Kevin Crawford grew up inside his dad’s architecture practice in Montrose, starting on the photocopier at 14 and eventually leading the firm through a major transition to 100% employee ownership. Today he runs Designing Success, helping architecture practice owners reclaim time, build stronger teams and design businesses that support their lives, not the other way round.

Episode Summary

What happens when your family name is above the door, the business runs on your shoulders, and your body finally says “enough”? In this conversation, Kevin Crawford shares the inside story of growing up in a family architecture firm, feeling trapped by legacy and responsibility, and the back injury that forced him to stop working 24/7 and redesign everything.

Kevin unpacks how Crawford Architecture went from a traditional family-owned practice to a 100% employee-owned firm, why that decision protected both his dad’s legacy and his team’s future, and what it really takes to let go of control without walking away. He talks candidly about resentment, cashflow panic, missed family moments and the loneliness of being “the one” holding it all together – and the systems, mentors and mindset shifts that finally gave him freedom.

If you’re a founder, family business owner or practice leader who’s ever wondered how to share ownership, protect your health and still move forward boldly, this episode is for you.

What You’ll Learn

• How starting in a business at 14 shaped Kevin’s approach to leadership and legacy.
• Why “just work harder” stopped working – and the back injury that changed everything.
• The real emotional pressure of having your family name above the door.
• How to think about succession planning years before retirement, not at the last minute.
• What an Employee Ownership Trust actually is – and why Crawford chose 100% employee ownership.
• The shift from reactive firefighting to data-driven resourcing, revenue targets and one- and three-year plans.
• How founders can move from “doing everything” to building a team around their unique strengths.
• The role of mentors, retreats and communities in breaking the isolation of practice leadership.
• Why investing in your own health, wealth and self-development is a commercial decision, not a luxury.
• How AI, systems and the Pilotes app are helping practices win back 7–10 hours a week.

Memorable Lines

• “I thought the answer was to go in at 4am and leave at midnight. My back proved me wrong.”
• “For years I woke up thinking, ‘I don’t have time.’ Now my job is to design time.”
• “Succession isn’t ‘one day when I retire’ – it’s a strategy for everybody’s future, including your family’s.”
• “Owning 100% of the shares but 0% of your time is not freedom.”
• “You can’t market well if you don’t even know which projects are actually good for you.”

Guest Picks

• Books
• Traction – Gino Wickman
• Always Free: How to become financially free to live an inspired life – Jason Graystone
• Music
• “Caledonia” – the lyric “my way is clear and I know what I’ll do tomorrow” as a reminder to keep going with conviction.
• Tool / Framework
• Tiers of Freedom programme – Jason Graystone’s framework for financial, time and mental...

Most of us were taught more about test tubes than intimacy. In this conversation, Tatiana Ashborn shares how growing up scared of sex – and deeply under-served by traditional sex education – led her to start a sex and relationships podcast at just 17. What began as a lockdown project in her bedroom has grown into Dirty Talk, a show and social movement that now reaches millions, tackling everything from first-time stories and porn to shame, consent and long-term love.

Tatiana talks candidly about failing at school until she found the BRIT School, the power of creative education, and how her family backed her when she chose the most taboo topic of all. She lifts the lid on building a podcast as a business; sponsorships, algorithms, burnout and why she became a certified sex educator to deepen her impact. At its heart, this is an episode about leadership: doing the work before you feel like an expert, sharing the messy middle in public, and turning curiosity into a bold, culture-shifting career.

What You’ll Learn

• Why so many people leave school scared of sex, not prepared for it – and what’s missing from traditional sex education.
• How Tatiana went from struggling in an academic school to thriving at the BRIT School by learning in a way that suited her creatively.
• The real story behind starting Dirty Talk at 17 – including imposter syndrome, “learning in public” and being the opposite of an expert at first.
• Tactics she used to launch: pilot episodes with family, low-budget setups, and using lockdown as a creative sandbox.
• How Dirty Talk grew into a TikTok and podcast phenomenon, and what actually makes content shareable in a crowded space.
• The emotional weight of being “the sex person” publicly – and how she navigates boundaries, judgement and staying grounded.
• Why she chose to become a certified sex educator and how that changed the way she shows up for her audience.
• What younger audiences are actually asking about sex, relationships, porn and identity – beyond the headlines.
• How to turn a taboo topic into a platform for leadership, advocacy and real-world change.

Guest Picks

• Book: How to Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie
• Music: “Someone Like You” – Adele
• Quote:
• “Screw it, let’s do it.” – Richard Branson
• “You’re only given one little spark of madness and you mustn’t lose it.” – Robin Williams
• Tool / Framework:
• A ruthlessly used calendar and handwritten lists – planning everything out on paper so the creative chaos has structure.

Connect with Tatiana & Dirty Talk

• Tatiana’s site: https://www.tatianaashborn.co.uk/
• Dirty Talk website & episodes: https://dirtytalkofficial.com/
• Dirty Talk Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tatianaashborn_/
• Dirty Talk TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tatianaashborn_?_r=1&_t=ZN-91hPemnRNSw
• Under The Sheets with Tatiana Ashborn and Friends (podcast): Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and major platforms.

About Leading BOLDLY

The Leading BOLDLY Podcast is where SME leaders, founders, and entrepreneurs

sharpen their edge—and tell the

What if your phone served your life — not the other way around? Techless founder Chris Kaspar joins Matt and Jenny to unpack the thinking behind WisePhone 2 (a healthy, tool-only smartphone OS) and Sage, a UK kids’ iPhone with deep, multi-layered protections “safe out of the box”. We trace Chris’s journey from brand and filmmaking into mission-driven hardware/software, why he believes phones are “broken at the philosophy level”, and how dignity (not “kiddie” design) is the secret to teen adoption. We also get candid on fundraising, pricing pivots, and launching Sage in London — including an intimate, press-packed event at the Tate Modern. Expect practical strategies for parents, principles for leaders building humane tech, and a refreshingly honest look at the grind behind a purpose-led scale-up.

What You’ll Learn

· Why the philosophy behind mainstream smartphones (not the chips) drives unhealthy behaviour — and how to counter it.

· The shift from minimal (8 built-in apps) to healthy (approved third-party tools, no social/games/explicit).

· How Sage keeps teens’ dignity (iPhone UX, rebellious brand) so they’ll actually use it.

· Why parental controls alone fail — and what “final-layer” protection looks like.

· How to handle FOMO: creating small “opt-out” friend circles to tip culture.

· Inside a lean, relationship-first UK launch at Tate Modern (and why the UK is ready).

· Building with brand and ethos over patents — and why that’s the real moat.

Practical Plays You Can Use Tomorrow

· Audit the defaults: Turn off non-essential notifications; delete one addictive app; set greyscale at night. (Defaults aren’t designed for you.)

· Create a family phone plan: Choose tool-only apps (maps, banking, transport), no social/games; trial it for 30 days.

· Beat FOMO in a group: Agree a four-friend no-socials pact for a month; meet IRL weekly.

· If you’re shipping product: Launch humbly; optimise pricing with real-market feedback; iterate in public.

Memorable Lines

· “The defaults aren’t for you — they’re for advertisers and investors.” 【

· “Phones aren’t broken at the hardware level — they’re broken at the philosophy level.”

· “Kids don’t want kids’ phones. Dignity is the secret.”

· “Take initiative. Do ten things, fix the three that miss.”

Guest Picks

· Book: Positioning by Al Ries & Jack Trout and Warfighting by A.M. Gray

· Music/App: Suno (prompt-based music creation)

· Tool/Framework: EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) for lightweight, company-wide...