Mimir

Something I’ve come to learn about founders is that, for most of them, even if this path wasn’t their first choice, they’d still tell you they wouldn’t trade it for anything. They’ll also be the first to admit it’s really hard — that this path asks more of them than they thought they had to give. But there’s something in that discomfort that makes them feel alive. And for some founders, comfort isn’t peace — it’s paralysis.

For Bryce DeCora, that moment came at Boeing—steady paycheck, proud parents, and a creeping sense that his work was lacking purpose. The pain of staying put finally outweighed the fear of leaving. And in that space between stability and self-belief, he built the first pieces of what would become CloseBot.

Bryce’s path looks clean in hindsight—engineer to software tinkerer to founder of an AI company that helps small businesses grow. But what struck me in our conversation wasn’t the linearity. It was the chaos he chose to keep moving through: the months spent teaching himself the skills he needed, the pressure of raising money from people who believed in him, and the quiet shift from builder to leader. It’s a reminder that entrepreneurship isn’t just about what you create — it’s about who you become when things are challenging and you have to keep going anyway.

The truth is, every founder hits that point when curiosity collides with responsibility, and you have to decide whether you’ll keep building even when there’s no proof yet that it will work. This conversation is about that moment — the faith to keep going, and the quiet transformation that happens when you do.

Connect with Bryce:

• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iambryce/
• Check out CloseBot: https://closebot.com/

Dinner dishes soaking in the sink, kids tucked into their routines — that’s where my conversation with Tamara Laine began. Which felt fitting, because so much of her story is about weaving the everyday chaos of life with the wild, exhilarating act of building something new. Before she was a founder, Tamara spent 15 years digging into other people’s stories as a journalist and documentary filmmaker. What she carried with goes beyond storytelling—it was a relentless curiosity, a refusal to stop until she found the root of a problem.

That instinct served her well when she started MPWR, a company tackling a problem hiding in plain sight: how tens of millions of gig workers are shut out of financial systems designed for W-2 employees. The same investigative drive that once uncovered truths for documentaries now fuels her obsession with solving this inequity.

But what makes Tamara’s journey so Mimir coded isn’t only the problem she’s solving but how she’s had to grow herself along the way. Learning to chase the hardest questions. Learning to build with advisors who won’t flatter her. Learning to lead not just with inspiration, but with empathy.

This is a conversation about what happens when a founder’s eye for truth collides with the reality of building. About the grit to keep asking, to keep digging, even when the easy answer would be to stop.

Connect with Tamara:

Some businesses begin with a market analysis or a spreadsheet. Verdant began with a friendship, a love of lingerie, and a belief that what we wear closest to our skin should move with us through every version of ourselves. My guest today, Eleanor, co-founded Verdant in New York alongside her friend Michelle — Verdant is their own story of resilience, craftsmanship, and confidence stitched into silk and lace.

What struck me most in this conversation isn’t just how they’re hand-sewing embellishments in and testing out pieces themselves or navigating the realities of luxury e-commerce. It’s the deeper thread: how easy it is for women founders to undervalue their expertise and how to reclaim that authority. Eleanor shares candidly about self-doubt, about learning who your customer really is (hint: it’s rarely who you thought at the start), and about the balance between grace and grit that entrepreneurship demands.

This episode is for anyone standing at that uncertain edge, wondering if they know enough, if they’re ready. Eleanor’s story reminds us that business is never just product — it’s community, it’s self-trust, it’s evolution. So let’s dive in.

Connect with Eleanor:

Website

Instagram

In this episode, I sit down with Shahd Asaly founder of Blue Meets Blue, a slow-fashion line that employs refugee artisans and weaves humanitarian values into every stitch. Shahd’s journey, from a background in psychology and trauma research to building a purpose-driven fashion company, quickly opened into something bigger: how business can be a tool for healing, for connection, and for challenging societal narratives.

We dive deep into the nuts and bolts of building a mission-driven brand. The lessons Shahd learned building a sustainable, made-to-order fashion line from supply chains to making intentional choices around values and growth.

But we also step back to the broader picture: how overconsumption is tied to loneliness, why so many great products lose their soul when they scale, and what it takes to hold onto your “why” when the easy path would be compromise.

This episode is more than a business chat, it’s the kind of conversations that remind me why I do what I do. It’s a conversation about the role of entrepreneurs in shaping culture — and a reminder that every choice we make in business has the power to ripple far beyond our bottom line.

