Founder Diaries Podcast

For our final full episode of the season, we sit down with Joan Ogutu, founder of Kids Street, a brand focused on premium baby care products in Kenya.Joan takes us through her journey from the start: her early experience working at Safaricom as an agent, and how her own pregnancy led to the idea for Kids Street when she couldn’t find premium baby care products in Kenya. She walks us through the real cost of setting up their first business location, and how the business grew from baby gear like car seats and strollers into consumables like diapers.We also get into the part of inventory businesses that rarely gets talked about: managing money well when your profit is tied up in stock, and what it means to show a profit on paper without having the cash in hand.This episode also has a deeply personal side. Joan shares, with openness and courage, the story of losing her son during a family vacation, how she has continued to run her business through grief, and how that loss has changed the way she works as a founder and the way she sees life. We’re grateful to her for trusting us with her story. This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER SPOTLIGHT🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocketPARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Many founders, especially Type A personalities and first-borns (first-born daughters in particular), share a trait that quietly shapes how they run their businesses: hyper-independence, the deeply ingrained belief that “I can do everything myself.”It can look like strength, but in a business, it can do real damage. In this minisode, we explore how hyper-independence shows up in founders and why it can quietly work against you and your team. It feels faster and safer in the moment, but over time it stops your team from learning, growing, and reaching their full potential — because you’re not coaching them, you’re replacing and doing the work for them.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.....Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.c....Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

Today's minisode is a little different. We're pulling back the curtain and giving you a raw, unfiltered look at our production set — Yvonne, mid-makeup, answering some of the questions you've been dropping on our socials.

No script, no polish — just real answers to the things you've actually been curious about. Grab a seat and enjoy the behind-the-scenes energy.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials.

Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe

https://www.instagram.....

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.c....

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Before Uzapoint, Abraham Mbuthia actually wanted to be a DJ. In this episode, he walks us through how that early dream led him into tech instead, and eventually into building Uzapoint from the ground up, starting with clients paying as little as KES 500, to a business now generating 7-figure revenue across multiple markets.

He is the CEO and Co-Founder of Uzapoint, which he describes as the operating system for SMEs in Africa — a platform built to help small and medium businesses digitize their operations, access financial services, and use AI to make smarter, more informed decisions. In short: everything a business needs to sell smarter, operate efficiently, and grow with confidence, all in one intelligent platform.

In this conversation, Abraham shares his full journey into entrepreneurship, how he thinks through building a distribution strategy that actually works as you scale into new markets, what's changed about how he runs the business as it's grown, and how his team is using Claude to build internal work dashboards that keep things efficient behind the scenes.

SPONSOR HIGHLIGHT

This episode is sponsored by Faida Elimu Insurance Plan by Jubilee Life Insurance — a plan built to protect your child's education no matter what life brings. It gives you peace of mind knowing your child's education stays funded by Jubilee even if you're no longer around, with the flexibility to save monthly, quarterly, yearly, or as a lump sum, topped up whenever it suits you. Your named beneficiary is legally protected — no court, spouse, or divorce can override your choice and after 2 years, you can access up to 10% of your fund without closing the policy. Plus, in the event of a claim, your family receives instant relief with KES 100,000 in last expenses paid within 48 hours.

Learn more about the Faida Elimu Insurance Plan:

https://jubileeinsurance.com/ke/life-...

Brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials.

Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe

https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Kenyans have an interesting relationship with debt, and this minisode breaks it down into 3 categories

✅Those who've seen debt go badly for someone else and want nothing to do with it

✅Those who know debt could be useful but have no idea how to actually access it

✅Those who understand debt as a tool and use it deliberately to grow their business.

This isn't an episode trying to convince you to take on debt. It's a challenge to make sure you have access to credit, even if you never plan to use it — because the point isn't whether you borrow, it's whether you have the option available when an opportunity (or an emergency) presents itself, so whether you're pro-debt, anti-debt, or somewhere in between, this one's about making sure the choice is actually yours to make.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

SPONSOR HIGHLIGHT 🤝

Sarova We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari..

