40 – How bias actually works in the human brain

22:00 – The first enterprise client (and the chaos that followed)

25:00 – Building the MeVitae team and culture

29:00 – Expanding to the US — when and why

33:00 – Balancing perfectionism with speed

37:00 – The “10-year overnight success”

42:00 – Compassion, leadership, and building a real company

46:00 – What’s next for Riham and MeVitae

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Florian Ehrbar, founder of OnchainLabs, went from calling time on a failing consulting gig… to convincing the investor to back a new team and a new idea: connecting real-world assets (skis, classic cars, gold - even trees) to the blockchain with actual utility.

We get into radical candour, building “Wallet 2” that feels like email (not MetaMask), no-code tokenization, raising private capital, and leading a half-inherited team while staying focused when you could do everything.

In this episode you’ll learn:

- Why telling the hard truth can start your next company

- Funded-from-day-one: hidden pressures and how to navigate them

- Real user value in tokenization (CRM, warranties/insurance, provenance)

- UX trade-offs: self-custody vs ease, and designing guardrails

- The vision: a white-label, no-code RWA platform you can drag-and-drop deploy

Chapters

00:00 Intro — honesty when everything’s on fire

01:10 The investor asks “what now?” → forming the new team

02:36 Florian’s path: consulting → dating app → investments → founder

05:10 Quitting a safe career with a young family

06:19 Side-hustle vs jump: why he didn’t moonlight (and regrets it)

07:45 Funded from day one: blessings and pressure

09:06 The moment of candour that killed a project and birthed Onchain Labs

11:05 What Onchain Labs does (physical → digital, real utility)

12:54 Tokenizing luxury skis: CRM, insurance, activation incentives

15:04 Blockchain basics (wallets, ownership, self-custody)

17:22 UX reality: too easy vs too risky — finding the line

19:35 Classic cars & provenance: why digitised records matter

21:30 Leading a “half-inherited” team: empower vs decide

23:40 Focus when you can do everything: pick the beachhead

25:05 Building “Wallet 2” — make blockchain feel like email

27:10 Towards a no-code, white-label RWA platform

29:00 Commercial model: SaaS + transactions + implementation

31:05 Who it’s for: gold tokenization, consumer apps, and beyond

33:12 Ambition: the AWS/Shopify of tokenization (for non-financial assets)

35:00 Fundraising, unusual backers & validation moments

37:05 Founder life: work ethic, optimism, taking bigger risks sooner

39:00 Skill vs luck — and where to follow Florian

If this helped, hit like, subscribe, and drop a comment with the next founder you want on the show.

#Startups #Web3 #Tokenization #RWA #FounderJourney #Leadership #EverydayFounderPodcast

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Former RAF pilot turned deep-tech founder, Kyle Thomas is building SAIF Autonomy—the “application firewall” for autonomous systems. We get into embodied AI vs deterministic autonomy, what it takes to certify and deploy robots in the real world, the UK vs US VC mindset, nearly running out of cash (with £22 left in the bank), and why veterans often thrive in startups.

What's in the episode:

- Embodied AI in the physical world (and why “trust layers” matter)

- Defense to startup: decision-making under uncertainty

- Real use cases: drones, logistics, shipping, aviation, space

- Public perception & regulation: earning societal trust

- Raising $1.2M from Silicon Valley as a UK deep-tech startup

- Culture design: borrowing the best of military leadership

- Practical founder advice: start sooner, ignore the naysayers

Chapters:

0:00 Cold open — embodied AI, safety & “wrappers”

1:12 Intro — Kyle’s RAF background & SAIF’s mission

2:23 Military → startup: decision-making & stress tolerance

4:09 UK vs US mindset on speed, growth & work ethic

6:30 Meeting co-founder Matt; origins in RAF programs

7:22 Rapid Capabilities Office & TRL (3→7 fast)

8:42 From scripted autonomy to embodied, goal-based systems

10:03 Real-world examples (drones, Waymo, sidewalk bots)

11:01 Autonomy vs AI — clear definitions

12:53 Deterministic vs embodied AI (and their failure modes)

13:53 Today’s drone deliveries (hospitals, corridors, BVLOS)