Connect with Shahd:

AKBA Author
IG | Website | 

I am passionate about entrepreneurship because business is more than a product or chasing profit. I believe entrepreneurship is a vehicle for shaping the world we want to live in — because every choice we make as founders, from the products we create to the cultures we build, has a ripple effect. What we prioritize doesn’t just shape our companies, it shapes markets, communities, and even the expectations of the next generation of entrepreneurs.

In this episode, I sit down with Christian LeFer, founder of Instant Nonprofit, to talk about how purpose-driven impact can be baked into the DNA of a business from day one. Christian shares his journey, from discovering the barriers that keep founders from starting nonprofits to creating a platform that makes impact more accessible for everyone.

The truth is, the market is changing — customers and employees want to align with businesses that stand for something more than profit. And investors want more than a product, they want a founder with a why that will take them through the hard times.

Christian and I get into why “nonprofit” doesn’t mean “no money,” how doing good can actually strengthen your bottom line, and why culture, leadership, and values matter just as much as strategy.

At its core, this conversation is about making impact part of entrepreneurship — not an afterthought. Because the reality is, weaving purpose into your business isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s becoming the competitive thing to do.

Connect with Christian:

Facebook

X

LinkedIn

Here´s the link to his gift for listeners: https://instantnonprofit.com/podcasts-mimir

This episode is about what happens when you trust yourself enough to do things differently. At the most fundamental level — your body, your intuition, your customers — it’s all about trust.

I’m sitting down with Arielle Loupos. Her founder journey is a masterclass in restraint and trust.

Where other founders might’ve rushed an MVP to market, she spent two years testing her product by hand — learning textile science, cutting fabric samples herself, and wearing every prototype before ever selling a single pair.

Arielle’s the founder of Flower Girl, a new kind of period underwear rooted in education and intention. Her story is deeply personal — born out of frustration with the products on the market and a quiet but constant knowing that she was meant to build something better.

In this episode, we talk about what it means to build a product with intuition, why trust-based products demand a different kind of launch, and how cycle syncing helped Arielle build a business that works with her body, not against it.

You don’t build trust in a rush.

Not with your customers, and definitely not with yourself. Arielle’s story is a lesson in what happens when you give something the time it deserves.

Connect with Arielle:

Website: https://flowergirl.co/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flowergirl.co_/

Contact: [email protected]

If you’re tuning in today and you’re feeling stuck, heavy, or unsure about your next step… this conversation could change it all. And I’m not saying that to be hyperbolic. That’s exactly what Carolyn Cooper did for me.

Carolyn is a love-inspired leader — and when I say that, I don’t mean it in the fluffy, Instagram-quote kind of way. She literally leads with love. It’s the foundation of how she lives, how she works, and how she helps others rise. She’s spent decades building businesses, guiding leaders, and teaching people how to live and work “above the line” — choosing curiosity, possibility, and purpose over doubt, fear, and resentment. It’s a philosophy I’m deeply aligned with.

Carolyn has a way of bringing truth to the surface — the kind of truth that makes you pause, take a deep breath, and see your life differently.

In this episode, she shares:

• How to recognize when it’s time to let go — and why courage always lives on the other side of that decision.
• How to build your dream team so you can live and work with more joy.
• Her “ask–allow–receive” mantra — and why being receptive is an underrated skill right now.
• How to bring love into every part of your life so you can actually be happy.

But more than any single tip or framework, this episode is about mindset. Carolyn will challenge you to think differently about how you show up in life, who you surround yourself with, and — most importantly — how you see yourself.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in negative thinking, drained by the wrong tasks, or unsure how to lead with both strength and empathy, this one’s for you. Whether you’re an early-stage founder, a seasoned leader, or someone navigating a personal pivot, Carolyn’s insights are a masterclass in clarity, courage, and building a life and business you truly love.

Because success isn’t just about what you achieve — it’s about who you become in the process.

Connect with Carolyn:

Website: https://www.theinspiredconnection.ca/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inspiredconnectioninc/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/InspiredBusinessDevelopment

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

Here is her gift: Ready to step into your next level of purpose, potential and prosperity?

Unlock “Above the Line Living: 21 Days to Ignite Your Purpose, Presence, and Power with Love”—yourdaily journey to unapologetic self-leadership and authentic joy.

Receive Carolyn’s sacredinsights, meditation reflections, and empowering prompts right to your inbox. Choose love. Claim your courage. Transform your living legacy—one inspired day at a time. Begin your journey: https://www.theinspiredconnection.ca/21days

It started as a small kitchen operation, hand-delivering meals to local dog owners in the Texas heat. No fancy warehouse. No marketing team. No plan to take on the billion-dollar pet food industry.

Then, in an instant, everything changed.

