Secret Leaders with Dan Murray-Serter & Chris Donnelly (Leaders Media)

Before Mark Joseph founded his current marketing agency, Vouch Global, he experienced failure with another agency called Testify Digital. Their clients included brands like Universal, Wonderbra, Shock Absorber and Lenovo. He loved the projects they came up with, including the world’s first award judged on social media for the Mobo Awards. They got to £1m in revenue and Mark ran the company for five years before he reached the point where he felt he had to walk away.  So, what went wrong? Listen to find out.  If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: quickbooks.co.uk/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Founders dream of being early to market, garnering flattering press, watching their product fly off the shelves and IPOing in record time. For Kuba Wieczorek, Co-Founder and former Chief Marketing Officer of Eve Sleep, the dream became a reality. And then the wheels came off. Kuba founded DTC mattress company Eve Sleep in 2015 with his cousin Jas, and they quickly started experiencing explosive growth. Within just two years they’d raised £35 million and were valued at £140 million. To top it off, they IPOd in record breaking time. It was the stuff of fairytales. But the fairytale wasn’t to last.  “About six months after Jas left I hit rock bottom as well. You know, really rock bottom, I realised that it was either my health and my family, or staying at Eve, so I made the right choice. I resigned.” In today’s episode, Kuba shares his journey with Eve, the effect it had on him and his mental health, and what he will do differently in the future.  “I’ll be stronger with myself and not be seduced by crazy growth and money and promises of IPO and riches and all of that stuff. Authenticity, be authentic. If you know who you are, and you know the brand you're building, just stick to that.” We chat about: The meteoric rise of eve Sleep The fastest ever British retail float The toll of eve on his mental health Know what you’re building -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“​​Technology does not appear from nowhere, it is closely allied to the shape of society. And if you have exponentially changing technologies, they will force changes on society, or create a gap.” Humans coming second best to technology isn’t a new subject but our guest today, Azeem Azhar, has a new, thoroughly researched take on it which goes further than anything we’ve seen before.  Azeem is a founder, journalist, speaker and now author of the book ‘Exponential: How Accelerating Technology Is Leaving Us Behind and What to Do About It’, which is being released right now. His book, and our conversation, is about the expanding gap between technology and society - not just computing power, but energy, market control, and even how our countries are run. He presents the immense problems and opportunities this creates for us as a species. When’s the precise start date of the exponential wave? Will the growing gap between tech and society inevitably lead to conflict? Why are cities important in the exponential age? What are the major problems accelerating tech can solve? Yes, it can be a huge force for good. Find out what the future holds for our civilisation. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is someone we’ve had on the show before, in fact, he kicked off season 4 for us. So don’t be confused and think we’ve got our seasons muddled up.  We thought we’d invite Cal Henderson back onto the podcast because his company, Slack, is one of only a few companies that aren’t in a tailspin currently. They’re facing an entirely different dilemma - they’re scrambling to keep up with demand, what with the majority of the world now in self-isolation and having to work from home (WFH).  “One of the challenges of remote work for folks has always been the boundary between being at work and not being at work. And that's, you know, that's one thing when it's individuals, and [another] when it’s an entire company in one go.” If you’re wanting to hear the story of how Slack started, take a listen here, because we don’t rehash it in this episode.  Instead we talk with Cal about Slack’s sudden increase in user numbers, how they’ve responded to the crisis as a global company (they have employees and offices around the world), as well as what decisions they are making with regards the platform and its new features, as well as offering advice to listeners about productivity and how to work productively, when WFH.  So if you’re taking five minutes out from juggling your kids and your day job, this episode might be the very tonic you need to get you back into the WFH headspace.  “In many ways as a company, we were built for this kind of thing. Like, we didn't start Slack because we thought there'd be some kind of global pandemic that forced people to work from home.” We chat about: Slacks features that enable greater productivity Tracking the impact of the virus around the world How Slack enables distributed work Looking after your mental health when isolated The importance of great internal communications when WFH Links: https://www.yourheights.com/ @stewart -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brett Wigdortz is the Co-Founder of Teach First. He started the business in 2002 after seeing how the UK education system was failing miserably. The company has gone on to be a massive success but it was incredibly close to imploding because of how he operated in the early days.  When Brett asked for feedback from his staff, a small moment turned into a big moment that would change the course of Teach First, the lives of its employees and its thousands of future teachers and students. What happened? Listen to find out. -- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  -- Sponsor links: otta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

One of the extraordinary things about the startup ecosystem is the kind of company that gets celebrated. Most of the time, they don’t make money. They bounce from one funding round to the next, and only a tiny % eventually make it. They’re the kinds of businesses that would’ve made our grandparents shake their heads. Today’s guest, Tom Leathes, the Co-Founder and CEO of used car marketplace Motorway, is different. The first few companies he built were bootstrapped, profitable and he sold them for more money. Which is basically how business worked for centuries. But then Tom found himself leading a VC-backed startup and things didn’t go so well. It was the first time he and his Co-Founders had failed. So after that experience they re-set and they’ve come back fighting with another VC-backed business, Motorway, which was just valued at over a billion pounds. Find out about the key learnings that have made him successful - and lead to a different outcome for Motorway. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re a budding entrepreneur, you can’t learn to swim by doing exercises on the beach, says Sir Ronald Cohen. “You can't keep preparing yourself for an entrepreneurial career. You learn by doing. And by your mid to late 20s, you're ready to do that. You don't have to prepare beyond that.” Sir Ronald is Chairman of the Global Steering Group for Impact Investment and The Portland Trust. He is a co-founder director of Social Finance UK, USA, and Israel, and co-founder Chair of Bridges Fund Management and Big Society Capital. But before all of this, he co-founded and was Executive Chairman of Apax Partners from 1972-2005. From immigrant, to grammar school, to Harvard Business School where he discovered Venture Capital, to setting up Apax Partners, to impact investing. Sir Ronald has had quite a life, his story is one of humanity and people. A 45-50 year overnight success story. “Venture capital was a way for me to do good and to do well, and at the same time create jobs and make money.”   After becoming financially independent and at the age of 53, he informed his partners at Apax that he was leaving to deal with more important things. He wanted to help tackle social issues and try to contribute to achieving peace between Palestinians and Israelis. So, if you’re looking to create a social impact, Sir Ronald has a lot of sage advice for you - this is one episode not to be missed. “Principles have a cost, but they're always a bargain in the end. Don't try to take shortcuts. Live by your principles, you will attract the best talent, and you will be proud of your achievements.” We chat about: Founding Apax Partners  Funding Dolly the sheep Social investment task force Impact investing Social investment bank The B Corp movement Links: https://www.onimpactnow.org/ Impact: Reshaping capitalism to drive real change -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peter Kell is a serial entrepreneur and successful marketer who has gone from being a millionaire to losing it all to being a millionaire again. As a teenager he was obsessed with the idea of getting rick quick. So he set about to do it, he hustled, setting up seven businesses in four years. But each one of them failed. He was left with nothing; completely broke, his car repossessed, evicted from his flat. How did he pick himself up and turn his life around? --------------------------- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: personio.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Greg Jackson started Octopus Energy, a green energy supplier, in 2015. Since then it has enjoyed huge growth. It is now the fourth largest energy retailer in the UK, supplying over 3 million homes in the country, as well as homes in Germany, the USA, Japan, Spain, Italy, France and New Zealand. They were valued at nearly 5 billion dollars at the end of 2021.  Greg is clearly passionate about climate change and says he went into business to drive change. Octopus Energy is a fascinating business, not only because of its growth in a highly competitive industry but also because Greg has rejected traditional business structures. Despite having three and a half thousand staff, Octopus Energy has no HR department.  Listen to find out why he wanted to create a completely new organisational structure; how that system coped when an unprecedented event like the pandemic happened; and what is it like being the CEO of an energy supplier during an energy crisis.  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How did two Americans called Jeff come to lead Seedrs, one of the UK’s leading crowdfunding platforms? And why did their planned merger with bitter rivals Crowdcube get blocked?  In today’s ‘Double Jeffardy’ episode, Seedrs Co-Founder Jeff Lynn and CEO Jeff Kelisky share their experiences and learnings - from the biggest missed opportunities when scaling, to what the CMA got wrong with the merger. “The CMA has chosen to take an exceedingly aggressive stance on anything that looks like a tech merger. I think they feel very burned by having approved Facebook and Instagram, where they didn't understand or see the platform power that would emerge.” In this episode you’ll learn about: The biggest mistakes Seedrs made in the early days Seedrs vs Crowdcube When Jeff realised he needed to hire a CEO How to integrate a new CEO into a founder-led company The failed merger How to get motivated to compete again after a merger like that collapses -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“It’s really hard for companies to get acquired. I was shocked at how many entrepreneurs reached out to me after we announced the acquisition [of Bizness Apps], like ‘how did you get acquired?’” With a couple of exits already under his belt, Andrew Gazdecki saw first-hand how broken the process of selling a company was. He used that experience to start MicroAcquire in January 2020, a platform that helps startups get acquired by connecting them with buyers within 30 days. The goal is to give startups an alternative to brokers that’s easier, cheaper and more likely to succeed - and it’s working.  In this episode, Andrew discusses the cut-throat world of clarinet playing, graduating Chico State with 2.07 - the lowest GPA of any student in their history; starting and exiting Bizness Apps and Altcoin.io; diagnosing the problems between private equity and entrepreneurs, and why he would support any of his employees who quit MicroAcquire to start their own company.  “Entrepreneurship isn't for everyone. It's about understanding who you are as a person. But what I think about a lot is just, the fear of regret is so much heavier than the fear of failure.” -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this video, leading entrepreneurs and experts dive deep into one of the most pressing questions of our time: Is artificial intelligence going to ruin the world? With AI evolving faster than ever, concerns about its impact on jobs, society, and our future are growing. This insightful discussion covers the benefits, risks, and ethical challenges of AI, exploring whether it's a force for progress or a threat to humanity. Whether you're an entrepreneur, business leader, or simply curious about AI's future, this video offers expert insights you can't afford to miss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Miki Agrawal was forced to become an entrepreneur having started her career, in her own words, as an awful employee: “I got fired from pretty much all of my jobs growing up, because I just wasn't listening, or I was questioning or I was talking back or I was running in the hall or I was eating while on the job or giving away smoothies to friends. Whatever job I had, I did something wrong.” The daughter of an immigrant who came to the US with $5 in his pocket, Miki learned early that if you see something you don’t like, question it and fix it even if you don’t have resources - even if you have no money.  Miki nearly didn’t become an entrepreneur - she was going to be a professional footballer before fate decided otherwise. But now she’s the founder of Tushy, one of the most unusual startups we’ve had on the show.  Tushy makes a collection of bidets and other accessories for the bathroom to help you become more hygienic, less wasteful - and kinder to your bottom. “My boyfriend, now husband, got me this really crappy birthday product that he found in some Asian place and he installed it for Valentine's Day and he was like, ‘Look, these will help your butt’ and then it truly changed my life.” Find out how Miki dealt with theft in her first startup and poisonous politics in her second venture making period pants before she realised how much our bottoms need saving.  We chat about: Why entrepreneurs have to be naive The best interview question ever Conscious businesses outperform non-conscious by up to 13 times -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lisa Collinson is one of the best guests we’ve spoken to in a while. She has been through the ringer, but fortunately, has come out the other side.  She’s here to tell us what happened and how you can pull yourself out of the grimmest pits that life can throw you in.  Lisa today is the Chief People Officer & Country Manager in the UK of The Next We, a company helping other organisations improve the mindsets of their employees. But before that she was in Berlin, leading the People team at a startup, when her life collapsed. What happened? -- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  -- Sponsor links: otta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As a founder, uncertainty is the air you breathe. Sam Conniff, entrepreneur, bestselling author, and co-creator of the Uncertainty Experts, shares his invaluable insights and strategies for navigating the unknown and transforming your relationship with risk. Drawing from his experience and the Uncertainty Experts program, Conniff breaks down the mental models and techniques that can help you find stillness and comfort in the face of uncertainty—and reveals how anyone can build their uncertainty tolerance and thrive in the chaos. … Promo Uncertainty Experts Use this link to get 25% off when you join the Uncertainty Experts experience: https://www.uncertaintyexperts.com/offers/kCVosyU9/checkout?coupon_code=SECRETLEADERS Start by measuring your uncertainty tolerance: https://www.uncertaintyexperts.com/quiz Check out the research behind it all Here and Here Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After exiting Songkick, Michelle You was burnt out. It felt like failure and grief (her words). She spent a year backpacking around the world, living on $2 per day, trying to figure out what it took to make her happy, to figure out what mattered to her and what her next business move was. “I went camping and hiking and surfing and climbing for the first time. And it was that that made me fall in love with nature. And that was my gateway drug into the climate change crisis.” Michelle is determined not to repeat the same mistakes she made at Songkick at Supercritical, the climate tech startup helping businesses actually achieve net zero. “It took me personally lots of coaching and conversations to feel like okay, I really feel ready now to dive in again, because I was scared, you know, I was really scared of failing, I was scared of having a bad idea, scared of replicating terrible decisions, terrible experiences.” Find out how Michelle found herself again after feeling like a massive failure from her first startup, and why she’s built a climate tech software platform that isn't all just planting trees.  “We measure the carbon footprint end to end. This typically takes somebody six months of working with a consultant charging five figures. And that's what I learned [during] my time at LocalGlobe. This can be done with software.” We chat about: Why the end of Songkick felt like grief The importance of a good product discovery process  Why climate is the next diversity and inclusion -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kicking off series 5 of Secret Leaders are two fantastic guests - Ali Parsa (CEO and founder of Babylon) and Dr Ranjan Chatterjee. Ali has been on the show several times before - firstly on his own, and secondly for one of our live events where he shared the stage with Michael Acton-Smith, founder of Calm.  In the light of the current global crisis, nobody knows what the world is going to be like when the dust settles at the end of this pandemic. And this is what we discuss in this episode - what the business and social impact of the coronavirus on society will be.  Because currently, it isn’t looking good. The economy is tanking. Borders are closed. Everyone is practicing social distancing. The strain on political leaders is evident. And the pressures on the NHS are close to crippling it.  Ali Parsa is one of the best placed people in the world to talk about some of the predicted health impacts of the virus, in particular what he’s seeing in his own industry of healthcare. Dr. Ranjan Chatterjee is also incredibly well placed, and comes at it from how to handle things on a more personal level. His podcast is the number one UK podcast in health and wellness, and he has set himself a personal mission to help 100m people realise they can be the architects of their own health. “I worry about what is the consequence of shutting down society in terms of mental health problems: depression, anxiety, isolation, the sort of things that we were already struggling with in society two months ago, even one month ago, pre-lockdown, we were struggling with these.” We chat about: Accessibility to health care Comparison of prevention versus cure What global healthcare might look like in the future  The consequence on our health of shutting down society What you can do in isolation to look after yourself Links: https://www.secretleaders.com/ali-parsa https://www.secretleaders.com/the-future-of-healthcare Feel Better, Live More -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jess Salamanca is the Founder of Moxie Club, a community for female Founders. But before Moxie there was another business Jess started which could’ve been BIG. She had the opportunity to take it to a whole new level but instead decided to close it down. What really happened? -- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  -- Sponsor links: otta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vikas Shah MBE looks like the picture of success today. He’s got an MBE. He advises the government on business matters. He’s an NED, investor - he’s someone you look up to. But it wasn’t always like this.  He was a fat kid at school, and when he realised he was obese - was disgusted by himself. He lost his identity when his first business failed.  He tried to commit suicide four times. The last one got very close to succeeding. But we’re here talking with Vikas-the-success today, and that’s because his story is ultimately about resilience. Find out how you can develop your own mental strength, because, as Vikas explains, it’s really on you. We talk about: Growing up as a fat kid Starting his first business at 14 What you really learn from failure Suicide attempts Where resilience comes from Delegating responsibility for mental health Common traits in successful people -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From a business desk at the Birmingham Post to the world’s fastest-growing tech-for-good platform, Belgium-born Anne-Marie Huby is one of UK’s most innovative entrepreneurs, creating the first online fundraising platform in the UK in 2000. She started her career in journalism in Belgium, and later joined the UK arm of Doctors Without Borders (aka Médecins Sans Frontières), where she worked for ten years. In 1994, Anne-Marie was in Congo with MSF, not long after the genocide which saw Rwandan soldiers and Hutu gangs claim the lives of more than half a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus. MSF received a Nobel prize just one year before Anne-Marie transformed the humanitarian landscape by launching JustGiving with co-founder Zarine Kharas. The company became profitable in just five years. Defying the odds, JustGiving has helped raise over £3.5 billion to date and has improved the lives of over 28 million people in 164 countries. We chat about: Meeting Zarine Kharas and creating a sustainable business model For-profit vs not-for-profit charities Their unusual first pitch and fundraising story What a typical day looks like for Anne-Marie Taking a break, reconnecting with what’s important for her, and reading voraciously Corporate responsibility in modern times Links: JustGiving -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we’ll break down exactly how to set up a marketplace business in just 41 minutes.  You’ll learn what a marketplace business really is, key strategies to get it off the ground, and the roadblocks you're likely to face.  I’m sharing my personal journey of building a marketplace, the wins, the losses, and everything in between.  Whether you're thinking of starting your own or just curious about how these businesses thrive, this video has everything you need to kickstart your marketplace journey.  ________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom McLeod, a serial entrepreneur, shares his wild journey of building 5 companies and surviving a dozen failures. From spy camera apps to failed iPhone tossing games, Tom's story is a masterclass in resilience and failing fast. He reveals the gut-wrenching story of his startup Omni, which despite a successful exit, fell short of his ambitious vision. Tom's key lesson? Take loads of shots, learn from failures, and avoid getting knocked out. … Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every few months we interview our host Dan to find out what it’s really like being a Founder because his day job is running his VC backed startup Heights.  If this is the first episode like this you’ve heard then please stop what you’re doing and search for Dan Chapter 1 in the Secret Leaders feed. He’s got a good origin story. If you’re up to date, in the previous episode with Dan a few months ago we learnt how to develop a product and bring it to market. That’s where we are today. Dan and his Co-Founder Joel have developed the Heights Braincare supplement but now they need to scale it. They need to scale the business. This is the tricky first year of being public. They need to negotiate their way out of the valley they’re in now, into the larger valley next door. How did they do it? -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cassie Holmes is a professor at UCLA's Anderson School of Management, where she teaches the immensely popular MBA course, Applying the Science of Happiness to Life Design. She’s also the author of Happier Hour, a new book that gives us the tools to be happier, some of which we’ll dive into later today.  