Steve Hampson is a successful business owner, investor and charity founder who has built an impressive career in business before turning his energy towards creating lasting social impact. As the founder of Star Trust, Steve is passionate about helping smaller charities access the support, visibility and funding they need to make a bigger difference. He brings a rare mix of commercial discipline, grounded perspective and genuine compassion to both business and giving.

Episode Summary

What does it really take to set up a charity that makes a meaningful difference?

In this episode, Steve Hampson shares his journey from successful business owner to charity founder, revealing the lessons he learned along the way about leadership, resilience, responsibility and impact. Steve talks openly about his upbringing, the values that shaped him, and why building a charity requires more than good intentions — it needs clarity, structure, strong people and a real understanding of where help is needed most.

Jenny and Matt explore how Star Trust was created, why supporting smaller charities matters, and what business owners can learn from stepping into the charity world. Steve also shares practical lessons from business that apply just as strongly to purpose-led work: know your numbers, understand people, build the right team and keep going when things get tough.

A thoughtful, honest conversation about success, service and building something that lasts.

What You’ll Learn

What inspired Steve Hampson to move from business success into charity founding

What setting up a charity really involves beyond passion and purpose

Why smaller charities often need more practical support than larger household names

How business skills can strengthen charitable impact

Why knowing your numbers matters in both business and the third sector

How resilience shapes better leaders and founders

What Steve learned from his own upbringing and early life experiences

Why strong relationships and networks matter when building anything meaningful

How to think more clearly about legacy, contribution and impact

Why great leadership starts with people

Guest Picks

Book: Prey by Michael Crichton

Quote / Saying: “Live life for today”

Tool / Framework: Strong financial understanding — especially P&L, balance sheets and trends

Connect Links

Star Trust website:

Donate / get involved: enquiries@star-trust.org.uk

LinkedIn: Steve Hampson

About Leading BOLDLY

Leading BOLDLY is the podcast for founders, SME leaders and ambitious people who want to build meaningful businesses and lives. Hosted by Jenny Jarvis and Matt Clutterham, the show brings together honest conversations, practical insight and bold ideas you can put into action.

Enjoyed this episode? Share it with someone building a business, launching a cause, or thinking about how to create more meaningful impact — and explore the links in the show notes to learn more about Steve and Star Trust.

The phrase “how to set up a charity” is strong for SEO, but the episode itself sounds more like a leadership and founder story than a step-by-step guide. So I’d just make sure the podcast artwork, description and social posts frame it as Steve’s journey and lessons, rather than a legal how-to.

What does it really take to go from nothing to building a $45M business?

David Asarnow shares the mindset system, confidence conditioning, and practical growth habits that helped him scale businesses to eight figures — plus why most people are using AI at a fraction of what it can do.

In this episode, we break down how confidence is built (not born), the nightly mental routine David uses to programme focus, and how to use AI as leverage without losing the human edge that makes businesses grow.

Topics covered:

• From $0 to $45M: building a growth engine

• Confidence conditioning and identity rewiring

• Sales certainty: how to remove doubt

• Speaking and presence: how to command a room

• AI leverage: how leaders actually use it

• Why trust and relationships still win

Resources & Links:

📚 Books mentioned

• Built to Last — Jim Collins & Jerry Porras

• 10x Is Easier Than 2x — Dan Sullivan & Dr Benjamin Hardy

🤖 AI tools/models mentioned

• ChatGPT

• Google Gemini

• Grok

• Manus AI

🎵 Music mentioned

• Bon Jovi

• NuCalm

🧠 Tool mentioned

Before bed say “God/Universe, connect me with the people that I need to meet that I can serve and that need to be served by me and those that can serve me as well.

Connect us, make it so, and let me know, show me a sign that I actually need to meet them and they need to meet me.”

David Asarnow Website

Connect with Jenny and Matt

Jenny Linkedin

Matt Linkedin

#mindset #businessgrowth #ai #entrepreneurship #sales #confidence

Depression doesn’t need another miracle claim. It needs better options people can actually access — with evidence, care, and honesty.

Erin Lee, CEO of Flow Neuroscience, shares how her team is building an at-home depression treatment platform using a wearable headset and app, and why it’s not a “magic wand” — it’s a structured approach grounded in science, regulation, and trust. Erin draws on her experience at Google, Uber, and Babylon Health to explain what high-growth tech gets right (user experience, speed, focus) and what it often gets wrong when you bring it into healthcare.

This conversation goes beyond the product. Erin talks about grit, the reality of building in a heavily regulated space, and how leaders stay steady when the mission matters and the pressure is real. If you care about the future of mental health — as a leader, founder, investor, or human — this is a powerful listen.

You’ll come away with:

• A plain-English explanation of what Flow’s headset is (and what it isn’t)

• Why trust matters more than traction in healthcare

• The leadership habits Erin leans on when the stakes are high

• What “disruption” looks like when people’s wellbeing is on the line

• Practical ways to reduce friction and increase confidence in your own offer

A few lines you’ll want to steal:

• “Healthcare is really sick care.”

• “My goal is to be the dumbest person in any room — by far.”

• “Don’t worry so much about money. It’s just units.”

Erin’s picks:

Grit (Angela Duckworth),

John Adams (David McCullough),

Fleetwood Mac The Dance (plus Enya for focus),

Find out more about Flow Neuroscience

Connect with Erin.- Linkedin

Connect with Jenny - Linkedin

Connect with Matt - Linkedin

Q Branch Consulting Website

Jordan Cracknell is a New York–born finance leader who worked on trading floors before moving to the UK for her MBA at Cambridge. Now a UK CEO in financial management, she’s passionate about helping more women see finance as a real, reachable option — and starting that confidence early through her children’s book You Can Count on Penny. She’s also a debut recording artist (yes, really), a step mum to three, and has had a front-row seat to UK politics through her husband, Olympic gold medallist James Cracknell.