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

his minisode was sparked by a conversation with Manish about running digital ads — and it turned into a bigger question that keeps coming up across so many businesses: how do you actually penetrate your market?The instinct for most founders is the same playbook — get influencers, run Facebook and Instagram ads, and hope for conversions. But the businesses that grow faster often think differently about where their return on investment actually comes from. For Craydel, instead of pouring money into ads, their best move was going directly to high schools — because that's exactly where their future clientele already is, before they transition into university. For Hyrox, it's showing up at gyms and partnering with them, because their customers are already fitness people.This minisode is a challenge to think outside the standard marketing playbook: instead of relying purely on digital marketing, figure out exactly where your customer already spends their time, and find ways to meet them there directly.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT Sarova:We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Anne Muhia is an entrepreneur, founder of Winners Arena Africa, and in this episode, she takes us through one of her earliest and most painful business lessons: a butchery story, and how she navigated employee theft at the time. From there, we trace Anne's full journey: from working as a group finance manager, to quitting impromptu, starting her own business, and how motherhood has shaped who she is today — including the ongoing reality of raising a daughter who requires special care while continuing to grow her business.We also get into the mindset shifts that separate founders who scale from founders who stay stuck, then we close with a look at the key numbers every founder should actually be tracking.lA personal note: Anne's journey through motherhood continues alongside her business, as she cares for her daughter who requires special care. If this story moves you, her family has shared a support link below — any contribution would go a long way.🔗 Support here: https://www.mchanga.africa/fundraiser/138250

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

SPONSOR HIGHLIGHT

This episode is sponsored by Faida Elimu Insurance Plan by Jubilee Life Insurance — a plan built to protect your child's education no matter what life brings. It gives you peace of mind knowing your child's education stays funded by Jubilee even if you're no longer around, with the flexibility to save monthly, quarterly, yearly, or as a lump sum, topped up whenever it suits you. Your named beneficiary is legally protected — no court, spouse, or divorce can override your choice and after 2 years, you can access up to 10% of your fund without closing the policy. Plus, in the event of a claim, your family receives instant relief with KES 100,000 in last expenses paid within 48 hours.

Learn more about the Faida Elimu Insurance Plan: https://jubileeinsurance.com/ke/life-...
PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sarova We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com
Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok

⁠/ entrepreneurm. .

Back in Season 1, we talked about McDonald's and how they arrived at the 3 things on their menu. This minisode is a callback to that idea, and a challenge: do you actually know what your 3 things are?Go into your numbers and look at what genuinely brings you the most profit and what you sell the most of. If you had to trim your entire business down to 3 products or services based on demand and profitability, what would they be? And once you know that, ask yourself the harder question: are you actually giving those 3 things enough marketing support? Are you pushing them enough, talking about them enough, presenting them to customers as the solution enough? Are your customers even aware they exist? And how can you maximise more on that because more profit is more money in your pocket, and that's the entire point of being in business.

This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT Sarova:We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

This minisode was sparked by an insight from someone who's worked in mergers and acquisitions, reviewing businesses being valued, bought, or sold. It's something that's easy to overlook as a founder: running a separate P&L for each branch of your business, instead of housing everything under one.

She shared how a well-known brand runs every single branch like its own separate business, each with its own P&L. That idea alone led me to requesting separate P&Ls for Beauty Square and Sage. If you're running more than one location or branch under a single set of books, this might be the number you've been missing.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok / founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Today's episode looks a little different.

We're switching seats — Yvonne is on the guest chair this time, interviewed by Victoria, Founder of Vspa, Thao Tree, and Titii Kenya. If you've ever wanted to know our host a little better, this is your chance. The conversation covers Yvonne's full entrepreneurial journey, building Beauty Square and Sage from the ground up, her journey into motherhood and how it reshaped her relationship with work, the moment that almost made her quit, and what it's actually taken to build a team that runs efficiently without her having to hold everything together herself.

This is Yvonne, unfiltered.

SPONSOR HIGHLIGHT

This episode is sponsored by Faida Elimu Insurance Plan by Jubilee Life Insurance — a plan built to protect your child's education no matter what life brings.

It gives you peace of mind knowing your child's education stays funded by Jubilee even if you're no longer around, with the flexibility to save monthly, quarterly, yearly, or as a lump sum, topped up whenever it suits you. Your named beneficiary is legally protected — no court, spouse, or divorce can override your choice and after 2 years, you can access up to 10% of your fund without closing the policy. Plus, in the event of a claim, your family receives instant relief with KES 100,000 in last expenses paid within 48 hours.