Cassie’s understanding of happiness was born out of a deeply unhappy period, sparked by an intensely personal failure. The failure of her impending marriage to her childhood sweetheart. What happened? -- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  -- Sponsor links: otta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Taavet Hinrikus is the Co-Founder and former Chairman of Wise, the unicorn fintech which used to be called TransferWise. He’s now the Co-Founder of Plural, an investment platform for early stage capital built by founders and real operators like Taavet. Oh, and he was also the first ever employee at Skype. Basically, he’s one of the top startup dogs in Europe so we had to get him on to learn what the difference is between great companies and the rest. It’s always amazing hearing about the early days of companies which become absolutely massive like Wise, or Skype. These are the days when they’re signing up tens of users, rather than tens of thousands - and they’re wondering if they’re barking up the wrong tree. All startups begin with 0 real users and it’s fascinating how the best navigate their way from there to the top. Taavet is part of the group of Estonian entrepreneurs who’ve had a GDP level impact on the country.  Let's find out why he's been so successful. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Episode is sponsored by Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism (DET). Discover why Dubai is the ultimate business hotspot here: http://www.dubaibeyondpossible.com AD In just 64 years, Dubai transformed from a small fishing village into a global hub for trade, technology, and innovation. This video explores what drove Dubai's rapid evolution thanks to its world-class infrastructure and business-friendly policies. We dive into Dubai’s status as a magnet for global talent with initiatives like the Golden Visa program and its thriving free zones. Dubai’s forward-thinking approach includes investments in AI, fintech, and space exploration, securing its place as a leader in technology and economic growth. With ambitious plans like the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, Dubai's future is as bold as its past. If you want to understand how Dubai became a global powerhouse and what lies ahead, this video is your ultimate guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cocaine, £1,000 on roulette, sleeping with the client, a boss demanding bail out of a Malaysian prison, a restraining order - and that’s just one of the stories in this special episode where we turn the microphone on our host, Dan Murray-Serter. This is the start of a semi-regular series where we interview Dan roughly every three months because:  If you listen to the podcast regularly we thought you might want to get to know him better. Who is this guy in your ears every week? Dan is the Founder of braincare startup Heights so we thought we could grill him every 3 months so you can find out what it’s really like in the Founder hot seat - warts and all. This episode is focused on the early part of Dan’s career - a period when Dan learned how he wanted to lead - from bad bosses. Dan grew up with an entrepreneur of a father - and saw the toll it took on him. It wasn’t a life Dan wanted, so what eventually convinced him to take the plunge into entrepreneurship? “Entrepreneurship is a bit of a drug. And the scariest part of it always is and always has been leaving my job to do this full time, that was always the scariest part, because there's no, you know, there was no safety net.” What was Grabble, Dan’s previous startup? Why did it fail? How did he get invited to Buckingham Palace? Who did he joke about to make the Queen laugh? And why did Brexit kill Grabble? “I mean, the thing is, it is quite a long story, because sadly, what we should have done is pull the cord. And we didn't do that, we did death by 1,000 paper cuts.” -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everyone wants to make money, and many view it as the ultimate path to happiness. But for Sahil Bloom, money is merely the by product of discovering what truly brings you joy and fulfilment. In this incredibly insightful episode, we sit down with Sahil, a wealth expert, to explore the deeper side of success. Sahil shares how financial wealth is not the goal, but a natural outcome of pursuing your passion and aligning your life with what genuinely makes you happy. We delve into the mindset required to build lasting wealth—not just financially, but in a way that brings balance and satisfaction to your life. Sahil’s unique perspective challenges the conventional wisdom of chasing money for its own sake, encouraging listeners to focus on their passions, purpose, and personal growth. In doing so, wealth becomes not just a goal, but a reflection of the meaningful life you’ve built. This episode will inspire you to redefine success on your own terms and develop the mindset to create both financial and personal fulfilment. ______________________________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Being comfortable with different opens your mind… Those are the words of our guest today, Christine Lemke, she’s the Co-Founder and CEO of Evidation. Christine’s story is a unique one, she was adopted from South Korea as a baby into a strict Lutheran household in South Dakota.  Several start-ups later, Christine was encouraged by her own chronic pain to co-found Evidation,an app which uses points as rewards for daily activity, education, and health monitoring. Once users get enough points, they can redeem them for cold hard cash. They reached unicorn status recently, joining the big leagues, but Christine says she doesn’t care about reaching this milestone. Why?  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jonathan Anderson is the co-founder and CEO of Candu, a no-code platform that helps people build their own products. They are used by companies likeAdobe, Thought Industries, and Gorgias and have raised over five million dollars. But his first business wasn’t such a success. In 2011, when Jonathan was a student at Stanford University in a CleanTech programme, he came up with the idea for a smart thermostat controlled by your smartphone with a couple of his fellow students. The problem they’d identified was that programmable thermostats at the time were really hard to use meaning customers just didn’t do it.  It was early days for the smartphone but also exciting times. They realised they could use the GPS on customer’s smartphones to say when they were coming in and out of their homes, making heating much more efficient. After securing twenty thousand pounds with convertible note financing, they worked with a Chinese supplier to build a prototype. They were pumped to be at the forefront of the revolution in household technology But they’d made a fundamental mistake. Listen to find out what.  If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: quickbooks.co.uk/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this gripping interview, former Financial Times editor Lionel Barber reveals the secrets behind billionaire Masayoshi Son and shares chilling details about his unforgettable encounter with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. Lionel offers exclusive insights from his new book 'Gambling Man,' diving into his time spent with Masa Son and recounting some of his most impactful interviews as editor of the Financial Times. Discover untold stories about global power players, insider business tactics, and what it’s like to sit across from one of the world’s most powerful leaders. Watch now for a rare glimpse into the world of high-stakes journalism and secretive billionaires ________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Founded in 2010 in the USA by Co-CEOs brothers Dan and Michael Broukhim and Editor-in-Chief Katie Echevarria Rosen Kitchens, the wildly successful lifestyle subscription platform FabFitFun is a lifestyle membership that inspires happiness and well being.  Their flagship product, the FabFitFun box (now available in the UK), delivers a curated collection of full-size products across beauty, fashion, wellness, fitness, home, tech and more - to over 1 million members each season. And as well as the box, members have access to FabFitFunTV, their digital lifestyle magazine, a robust online community, members-only shopping experiences, exclusive perks, events, and their mobile app. Now in their 10th year of trading and having surpassed $200 million in revenue, they have recently closed the most remarkably whopping series A of $80 million, led by some of the best venture capitalists in America.  But it hasn’t always been plain sailing.  “We were $1 million in debt when we closed our financing the first time. And we were running the business on credit cards, stretching every single payment, the first million that came in went right out the door.” We chat about: How FabFitFun came to fruition Why newsletters are making a comeback Exploring finance options to fund the business The future for FabFitFun The self doubts and personal challenges that each founder faces What they’d change if they could do over Why you should never underestimate the importance of company culture -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we discuss Dan’s embarrassing moment as the first guest on diary of a CEO, we reflect on some of our recent episodes and discuss How Lily Allen and Kate Nash are making the most of OF and we do it all in our brand new studio! ____________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Has anyone seen how CASUAL Elon Musk's text messages were when trying to convince billionaire to invest in X? We will be discussing how common this actually is as well as how Elon's Grok 3 has emerged has the top AI platform despite behind 5 years behind ChatGPT Then Dan and Chris finish of by answering some of your business questions to help you on your entrepreneurial journey _______________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/ Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we sit down with the legendary Deborah Meaden to dive into her incredible entrepreneurial journey—from her early days starting up in business to becoming a household name on Dragons' Den. Deborah shares candid stories from her time on the show, offers invaluable tips for aspiring entrepreneurs, and reveals key lessons she’s learned along the way. We also explore her passion project: a brand-new book aimed at teaching kids about money management at a young age. If you’re looking for inspiration, business advice, or insights into how to empower the next generation, this conversation is a must-watch! ——————— Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=secret+leaders_2H+2024&utm_content=Wise+Business Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neil Ambikar says you can't rely on the UK legal system. Neil is the Founder of B2Bpay and Narvi Payments - and B2Bpay is lucky to still be here. The company was taken to the brink by a sequence of events that led to Neil questioning the legal system in the UK. He says he did everything right but ended up losing. This is how the game is really played. -- To get a better handle on your security, check out https://npsa.gov.uk/innovation and download their free Quick Start Guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Vlad Magdalin is the Founder of Webflow, a no-code platform which allows people who aren't software engineers to build complex websites. They were valued at $4b at the last count but amazingly he tried doing the business three times before getting it right. He wouldn't advise a friend to take the same risks he did - despite the enormous pay off. Here's why. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders. Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders. Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s not often you meet real life prodigies but Kieran O’Neill might just be one. By the time he was 19 he’d been sued by Disney and his company had been bought by Carl Page, the brother of Google Co-Founder Larry Page. And then he dropped out of university to start another successful business, because, why not? “At that point I discovered what I want to do for the rest of my life - build things. And I began building a tool that would track which of my housemates was best at a particular game.” Today Kieran is the Co-Founder and CEO of Thread.com, a place where you can get clothes that actually suit and fit you - a reaction to the typical online shopping experience which often results in loads of returns. Plus, plenty of people don’t back their own style - including Kieran.  “I keep a text file with various ideas in. And at this point had about 10 that were on not a shortlist, but a medium shortlist. Nine of them were for other people, problems they had but problems I didn't have personally. The problem I had myself was that I wanted to dress well and have good clothes, but found shopping to be really frustrating.” Find out how he took this personal problem and turned it into high growth business.  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How did NetSuite grow from its humble beginnings above a hairdressers in 1998 to almost 20,000 employees 23 years later, and selling to Oracle for $9.3 billion dollars?  Today we’re speaking to Evan Goldberg, founder and EVP of NetSuite who make software which helps businesses with stuff like accountancy and inventory management.  “We provide [services] for businesses that are fast growing, that have increasing complexity, they've outgrown the simple systems that they were using to help them track their business when they had just a couple people. And we provide a business application and one system that really helps you grow your business more effectively.” None of it would’ve been possible if tech giant Larry Ellison (Founder of Oracle), worth $124b at the last count, hadn’t taken Evan under his wing and invested in the company. So how did they do it? What makes Larry special? And what was it like meeting Steve Jobs? -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Building a thriving business takes more than just getting the economics right - it requires truly understanding human psychology and what motivates people.  In this episode, Paul Lindley, Founder of kids' healthy food brand Ella's Kitchen, provides a rare glimpse into the human dynamics, vision and motivation at the heart of one of the biggest success stories in the UK startup space.  Paul reveals his secrets for: - Mastering company culture and the psychology behind hiring and leadership - Building an iconic national brand on a startup budget  - Staying rooted in deeper values and mission even amid huge success -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you want to get better at hiring, or being hired?  Sam Franklin is the Co-Founder and CEO of Otta, a job search platform that wants to make the experience of job seekers in the tech industry way, way better. Recruitment and jobs boards might not seem the most exciting areas to disrupt but the subject of hiring is so important and can be very nuanced. All businesses succeed because of their people. At Otta, they’re really leaning into the power of the job seeker. And in the fast-growing tech industry, where demand for the best talent is very high, that has turned out to be a strong strategy. Sam got a taste of what it takes to build a fast growing startup when working at the prop-tech Nested. It was at Nested, as Head of People, and doing over 30 hours of interviews a week, that he realised how soul-destroying the recruitment process can be for many people. That was the start of Otta.  If you want to get better at recruitment, either as an employer or job hunter, then there are some gems in this episode. Sam shares his tips for hiring, including stuff we’ve never thought of before. Why does he say that companies should avoid trying to be the best? What are the biggest mistakes companies make? And, what is his advice to founders trying to disrupt a stuffy industry? Listen to find out.  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Henry Engelhardt is the Co-Founder and former CEO of Admiral Group. They’re one of Britain’s most valuable companies – currently valued at over £7 billion – and also the only FTSE 100 company in Wales.  Chances are, you’ve used one of their many brands at some point: Admiral Insurance, Bell Insurance, Elephant Insurance, Diamond Insurance, Veygo Insurance… if you’ve ever purchased insurance, basically. Or even if you’ve just run a search on Confused.com or Compare.com. In fact, they launched the UK’s first ever search comparison site. Henry is full of stories and lessons. Not only was he headhunted to found Admiral, but he ultimately had to fight to keep everything that was owed to him once he made the company what it is.  His first book, Think Lead Succeed: The Admiral Way, was released in January 2021 and now, he’s back with a follow up: Be a Better Boss: Learn to build great teams and lead any organization to success.  We speak about what it really means to be a better boss and how to avoid falling into a leadership style of hypocrisy to how all of life’s experiences offer opportunities to learn. Henry has always been very open about Admiral’s innovations - the one thing he can’t understand is why none of their competitors ever try to copy them.  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Doctor Driando Ahnan-Winarno is the CTO at Better Nature Tempeh, but he’s not just any CTO - he is a Chief Tempeh Officer. Tempeh is a type of food that's really popular in Indonesia, where Dr Driando grew up, so he tried bringing it to the UK. He got early validation but had to give up on his original vision. Here's how it went wrong - and what he learnt from it. -- To get a better handle on your security, check out https://npsa.gov.uk/innovation and download their free Quick Start Guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kurt Davis has spent twenty years in Silicon Valley and Asia, working in venture capital and business development for technology startups, focusing on deals with companies like Apple, Microsoft, Spotify, and Sony.  But he experienced failure, with his very first business, a mobile game company. Kurt was living in Hong Kong in the early 2000s and from there he witnessed the beginning of a wave of innovation in China, especially in tech. Alibaba, Tencent, Baibu, all of them were launched around that time and were beginning to grow.  It was exciting and Kurt couldn’t resist the opportunity. He left his job and moved to Shanghai in 2003 to make it as an entrepreneur. He was really into football and hit upon the idea of starting an online fantasy football game app. At first it was going to be a website but, after realising they weren’t going to be able to monetise it very well, they then turned their attention to mobile phones. Remember this was 2003, so the early days of smartphones, before the iPhone. All of this was really new, but they did it! They got mobile phone carriers, like China Unicom, to sell their product and also spread into other countries in Asia.  So what went wrong? Listen to find out.  If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: quickbooks.co.uk/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What if the secret to getting more done, is having more fun? In this episode we speak with Ali Abdaal - YouTuber, doctor, author and Founder who has built a business around his own personal brand. Ali shares his approach to being more productive by simply making work feel like play. Ali explains the science behind why we're more motivated when something feels like a game rather than a chore. He provides practical tips for turning boring tasks into engaging challenges by reframing them with an element of fun. From optimising habits to delegating effectively, Ali covers strategies to inject more enjoyment into your daily grind. Whether you're an entrepreneur hitting a career milestone or just looking to get more done without burning out, Ali's perspective offers a refreshing way to tackle your responsibilities with more energy and less stress. _________ Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Finding the ideal Co-Founder is one of the most critical decisions a Founder will make. In this episode, Alice Bentinck, CEO and Co-Founder of Entrepreneur First, shares how to create world class productive partnerships and finding your market edge. With over a decade of experience building entrepreneurial teams that have created businesses worth billions, Alice has seen what it really takes to get a business of the ground in the first 90 days. From identifying complementary skills, to conducting successful market research, to putting practicality before passion - Alice covers the full spectrum of establishing a powerful Co-Founding partnership. ____________ Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Konrad Bergström is the founder of Swedish electric boat manufacturer X Shore and Zound Industries, the Swedish tech giant that sells consumer electronics for Marshall Amplification and Adidas.  But before that, he was half a million euros in debt and living out of his car after his previous business, Megascine Agency, failed. Konrad set up the business which distributed brands like Quicksilver and Burton in Sweden in the late 90s. The company grew quickly and made a name for themselves, organising events such as the world’s largest indoor snowboarding competition and the first European edition of the World Cup in wakeboarding.  So what went wrong? Listen to find out what.  If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: quickbooks.co.uk/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Foxley, Founder of the Adventurepreneur Collective, spent years building his lifestyle and coaching business. He had reliable clients, a team he loved and the business was bring in six-figures. All of this felt like "success", until a breakdown on his honeymoon revealed the deep misalignment between his work and his passion for adventure. This is when he fully realised that; If you don't do what is meaningful, you won't regret it for the rest of your life. -- To get a better handle on your security, check out https://npsa.gov.uk/innovation and download their free Quick Start Guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When you’re first dreaming up a business idea, you imagine it at its best - as if your execution was perfect and your resources unlimited. When your friends ask at a dinner party, you say you’ll have Gordon Ramsey teaching cooking and Christina Aguilera teaching singing. Your friends laugh, you cheers each other - and carry on with your meal. But in the case of today’s guest, David Rogier, he’s turned that dream into a reality. Everyone thought he was mad, and pointed it out to him at various stages, but here we are with MasterClass, valued at $2.75b last year according to CNBC - and with the craziest line up of teachers you’ll ever see in one place.  How has David pulled it off?  And all this from a man who was bullied as a child over his stutter.  We talk about: His grandparents meeting in Auschwitz Getting over his stutter How to choose which business to launch How he started Masterclass The real art of storytelling The hardest things he’s ever done Why he kept going when everybody told him to stop -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

