『The Founder Exhale』のカバーアート

The Founder Exhale

The Founder Exhale

著者： James Oliver Jr.
無料で聴く

概要
 Real conversations with exited founders about what 'success' actually costs, and what it takes to protect your mental health along the way. I also talk with values-aligned investors and mental health leaders who are changing how the startup world treats wellbeing. Welcome to the show shattering the silence around founder mental health.2026 マネジメント・リーダーシップ リーダーシップ 心理学 心理学・心の健康 経済学 衛生・健康的な生活
エピソード
  • Ben Sheppard: From Burnout to Coaching 200 Founders Through Their Hard Seasons

    Ben Sheppard: From Burnout to Coaching 200 Founders Through Their Hard Seasons
    2026/10/30

    Ben Sheppard has built companies, watched them fall apart, and dealt with the mental wreckage that comes with that. In this episode, he gets into what that season of his life looked like and what it taught him, both as someone who lived it and as someone who now sits with other founders in the middle of theirs.

    We talk about the mental toll of rapid turnarounds, the habit of mentally replaying every bad negotiation, and why so many founders end up suffering in silence when they don't have to. Ben doesn't sugarcoat any of it, and that's exactly what makes this conversation worth your time.

    What we get into: Ben's mental health history, from childhood through his years as an entrepreneur. The specific ways startup failure hits differently than other kinds of loss. What it means to coach a founder through a high-stakes turnaround without burning them out in the process. Why public speaking terrified him and how he moved through it. Practical strategies for managing anxiety when you're in the middle of a hard season. And why community matters more than most founders admit.

    Chapters
    00:06 - Introduction
    01:54 - Welcome to the show, Ben
    02:34 - Ben's mental health history and challenges
    03:52 - Growing up with anxiety: Ben's childhood story
    06:05 - First startup: building without a safety net
    08:10 - Second startup: the pressure compounds
    09:34 - Running out of money with a baby on the way
    12:25 - Working two hours after his son was born
    16:48 - Product-market fit failures and the Silta story
    20:32 - The walk that wouldn't stop: rumination and negotiation spirals
    22:15 - [Ad break]
    23:06 - Back from break
    23:20 - Coaching 200+ founders: what he's learned
    26:39 - Turnarounds: what it actually takes
    31:06 - Last question: advice for founders fixating on a problem alone
    36:08 - The dad joke segment
    36:20 - Connecting with Ben and closing thoughts

    Connect with Ben

    LinkedIn

    Substack

    Yuna Health licenses for founders: yuna.io/founderexhale
    James' book, Burn Bright, Not Out: https://a.co/d/a5PHUjD
    Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund: kabilamentalhealth.com
    The Founder Exhale website: thefounderexhale.com

    Support the work:

    The Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund has awarded nearly 90 mental therapy grants to founders who need support but can't afford it. If this episode moved you, please consider making a donation at kabilamentalhealth.com. Every dollar helps a founder get the support they deserve.

    Subscribe, follow, and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform, and visit thefounderexhale.com to leave a voicemail or send a note via the contact form. I want to hear what you thought.

    Be well, y'all. 🤠
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    38 分
  • Dr. Michael Freeman: What the Research Actually Says About Founder Mental Health