Learn more about the Faida Elimu Insurance Plan: https://jubileeinsurance.com/ke/life-individual/faida-elimu-insurance-plan/

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honoured to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Ever taken a whole weekend off and still felt exhausted? That's usually because rest isn't one-size-fits-all — and most of us are only resting in one dimension while running on empty in the rest. In this minisode, we break down the different types of rest based on where your exhaustion is actually coming from, so you can identify what you really need.✅ Physical rest ✅ Mental rest ✅ Emotional rest ✅ Creative rest ✅ Sensory rest Rest isn't something you earn, it's something you need in order to function and produce your best work. This minisode is a reminder to find the right balance between work and actual, effective rest.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

This minisode breaks down a simple, repeatable formula for growing revenue that applies to pretty much any business model.When most founders think about increasing revenue, the instinct is usually: open a new branch, spend more on marketing, hire more staff, or add more products. But there are 3 key drivers that can move revenue without necessarily requiring more input into the business.We also break down how to calculate your customer growth rate, so if you've been assuming growth only comes from spending more, this reframes where to actually look first.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

O`rnella Nthambi wears many hats — makeup artist, content creator, beauty educator, and entrepreneur and in this episode, she takes us through the full journey of building Makeup City and Makeup City Academy from a passion project into a business that's sustained her for over a decade.Her very first hustle wasn't in beauty at all. In high school, she sold viazi karai to her fellow students for 10 shillings. After high school, instead of the conventional path into driving or computer packages, she convinced her mum to pay for a short makeup course at Ashley's, a decision that quietly set the direction for everything that followed.We get into the real numbers behind her growth: how she went from charging KES 25,000 for a one-month makeup class to KES 45,000 today, and what it took to actually master pricing along the way. She also walks us through the process of setting up a physical academy space, what she's most intentional about teaching her students, and how she manages finances in a service-based business.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER SPOTLIGHT🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocketPARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

There's usually one thing every founder already knows they should be doing to increase revenue and it's usually the thing that keeps getting pushed to "next week." In this minisode, we challenge all founders that instead of juggling 5-6 major tasks a day and touching a hundred things without finishing any of them, pick that one thing you already know needs to happen, and make it the only thing you work on — whether that's dedicating 3-4 hours every morning to it, or making it your single focus until it's done — before moving on to the next task.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

A quick follow-up to Minisode 4 ("Great CEOs Are Lazy") — this time breaking down a simple rule for evaluating the players on your team. Every team has three types of players: A, B, and C — but it's not always obvious where each person actually falls.Here's the test: ask yourself, if this person left your business today, what would you do?This one simple question can cut through a lot of the uncertainty founders feel about their team, and make it a lot clearer who's actually driving the business forward.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

This episode carries a little extra meaning for us — Caine Wanjau and DigiTax were our very first sponsors on Founder Diaries, and we're honored they believed in this vision from the start. Watching both DigiTax and this show grow since then has been a full-circle moment.

Caine is the Co-Founder and CEO of DigiTax, an electronic invoicing and tax compliance platform built to make tax compliance easier for growing and medium-sized businesses now licensed and operating across four countries: Kenya, Zambia, Nigeria, and the UAE.

In this episode, we get into what DigiTax actually does, how it started, and the process of getting licensed across multiple markets. Caine shares his professional journey, what it's taken to scale DigiTax across different regions, and how having the right partners can shape your business as a founder. We also dig into some of the sharpest insights he's picked up from working with founders and business owners across different markets.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork.

Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari..

Spotifyhttps:

//open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok

⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

The one problem that will never fully go away in your business is people. The one asset that will save you is also people. That contradiction is something every founder eventually has to sit with because people come with different stimuli, temperaments, and backgrounds, and what works for managing one person won't work for another.After 7 years in business and a lot of hires — some right, some wrong, this minisode shares the insights learned the hard way, especially around one question a lot of founders avoid: when do you finally let a hire go?This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