THIS is currently the fastest-growing meat alternative brand in the UK. After launching in 2019, it was recently valued at £150 million. But Co-Founders Andy Shovel and Pete Sharman didn’t always want to help people eat less meat. In fact, before THIS they ran a successful beef burger company.  Andy knew he wanted to be an entrepreneur from a young age and sold his first business at 21. But far from feeling proud of himself, he really struggled. He hardly left his room for three weeks. Surrounded by friends in stable jobs, he felt lonely, scared that he didn’t know what to do next. A chance visit to a new restaurant startup gave him the direction he needed, he would go into the “rock and roll” world of food. THIS definitely pushes the boundaries. Their early traction, says Andy, came from their PR stunts. In 2021, they did a takeover of the town of Quorn, rumoured to be where the meat-free brand, their main competitor, got its name from. THIS sponsored the football team, the pubs, the bingo hall…even the branded paper in the fish and chip shop. They’ve done a deep-fake of the Queen’s speech and got an Ed Sheeran look-alike to hand out chicken nuggets. But not all campaigns have gone to plan…one stunt saw Special Branch raid their offices and Andy almost taken away! Find out why and what Andy has learnt as a people leader taking a business from £0 to £17 million in revenue in three years.  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this exclusive interview, WeTransfer founder Damian Bradfield shares the story behind his 9-figure exit and breaks down how he built a brand that millions of people around the world trust every day.  Damian reveals the real strategies he used to scale WeTransfer from a simple idea to a global sensation—PLUS, he drops actionable tips you can use to build and sell your own brand. ——————— Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=secret+leaders_2H+2024&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders And a special thanks to PodShop for letting us use their incredible podcast studio in Shoreditch, London to film this episode. Check out their studios and for 25% off your first booking at Podshop Studios when booked online using code SECRET25 - https://www.podshoponline.co.uk/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From salty sea dog to captain of BrewDog in the space of a year. James Watt is the founder of the rocket ship brewery and brand known as BrewDog. Now valued at over $1 billion, this incredible startup began life in co-founder Martin Dickie’s mum’s garage.  “No one wanted to buy our beer. Everyone told us to make beer with less flavour, with less bitterness, with less hops, that our labels looked stupid, like nobody wanted to know and we were working almost 24/7, sleeping on sacks of malt on the floor, filling bottles by hand, doing deliveries out of the back of my beat up Volkswagen car, and just going absolutely nowhere.” But it took a meeting with Michael Jackson (no, not that one), a punt at Tesco and playing two high street banks off against each other to give them the kickstart they needed. Today, BrewDog are well known for their rebellious marketing tactics and have recruited a clan of investors known as equity punks, raising £80 million through a range of clever crowdfunding campaigns.  But how have they handled the COVID-19 pandemic? What have they done to ensure the nation’s thirst remains quenched - and how the hell have they produced and distributed over 250,000 units of hand sanitizer (free) to the NHS and charities? All the while operating the brewery AND adhering to social distancing measures?  If you’re an entrepreneur, James has one piece of advice for you:  “The only logical thing that my useless advice could be is don't listen to advice, which would also apply to this advice just now.” We chat about: From rebellious child, to quitting law, to making beer Overcoming the first disastrous year Fanvestors - advocate ambassadors AKA equity punk investors Developing the next generation of leaders from within the company The importance of culture fit when hiring Managing BrewDog through the pandemic Links: Book - The hard thing about hard things - Ben Horowitz App - Hop Drop -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ve all made mistakes. Many of us have had short-lived jobs. And many of us have been fired. But getting through 37 jobs by the time you’re 24 is quite a haul.  That’s what happened to Krisi Smith, the Founder of Bird & Blend, a booming tea company. But before she found her groove, she found she couldn’t hold down a job. This is the story of what happened and what she learnt from it. ... We'd love your feedback: hello@secretleaders.com  Check out Yotpo, our exclusive sponsor - to grow your ecommerce business: yotpo.com/secret Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most of the founders we speak to have already achieved much of their startup’s mission, but today’s Secret Leader is in the midst of a much longer journey with his company. Meet Matteo Berlucchi, a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Healthily which has spent several years building their product to a point where they can play for the ‘big prize’.  “Healthily is a moonshot, it’s the textbook definition of a moonshot. The idea behind Healthily is to use technology to enable people to manage their health in a better way... To become the Spotify or Netflix of healthcare.” Launched in 2015, the app formerly known as Your.MD, now Healthily, is the first medically approved self-care app in the world, and is aiming for a user base of over a billion people.  “To me, success is not making money, it has never been my definition of success. To me, success is building something that has impact.”  From his first days founding startups, to helping create Healthily and turn it into a profitable startup; investment, failure and limiting beliefs, don’t miss Matteo’s hard fought insights. “Provided that you always do things with integrity and with belief, you believe that you're doing the right thing, then if it doesn't work out, it doesn’t work. Failure is lying to yourself, doing something knowing that it's not going to work and doing it anyway, that's a failure.” We chat about: What is actually success and failure Self care is the self service of healthcare How to make a company like Healthily profitable Failing to sell the story of Healthily to investors properly -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes in business you pass the point of no return and you don't even know it. Someone who knows all too well is Rico Mandel, the Founder of Miz En Place, a successful foodie marketplace... but Rico only got into food after his marketing agency business went bust. This is how Rico failed, what he learnt from it - and a simple hack to make you feel better about your life, however bad things seem. -- To get a better handle on your security, check out https://npsa.gov.uk/innovation and download their free Quick Start Guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Once you see it, you can't unsee it. [Insurance] is something that is 11% of GDP, $5 trillion worldwide, 100% household penetration. And you're like, wow, this has been hiding in plain sight. It’s such a dull industry that nobody's noticed it. Nobody's thought to tackle it.” Until Daniel Schreiber. That is.  So what made a law graduate with no prior knowledge of the insurance industry decide to co-found an insurtech startup in 2016, which floated on the New York Stock Exchange just 4 short years later, more than doubling in valuation on the first day of trading? “It has been a pretty rapid growth, we're talking from standstill to about $200 million in just over four years and doubling every year.” Lemonade isn’t like any insurance platform you’ve ever come across before. Daniel (former president of Powermat) and co-founder Shai Wininger, (Fiverr co-founder) didn’t want to simply follow in the footsteps of what had gone before. They wanted to create a new kind of insurance company, something that improved the user experience for everyone.  “We built [it] from scratch, we were vertically integrated, we built every piece of technology. We're not fronting for some old insurance company, we built every element of the user experience, down to the insurance dimensions, as well as the technological ones.” From lawyer to SanDisk to Power Mat to Lemonade, Daniel has had a portfolio career like no other. His is a truly fascinating journey where the phrase ‘peer to peer insurance’ sparked an idea that rapidly grew into a multi million dollar business. We chat about: The multigenerational Schreiber entrepreneurial mindset Building Lemonade from scratch The spark of peer to peer insurance High speed execution and financing Lemonade The insurance industry is politics Links: Fiverr Powermat -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every entrepreneur dreams of disrupting an industry, but few have done it as boldly as today's guest. In this episode, we dive into the story of a visionary who took on billion-dollar skincare giants like L'Oréal and Nivea—without any prior industry experience—and became the #1 men's skincare brand in France. He rejected conventional practices, bypassed traditional retail, and found success by challenging the status quo in one of the most established markets imaginable. What makes this conversation even more fascinating is how our guest spotted what the beauty behemoths overlooked: their greatest strengths had turned into their biggest weaknesses. Their size, reliance on traditional retail, and outdated strategies blinded them to how men actually want to shop for skincare products. Our guest’s innovative approach disrupted the industry and proved that sometimes, the most obvious opportunities are the ones industry leaders are too entrenched to see. Whether you're an aspiring entrepreneur looking to identify a market gap or someone ready to challenge industry giants, this episode is packed with insights on how to seize opportunities hiding in plain sight. Tune in to discover the strategies behind this ground-breaking success and learn how to apply them to your own business journey. ______________________________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Louise Hill is the Co-Founder and COO of GoHenry, a debit card and financial education app for children which has two million users. The starting point for Louise was noticing her kids buying stuff on iTunes without her permission. She then found out other children were spending money on all sorts of things without them or their parents realising it. So, after chatting with two dads whose kids went to the same school, they decided to do something about it.  This is the story of how Louise turned GoHenry into a category creator - and they’re now taking on the US. We talk about: The difference between an entrepreneur and not The problem with children and money The origin story of GoHenry What she learnt from her first startup failure  How she met her two co-founders The last woman standing Handling pressure -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sameer Vaswani is the Co-Founder of Prodigy Chocolate, a company that’s taking classics like Snickers and making them more modern and child friendly, like less sugar and more eco packaging. Before this venture, he built a very successful food manufacturing business in West Africa - but before all of that - he failed. He set up a restaurant which boomed for a few years - he was living his dream life. But gradually that dream slipped away. -- To get a better handle on your security, check out https://npsa.gov.uk/innovation and download their free Quick Start Guide. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andrew Wordsworth is the Managing Partner of Sustainable Ventures, an investment fund which has developed Europe's largest cluster of sustainability startups. But the first venture he backed (and was the Chairman of) was a disaster - and what’s strange is it had all the ingredients to be a mega business... -- Check out Personio - the all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you know Domino’s used to give out Rolex watches to top-performing franchise owners? Or that LEGO rewarded its employees with solid gold bricks? Some companies go above and beyond to take care of their people. In this episode of Leaders Chat, we break down some of the most surprising employee perks—from Airbnb’s $2,000 annual travel credit to Zappos’ bold “Pay to Quit” policy. Dan also shares his full-body health analysis, covering everything from vitamin tests to cancer screenings. How does this all tie into Brian Johnson’s quest to live forever? Watch to find out. 🔔 Subscribe for more insights from top leaders! 👍 Like & Comment: What’s the best work perk you’ve ever had? _______________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matthew Pohlson has built Omaze into a unicorn business through some pretty unconventional ways - convincing the Pope to sell his Lamborghini, sending someone to space with Richard Branson and giving away multi-million dollar mansions for $10. All whilst giving away over $300M to charity. This is one of our favourite interviews ever. From a business burning cash into a unicorn business that actually does good, Matthew's journey has been incredible, and you haven't even heard about how dying for 4 minutes made him an even better leader. ______________________________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Marcia Kilgore is a serial entrepreneur in the truest sense of the term. Not content with creating just one globally renowned brand, Marcia is responsible for Bliss Spa, Soap and Glory, FitFlop, Soaper Duper and now Beauty Pie. But how did she become Queen of Startups? Bliss Spa, her first startup in NYC, saw her give facials to Demi Moore, Courtney Love, Christy Turlington, Bette Midler and Calvin Klein to name drop but a few regulars. She sold this to world leader in luxury products LVMH, before turning her hand a couple of years later to Soap and Glory.  