From Founder To CEO

Elena's passion for excellence will inspire you. She has grown her company on the premise that the company's actions will mirror the values it espouses to its clients. I especially like her thoughts on freeing up your time as Founder and CEO to think through things such as culture and values.

This is Kyle's second time on the show. When he published his new book, I know I had to bring him back on. We had a great discussions about three key points from Chapter 12 of his book:

• How to confront difficult conversations with employees
• Give the vision...No good employee wants you to force them to "paint by numbers"
• How to make hard decisions, easier

"Better, Not Bitter" is this Founder's motto. If you are feeling down, overwhelmed, exhausted, or just feel like giving up the Founder game...listen to Cashmere and email me and tell me you still feel the same way. Cashmere's strength and tenacity will remind you that we all go through difficulties as we grow our businesses and ourselves. But, few of us have endured what she has gone through.

Imagine you are from a foreign county and you are in the United States growing your startup. All of a sudden the city seizes your office space and a major recession hits and you have to lay off a large portion of your company. What would YOU do? Listen to what Benoit did and get a lesson you might not expect.

I share a common mistake that many Founders make and what you can do about it. Hint...it has to do with change. :)

Who among us Founders has not had one of those time periods when someone says something to us that just stops us in our tracks and makes us think more deeply about ourselves. This happened to 2 x Founder Tom Bradbury.

He not only shares how he used what he learned from his first company to create success in his second company, WorkplaceUX, but he also candidly talks about something his daughter said to him that shifted him on his journey From Founder To CEO.

Happy New Year! To kick of the New Year I wanted to help you with a problem that has increasingly made it onto my radar screen...co-founder conflict. In my experience, a large number of startups and scaleups fail because co-founders can't get along, harbor resentment, and generally engage in unproductive behavior and interactions.

I collected the most common conflict scenarios I have seen and share with you 10 actions you can take to confront and resolve conflict between and amongst YOUR co-founders. Please let me know what you think. And, if you have a story or tip you want to share, let me know.

The path from Founder to CEO is very personal. While you are growing your company, you are changing, what you focus on is also changing, and your interests are likely to change. It's very dynamic and it can be hard for a Founder to navigate this process. 

Jim knows this all to well. As he describes his journey, "I was trapped a prisoner in my own company." In this candid interview explains what this means and what you can learn too. 

Some of the most successful Founders I have met, have had the most humble beginnings. Jake did not have some of the advantages others may have had growing up. He was homeless as a teenager and joined the U.S. Army in order to pay for school. In fact, he is a fellow Military Intelligence soldier who prides himself on being able to "get into the head" of his team members and his customers. 

Jake shares a humbling story of leadership self-awareness that you'll want to listen to. He received feedback about his leadership of the company that made him stop, think, and readjust...after a roller coaster of emotions. ;)

Jay started as a Founder in his garage. Jay took orders on his cell phone while traveling around. Jay worked hard to build Blinds.com to the powerhouse it is today. I've been reading Jay's pieces on Inc.com for awhile. I truly appreciate his practical wisdom, commitment to improvement and his continuous focus on people. It was a treat for me to have an opportunity to interview such an American business icon. I think you'll appreciate hearing his speak about:

• How the death of his wife impacted him personally, helped shape his approach to leadership, and craft the culture of Blinds.com
• Why Home Depot bought Blinds.com
• The four values that drive the success of Blinds.com

Here's my favorite quote from the interview: "Stop thinking about yourself and start thinking about other people and make them the best they can be."