Founders Matter

Where control really lies for small organisations

Welcome to the Founders Matter Podcast. The podcast where we talk openly about what it really means to build a business on your own terms. In this episode, Jase Smith and Pablo Muñoz explore how founders approach growth, risk and business modelling, and why so many startups are still shaped using frameworks designed for large corporations rather than early-stage ventures. Drawing on research into founder wellbeing and entrepreneurial thinking, the conversation examines the limits of traditional risk management when applied to startup environments. While established organisations often operate in relatively knowable conditions, founders are creating businesses in spaces shaped by uncertainty, reaction and constant change. As a result, planning tools based on prediction, control and fixed outcomes can often feel misaligned with the lived reality of building a business from scratch. The episode explores the difference between causal and effectual thinking, showing how founders can make decisions based not on perfect forecasts, but on the means already available to them, including their experience, knowledge, relationships and resources. Jase and Pablo also reflect on how using models that do not fit the realities of entrepreneurship can affect confidence, self-worth and the connection founders feel to the businesses they are trying to build. Rather than encouraging founders to follow someone else’s formula for success, the discussion highlights the importance of shaping a business in a way that reflects who they are, what they value, and what is realistically within their control. In doing so, the episode challenges the assumption that every startup should be run as a small version of a corporation and instead offers a more grounded way of thinking about growth, risk and sustainability. Access the episode resources here [https://t9005154309.p.clickup-attachments.com/t9005154309/234f4b07-ff4e-44be-89b3-cea06cae24e3/FM%2520Podcast%2520PDF%2520s1%2520e6.pdf?view=open] Connect with the hosts on LinkedIn: Jase Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/] Pablo Munez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/] Kat Sykes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/]

The freedom and curse of self-management

Welcome to the Founders Matter Podcast. The podcast where we talk openly about what it really means to build a business on your own terms. In this episode, Jase Smith speaks with Kat Sykes about KPIs, targets and goals, and why so many founders end up measuring their businesses in ways that do not reflect what really matters to them. Drawing on her experience in the corporate world, including project work in the NHS, Kat explains how traditional KPIs often measure the wrong things. In many organisations, there is a disconnect between the targets handed down from above and the actions that actually create meaningful change. When founders leave employment and start their own businesses, they often carry those same inherited ideas about performance with them, even though they now have the freedom to define success differently. The conversation explores what happens when founders rely on goals that are shaped by investor expectations, external advice or societal conditioning rather than their own values. When business owners try to make themselves or their businesses fit someone else’s model of success, it can create frustration, misalignment and a loss of purpose. Instead, Jase and Kat discuss how founders can start with their values and their “why”, then work outward to create goals and KPIs that genuinely support the business and life they want to build. By focusing on the parts of the process they can actually influence, rather than outcomes that sit outside their control, founders can create measures of success that feel more meaningful, motivating and sustainable. Access the episode resources here: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:eu:7dd6294f-c6a1-4b7b-8889-db6c7f7ac45c [https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:eu:7dd6294f-c6a1-4b7b-8889-db6c7f7ac45c] Connect with the hosts on LinkedIn: Jase Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/] Pablo Munez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/] Kat Sykes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/]

Modelling your business for you, not others

Welcome to the Founders Matter Podcast. The podcast where we talk openly about what it really means to build a business on your own terms. In this episode, Jase Smith speaks with Kat Sykes about how founders measure success and why many end up using KPIs that reflect external expectations rather than what actually matters to them. Drawing on her experience working across education, construction, the NHS and digital transformation, Kat explores how systems such as schools and traditional workplaces condition people to work within predefined metrics and performance measures. When founders start their own businesses, they often carry these inherited ideas of success with them, even though entrepreneurship offers the freedom to define success differently. The conversation examines the consequences of relying on indicators designed for investors, institutions or external validation. When founders measure their performance against metrics that do not align with their own values, it can create a disconnect between the business they are building and the life they hoped it would support. Instead, Jase and Kat explore how founders can begin by identifying what truly matters to them such as freedom, variety, impact or personal growth and then work outward to design businesses and KPIs that support those goals. By focusing on behaviours, actions and outcomes within their control, founders can create measures of success that reflect both the business they want to build and the life they want to lead. Access the episode resources here: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:7383a4e1-af82-472a-8489-0918c88e99dd [https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:7383a4e1-af82-472a-8489-0918c88e99dd] Connect with the hosts on LinkedIn: Jase Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/] Pablo Munez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/] Kat Sykes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/]

Making the most of the resources available to you

Welcome to the Founders Matter Podcast. The podcast where we talk openly about what it really means to build a business on your own terms. In this third episode, Pablo Munoz is joined by Jase Smith to explore how founders can create more value by using the resources they already have. Drawing on the research behind the Mind Your Business programme, the conversation takes a holistic view of entrepreneurship. The founder and the business are deeply connected. When one is under pressure, the other feels it. Pablo and Jase discuss how many founders focus on financial capital while overlooking internal and relational resources such as values, strengths, networks, discipline, and emotional support. The episode looks at why overwhelm often comes from trying to add more. More courses, more tools, more expectations. Instead, founders are encouraged to pause and take stock of what is already in their toolkit. What are you naturally good at? Where are the gaps? Should you build the skill or bring someone else in? Jase reflects on his transition from a 35 year military career into business ownership, including the emotional highs and lows and the loneliness that can come with autonomy. The conversation also explores how personal values translate into business value, why constraints can become creative turning points, and how to recognise the early signs that it is time to delegate or seek support. Rather than chasing constant growth, this episode invites founders to build sustainably by protecting their own wellbeing and leveraging the networks and strengths already around them. Access Episode Three resources: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:b1f2e2f2-0a7d-4b50-a1a8-4e767cf6f299 [https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:EU:b1f2e2f2-0a7d-4b50-a1a8-4e767cf6f299] Connect with the hosts on LinkedIn: Jase Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/] Pablo Munoz: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/] Kat Sykes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/]

Why, I

Welcome to the Founders Matter Podcast. The podcast where we talk openly about what it really means to build a business on your own terms. In this second episode, Kat Sykes is joined by co-host Jase Smith to explore self awareness and why it matters for founders who want focus and a business that supports the life they are trying to build. Drawing on the research behind the Mind Your Business programme, the conversation starts from a holistic view of entrepreneurship. The founder and the business are not separate entities. Kat and Jase discuss how overwhelm can reduce a founder’s sense of purpose, autonomy, and achievement, and how that loss can show up as decision fog and a feeling of drifting away from what the business was originally for. The episode looks at common wellbeing pressures that appear consistently in workplace research, including rising demands and stress, the impact of culture and management behaviours, and the challenge of finding a workable work life mix. Kat and Jase explore how these pressures can be intensified for founders, who often carry every responsibility in the business, rebuild cultures they hoped to leave behind, and struggle to switch off without clear boundaries. Instead of offering quick fixes, this episode encourages founders to slow down, reflect on what matters most to them, and define success on their own terms, because protecting your self worth is part of building a sustainable business. Access Episode Two resources here [https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:eu:01a76ec3-12cd-41ad-93e2-4b86d62d6706] Connect with the hosts on LinkedIn: Jase Smith: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jase-smith-zero78training/] Pablo Munoz: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablomunozroman/] Kat Sykes: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-sykes-business-not-as-usual/]