If there's one number every founder should have top of mind, it's not just revenue — it's your growth rate. In this minisode, we break down why growth rate matters more than most founders realize, and how to actually track it.Here's what we cover:✅ How to calculate your business growth rate✅ Why you should track it both month-to-month and year-over-year✅ What growth rate reveals ✅ What to track beyond business growthThis episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Manish earned a place at Delhi School of Economics — one of the most selective universities in the world, admitting less than 1% of applicants. He dropped out in his first semester, knowing it wasn't the right fit, and decided to build his first company instead. Years later, he shares moment that became the starting point for Craydel, Africa's #1 AI-powered study-abroad platform, built to match African students to the universities and courses they're actually built for, using verified data, real counsellors, and a matching engine trained on real student choices.In this episode, we get into Manish's full journey — from finishing his master's, to his first job, to the decision to finally build his own business. We talk about his time in India's education tech scene, the lessons that came from scaling a business into a brand that actually penetrated the market, and how having co-founders compares to building alone. We also dig into where the idea for Craydel came from, how Craydel actually makes money, whether an MBA is really necessary for founders, and how his team uses Claude to stay efficient in their day-to-day work.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER SPOTLIGHT🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocketPARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Not every profitable business looks exciting on Instagram and this minisode proves it. We asked a question on my TikTok page: what are some unglamorous ways people are making good money? The comments did not disappoint.

In this minisode, we highlight some of the most interesting responses, including:

✅ Portable toilet rentals

✅ Selling popcorn

✅ Loan/financing businesses for boda boda riders

✅ Supplying WiFi to local markets

These aren't the businesses that make it into glossy founder interviews, but they're solving real problems and making real money; proof that you don't need a flashy idea to build something profitable.

If you've been waiting for the "perfect" business idea, this minisode might just change what you're looking for.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

They say there are two things that can quietly shut a business down over time: taxes and calamity. In this minisode, we get into why staying informed about taxes isn't optional it affects your business every single day, whether you're paying attention to it or not. Choosing to ignore it doesn't protect you; it just makes you easier to take advantage of.

Here are the tax lessons learned the hard way, the things worth knowing early.

If you've been letting your accountant "just handle it" without understanding why, this one's your sign to pay closer attention.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials.

Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork.

Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

/ royalreelph. .

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

/ makeupcityy. .

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe

https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Some businesses don't just survive they become institutions. In this episode, we sit down with Daniel Rea Song, Marketing and Business Development Director at Misono and son of the founder, to unpack over 30 years of the Misono journey: the story, the lessons, the mishaps, and how a single restaurant became a household name.

Daniel takes us back to where it all started — his father's journey through Safari Park, which shaped the chef he would become, and his decision to build a life and a family in Kenya, drawn in by the education system and the opportunity it offered his children.

Misono opened its doors in 1995, starting out of a modest rented space on Lenana Road with a limited menu — a location it would call home for 16 years, until 2011.We also get into what's kept Misono consistent for three decades despite chefs coming and going over the years: documented SOPs for every single dish, standardized training, and strict quality control. Plus, Daniel shares his own story growing up under an entrepreneur, his early hustles, what actually happens behind the scenes every day to keep the business running, and how they think about employee retention.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

PARTNER HIGHLIGHT

Sarova:

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partnershttps://www.instagram.com/royalreelph...

💄 Makeup City — on makeuphttps://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy...

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Paying yourself isn't a luxury it's the entire point of building a business. In this minisode, we break down a founder's toolkit for wealth creation: three things you need in place to protect yourself financially, even as a small business owner.Here's what we cover:✅ Pension ✅ A two-tier emergency fund — one for you personally, one for the business✅ A salary that actually covers your real expenses✅ Why diversification only makes sense once these three foundations are in placeThe goal isn't to work harder for the business, it's to work less and make more money, starting with actually paying yourself.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Every founder hits a funk - the days where motivation disappears and getting anything done feels impossible. In this minisode, we're sharing a personal reboot strategy: three simple things I do every working day to jumpstart out of a slump and back into productivity.None of this requires a complicated morning routine or hours of free time just three small, repeatable habits that compound over time.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners / royalreelph. .💄 Makeup City — on makeup / makeupcityy. .👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Today`s episode features Ivy, a business coach who works with founders to build scalable, legacy-ready businesses. Her work is centered on helping founders put the right systems in place, hire the right people, and build something that can grow beyond their own limitations; something they can eventually pass on or sell.Ivy takes us through her own entrepreneurial journey, starting with selling cabbages at 7 years old at a 75% profit margin (a lesson in sales she still carries today), all the way to a salon investment with her husband that flopped teaching her that not every founder should open just any business. In the episode, we also get deep into hiring: simple shifts founders can make in how they hire and manage people, the real cost of a bad hire, and why so many founders hold onto underperforming "day one" employees out of loyalty, even when the gaps are obvious and the business is paying the price.This episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER SPOTLIGHT🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocketOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partnershttps://www.instagram.com/royalreelph...💄 Makeup City — on makeuphttps://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy...👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Being busy is not the same as being productive, and this minisode might make you a little uncomfortable. We're reviewing the book Great CEOs Are Lazy, whose core idea is simple but hard to swallow: CEOs aren't paid to be busy, they're paid for the 20% of work that produces 80% of the results. The real job isn't filling your calendar, it's learning to be ruthlessly efficient with the few hours a day that actually move the needle.We have some exciting news at the end of this minisode — stick around for it. And catch the follow-up conversation on how founders should actually be spending their time, coming soon.SPONSOR SPOTLIGHTThis episode is brought to you by:Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partnershttps://www.instagram.com/royalreelph...💄 Makeup City — on makeuphttps://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy...👗 HAWI Ready To Wear — on the wardrobehttps://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