14:10 Scaling without city-wide infrastructure

15:52 Proving it on land, sea, air… and space

18:19 Public perception, safety cases & building trust

19:13 Logistics, shipping & aviation use cases

20:06 “Application firewall” for autonomy (trust layer)

22:19 Fundraise story — $1.2M pre-revenue from Silicon Valley

24:03 Why UK/EU VC often feels like PE (risk appetite)

25:59 US lead, diligence, patents & why it clicked

27:12 UK engineering talent vs US scaling capital

29:05 CEO self-awareness: when to level up or step aside

30:39 Targeting specialist US funds next

33:17 Sponsor break — Opus community

33:49 Near-death runway tale: £22 in the bank

36:50 Money lands at 8:22pm on New Year’s Eve

43:17 Split-second RAF story — refuelling saves lives

47:49 Why veterans can excel in startups

49:17 Culture & leadership: high trust, high standards

52:04 Practical rituals (socials, flexibility, outcomes)

55:11 Advice to younger self: start sooner, be bold

58:07 Founder communities: Opus, ICE, Founders Pledge

1:00:12 Be in the room — why London matters

1:01:12 Trust over impressions (in-person beats ads)

1:02:30 Luck vs talent (and timing)

1:03:55 Where to find Kyle (LinkedIn, site, IG)

1:04:45 Blog & updates coming soon

1:05:08 Outro

About Kyle / SAIF Autonomy

Kyle Thomas, Co-founder & CEO, SAIF Autonomy

Mission: a safety & assurance “trust layer” so autonomous systems can operate safely at the edge (air, land, sea, space)

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What does it take to raise $1.5M from 66 angels across 400 meetings?

Jamie Hamer, CEO of Loxa and founder of React News (acquired by Green Street), shares the unfiltered reality.

From walking away from a £150k salary to making 30 cold calls a day, Jamie is building one of the most ambitious insurtechs in the UK—backed not by VCs, but by a cap table stacked with mission-aligned angels.

In this episode of The Everyday Founder, we dive into:

- Why angels is better than funds (and how to manage 66 of them)

- The litmus test for picking advisors (time and money or nothing)

- The playbook for user research that doubles as early sales

- Why founder-led sales is still king in early-stage B2B

- How to build a team around “total ownership”

- What it’s really like to rebrand midstream

- And how to “increase the surface area of your luck”

If you’re raising, hiring, or selling at the early stage, Jamie’s insights are a masterclass in founder grit and strategic execution.

👉 Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and drop your thoughts in the comments.

Chapters

00:00 – Why advisors must have skin in the game

01:20 – Jamie’s journey: from P&G to React News

03:30 – Leaving a £150k salary to start up

06:00 – The power of user research (The Mom Test in action)

08:15 – Building and exiting React News

10:20 – Why angels beat VC funding

13:00 – How Jamie raised $1.5M from 66 angels

15:25 – Managing a cap table of 66 investors

18:00 – Co-founders, vesting, and avoiding dead equity

21:00 – Hiring playbook: KPIs, probation, and personality tests

24:00 – Total ownership as a cultural value

27:00 – Founder-led sales: why cold calling still works

31:00 – The pain (and lessons) of a rebrand

34:00 – Building Loxa: tackling insurtech complexity

38:00 – Transparency, trust, and fixing insurance for good

42:00 – Increasing the surface area of your luck

46:00 – Reflections on skill vs luck in entrepreneurship

49:00 – Jamie’s advice to early-stage founders

53:00 – Where to follow Jamie and Loxa

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Nikhil Arora has built a career at the intersection of leadership, global growth, and purposeful impact. Today, he’s the CEO of Epignosis, the company behind TalentLMS, serving 22M+ learners across 160 countries. But his story stretches far beyond EdTech.

From helping build Kazakhstan’s first stock exchange, to leading international growth at GoDaddy, scaling Intuit in India, and launching WeWork in Asia, Nikhil has lived and worked across 9 countries and 4 continents—all while keeping up a daily running habit.

In this episode, we cover:

- What it takes to step in as CEO after two founders step aside.

- How to balance mission and growth in a global SaaS company.

- Why listening tours with customers and employees shape better strategy than any playbook.

- Building culture across remote, hybrid, and global teams.

