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I Have Some Questions...
What if leadership wasn’t about having the answers—but about asking better questions?
On "I Have Some Questions…", Erik Berglund – a founder, coach, and Speechcraft evangelist – dives into the conversations that high performers aren’t having enough. This isn’t your typical leadership podcast. It’s a tactical deep-dive into the soft skills that actually drive results: the hard-to-nail moments of accountability, the awkward feedback loops, and the language that turns good leaders into great ones.
Each week, Erik explores a question that has shaped his own journey. Expect raw, unpolished curiosity. Expect conversations with bold thinkers, rising leaders, and practitioners who are tired of recycled advice and ready to talk about what really works. Expect episodes that get under the hood of how real change happens: through what we say, how we say it, and how often we practice it.
This show is for driven managers, emerging execs, and anyone who knows that real growth comes from curiosity rather than charisma.
Subscribe if you’re ready to stop winging it and start leading with intention.
I Have Some Questions...
011: “Can You Scale a Business Without Diluting Your Magic?” ft. Alex Kudelka
🎙️ Episode Snapshot
Erik sits down with startup builder and Outdo Growth founder Alex Kudelka for a deeply honest and tactical conversation on what it really takes to build early-stage ventures. From co-founder dynamics to hiring pitfalls, from founder-led sales to the myths of scaling too early—this episode is a goldmine for founders navigating the messy middle of growth. The conversation balances strategic frameworks with hard-won lessons, all wrapped in Alex’s direct, insightful delivery.
👤 About the Guest
Alex Kudelka is the founder of Outdo Growth, a startup builder and marketing services company powering the growth engines behind multiple digital entrepreneurs. A multi-time founder with exits and failures under his belt, Alex thrives in the zero-to-one stage, bringing an unmatched ability to build, test, pivot, and scale emerging ventures. He’s commercially minded, operationally savvy, and refreshingly transparent about what works (and what doesn’t).
🧭 Conversation Highlights
- Startup Love Language: Alex thrives in the pre-50M, pre-500 employee zone where curiosity, chaos, and creativity collide.
- Iteration with Paranoia: Testing quickly is vital, but over-pivoting kills momentum. The magic is in data and discipline.
- Co-Founders Are Like Spouses: Your partner must be battle-tested, supportive, and complementary. Otherwise, it won’t work.
- Founder-Led Sales Isn’t Optional: Until you've sold it yourself (a lot), you don't have product-market fit.
- Hiring Fails and Frameworks: Outdo hired 50 people in 6 months. Only 18 remained. The lesson? Hire slow, ask better questions, and match energy to the actual role.
💡 Key Takeaways
- Love the Process, Not the Outcome: Founders who fall in love with testing and tinkering—not just the end goal—have more success (and fun).
- Healthy Debate Builds Stronger Startups: Co-founders must disagree well. Set “rules of engagement” for how to spar and commit.
- You Can’t Skip PMF: Selling something 10 times doesn’t mean it’s ready to scale. Rinse and repeat until signals are undeniable.
- Scope Creep Kills Service Businesses: Don’t be everything to everyone. Know your lane and stay ruthlessly focused.
- Responsibility is Revealing: In interviews, ask about the skills they want to build, the experiences they enjoy, and the responsibilities they crave.
❓ Questions That Mattered
- “How do you know when you’ve found true product-market fit?”
- “What do too few founders ask themselves before scaling?”
- “How should co-founders disagree, and how often should they?”
- “What do you listen for in a great interview answer?”
🗣️ Notable Quotes
“Startup building is childlike creativity mixed with healthy paranoia.”
“Most founders either over-pivot or scale too soon. Both can kill a business.”
“Just because someone bought it once doesn’t mean you’ve nailed it.”
🔗 Links & Resources
- Outdo Growth – Alex's company helping digital founders scale
- Alex Kudelka on LinkedIn – Follow for startup wisdom and leadership insight