Motivation runs out. Systems don't. In this minisode, we talk about consistency not as a personality trait, but as something you can engineer.

Borrowing a behavioral strategy from the author of Profit First, we break down "habit sandwiching": stacking a new habit between two things you already do without fail, so there's no room for excuses.If there's a habit you've been trying (and failing) to stick to, this one gives you an actual system to make it work.SPONSOR SPOTLIGHTThis episode is brought to you by:Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partnershttps://www.instagram.com/royalreelph...💄 Makeup City — on makeuphttps://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy...👗 HAWI Ready To Wear — on the wardrobehttps://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

This week, we're switching things up with a roundtable conversation featuring four incredible founders, each building in a completely different space:

🔹 Val Njoroge — Co-Founder, Africa's Pocket & Panda Towers

🔹 Patricia — Founder, Party Lounges (Furniture & Décor Rental)

🔹 Liz Gitari — Founder, Ogolaw & Wakili Lux | Podcaster, The Green Brief KE

🔹 Waithera Mugo — Founder, [Commercial Law Firm] & Co-Founder, Ithera Africa (Tax Advisory)

We got into some of the harder, less-talked-about parts of building a business: the loss of good employees because of leadership missteps in different seasons, and the quieter loss of potential — when someone you've poured into doesn't believe in themselves enough to grow into who you can already see they could be.

We also asked the question a lot of founders avoid: do you have an exit strategy? We talk about the advantage (and the trap) of being the face of your brand, why so many of us call our businesses our "babies," and the real difference between registering a business and owning a trademark — and why that distinction matters enormously if you ever decide to sell.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork.

Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Our other Season 3 partners are:

🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partners

https://www.instagram.com/royalreelph...

💄 Makeup City — on makeup

https://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy...

👗 HAWI Ready To Wear— on the wardrobe https://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?ig...

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari..

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram

⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

We started our businesses to make money but why does profit always feel like an afterthought? In this minisode, we break down key insights from Profit First, and one formula in particular that flips things. SPONSOR SPOTLIGHTThis episode is brought to you by:Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co PARTNER HIGHLIGHT 🤝We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 3 partner. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comOur other Season 3 partners are:🎥 Royal Reel — our audio-visual partnershttps://www.instagram.com/royalreelphotography_?igsh=MWpvaDNqemF2aTh1Yg==💄 Makeup City — on our hosts' makeuphttps://www.instagram.com/makeupcityy?igsh=amZwc2tkdXBpY2lu👗 HAWI — on our hosts' outfitshttps://www.instagram.com/hawi_rtw?igsh=NHZncHJpMG04OXJoFollow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi...TikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurm...

Most job descriptions are copy-pasted from Google, and that's exactly why so many hires don't work out. In this minisode, we break down performance-based hiring: a practical, 5-step approach to building your HR process around actual output, not vague titles.

Here's what you'll learn:

✅ Why the generic JD is killing your hiring process

✅ How I have used the SMART method to define real, measurable expectations

✅ Why you should never hire alone

✅ The "devil's advocate" step most founders skip

✅ How to assess for the soft skills that don't show up on a resume

Plus some hiring drawings from BSK and SAGE's own processes.