From there she founded FitFlop, Soaper Duper and now Beauty Pie, an exclusive buyers club for luxury beauty products, without the luxury beauty bullshit. “I love the part of a business where you're really struggling to figure something out and it's really hard and you're solving real problems and really moving that dial every day and able to create new things. But when it sort of gets masked out and it's not about creating new things for customers anymore and you get too far away from it and it's charts and spreadsheets, that's not really my thing.” Rather than discuss just one of these behemoths, Marcia is incredibly candid about all of them, talking about the genesis of each, her entrepreneurial journey and the mistakes she’s made along the way.  “There usually comes a time in my businesses where people say, ‘Oh, you've got to stop doing customer interface, you've got to stop doing the copywriting, you’ve got to stop doing the naming of the products’. And actually, that's what I do better than other people. So I shouldn't stop doing the part that I love doing. That was, I suppose the mistake that I've made in the past.” We chat about: What set her on her entrepreneurial path That urban legend about Jean-Claude Van Damme How LVMH wooed her Stopping your brand getting watered down Learning to deal with the big companies Lifting the lid on the beauty industry  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s the stuff entrepreneurs dream of. Houzz, a marketplace for home renovations, evolved from an evenings and weekends passion project into a multi-billion dollar company with investors queuing up to get a slice of their proverbial pie. So how did the two Co-Founders, husband and wife Adi Tatarko and Alon Cohen, do it? “I think, in retrospect, delaying it and bootstrapping it, the way we bootstrapped it without even understanding that this is what it is back then helped us tremendously down the road.” “Go invest the first six months and validate and see that this idea can really scale, people will really use it, you're really invested in it, and you really love it. And then you will not need to prove these things to investors.” Find out how they secured an investment from legendary investor Mike Moritz in a matter of days - and what they did next to dominate their category. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Timothy Creswick is the CEO and Founder of Vorboss. They're an internet service provider for businesses which might not sound riveting but that's only until you hear the story of how it came together and what they’re actually doing. Timothy saw a gaping opportunity that the market had missed because of distractions caused by COVID and he seized upon it. Vorboss have secured £250 million of investment. Their goal is to turn that into £1 billion by deploying the UK’s only dedicated fibre network for businesses throughout Central London. They’ve discreetly laid over 500km of fibre optics since 2020 without many people noticing - and that has been a key part of their master plan... -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Growing up in Swansea with two hard-working parents, Anne Boden couldn’t have dreamt of the future ahead of her. After going on to study Chemistry and Computer Sciences at Swansea University, she made the big move to London to work for Lloyds Bank. Jump forward 35 years and positions at UBS, RBS and ABN AMRO, Anne has put herself out there as a forward-thinking banker who has spotted huge potential in the world of digital banking. Unable to have her vision realized as Allied Irish Banks’ Chief Operating Officer, Anne broke away and developed Starling, an innovative and exciting new way for customers to bank. We chat to Anne about: Quitting her job in traditional banking, moving to London and deciding to start her own bank Raising money as a female founder for her unusual initiative The type of culture and ethos they are trying to build Her ambitions with Starling in the future A typical day for Anne Her advice to entrepreneurs Links: Starling Bank -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tom Beahon, the co-founder of Castore, reveals how he took on global giants Nike and Adidas—and won—in just 9 years. Tom takes us behind the scenes of Castore’s rise, revealing what really goes on in the world of sports sponsorship deals and how he navigated a highly competitive industry. He also tells the fascinating story of how he convinced tennis legend Andy Murray to sign with Castore over more established brands, even when no one had heard of them. From the challenges of building a brand from scratch to competing with the biggest names in sportswear, Tom offers invaluable insights into the mindset and strategies that made Castore a major player in the industry. ______________________________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andy Brown, a seasoned leadership coach, shares his journey as a founder of a once-thriving marketing agency. He reveals how the business's rapid growth and his own ambition led him down a path of loss of focus and personal burnout. As the company took on more clients and expanded its services, Andy found himself stretched thin, trying to be involved in every aspect of the business. His belief that he was indispensable ultimately became a double-edged sword, leading to a lack of trust in his team and an overwhelming burden of responsibility. Andy highlights the importance of maintaining a clear vision and focus for your business, even in the face of rapid growth and new opportunities. He also emphasises the need for founders to learn to let go, delegate effectively, and build a strong team that can support and sustain the company's success. His experience serves as a powerful reminder that success is not just about working harder, but also about working smarter and building a business that can thrive beyond the founder's individual efforts. … Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jerry Rosengarten is a seasoned, serial entrepreneur and designer who, somewhat unexpectedly, created a revolution in menswear when he designed the leisure suit. However, the leisure suit's success was short-lived. Jerry reveals how knockoffs and cheaper fabrics flooded the market, ultimately leading to the downfall of his business. Through his experiences, Jerry imparts valuable lessons for entrepreneurs, emphasising the importance of pivoting in the face of challenges and having a reliable "drizzler" – a steady source of income to fall back on during tough times. His story serves as a reminder that even the most promising ventures can unravel, and adaptability is key to long-term success. … Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is Secret Leader’s 200th episode! Over the last 5 years we've featured over 50 unicorn leaders and household names such as Monzo, Slack, Duolingo, Brewdog, Lastminute.com. In today’s episode host Dan Murray-Serter takes listeners through the interviews that have had the biggest impact on him. Guests include host of Diary of a CEO, entrepreneur, and angel investor, Steven Bartlett; Co-Founder of Little Moons Vivien Wong on how they went viral during the pandemic; Eve Sleep Kuba Wieczorek on what it cost being one of the fastest UK companies to IPO ever; and Jo Malone talking about how leaving her company after her recovery from cancer was the biggest mistake of her life.  Listen to the full episodes here: Steven Bartlett, host of ‘Diary of a CEO’ and entrepreneur  Lemonade Co-Founder Daniel Schreiber  Little Moons Co-Founder Vivien Wong Eve Sleep Co-Founder Kuba Wieczorek Fiverr Co-Founder Micha Kauffman  Trinny Woodall, Founder of Trinny London Jo Malone, Founder of Jo Malone innit :P Dan reflects on what those interviews have taught him: How to stay consistently true to your path and mission statement whilst not believing your own bullshit with Founder and Host of ‘Diary of a CEO’ Steven Bartlett How to redefine an archaic industry by tapping into consumer psychology with Lemonade Founder Daniel Schreiber  How to handle the challenges of surprise growth in hard times with Vivien Wong from Little Moons The pitfalls of hypergrowth when you put the scaling your business ahead of your mental health (everything can fall like a house of cards),with Eve Sleep’s Kuba Wieczorek How to avoid obsessing over the wrong things, with Fiverr Co-Founder Micha Kauffman  How to stay humble, be vulnerable and start again with Trinny Woodall How to build resilience and not be a victim of your greatest regrets, with Jo Malone  -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Most people recognise Trinny Woodall for being one half of Trinny and Susannah from their breakout TV show: What Not To Wear, but not many people know this side of her story. Trinny is a serial entrepreneur. She was a founder in the dotcom bubble back in the day, and is the founder of soaring makeup startup, Trinny London, which booked £42m of revenue in the last year. What happened? How did she get here? In today’s episode of Secret Leaders, Trinny shares her really surprising entrepreneurial journey that doesn’t get told. “Susannah and I started the idea [their first entrepreneurial venture], it was a very lucky break. And I did that for eight years. And then from that television came and then I started writing books and that whole part of my career, when I look back now, brought me to being the CEO of Trinny London.” It doesn’t matter if you’re a budding founder or a seasoned entrepreneur, this episode with Trinny is not to be missed. From hiring interns with a twinkle in their eye, to having to sell her clothes to fund her startup, to understanding the need for personalisation in a brand, Trinny has a wealth of experience every founder needs to hear.  “Through building Trinny London, advice I always give to other entrepreneurs, younger entrepreneurs, is stay in your own lane. Because if you look too much at the competition, you dilute the uniqueness of your offering.” We chat about: Her partnership with Susannah The genesis of Trinny London Financing Trinny London How she handled fame Creating a community on social media -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What would you do if you sold your business and effectively retired at the ripe, old age of 28? Phenomenally successful serial entrepreneur Norman Crowley took just three weeks before jumping back into business.  “A business isn't just a vehicle to make money. A vehicle is an expression of your creativity, it's working with friends. And then the thing nobody warns you about is that when it's sold, you just end up with a bank balance, and the friends are gone, the mission has gone.” Norman has founded multiple businesses in welding, gaming and eco-friendly energy. Each time he’s turned them into multi-million pound ventures, before selling them and moving on to the next big thing.  Norman has had his fair share of bruises - including having a dream billion dollar deal slip right through his fingers at the last minute.  “An Icelandic hedge fund, who already owned 25% of the business, offered to buy the whole thing for $1 billion. And when somebody offers to buy your business for $1 billion, it's impolite to say no, so we agreed to sell.” His focus now is on climate change, and despite being asked to sell his current business every six months, he’s resolute that this one isn’t for sale.  Don’t miss Norman share his fascinating story in this episode. From how his childhood impacted his career, to the commonality of anxiety and entrepreneurship, starting and selling five businesses, learning to control the business narrative, building a gambling machine business from £70 to £300m in revenue, missing out on selling a business for £1bn, founding the cloud, tackling climate change with The Cool Planet Group, and learning how to walk on hot coals.  “Keep fucking walking. This business shit is not easy. Anyone who tells you it's easy is not trying hard enough, so keep walking. Don't give up.” We chat about: Mental health and entrepreneurship Starting and selling 5 businesses Why his current business is not for sale Learning how to walk on hot coals Want to receive our podcast on a weekly basis? Subscribe to our newsletter! -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Urban is the writer/illustrator behind Wait But Why, a blog he founded with his business partner, Andrew Finn, as well as the man behind one of our favourite TED Talks of all time on procrastination.  