Amy Zalneraitis found herself holding the keys to a business she’d never planned to run — in one of the most complex, unforgiving categories in DTC: cold chain logistics, national shipping, and entrenched competitors with decades of dominance.

What happened next? She didn’t just keep the business alive. She scaled it into the leading direct-to-consumer raw pet food brand in the U.S. And along the way, she discovered that growing a company changes you just as much as it changes the market you serve.

In this episode, Amy shares how she:

• Navigated cold chain logistics — and avoided costly mistakes
• Built a brand with an ethos strong enough to win over a skeptical market
• “Panic learned” her way through fundraising, operations, and scaling challenges she never saw coming

At its core, this is more than a story about pet food. It’s about pairing creativity with operational excellence, staying bold in the face of entrenched competition, and knowing when to reinvent yourself — and your business — to keep growing.

Whether you’re a founder scaling your first product, a brand strategist looking for inspiration, or just someone who loves a good underdog story (pun intended), this one’s for you.

Connect with Amy:

• We Feed Raw Instagram HERE
• Amy's LinkedIn HERE
• WeFeedRaw's Affiliate Program HERE
• We Feed Raw is a subscription-based raw dog food company on a mission to disrupt the norm and make healthy, biologically appropriate food accessible to as many dogs as possible. No more compromises. No more settling. No more ultra-processed junk for an entire lifetime. Just meals dogs' bodies were made for delivered directly to your doorstep.

Most founders spend months trying to figure out how to “get press.” But when Liv Dellanno stumbled into PR, it wasn’t part of a polished business plan—it was a gut feeling, a TikTok following, and a Google search.

Liv is the founder of Mystik PR, a modern press agency that works with emerging brands to land meaningful, measurable media coverage. In this episode, we talk about how she built a service-based business from the ground up: navigating rejection, trusting her instincts, and staying human in a world that rewards polish over personality.

We also unpack what PR actually is, when brands are ready for it, and why the difference between “visibility” and “traction” matters more than most people realize.

In this episode we talk about:

• What founders need in place before they invest in press
• The truth about rejection, client fit, and founder gut-checks
• Why putting yourself out there—again and again—is the real growth engine

Whether you’re a founder wondering when to invest in PR, a creative building a service-based business, or just navigating the highs and lows of going out on your own—this one’s for you. If you’ve ever felt like you’re making it up as you go, Liv and I assure you, you’re not alone.

Success rarely happens all at once. But Liv and I align on the fact that if you stay in motion, stay curious, and keep talking to people good things start to happen.

Connect with Liv:

https://mystikpr.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mystikpr/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mystikpr

Founders who leave an already successful career often surprise people.

Why walk away from the comfort of a strong corporate trajectory? Why step into the unknown—into something most people shy away from?

Entrepreneurship is one of the hardest paths you can take. It’s all-consuming, sometimes demotivating, and scary as hell… so why do it?

Anya Cheng didn’t start her entrepreneurial journey in a frenzy. With a powerhouse career at places like Meta, eBay, McDonald’s, and Target, she stepped into startup life with calm, clarity, and a mindset that allowed her to adapt quickly and methodically.

In founding Taelor Style—an AI-powered fashion rental service for busy men—Anya faced the same realities every founder encounters: rejection, starting from scratch, navigating self-doubt. But instead of getting lost in the noise, she made deliberate, thoughtful choices that set her business up for long-term success.

This isn’t a story about winging it.

It’s a conversation about what happens when a founder meets uncertainty with focus—and how even the most impressive resume won’t guarantee traction, but the right mindset will.

We talk about:

• What kind of mindset is required to persevere in entrepreneurship
• How Anya approached market validation with surgical precision—long before the AI was built
• How to get to the root of what you’re selling so you can scale faster
• Why founders today don’t need a technical background to build AI companies
• How her leadership style is rooted in asking better questions, not having all the answers

At Mimir, these interviews are about more than business—they’re about how entrepreneurship shapes us as humans.

Anya’s final takeaway left me thinking about the world in a way no guest ever has.

Her answer highlights how rare she is as a founder and as a thinker.

This episode is for anyone looking to build with care, clarity, and grace—and for founders who want to make intentional decisions even when things feel messy. Anya will help teach you how.

So even if you feel like you’re flying by the seat of your pants, steady leadership, sharp judgment, and learning to trust yourself at every step will take you to the finish line.

Connect with Anya:

Anya Cheng is the Founder and CEO of Taelor, a leading men's clothing subscription service that provides personal styling and curated rentals, powered by expert stylists and AI. A Girls in Tech 40 Under 40 honoree, she previously led eCommerce and digital innovation teams at Meta, eBay, Target, and McDonald's.

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