- Vulnerability, failure, and why leaders must lead with authenticity.

- The balance between being a missionary (purpose-driven) and mercenary (growth-focused) leader.

If you’re a founder, CEO, or aspiring leader, this conversation is packed with insights on scaling businesses, managing up, and staying grounded while running at speed.

⏱️ Chapters

00:00 – Declaring strategy vs listening first

01:00 – Introducing Nikhil Arora, CEO of Epignosis

02:00 – Building Kazakhstan’s first stock exchange

04:00 – What Epignosis does today

06:00 – Taking over from the founders

08:00 – Balancing preservation and change as CEO

10:00 – Product, customers, and culture as priorities

12:00 – Leading a 250-person global team

15:00 – Fireside chats, townhalls, and communication clarity

18:00 – Vulnerability, failure, and celebrating mistakes

22:00 – Creating a safe culture for feedback

25:00 – Clarity, guiding principles, and decision-making

27:00 – Staying focused and prioritising as a leader

30:00 – Red, yellow, green framework for CEO focus

33:00 – Managing energy, family, and fitness

36:00 – Mission vs mercenary: purpose and growth

40:00 – Managing up as an installed CEO

45:00 – The #1 mistake founders often make

48:00 – Why no one is truly self-made

50:00 – Keeping your network and mentors alive

53:00 – The importance of mentors (older and younger)

56:00 – Skill vs luck in business

59:00 – Where to find Nikhil online

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Richard Mabey left a comfortable career as a corporate lawyer at Freshfields to launch Juro, the all-in-one contract platform now trusted by Deliveroo, Cazoo, and hundreds of fast-scaling businesses. Since then, Juro has raised $38M+, grown to a team of 120+, and positioned itself at the forefront of AI-enabled legal tech.

In this episode of The Everyday Founder, Richard shares:

- Why he walked away from a secure legal career to pursue entrepreneurship

- How Juro landed its first enterprise clients like Deliveroo through co-creation

- The long road to product-market fit (and what retention really means)

- Lessons in scaling sales, hiring the right early team, and keeping culture intact

- Betting early on AI copilots and agents—and how that decision is reshaping the legal industry

- His honest take on self-doubt, work-life balance, and what really makes founders succeed

If you’re a founder, lawyer, or builder curious about the realities of growing a SaaS company in a competitive market—this conversation with Richard is packed with hard-won lessons.

Chapters:

00:00 – Why sales isn’t demand (and the role of marketing)

00:49 – Introducing Richard Mabey, CEO & Co-Founder of Juro

01:26 – Leaving law for entrepreneurship: riches-to-rags story

02:44 – The pain point that sparked Juro

04:00 – The inefficiencies of corporate law

05:15 – Taking the plunge despite pressure & self-doubt

07:24 – Early days: learning to code & finding a co-founder

10:10 – Raising seed funding & first customers (Deliveroo)

12:27 – Co-creating with early adopters

16:10 – Slow growth to product-market fit (4+ years)

18:30 – Defining product-market fit (retention & renewal)

21:09 – Building repeatable sales: from scrappy to scalable

23:36 – Why marketing came before hiring sales

25:22 – Content as Juro’s growth engine

26:06 – Founder self-doubt & keeping balance with family life

29:16 – Work-life balance & startup intensity

31:21 – Starting Juro while becoming a parent

33:07 – Early hires, talent density & culture fit

37:12 – Scaling the team from 30 to 100+

39:05 – Rethinking hiring in the AI era

40:51 – Why fewer people, but higher talent density, wins

41:22 – Picking the right VCs & long-term partners

45:28 – Radical transparency with the board & team

47:43 – Building trust with customers (handwritten notes & support)

50:20 – Using community to strengthen customer relationships

51:27 – Betting big on AI copilots & agents

55:09 – How AI is reshaping legal jobs

59:32 – Competing with incumbents & new AI-native challengers

1:02:12 – What’s Juro’s moat?

1:04:24 – The next 5 years for Juro

1:06:13 – Fundraising is just “stopping for petrol”

1:06:40 – Luck vs skill in entrepreneurship

1:08:41 – Final reflections & where to follow Richard

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In this episode, I sit down with Cecily Motley — founder of Harriet and previously the CEO of Motley, a direct-to-consumer jewellery brand that raised millions before collapsing in the wake of Apple’s privacy update.