    Dr. Michael Freeman: What the Research Actually Says About Founder Mental Health
    2026/10/12
    Dr. Michael Freeman has spent decades studying entrepreneur mental health, and what he found is fascinating. Dr. Freeman is a psychiatrist, a fourth generation serial entrepreneur, and a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UC San Francisco School of Medicine. He is also the founder of Econa, the global center of excellence for entrepreneur mental wellness. His research, conducted with colleagues from UC Berkeley and the Gallup Organization and supported by the Kauffman Foundation, has produced some of the most important data we have on what building a company actually does to the people who do it. In this episode: Dr. Freeman unpacks what he meant when he titled his landmark study "Are Entrepreneurs Touched With Fire?" and why the traits that make founders great- the creativity, the energy, the vision, the risk tolerance- often show up alongside ADHD, bipolar spectrum traits, workaholism, and other vulnerabilities. He talks about why these are not simply weaknesses but a mix of strengths and vulnerabilities that need to be managed, not denied. He talks about the family dimension of founder mental health, including research showing that spouses of entrepreneurs experience increased mental health strain during startup periods, and why that matters for how we think about support. And he introduces the Entrepreneur Wellbeing Check, a free seven-question screening tool designed to help founders identify burnout and other risks early, before they become career-limiting problems. I also share my own ADHD and how it shows up in my work, and announce plans to expand the Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund's support to include founders and their spouses through therapy grants, founder spouse sessions, and book donations. A line worth remembering: "Self-awareness is the on-ramp to resilience and wellbeing and mental health." What you can do today: Take the free Entrepreneur Wellbeing Check at econa.net. It takes about five minutes and could be one of the most important things you do for yourself this week. Timestamps: 00:00 Introduction and welcome to The Founder Exhale 04:24 Dr. Freeman's background and the mission behind Econa 06:17 What "Are Entrepreneurs Touched With Fire?" actually means 08:01 ADHD, bipolar spectrum traits, and workaholism among entrepreneurs 09:15 James on ADHD as a strength with real tradeoffs 11:10 The difference between OCD and OCPD in founder behavior 13:19 What the entrepreneur mental health data actually showed 14:08 How entrepreneurship affects the whole family 15:17 Why entrepreneurs often carry the family's positive traits 16:11 Supporting founders' spouses and family members 18:55 Research showing spouses of entrepreneurs experience increased mental health strain 20:35 How to talk about founder mental health without creating shame 22:51 Risk management, impulsivity, and ADHD vulnerability 23:57 James on learning to pause before acting 25:29 Introducing the Entrepreneur Wellbeing Check 26:39 The screening and early intervention gap 28:33 The Entrepreneur Wellbeing Check is free 29:21 Burnout screening and routing founders to the right support 31:39 Using AI and other tools as mental health support between sessions 32:38 What to do if you recognize yourself in the research 33:38 Why founders delay or avoid getting help 35:34 Mental health support as part of a founder's personal board of directors 39:02 Who actually uses mental health support and why 41:46 Prevention-oriented care vs crisis care 42:34 The Founder Exhale Walks and broader wellness programming 43:34 The dad joke segment, featuring two jokes this episode 46:19 How to connect with Dr. Freeman Resources and links: Econa: econa.net Entrepreneur Wellbeing Check: econa.net/take-our-free-test Dr. Michael Freeman on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/michaelfreemanmd Yuna Health licenses for founders: yuna.io/founderexhale James' book, Burn Bright, Not Out: https://a.co/d/a5PHUjD Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund: kabilamentalhealth.com The Founder Exhale website: thefounderexhale.com Support the work: The Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund has awarded nearly 90 mental therapy grants to founders who need support but can't afford it. If this episode moved you, please consider making a donation at kabilamentalhealth.com. Every dollar helps a founder get the support they deserve. Subscribe, follow, and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform, and visit thefounderexhale.com to leave a voicemail or send a note via the contact form. I want to hear what you thought. Be well, y'all. 🤠
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    42 分
  • Andy Walsh: Startup Hustle Culture Is Trash and He Has the Receipts

    Andy Walsh: Startup Hustle Culture Is Trash and He Has the Receipts
    2026/09/19

    Andy Walsh moved from Australia to New York City with a four month old baby, no financial safety net, and a bootstrapped business. He built it for seven years, exited twice, and then crashed.

    This is what he learned on the other side.

    In this episode:

    Andy takes us through the decision to pack up his life and bet on himself in a new country with a newborn, and what that pressure quietly did to his mental health over time. He talks about what depression and anxiety actually looked like while he was building, not a dramatic breakdown, but a slow erosion of effectiveness, intensity in the wrong places, and a version of himself he barely recognized in hindsight.

    He talks about crashing after his exit when the supposed win arrived and the grind stopped and there was nothing left to run toward. He talks about the routines he built to get back: meditation, exercise, mountain biking, therapy, and medication, and why he says he will never be fully 100% and has made peace with that. And he makes a case against hustle culture that I wish more people would make.

    He also agreed on the spot to become a Wellbassador and launch a Founder Exhale Walk in Crown Heights, Brooklyn; that moment made my day.

    A line worth remembering for founders:

    "If you stop and go for a walk for 15 minutes, change the scenery, get some sunlight, you will be so much more effective, more creative, more innovative. You're not losing time. You're gaining time."

    Timestamps:

    00:00 Introduction and welcome to The Founder Exhale
    03:03 Why Andy moved from Australia to New York with a newborn
    04:45 How startup stress affects partners and families
    06:36 The case for supportive spouses and honest communication
    10:06 The challenge of building solo without a co-founder sparring partner
    13:35 Founder Exhale Walks and Andy joining as a Wellbassador in Crown Heights
    14:01 What depression and anxiety actually looked like while building
    16:23 Why speaking openly about struggle matters
    18:12 Mental health tools, therapy, and between session support
    21:50 Why Andy crashed after his exit
    24:27 Meditation, breathing, and how to handle intrusive thoughts
    26:20 The rebuild: sleep, exercise, recovery, and time off
    29:17 Why Andy says he will never be fully back to 100% and why that's okay
    34:52 Advice for founders sitting alone in a new and terrifying chapter
    37:01 A guest referral: Xaver Lehmann and a harrowing post-exit story
    38:23 The dad joke and the wrap up

    Resources and links:

    Startups Decoded: startupsdecoded.com
    Andy Walsh on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/andywalsh
    Andy Walsh on Substack: https://substack.com/@andywalsh2
    Yuna Health licenses for founders: yuna.io/founderexhale
    James' book, Burn Bright, Not Out: https://a.co/d/a5PHUjD
    Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund: kabilamentalhealth.com
    The Founder Exhale website: thefounderexhale.com

    Support the work:

    The Kabila Founder Mental Health Fund has awarded nearly 90 mental therapy grants to founders who need support but can't afford it. If this episode moved you, please consider making a donation at kabilamentalhealth.com. Every dollar helps a founder get the support they deserve.

    Subscribe, follow, and rate the show on your favorite podcast platform, and visit thefounderexhale.com to leave a voicemail or send a note via the contact form. I want to hear what you thought.

    Be well, y'all. 🤠
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    43 分
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