Tim writes long-form articles covering topics from outer space to love to artificial intelligence. As he puts it, he writes about “almost everything actually”. Each post is also accompanied with Tim’s now-iconic doodles.  Content creation is one of the hardest things to monetise effectively, but Tim hasn’t just managed to make a living from stick figures; he’s also used it to network with the most influential people on the planet, including Elon Musk.  His new book, What’s Our Problem?: A Self-Help Book for Societies is the fruit of Tim’s six-year exploration into what exactly is going wrong with society right now. In short: he thinks we’ve lost the nuances and lays out how we can start to rebuild the bridges that have been damaged in recent years.  What are the simple things all societies need to do to kick on from where we are? How do you monetise well when you’re a content creator going after a niche audience? And what’s Elon actually like in person? Let's find out... -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you know that looking after your brain is one of the best ways to be more productive? And your gut is central to the decisions you make?  This episode brings insights from two professionals at the cutting edge of their fields, to give actionable steps on how to be more effective, improving your life at work and at home.  Dr Tara is a world-leading neuroscientist and best selling author of ‘The Source’. She has a PhD in neuropharmacology, was a medical doctor and child psychologist, having trained at Oxford University. She has spent the last decade coaching leaders and CEOs from across the world and is also a senior lecturer at MIT Sloan, where she teaches classes on how understanding the brain and neuroscience can lead to better business performance. She doesn’t just understand the brain inside out, she knows how to communicate what you need to know about it - to help you build better habits and have a bigger impact. Sophie Medlin is one of the UK’s most respected gut experts. She’s a medically trained nutrition professional, a senior lecturer at King's College, the Chair of the British Dietietic Association for London and star of Channel 4s new show ‘Know your Shit’. She explains how looking after your gut can enable you to be the best leader you can be. They are both colleagues of our host Dan at his company Heights.  We talk about:  How you know when your brain isn’t being looked after What is neuroplasticity? How our brains actually work. The best habits for your brain to start doing The non-negotiable priorities for looking after your brain What is the gut microbiome and why is it so important? Why looking after your gut can keep your immune system healthier and stop you getting sick How, cell for cell, we are more bacteria than human How drinking diet sodas might mean you actually consume more calories Their tips for optimising the brain and gut for peak performance. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we dive deep into the UK's 2024 Autumn Budget, a pivotal moment in British history. With Labour delivering their first budget in 14 years and the first female Chancellor leading the charge, there’s a lot to unpack. We discuss the £22 billion black hole in the nation's finances, the biggest tax shake-up in a generation, and Labour's promise to avoid raising taxes on working people—meaning no increases in VAT, National Insurance, or Income Tax. But what does this really mean for businesses and entrepreneurs? How will these changes impact the UK economy, and more importantly, how do we address the growing debt crisis? ________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sançar Sahin is the Co-Founder of Oliva, a mental health startup which has just raised £4.3 million at the time of putting this together. It’s a B2B which helps companies give mental health support to their employees, like on-demand therapy and coaching. Like our host Dan, with his company Heights, there’s a very clear line of sight from Sançar’s personal health crisis to starting his company.  At his low points, he found himself stripped of confidence, unable to make the simplest decisions. What happened? --------------------------- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: personio.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Dan shares the incredible journey behind the recent success of his company, Heights, now generating $1.5 million per month in revenue. He reveals the one simple change that transformed the business and led to this massive growth. Whether you're an entrepreneur looking to scale your own company or just curious about the secret to success, this episode will offer valuable insights you can apply to your own journey ______________________________________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Matt Kelly, the Founder of Spacegoods (really cool company btw) experienced one of the fastest rises and falls with a bootstrapped business we’ve ever seen. He grew Neon Beach, a DTC neon sign brand, to £7m in revenue in a year. He got to £10m in 18 months - from his bedroom, in lockdown - basically just him, his laptop and freelancers. But then he made one big mistake which cost him more than this business.  What the hell happened?  -- If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  -- Sponsor links: otta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sokratis Papafloratos is the Founder of Numan who are tackling a lot of male healthcare problems like erectile dysfunction, hair loss, sleep and weight issues. This isn't his first rodeo. Sokratis exited with his first startup, albeit at great personal cost. His second one failed. And now he's leading Numan. What's going to be his fate this time? -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we sit down with Nicola Kilner, former CEO of The Ordinary, to dive deep into the unique story behind her journey in building a $2 billion company. Nicola shares the highs and lows of her path to success, including the challenges she faced as a leader and the pivotal moments that shaped her career. We discuss why her Co-CEO fired her and what that experience was like as well as revealing her leadership superpower and why she decided to pay everyone in C-suite the same salary as herself for a period of time. Additionally, we explore her thoughts on why women suffer the most from working from home and the impact it has on their careers. ——————— Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/uk/business/?utm_source=secretleaders&utm_medium=audio&utm_campaign=Secret+Leaders_1H+2025&utm_content=Wise+Business Join Vanta and receive $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gope Walker is the Founder and CEO of Data Kraken, a data consultancy that helps companies make valuable, data-driven decisions. But whilst Data Kraken is making more money than ever today, the venture downstairs is another story. Gope wanted to create a cafe that brought people together. But instead, it left him with depression, loss of appetite, and a £150,000 hole.  He thought he was creating something valuable but customers didn’t see it that way. And when the council had the chance to save the business, they gave the cafe the cold shoulder. What happened? If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: personio.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you want to cut your carbon emissions to zero and save money on your energy bills?  Introducing Bulb, a green energy company founded in 2015 by Hayden Wood and co-founder, Amit Gudka. Together they wanted to change the energy industry, to make it better, by making energy simpler, cheaper and greener.  “We saw all the new technology from solar panels and batteries and smart meters changing the relationship that homes have with the grid. The home of the future [has] solar panels on the roof, there's an electric vehicle in the driveway, and that home needs an energy supplier that it could trust, because its energy needs need to be managed.” Today Bulb has grown their members to 1.7 million, adding more to their ranks each day. And with a team of over 700 people spread across London, France, Spain and the US, running a company that aims to use technology to reduce costs, improve efficiency and provide outstanding customer service hasn’t been an easy journey.  “A lot of the feedback we got in the early days was: ‘sounds too good to be true’, ‘where's the catch?’ ‘It doesn't make sense, you know? Why are you doing this?’ ‘Why hasn't somebody else done it before?’” So what does it take to build and lead Britain's fastest growing company?  “This is where I think I have really struggled to be honest, I found this job very difficult. And I feel like I'm really just at the early stages of my learning on how to do it. I think I do have tendencies to be a perfectionist. And I think it's helpful sometimes, but generally unhelpful. You have to not let perfectionism get in the way of excellence.” We chat about: The genesis of the idea for Bulb Angel investors and EIS Struggling to get customer sign ups Developing as a leader and giving employees autonomy Handling the pandemic and pivoting on a sixpence The importance of company mission in recruiting -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Would you fight for your business even after you’d put it into administration?  Radha Vyas co-founded Flash Pack, an adventure holiday company, with her husband Lee, after realising there was an untapped market for solo entrepreneurs in their thirties and forties. They slowly built their company and were just entering an exciting first fundraising round when the pandemic hit, decimating their company and the entire travel industry. They had to put the company into administration but then were offered a ray of hope which meant they might be able to get their business back. What happened next? Listen to find out.  If you have any feedback, we’d love to hear it. What would make the show better? hello@secretleaders.com  Sponsor links: quickbooks.co.uk/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover the Secrets to Becoming "Unstressable" with Mo Gawdat and Alice Law Former Google X executive Mo Gawdat and stress management expert Alice Law share their revolutionary approach to thriving under pressure. Mo and Alice challenge the notion that stress is inevitable for success. They explore the far-reaching impacts of chronic stress, practical strategies for building resilience, and the transformative power of purpose and authenticity. Whether you're an entrepreneur seeking peak performance or simply craving a more balanced life, this episode will inspire you to reclaim your well-being and unlock your full potential. Tune in to discover the secrets to becoming "unstressable" and thriving in all areas of life. … Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BorrowMyDoggy is the kind of brand that just sticks in your brain. Once you’ve heard it you can’t unhear it.  Today we’re talking with its Founder and CEO Rikke Rosenlund who had an idyllic Danish childhood but still doesn’t own a dog. Find out how she built the company bit by bit - and how they're helping the 25% of dogs who are depressed. We talk about: What your parents say behind your back The issues with dog care in the UK People finding love through pet sitting Real reason women founders get less funding -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As series 7 draws to a close, in this episode we sit down to chat about some of our favourite episodes, our personal highlights, some of our regrets and how Dan got rejected by Deborah Meaden. ____________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the world of entrepreneurship, we dream about the BIG EXIT.   We talk about mergers, acquisitions and IPOs…  But there's one exit strategy that's often whispered about Selling to private equity.  