We talk about the emotional toll of shutting down a business with your name on the door, the lessons she brought into building a venture-scale B2B company, and how she's leading a startup while raising two young children.

This is a conversation about resilience, reinvention, and what happens after your startup fails.

⏱️ CHAPTERS:

00:00 - Intro: Cecily’s story in 20 seconds

01:15 - Why her first startup, Motley, shut down

04:33 - The hidden costs of DTC and the iOS14 death blow

08:10 - The emotional experience of failure as a founder

12:00 - Starting Harriet: a complete pivot to B2B HR tech

15:45 - What Harriet does and why it matters

18:20 - Lessons from DTC applied to B2B SaaS

21:30 - Fundraising post-failure: the mindset shift

25:00 - What makes a defensible company in 2025

28:00 - Building while parenting: realities vs LinkedIn myths

32:40 - Maternity & paternity leave: how founders should lead

36:15 - Advice for founders dealing with failure

39:00 - The importance of self-identity beyond the startup

42:00 - Final reflections and Cecily’s founder advice

#Startups #Founders #B2B #DTC #Harriet #Leadership #TheEverydayFounder #Entrepreneurship

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Why This Founder Left a $160M Startup to Fix Supply Chains with AI

Cedrik Hoffmann is the co-founder & CEO of Ameeba, a startup bringing AI-powered intelligence to supply chain operations. Before that, he scaled and exited Valoreo — a $160M VC-backed roll-up of consumer brands across Latin America.

In this conversation, Cedrik shares the raw truth of leaving high-paid jobs, building in overlooked industries, and how personal loss and failure shaped his founder mindset. From hustling trade shows in Taiwan with no product, to raising millions and leading hundreds — this is a story of grit, reinvention, and staying obsessed with the problem.

—

Chapters

00:00 – The only career where failure is rewarded

01:00 – Cedrik’s early life and unlikely path to Goldman Sachs

03:00 – Realizing banking wasn’t the dream

04:40 – The turning point: advice from his wife

06:00 – Going all in: no business, no plan, just hustle

08:00 – Meeting Jack and taking over a Taiwanese factory

11:00 – How a cold call from old friends led to Valoreo

13:00 – Raising $160M and scaling across Latin America

15:30 – Why fundraising isn’t the milestone

17:00 – The truth about exit returns and dilution

18:50 – The origin of Ameeba and building the tool he wished he had

21:00 – AI in supply chains: hype vs real problems

23:30 – How Cedrik found the right co-founder

26:00 – Choosing co-founders like life partners

29:00 – Why co-developing with customers worked

32:00 – What most B2B founders get wrong about product

34:00 – The zombie tech stack inside global supply chains

36:00 – How geopolitics is reshaping where goods are made

38:00 – Nearshoring, cost misconceptions, and supply chain as a brand story

42:00 – Competing with Shein and surviving retail disruption

44:00 – Why founders need to understand their supply chain

48:00 – Balancing fatherhood and founder life

52:00 – Cedrik’s biggest failure — and what he learned

54:00 – Luck vs talent vs grit

56:00 – Where to find Cedrik online

—

Enjoyed this episode?

Subscribe for more unfiltered conversations with the founders behind real businesses.

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From £0 to £9M Booked in Two Years – The Cold Call Comeback | Greg Freeman, Data Literacy Academy

On this episode of The Everyday Founder, I sat down with Greg Freeman, founder of Data Literacy Academy. From selling nightclub tickets in uni to building a 7-figure enterprise training platform, Greg’s story is packed with real, tactical advice for founders on the front line.

We break down the early days, how he signed Bentley and SSE as clients before hiring a full team, why cold calling still works, and what building an enterprise business really looks like behind the scenes.

👇 Chapters & Timestamps 👇

00:00 – Why Cold Calling Still Works

00:52 – Meet Greg Freeman, Founder of Data Literacy Academy

01:17 – Why Greg Became an Entrepreneur

04:20 – Backpacking in Peru & the Y Combinator Spark

05:54 – What Data Literacy Academy Actually Does

07:13 – Selling to Startups vs Selling to Enterprise

08:41 – Winning Bentley, SSE, and Aston Uni as First Clients

11:00 – The 0 to £1M Journey in 9 Months

13:25 – The Enterprise Go-To-Market Strategy

17:21 – How Greg Became a Data Expert Without a Data Degree

19:14 – Picking Up the Damn Phone (How Greg Closed Big Deals)

23:40 – Step-by-Step: Greg’s Cold Call Sequence

26:50 – Cold Calling Isn’t Dead. You’re Just Scared.

30:05 – Founder Loneliness, Solo vs Co-Founder Debate

34:03 – Why Your Co-Founder Might Be the Most Expensive Round

36:00 – Hiring Early: What Greg Got Right

38:38 – The “Bleeds Green” Test for Early Hires

41:01 – How They Built a High-Performance Team Culture

44:07 – Radical Candour and No Dicks Allowed

46:34 – Founder Strengths: Strategy > People Management

49:11 – Culture That Actually Drives Growth

52:18 – The Fast-Track: James’ Journey from £18k to Head of Role

55:06 – Values Over Ping-Pong Tables

58:26 – What’s Next for Data Literacy Academy

1:00:26 – Exit Strategy vs Lifestyle Business

1:03:06 – Luck vs Talent: What Actually Builds a Business

1:03:48 – Where to Find Greg Freeman Online

🔗 Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregfreemandla

🎓 Learn more about Data Literacy Academy: https://dataliteracyacademy.com

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What does it take to stay relevant as the world changes around you?

In this powerful episode, I sit down with Steve Cockram — co-founder of GiANT and co-author of Five Voices — to explore how leadership is evolving in the digital age. From delivering a keynote in Abu Dhabi (after Bill Clinton and Bill Gates!) to building a leadership platform used by 250k+ people, Steve unpacks his journey with radical honesty.

We talk:

- The real cost of being a founder

- How to avoid becoming an “oxbow lake” in your industry

- Why most co-founder relationships fail — and how his didn’t

- And how self-awareness is the unfair advantage in leadership and life

Chapters:

00:00 - The age of AI & changing leadership

01:23 - Meet Steve Cockram: from pastor to keynote speaker

02:54 - Giving a speech after Bill Gates (and without a script)

04:09 - Why failure makes you relatable — and valuable

05:42 - Reinventing leadership tools for the 99.9%

08:04 - Five Voices: the leadership personality system

11:10 - Superpowers of each voice: pioneer, connector, creative, guardian, nurturer

13:28 - The imbalance of voices in leadership — and why it matters

14:39 - Are personality types fixed?

20:16 - Why nurturers make amazing founders (once they believe it)

22:51 - Founders are the product — and the pressure is real

25:29 - Lessons from the early days of GiANT

30:20 - Why luck often looks like generosity

31:02 - Leadership must evolve with tech

33:14 - How to stay relevant by investing in younger talent

34:31 - Introducing Pulse: AI-powered relational intelligence

36:37 - The future of leadership is communication

39:04 - Remote vs in-person: the hybrid debate

41:29 - Can anyone become a great leader?

46:38 - The one trait every founder needs: integrity

49:00 - Co-founders: the hardest and most important relationship

53:33 - Lessons from 32 years of marriage

57:17 - How to build a family as a founder

01:01:23 - Leading with the end in mind

01:06:47 - Why most CEOs are lonely — and how to fix it

01:10:05 - Who really helps founders grow

01:13:01 - Advisory boards to AI hacks

01:15:32 - Talent or luck? What really matters

01:19:28 - Where to find Steve

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Entrepreneurship isn’t just about raising VC money—it's about playing your own game. In this episode of Everyday Founder, Jordan Schlipf, co-founder of Rainmaking and Startup Bootcamp, shares the highs and lows of his entrepreneurial journey, from bootstrapping businesses to scaling and exiting a consulting firm to Bain & Company.

🚀 We dive deep into startup failures, venture building, risk diversification, and why boring businesses can be the most profitable. If you're thinking about starting or scaling a company, this is a must-watch!

🔔 Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell for more founder insights!

📌 Chapters:

00:00 - The Bigger Picture of Entrepreneurship

00:54 - Introducing Jordan Schlipf

01:18 - What is Rainmaking?

02:45 - The Rainmaking Business Model Explained

03:35 - Success Stories from Rainmaking

04:56 - Notable Startup Exits & Failures

06:19 - The Ego vs. Team Success in Startups

08:11 - Risk Mitigation in Entrepreneurship

09:40 - Capping Upside to Protect Downside

13:30 - How Jordan Joined Rainmaking

14:52 - Accidentally Building a Consulting Firm

16:46 - The Corporate Innovation Opportunity

20:28 - Scaling and Selling a Consultancy to Bain

21:23 - How to Sell an Agency or Professional Services Firm

25:45 - Hiring a CEO & Exiting Operations

31:59 - When to Pull the Plug on a Startup

34:47 - Balancing Risk and Resilience as a Founder

38:26 - From Investment Banking to Entrepreneurship

44:10 - Execution Over Novelty: Why Ideas Don’t Matter

49:53 - The Myth of Unicorns & VC Culture

52:18 - Profitable ‘Unsexy’ Businesses That Win

56:07 - Structuring Leadership Transitions

01:07:16 - The Future of AI & Vertical Applications

01:09:44 - Picking the Right Startup Idea: Don’t Rush

01:17:24 - Why Jordan Joined Opus & Founder Community

01:20:28 - Luck vs. Skill: What Really Matters?

01:26:31 - Where to Connect with Jordan

💬 Join the conversation: Drop a comment below—what was your biggest takeaway from this episode?

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On this episode of Everyday Founder we sit down with serial entrepreneur Andrew Humphries, formerly of The Bakery. Andrew shares his insights on building and scaling businesses, finding the right co-founder, securing funding, and navigating the challenges of entrepreneurship. With a track record that includes leading sales at Adeptra (sold for $135M), advising the UK government on tech talent, and co-founding The Bakery, Andrew's wisdom is invaluable for any founder looking to grow their business.

• How do you find the right co-founder?
• When should you raise funding vs. bootstrap?
• What are the key ingredients to building a unicorn?
• How do you manage burnout as a founder?

Tune in to hear Andrew's raw and real insights on startup life, leadership, and making the right bets as an entrepreneur.

Chapters:

00:00 - Welcome Andrew Humphries

00:07 - From Adeptra to Government Advisor

00:31 - The Bakery: A Corporate Accelerator

01:51 - The Secret to Building Unicorns

04:43 - Why Andrew Stepped Away from The Bakery

06:41 - Finding the Right Co-Founder

12:16 - The Three Questions to Ask a Co-Founder

15:36 - When Should You Raise Funding?

22:26 - The Reality of Big Fundraising Rounds

29:05 - Lessons from The Bakery and Beyond

37:37 - The Trade-Offs of Being a Founder

45:03 - Managing Burnout & Founder Mental Health

50:32 - What Business Would Andrew Build Today?

54:46 - The Role of Luck vs. Talent in Entrepreneurship

58:53 - Final Thoughts & Wrap-Up

If you're a founder or aspiring entrepreneur, hit subscribe and turn on notifications for more insights from top business leaders.

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In this episode of Everyday Founder, we sit down with Anton Boner, CEO & Founder of Screenloop, the first AI-powered applicant tracking system (ATS) with an auto-generated scorecard.

Anton shares his incredible journey—from being a high school teacher to climbing the ranks at Stack Overflow (promoted 7 times in 8 years!) to launching a venture-backed SaaS startup that’s redefining hiring and recruitment.

In this episode:

✅ The leap of faith from teaching to enterprise sales

✅ How Anton helped grow Stack Overflow before its $1.8B acquisition

✅ The evolution of Screenloop—from an AI note-taker to a full hiring platform

✅ The challenges of building a SaaS startup as a non-technical founder

✅ How AI is reshaping the hiring process (and why the CV might be dead by 2025)

✅ Fundraising insights—raising $10M and choosing the right investors

Whether you’re a founder, recruiter, or just fascinated by the intersection of AI & hiring, this episode is packed with insights on entrepreneurship, scaling, and the future of recruitment.

Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and drop a comment below—what’s your take on AI in hiring?

📌 Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction & Anton’s Background

01:08 – What is Screenloop?

01:39 – From Teacher to Tech Sales at Stack Overflow

02:54 – Making the Leap: Career Change & Relocation

05:05 – The Birth of Screenloop

07:23 – The Challenges of Being a Non-Technical Founder

08:56 – Building the First Product & Early Growth

10:59 – The COVID Hiring Boom & Market Shift

13:09 – Pivoting from AI Note-Taker to Full ATS Platform

15:48 – The Power of Remote Teams & Culture at Screenloop

20:26 – Remote Work vs. In-Office Collaboration

23:23 – Scaling from $100K to Seven Figures

27:33 – How a Founder Switches Off & Avoids Burnout

34:15 – AI & The Future of Recruitment

39:34 – The Death of the CV?

42:54 – Raising $10M & Choosing the Right Investors

47:16 – Founders: Luck vs. Skill?

55:02 – What’s Next for Screenloop?

#AI #Startups #Recruitment #SaaS #TechEntrepreneur #Screenloop #EverydayFounder

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Ever wondered how someone goes from working as a Floor Manager at Halfords to raising £2M for an AI startup?

In this episode of The Everyday Founder Podcast, Martin Mason, CEO of Talent Mapper, shares his unconventional journey, from retail and HR to building a high-growth HR tech company.

We dive deep into:

✅ The struggles of fundraising (and why it's a nightmare)

✅ How Talent Mapper landed enterprise clients from Day 1

✅ The truth about founder burnout and why therapy helped

✅ Why internal promotions can save companies £450K+

If you're a founder, entrepreneur, or just curious about the startup grind, this episode is packed with insights, lessons, and hard truths you won’t want to miss.

#StartupJourney #Entrepreneurship #HRTech #FounderLife #BusinessGrowth

📍 CHAPTERS:

00:00 – Intro: Who is Martin Mason?

01:19 – The accidental entrepreneur: From Halfords to HR Tech

05:32 – Building TalentMapper: A problem worth solving

10:57 – The truth about fundraising (and why it's brutal)

15:40 – Landing enterprise clients as a startup

21:13 – Internal promotions vs. external hiring (£450K savings!)

28:05 – The challenges of scaling a startup

35:40 – The dark side of entrepreneurship: Burnout & therapy

42:22 – AI & the future of HR Tech

50:01 – Martin’s advice for founders: Hiring, growth & resilience

55:15 – What’s next for TalentMapper?

🎧 Listen & Subscribe for More Everyday Founder Stories!

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In this episode of Everyday Founder, we sit down with Nick Valenzia, co-founder of Leafr, a London-based platform transforming sustainability consulting. Leafr connects mid-market businesses with top-tier climate and ESG consultants, offering expert solutions at a fraction of traditional consulting costs.

🚀 Key Takeaways from This Episode:

✅ The rising demand for sustainability expertise in business

✅ How Leafr built a 500+ consultant network with a growing waitlist

✅ Navigating the challenges of fundraising in a high-interest environment

✅ Finding the right co-founder and building a lean, scalable team

✅ The role of AI in sustainability and the future of climate solutions

⏳ Chapters

00:00 - Intro to the Episode

00:35 - What Is Leafr & Why It Exists

01:46 - The Growing Demand for Sustainability Consulting

03:23 - How Leafr Built a 500+ Consultant Network

05:50 - Raising $500K in a High-Interest Market

07:25 - The Biggest Challenge: Bridging the Sustainability Skills Gap

09:19 - Lessons from a Failed Startup & Founder Fit

12:07 - Balancing Work, Life & Founder Burnout

14:45 - Building a Lean & Scalable Business Model

18:04 - Why Advisors Are Critical for Growth

22:19 - The Future of Sustainability & AI’s Role

26:07 - How Leafr Plans to Scale Next

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What if you could build a tech empire without writing a single line of code? 🚀

In this episode of The Everyday Founder, Olga Dogadkina, Founder & CEO of Emperia, shares her journey of turning an ambitious idea into a multi-million-dollar business. From partnering with global brands like Walmart, Bloomingdale's, and L'Occitane to raising $10 million in funding, Olga proves that success isn’t just about coding—it’s about vision, resilience, and the right team.

In this episode:

✔ How Olga built a tech-driven company without a technical background

✔ The tough decision to relocate to the U.S. for growth

✔ Fundraising challenges and what she learned from them

✔ Building a diverse, international team across 13 countries

🔔 Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe

Chapters:

00:00 – Introduction to Olga Dogadkina

00:33 – From an idea to a global business

01:46 – Challenges as a non-technical founder

06:03 – Moving to the U.S.: The make-or-break decision

10:55 – Raising $10 million: The reality of fundraising

16:04 – Building a diverse, global team

22:30 – Lessons learned from scaling Emperia

28:01 – The future of virtual retail experiences

34:16 – Olga’s advice to aspiring founders

40:45 – Final thoughts and where to find Emperia

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🎵 What if you could use your favourite chart-topping songs legally in your YouTube videos?

In this episode of The Everyday Founder, we dive into the future of music licensing with Paul Sampson, Founder & CEO of Lickd. Paul shares his incredible journey in creating a groundbreaking platform that makes mainstream music accessible for content creators while navigating the complex world of copyright claims.

🔥 What we cover:

- The problem with using mainstream music on platforms like YouTube and TikTok

- How Lickd bridges the gap between creators and music rights holders

- The secrets to building a scalable business in the creator economy

- Don’t miss this insightful conversation packed with actionable takeaways for creators, entrepreneurs, and brands alike!

📍 CHAPTERS

00:00 – Introduction to Paul Sampson & Lickd

02:15 – The music licensing problem for creators

06:45 – Why copyright claims hurt creators’ revenue

10:30 – Building trust with major labels and publishers

14:20 – How Lickd democratizes music for creators

18:40 – The importance of licensing for future monetization

22:15 – How Lickd attracted major partnerships (e.g., Warner Music, Epic Games)

27:50 – Scaling the Lickd platform for creators and brands

33:10 – Advice for founders raising investment for a new business

38:45 – How to build a strong team and culture

44:15 – Future of music licensing and new media innovations

50:30 – The role of luck vs. skill in entrepreneurship

56:15 – Final thoughts and call to action

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Ever wondered how fresh graduates can successfully transition into the professional world? In this episode of The Everyday Founder Podcast, we sit down with Peter Wood, the inspiring CEO and founder of The Graduate Guide. Peter shares his journey from a recent UCL graduate to a full-time entrepreneur reshaping early career opportunities through community, storytelling, and innovation.

We dive into:

📌 The challenges graduates face entering the workforce

📌 Breaking traditional career paths and redefining success

📌 Building The Graduate Guide: from podcast idea to powerhouse media platform

📌 Collaborating with industry giants like Google to foster young talent

📌 Practical tips for leveraging LinkedIn to unlock career opportunities

📖 Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction

00:25 - What Is The Graduate Guide?

01:12 - Addressing the UK Career Crisis

03:12 - Breaking the Transition Barriers from University to Work

07:05 - The Birth of The Graduate Guide Over a Pint

10:14 - Building Confidence Through Curiosity

13:41 - Peter’s Childhood and Entrepreneurial Influences

16:00 - Podcast Milestones: 200 Episodes and Counting

18:14 - Leveraging LinkedIn for Building Connections

22:24 - Balancing Online and Offline Relationships

27:34 - Exciting Collaborations with Google

32:08 - Perspectives on Entrepreneurship in the UK

36:00 - Addressing Corporate Job Descriptions vs. Startup Appeal

42:30 - Revolutionizing Career Storytelling for Students

47:16 - The Importance of Personal Branding for Employers

50:38 - Building a Team: Meeting Co-Founder Molly

54:41 - Sustaining Yourself as a Young Entrepreneur

56:37 - Luck vs. Skill in Entrepreneurship

59:14 - Where to Find Peter and The Graduate Guide

📲 Connect with Peter:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterwood

Instagram: @GraduateGuide

💼 About The Graduate Guide:

Helping students and young professionals navigate the transition from university to the working world through inspiring content, networking events, and career insights.

👉 Subscribe for more inspiring conversations with entrepreneurs and innovators reshaping industries!

#TheGraduateGuide #YoungEntrepreneur #CareerAdvice #StartupJourney #Podcast

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