This episode is brought to you by:

🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials.

Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

/ yvonnekanyi. .

TikTok⁠

/ entrepreneurm. .

Founder Squad, We're back for Season 3!!We're kicking the season off with someone who's redefining what building wealth in Africa looks like. Val Njoroge is the Co-Founder & CEO of Africa's Pocket (a digital investment and financial advisory platform) and Co-Founder of Panda Towers (a real estate passive-income venture).In this episode, Val takes us all the way back to her first brush with entrepreneurship, and how that curiosity eventually led her to Oxford for her MBA. She breaks down how Panda Towers and Africa's Pocket were born, and how she personally built streams of passive income. We also get into the technical side of her business model, the connecting of foreign capital to local opportunities, and the financial mistakes made along the way.If you've ever wondered how to make your money work harder for you, this one's packed with real, practical insight.PARTNER SPOTLIGHT🔹 DigiTax — Simplifying tax and invoicing for businesses so you can focus on growth, not paperwork. Learn more: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocketThis episode is brought to you by:🔹 Beauty Square KE — Your go-to destination for premium, quality beauty essentials. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ / yvonnekanyi. .TikTok⁠ / entrepreneurm. .

What do you do when business challenges start feeling personal?

How do you know it's finally time to hire?

Should every business be built to scale?

In this Season 2 finale, we're flipping the script and answering some of the most common questions and dilemmas submitted by our audience. Through honest conversation and lived experience, we explore different ways founders can approach the challenges that come with building a business.

This episode isn't about having all the answers. It's about asking better questions, challenging assumptions, and giving founders practical frameworks to make more confident decisions.

Whether you're just starting out or years into your entrepreneurial journey, you'll likely hear a question you've asked yourself before.

Thank you for being part of Season 2. Your support, questions, and conversations have made this journey possible, and we can't wait to keep learning and building together.

🎥 Subscribe and turn on notifications so you don't miss what's coming next.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi...

TikTok⁠

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurm...

One of the biggest barriers to golf is the perception that it's expensive, exclusive, and difficult to access.

In Episode 10, we sit down with Kamau Nyabwengi, Founder and CEO of Yen Golf, to unpack his entrepreneurial journey, the business behind golf, and how he has spent over a decade making the sport more accessible to thousands of people.

Kamau shares how Yen Golf has worked to reduce golf barriers through an 8-week beginner-friendly program. Participants simply show up in golf attire and are guided through everything from golf equipment and swing fundamentals to course etiquette and tournament participation.

No club membership required.

No prior experience needed.

Just a willingness to learn.

🎥 Subscribe and turn on notifications for more founder stories, business lessons, and entrepreneurial insights.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi...

TikTok⁠

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurm...

Hiring your first employee feels exciting.

Managing them? That's where many founders discover an entirely different challenge.

In this minisode, we will be reflecting on one of the biggest struggles entrepreneurs and managers face: navigating performance issues and having difficult conversations with employees.

Many founders start by hiring based on attitude, education, and willingness to learn. But what happens when performance begins to decline? What happens when expectations are no longer being met?

For many of us, the challenge isn't identifying the problem, it's addressing it.

We notice the small things.

We get frustrated.

We avoid the conversation.

And over time, the gap between expectations and performance continues to grow.

Sit put as we draw insights from a framework shared by Alex Hormozi called The Management Diamond, this episode explores a practical and objective way to approach performance conversations without blame, assumptions, or unnecessary conflict.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

/ founderdiar. .

Tiktok

/ founder.diari. .

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi...

TikTok⁠

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurm...

What happens when the business you've spent years building no longer excites you?

In Episode 9, we sit down with Joanna K, founder of Joanna K Cosmetics and one of Kenya's most influential beauty content creators, to unpack her journey from makeup enthusiast to building one of Kenya's leading beauty brands. 💄✨

But this isn't just a business story.

It's a conversation about creativity, content creation, entrepreneurship, burnout, reinvention, and learning how to fall back in love with the vision you once had.

Joanna shares how she spent nearly two years feeling disconnected from the business she had worked so hard to build because she was exhausted.

Whether you're a creator, entrepreneur, founder, or someone trying to build something meaningful, this episode is packed with lessons on business, branding, resilience, and staying the course.

✨ Don't forget to like, subscribe, and turn on notifications for more founder conversations and business insights.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

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Welcome to Episode 8:

Today, Abel Mutua and Judy Nyawira share the journey behind their creative careers, entrepreneurship, and the business lessons that completely changed how they approached the industry 🎬

From humble beginnings, internships, and unconventional jobs to handling multi-million-shilling productions, this episode explores the reality behind building a sustainable creative business.

Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on your notification.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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Most founders learn money the hard way. Most of us figure it out through pressure, mistakes, survival, and experience.

In Minisode 15, we unpack practical money advice for founders from years of building and running businesses; the lessons, mistakes, and financial habits that every entrepreneur should start thinking about early.

Because somewhere along the journey of impact, growth, hiring, and scaling… many founders forget the original goal: The business was supposed to make money for you.

In this minisode, we discuss:

1. Paying Yourself First

2. Business Savings & Cash Reserves

3. Building Relationships With Your Bank

4. Reviewing Personal Finances and Why it Still Matters

5. Emergency savings, investing, pensions, and creating wealth beyond the business.

Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications for more founder conversations and practical business insights.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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Back-to-back meetings,

Constant notifications,

Supplier issues,

Endless tasks,

New ideas every hour 👀

And somehow… at the end of the day, it still feels like you’re not moving the business forward.

In Minisode 14, we unpack the powerful concept of Signal vs Noise inspired by Steve Jobs’ return to Apple in 1997 and how it helped transform the company.

In this minisode, we explore:

The origin of Signal vs Noise from information theory

Why founders choose noise

The “founder signal problem”

Practical ways to identify signal in your business

How to structure your day around signal

👉 Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications for more founder conversations and business insights.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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As founders, every day we discover another thing the business needs.Another task, another responsibility, another thing added to our plate. But what if the answer isn’t working harder but building systems?

In Minisode 13, we unpack the importance of systemizing your business, delegating, and creating workflows that allow consistency without everything depending on you. The goal isn’t to become the person who does everything but to build a business that can function even when you step away.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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In Episode 7, we sit down with Susan Wanjiku, founder of The Legacy Hub, a platform focused on making financial literacy simple, accessible, and personalized.

From growing up in poverty, accumulating over 1 million in debt, losing her job during restructuring, surviving through online writing, and eventually building a personal finance coaching business. Susan shares a deeply honest story about money, survival, self-worth, and business.

You can interact/reach out to The Legacy Hub KE on thelegacyhub.co.ke

Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications for more founder stories.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403 DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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One determined woman, Four products, One counter, and a Relentless belief in herself.

In Minisode 12, we unpack the incredible backstory behind Estée Lauder, the founder who built one of the world’s most iconic beauty companies starting from her kitchen.

Before the global brand, before luxury counters and worldwide recognition, she was mixing creams, going door-to-door, giving free samples, demonstrating products herself, and convincing women to believe in her vision. What made her different wasn’t just the product, It was her mindset.

In this minisode, we explore:

How Estée Lauder learned formulation and skincare education

Why founder-led selling became her superpower

The strategy behind product demonstrations & free samples

How she generated demand before retailers believed in her

Why premium positioning matters even in the early stages

The famous “gift with purchase” strategy she pioneered.

I hope you can learn some key lessons from her story, enjoy and don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications for more founder stories.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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What does it actually take to build a successful coaching business?

In Episode 6, we sit down with John Paul Nyiha, an online fitness and dietary coach who has spent over 9 years building a coaching business tailored specifically for Kenyan women.

This conversation goes beyond fitness, we unpack the business side of coaching: the inception, positioning, pricing, client acquisition, and the mindset behind building a sustainable coaching brand.

Coach J.P shares how his journey started from a deeply personal place, wanting to change how he looked and eventually helping his mum and how this experience pushed him to develop a coaching philosophy that challenged conventional fitness culture and eventually shaped the business he runs today.

In this episode, we explore:

The inception behind becoming a fitness coach

Why he chose to focus specifically on women

The business side of coaching

Starting with free coaching and scaling to premium programs

Why simplicity became the core of his coaching model

If you’ve ever struggled with fitness, weight loss, nutrition, or want to learn how you can price yourself as a coach, this episode is for you!