Today, we're pulling back the curtain on this mysterious world with someone who's not only been through it, but has come out the other side a fan. … Sponsors Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today’s guest is the self styled Jesus Christ Superstar of the organic viral growth world, Vincent Dignan. He puts the M in Millennial, the G in Growth and the WTF in Fashion. A man who very much practices what he preaches, and a true obsessive for the American personal branding school of thought - he knows that to stand out, you have to really stand out. And he does this to perfection. In his own words - his mission is to help as many founders and companies grow in the fastest way possible using bespoke techniques, tactics and software most people don’t know about. Whilst his over sharing and very un-British attitude towards self promotion doesn’t resonate with everyone - it’s categorically impossible to ignore Vincent once you’ve made contact, and underneath all the outfits and image is simply a guy interested to see how he can help others succeed with the knowledge he’s accumulated. From living off benefits to touring the West Coast inspiring young entrepreneurs and makers how to build an audience, Vincent’s life has gone from rags to riches in very little time, and should be viewed as an inspiration that anyone with a strong work ethic, positive attitude and most importantly, the self belief and confidence in what makes you unique and interesting is your pathway to success. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tim Draper is the world’s most famous venture capital investor who’s backed many companies like Hotmail, Twitter or Tesla. He is a ridiculously nice and charming guy (it might be all that Bitcoin he owns, who knows?), he’s full of amazing advice and has a voice like chocolate silk - which, if it did exist, he could probably afford to buy. Tim founded DJF, Draper Associates and Draper University. All you need to know if you’re listening outside the Valley is that Tim is one of the great legacy names known best for a warm smile, a suit and a firm handshake. His unique ability to pick out opportunities explains why you might have heard of him as one of the world’s most prolific Bitcoin supporters and owners. We chat with Tim about: A family of venture capitalists What it means to be a hero Why he disagrees with Elon Musk about AI The benefits of Bitcoin His book, “How to be The Startup Hero: A Guide and Textbook for Entrepreneurs and Aspiring Entrepreneurs” What Draper University is all about Links: How to be The Startup Hero: A Guide and Textbook for Entrepreneurs and Aspiring Entrepreneurs Bitcoin Hustle -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Where were you when you came up with the idea for your business? Simon Griffiths was sitting on a toilet when he had the idea for Who Gives A Crap, a subscription-based toilet paper brand that donates 50% of its profits to help build toilets in the developing world. Since they launched in 2012, they’ve sold more than 300 million rolls of toilet paper and donated more than 11 million Australian dollars - just over £6 million - to charity. They now have more than 200 employees spread across 7 countries selling into the USA, Europe and Australia. In September 2021 they raised over $40 million in their first fundraising round.  It’s taken a lot to get to this point. They bootstrapped for the first 9 years and spent 3 years before that working on the product before launching. Simon didn’t get paid for the first 18 months of trading.  What does it take to build a brand that actually tries to change the world? Is entrepreneurship really for everyone? And does Simon fold or scrunch his toilet paper?  Listen to find out. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our guest today is on the more unconventional side. For starters, he wouldn’t necessarily choose to call himself a “leader”, so what better set-up for a secret leader? Mills, aka Matt Miller, is the co-founder of the fampany (read: family company) ustwo, a design studio occupying the ground floor of the Tea Building in Shoreditch, famous for hosting many of UK’s most creative brands. Mills started his career at design studio Animal, where his first and only ever boss demonstrated to him just how leadership can be: a friendship based on trust and shared values. After experiencing that, Mills and ustwo co-founder John Sinclair, aka Sinx, decided to replicate it to create a fizzing company culture of their own. Today we talk about doing things differently and putting values at the heart of an organization that really tries to keep its creativity in full flow, full-time employed. Mills and Sinx have zero intention to ever sell ustwo, and are on a mission to create the best working environment you can imagine. We chat about: The story of how ustwo was formed International expansion How they created a global smash hit mobile game Mills’s love for mindful ultrarunning What's next for ustwo Links: ustwo Monument Valley -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Serial tech entrepreneur William Reeve realised early on that he wasn’t quite techy enough to be a techy, and so focused on the business side of tech businesses. And without this early enlightenment, we might not have seen the likes of Zoopla, Dunelm, Secret Escapes, Lovefilm or Graze, to name but a few of the businesses that have benefitted from William’s involvement. At the tender age of 23, having recently graduated from Oxford University with a degree in engineering and having just started his own company, William was told by a family member that he was ‘too young’ to start his own business. Four years later that business sold and netted William £10m. Listen today as we find out what it took to bring Lovefilm to market and how it beat Amazon. Join us as we chat to William about: Other than marriage, what William’s best investment to date was How, aged 27, he sold his first business and made almost £10m in the process Why he chose to go down the DVD subscription route How Lovefilm handled the slow business start by buying out the competition What it’s like negotiating with a behemoth like Amazon How to measure user churn Links: https://www.wreeve.com/ -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“I think the worst thing is every morning when you wake up as a founder and you pick up your phone, you think what will I discover that will ruin my day?” While your business might not care what your gender is, significant discrepancies still exist between the number of female and male entrepreneurs. As Baroness Martha Lane Fox quite rightly proclaimed, ‘you cannot be what you cannot see’.  And so we’ve gone and put four female entrepreneur powerhouses together on the same live stage. We’ve put the same questions to them and their answers are as diverse as they are. This episode on female leadership and equality for International Women’s Day is a real smorgasbord of insights from some of the UK's leading female founders.  Get the expert investor perspective from Reshma Sohoni, co-founder of Seedcamp. The non-VC route founder Renée Elliott, founder of Planet Organic. Alex Depledge offers the perspective from a consumer facing tech enabled marketplace, with her startup Hassle. And finally our technology software entrepreneur, Alicia Navarro, whose company Skimlinks has raised over $25 million helping publishers monetise advertising.  “If being a woman is the hardest thing you have to deal with in your journey, sorry, you’re fucking lucky. Because that is the easiest challenge you're gonna have to deal with. If you can't handle that, if you can’t handle a couple of dickheads in the corner that belittle you, you're just not going to make it. I'm sorry, but that is the truth. It is hard and relentless. And if you can't handle people that make you feel like shit, that's like peanuts in the corner.” We chat about: Why not every business should take VC funding The toughest moments of their entrepreneurial journeys so far Their different perspectives on funding and financing a business How to choose your role models Links: https://www.secretleaders.com/reshma-sohoni https://www.secretleaders.com/alicia-navarro https://www.secretleaders.com/alex-depledge https://www.secretleaders.com/renee-elliot -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jonathan Neman is the Co-Founder and CEO of Sweetgreen, a farm-to-table restaurant chain making fast food healthy. Unless you’re one of our American listeners, you probably won’t be familiar with Sweetgreen but they’re a staple of the LA, New York and Washington food scenes. They’ve got over 200 sites across the country. You probably don’t think of salad and tech in the same sentence but Sweetgreen love a bit of tech. They’ve run pilots to test the viability of blockchain technology to track and trace their ingredients and stock. And, having acquired a robotics startup in 2021, they’re now creating an automated restaurant where robots will prepare ingredients which are then assembled by human chefs. Pretty wild. Where is the restaurant industry heading? -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This a new one for us - we've just launched our first true crime show at Kindling Media (we make Secret Leaders). It's called Bad Money and it's about the Hong Kong gangster, Big Spender. Obsessed with money, he went further than anyone before to get rich. In fact, he became so wealthy he could've had his own episode on Secret Leaders. This is a story of how money and power really work - and this is the first episode. You can listen to the rest of the show here: https://link.chtbl.com/badmoney_sl Or search for Bad Money wherever you listen to your pods. Hope you enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this eye-opening episode, we sit down with Dom Smales, founder of Gleam Futures, to discuss why the creator economy is on the verge of collapse and what creators must do to avoid losing their audiences. With a wealth of experience managing some of the biggest names in the industry, including Zoella, Dom shares his insights on the shifting dynamics of the creator landscape. We explore why creators are at risk of losing their influence if they don’t adapt, and how they can successfully transition from influencers to entrepreneurs. Dom also reveals the key traits and strategies that helped his most successful talents, like Zoella, rise to the top and sustain their success over time. Whether you’re a creator or entrepreneur, this episode is packed with actionable advice on how to navigate the challenges of the evolving creator economy and secure long-term success. ____________ Sign up to Wise Business banking: https://wise.com/gb/business/?utm_sou... Thanks to HP our sponsor for this episode. For 10% off the HP Omnibook UltraFlip with built-in AI, use code 'HPLOVEWORK'. Valid until 31st January 2025, UK only. T&Cs apply. https://bit.ly/HPOmnibook-SLQ424 Join Vanta and recieve $1000 off: http://vanta.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our guest in episode 9 is the bestselling author Daniel Priestley. Hailing from Australia Daniel was already a success before he moved to Europe. He used writing as a way to get his thought process down while running his own business and along the way his books is what he is most well known for. His catalogue includes the titles “24 Assets”, “Oversubscribed” and “Key Person of Influence”. Along the way Daniel has built huge businesses, advised celebrated entrepreneurs, broken world records, raised millions in venture capital and fundraised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charity. -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/ You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jess Dante, the Founder of Love and London, shares her company's cautionary tale of attempting to launch a new product based on customer demand. Despite months of hard work and a compelling marketing push, the much-anticipated launch fell flat, leaving them with a mere single booking in the first 24 hours. What went wrong? … Sponsor Check out Personio - the all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clarkson's Farm taught us that being a farmer is tough, and from this podcast we've learnt how tough it is to become a successful Founder. James Chase's family has done both. His father was up against it as a farmer so started Tyrrells crisps before launching Chase spirits followed by Willy's apple cider vinegar (all consumed by Dan). Now James is building his own thing, a skincare for men brand called BAZ & CO. How do you build multiple well known B2C brands? -- Sponsors Vorboss - get better internet: https://vorboss.com/secretleaders Personio - all in one HR platform: https://personio.com/secretleaders Vanta - get 20% off security certifications like ISO27001 and SOC2: https://vanta.com/secretleaders Vertice - save on your SaaS or cloud spend ($5k off or a free benchmark) using the code secretleaders: https://www.vertice.one/l/secretleaders -- Newsletter Sign up here: https://secretleaders.email/. You can find our historic newsletters here: https://www.secretleaders.com/episodes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices