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OnlyFounders
Honestly real conversations with founders who are building businesses, communities, and movements while breaking patterns, and leading with radical truth. No varnish. No script. Just showing up as humanly possible with your host, Anne Gillaspie.
Anne is the CEO & founder of Fix & Form | A Denver Branding Firm, co-founder of 10toLaunch, building launch ready brands in just ten days, and Anne Speaks where she activates global audiences with bold keynote speaking. She is raising three incredible kids with her partner in crime in Denver, Colorado.
Episodes
72 episodes
The Real Reason Most Founders Never Plan Their Exit with John Taylor | Ep05
What happens when the guy who built a podcast marketing agency also builds the AI tool designed to make that agency obsolete? John Taylor isn't afraid of the answer. He's already got a number in mind, and the day someone hits it, he's gone....
How Saying Yes Built a Business | Elissa Zylbershlag | Ep04
She built a mentoring program before she knew it was her business.What happens when the thing people keep pulling you aside to do quietly becomes the thing you can't stop building?Elissa Zylbershlag, M.Ed., is the ...
The Founder Mindset Nobody Talks About | Paige Arnof-Fenn | Ep03
"I don't believe in failure. You either learn something, or you're successful. There's no third option."That's the mindset that took Paige Arnof-Fenn from Wall Street burnout to Coca-Cola boardrooms to founding her own brand...
“I Taught Empathy for Years Before I Used It on Myself” | Rob Volpe | Ep02
What happens when the "soft skill" everyone tells you to hide turns out to be the thing that built your business?Rob Volpe spent nearly two decades running Ignite 360, a consumer insights and strategy firm he bootstrapped, self-f...
My Founder Story: Anne Gillaspie on Dying (and Being Reborn) as a Founder | Ep01
What if the version of you that built your first business had to die for the next one to exist? Anne Gillaspie doesn't think that's a metaphor; she thinks it's happened to her three times. In this first-ever solo episode...
067: Why Not Me? Orly Zeewy on Female Entrepreneurship, the Bubble Wrap Story, and Redefining Failure
In this episode, Anne and Matt sit down with Orly Zeewy, brand strategist and author of the upcoming book Why NOT Me? The Female Guide for Entrepreneurship, to unpack the unique challenges women face when building a business. Orly shar...
066: Is AI Killing SaaS? The Builder Bug and Why Execution Beats Planning
In this episode, Matt and Anne dive deep into the rapidly shifting landscape of software development and how AI is empowering non-technical founders to build their own bespoke solutions. They discuss the current headwinds facing the SaaS market...
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065: The Real Silver Tsunami, AI Mentorship, and the Future Workforce
In this episode, Matt and Anne debate the looming impact of the "silver tsunami" and what it actually means for the future of business and the workforce. While Anne argues that older generations provide irreplaceable human mentorship, culture, ...
064: Battle Wounds and Boardrooms: Mojo's Evolution from Solo Hustler to Production Agency CEO
In this inspiring episode, Anne and Matt are joined live from Los Angeles by Mojo, the founder and executive producer of Rainbow Creative. Mojo opens up about his incredible founder's journey, tracing his roots from customer service at Apple an...
063: The Power of Experience, Adapting to AI, and Building Your Next Chapter with Adrienne Arieff
In this episode, Anne and Matt sit down with PR veteran and brand strategist Adrienne Arieff to discuss her journey from running a successful firm for a decade to launching a brand-new, mission-driven venture. Adrienne gets real about the harsh...
062: The 2-Month Go-to-Market Cycle, AI Coding Tools, and Why "Live" is the New SEO
In this episode, Matt and Anne dive into how AI is drastically accelerating the founder's journey, cutting the traditional six-month software go-to-market cycle down to just two months. Matt shares his insights on using AI tools to build a full...
061: Vanity Metrics vs. Reality: The Ethics of Buying Followers and Beating the Algorithm
In this episode, Matt and Anne tackle the murky world of social media vanity metrics, debating whether a high follower count is a valuable business asset or just a digital mirage. Anne shares her temptation to artificially inflate her audience ...
060: The Work-Life Boundary: Why Your Business Shouldn't Be Your Family
Matt and Anne kick off this episode debating the merits of the "mental health day" versus the classic grit of powering through an illness. Anne shares her philosophy on working intuitively and trusting your energy to get tasks done faster , whi...
059: The Power of Constraints: Designing Joy, Navigating TV, and Reinventing Retail with Shannon Kaye
In this episode, Anne and Matt sit down with color specialist, artist, and former DIY Network TV host Shannon Kaye to explore her unconventional and highly creative career path. From starting as a decorative painter focused on making others' wo...
058: The "People-First" Playbook: Ben Whitehair on Creative Scaling and Acquisition
In this episode, Matt and Anne welcome guest Ben Whitehair, a unique "actor-preneur" who has mastered the art of building businesses alongside a career in Hollywood. Ben shares the journey of his college-founded startup that saved studen...
057: The Wedding Industry Reality Check: Pricing, Boundaries, and the "Vibe Check" with Carly Rae
Everyone thinks wedding planning is just pretty flowers and cake tasting. In this episode, industry veteran Carly Rae (founder of Carly Rae Weddings & High Noon Floral) joins Anne and Matt to reveal the gritty reality of managing high-stake...
056: The Death of the Specialist: Why Your "Time vs. Money" Mindset is Failing
The duo explores the critical shift from billing for time to billing for impact, with Anne explaining how she now ruthlessly deletes tasks that don't directly serve her top three yearly goals. Matt argues that the job market is evolving into a ...
055: Living in the Gray: Why Political Rigidity Kills Business Growth
Matt and Anne explore the argument that politics is often just a "metagame" that distracts founders from the hard work of building a business. They discuss the dangers of rigidity—suggesting that if you are inflexible in your political beliefs,...
054: Changing Rooms: Pivoting to M&A and The Sales Pipeline Reality Check
Matt and Anne discuss the delicate balance of founder energy and the obligation to "show up" for clients, even when Friday feels like a Sunday. The conversation moves to Anne's strategic pivot with Fix & Form, targeting high-stakes M&A ...
053: Avoiding Product Bloat & The "Gun Range" Approach to Content
In this episode, Matt breaks down the discipline required to manage technical debt, explaining why ChipBot rejects nearly 90% of feature requests to prevent the product from becoming bloated. The conversation shifts to the rapid evolution of AI...
052: The Content Gatekeepers: Deepfakes, Platform Responsibility, and Digital Parenting
In this episode, Anne and Matt discuss the fallout from X’s Grok and the disturbing rise of AI-generated exploitation. They argue that while the tools themselves—like Photoshop before them—are just instruments, the true burden of safety lies wi...
051: The North Star Metric: One Million Websites & The "Work Family" Myth
In this episode, Matt and Anne explore how to kickstart momentum when the team is lagging behind the founder's energy. While Anne emphasizes the importance of social connection and viewing the team as a "second family" to build identity and eng...
050: The 10X Revenue Trap & Why Founders Should Focus on Boring Inputs
Matt and Anne return from the holiday break battling "January brain fog" and a wave of post-vacation sickness to tackle the myth of the "10X Revenue" goal. They discuss why setting revenue targets is often a recipe for failure because revenue i...
049: Holiday Boundaries: How Saying "No" Unlocked a Record-Breaking Week of Productivity
In this episode, Anne reveals how saying "no" to traditional holiday travel unlocked her most productive week of the year. While Matt joins from the road in Chicago, the two discuss the power of "breaking the cycle" of family obligations and th...
048: Negotiating Limits: When to Hold the Line and When to Let Go
In this episode, Matt and Anne dive deep into the often misunderstood dynamic of setting boundaries. While Anne advocates for boundaries as a critical tool for self-worth and ensuring others feel seen, Matt challenges the traditional view with ...