Episode summary

Imagine calling 100 people to ask for an opportunity — and hearing “no” 99 times. Jordan Cracknell did exactly that to break further into finance, and what she learned goes way beyond job hunting: confidence is built by doing the uncomfortable thing, repeatedly. In this conversation, Jordan unpacks what it’s like to lead as a woman in a male-dominated industry, why “I’m just not a maths person” can quietly limit our choices for decades, and how families and schools can change the story for the next generation.

You’ll hear how Jordan’s early exposure to finance (including “take your daughters to work day” at the World Trade Center) shaped her, why she believes budgeting should be a basic life skill, and how her book You Can Count on Penny makes maths feel friendly and possible for kids. Plus: her unexpected leap into music, what she learned from UK election canvassing, and the phrases that keep her grounded when life gets tough.

What You’ll Learn

• How to build career momentum when you’re getting constant “no’s”

• Why money confidence is often a confidence issue, not an ability issue

• The hidden cost of believing “I’m terrible at maths”

• How early exposure makes intimidating careers feel within reach

• What women can do to explore finance careers without needing an “in”

• Why budgeting is a life skill — and how to start teaching it young

• What finance is actually like (and what Hollywood gets wrong)

• How to stay civil (even with a strong New York streak) while leading in the UK

• A simple, free first step to take control of your finances this week

Guest Picks

• Book: Liar’s Poker

• Music: Classical music (influenced by ballet training and counting rhythms)

• Tool/Framework: Excel (the backbone of finance — and a skill worth building)

• Quotes/Phrases: “This too shall pass.” / “In for a penny, in for a pound.”

Connect links

• Jordan’s book: You Can Count on Penny

• Jordan’s debut single + music video: “Gordon Gekko”

• Next release: “Park Avenue Princess” (releasing 20 February)

• Website: Jordan Cracknell

• Organisation mentioned: Women in Banking and Finance

About Leading BOLDLY

Connect with Matt: Linkedin

Connect with Jenny: Linkedin

Leading BOLDLY is the podcast for leaders, founders, and ambitious humans building real lives and real businesses — with honest conversations about confidence, capability, and doing what matters (even when it’s uncomfortable).

If this episode sparked something, share it with one woman (or teen) who needs a money-confidence boost — and grab You Can Count on Penny to...

Carolyn Hobdey is a multi-published author and leadership/culture change specialist known for naming the conversations workplaces avoid. She’s the voice behind The Midlife Mistress and author of All The Twats I Met Along The Way, De-Twat Your Life! and Redefining Selfish.

Episode Summary

Male allyship is usually framed as men supporting women. Carolyn flips the lens: what happens when men feel they can’t speak honestly at work, online, even at home, without being judged, mocked, or written off? Drawing on 25+ years in leadership, HR and transformation, she explores the growing mental load many men carry: the pressure to “say the right thing”, the fear of backlash, and the confusion of mixed messages around vulnerability and strength. Together, Jenny, Matt and Carolyn unpack why labels like “pick-me” can shut down important conversations, and how women can advocate for men without excusing harmful behaviour. The heart of this episode is simple (and powerful): curiosity, listening, and creating environments where humans can be nuanced—because culture only moves forward when everyone has a voice.

What You’ll Learn

• Why some men feel “there’s no safe way” to speak up, especially at work

• How the “pick-me” label can silence advocates (and what to do instead)

• The hidden cost of mixed messaging: “be vulnerable… but not like that”

• How to support men without amplifying harmful behaviour

• Why connection beats correction when culture is tense

• How leadership stereotypes still reward the wrong traits

• What “inclusive” looks like when men are included too

• A practical way to build healthier workplaces: Carolyn’s SIMPLE model

Guest Picks

• Book: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team — Patrick Lencioni

• Music: “Lost Without You” — Freya Ridings

• Quote: “Feminist is my second favourite F word.”

• Tool/Framework: The Chimp Paradox (mind management model)

• Also mentioned: Why Do So Many Incompetent Men Become Leaders? (And How to Fix It) — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic

Connect with Carolyn

• Website: The Midlife Mistress https://www.carolynhobdey.com/about-carolyn-hobdey/

• All The Twats I Met Along The Way (book)

• De-Twat Your Life! (book)

• LinkedIn: Carolyn Hobdey https://www.linkedin.com/in/carolynhobdey/

About Leading BOLDLY

Leading BOLDLY is the podcast for SME leaders, founders, and entrepreneurs who want practical strategies and real conversations that build bold brands and strong teams—hosted by Jenny Jarvis and Matt Clutterham of Q Branch.

https://www.qbranch.consulting/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenny-jarvis/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattclutterham/

We talk about all we have learned about Leadership, the highs of wedding planning and the lows of clients who don't pay.

Events this year:

Clarity that Closes 1 Day Live - London

Clarity that Closes 1 Day Live - East Midlands

Clarity that Closes 1 Day Live - Online

Mission Accelerator Live

Productivity App: Productivity Power Up

Fusion Score: Take the Quiz

Book:

The Bridge Across Forever By Richard Bach

$100M Money Models - Alex Hormozi

Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara

Music:

Defying Gravity - Matt Copley

Say It - Stella Cole

Pure Imagination - Wonka

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...