👉 Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications 🔔

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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In today`s minisode, we break down the story of how two brothers transformed a simple drive-in restaurant into one of the most scalable business models in the world—by doing something radical.

In 1948, Richard and Maurice McDonald shut down their restaurant, simplified their menu, and rebuilt their entire operation around speed, consistency, and repeatability.

The result? The Speedee Service System—a kitchen designed like an assembly line that could produce the same meal, the same way, every single time. Later, Ray Kroc saw the power of this system and scaled it into what we now know as the McDonald’s Corporation.In this minisode, we explore:How McDonald’s went from a drive-in to a global systemWhy simplifying their menu changed everythingThe birth of repeatable, standardized operationsWhy you can only scale processes - not chaosDon’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notificationsPartner Spotlight;We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com Sponsor highlight;This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...Tiktokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diari...Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0ZgFollow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1wTikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

When is the right time to start paying yourself as a founder, and how much should you actually take home? 🤔

A lot of businesses are started with one goal: to make money for you. But somewhere along the way, many founders end up underpaying themselves… or not paying themselves at all.

In this episode, we break down the reality of founder compensation and why paying yourself isn’t optional - It’s a core principle of building a sustainable business.Because if your business can pay everyone and everything else… why not you?

In this episode, we cover:

1. When to Start Paying Yourself

2. The 3 key stages of business

3. Smart Compensation StructureKey Insight:

If you’re not paying yourself, your business isn’t giving you a true picture of what it actually costs to run...And that? Can cost you more in the long run.

👉 Don’t forget to like, subscribe & turn on notifications for more real conversations around business, money, and growth.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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What if everything you thought about profit, business, and your personal value… was wrong? 👀

In Episode 5, we sit down with Mr. Waithaka Gatumia, a financial literacy coach, who breaks down the realities of business, money, and what it truly means to build wealth.

From transitioning out of Media & Communications into financial education, to helping people grow sustainable wealth, this conversation is packed with hard truths and practical wisdom every entrepreneur (and self-employed individual) needs to hear.

The difference between being self-employed vs an entrepreneurWhy profit is NOT your money 💸The real aim of every business (and why many get it wrong)Why labour is a cost (yes, even yours!)Understanding your true value beyond your businessAnd the story of how Mr. Waithaka ended up spending dollars in just two weeks 😂

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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Why are so many founders determined to use their own money to build businesses? 🤔In this Minisode, we unpack the deeply rooted mindset behind self-funding and bootstrapping, especially among Kenyan founders, and ask the uncomfortable question:Is it always bravery… or sometimes fear and lack of awareness?

From selling personal assets, borrowing from chamas, and taking high-interest loans, to wearing burnout like a badge of honor - this episode challenges the narrative many founders have grown up believing.Partner Spotlight;We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comSponsor highlight;This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...Tiktokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diari...Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0ZgFollow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1wTikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

In this episode of Founder Diaries, we sit down with a creative entrepreneur, Tara Nicole as she shares her journey of building, evolving, and reinventing herself across multiple creative industries.From painting on t-shirts and shoes, to diving into food photography for brands, to creating props and drops —Tara’s story is one of constant evolution, bold pivots, and following curiosity.Today, she’s shares her journey as a vibe curator, running a mobile cocktail experience that blends creativity, experience, and lifestyle.This conversation goes beyond just business, it will remind you that it is okay to start before you feel ready and that every version of you is part of the journey.Partner Spotlight;We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comSponsor highlight;This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram / founderdiar. .Tiktok / founder.diari. .Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVj...Follow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi...TikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurm...

Opening a new branch sounds like growth but it can quickly become pressure if you’re not fully prepared.In this minisode, we’re unpacking the real conversations every entrepreneur needs to have before expanding, because having cash flow doesn’t always mean you have overflow, and that distinction can make or break your next move.We get into:Why data matters more than hype; Understanding your market, order volumes, and the people in that areaThe hidden costs most people overlook (equipment, systems, WiFi, hiring, legal, and more)The importance of vetting—why you should always ask for past work, long-term results, and real client feedback before bringing people on boardThe operational truth—whether your business is actually built to sustain another branchIf you’ve been thinking about scaling, this is your reality check. Subscribe and turn on notifications.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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Sage Skin officially turned 1 last month and in this episode I get to share some financial decisions that almost cost me the business and how we've managed to pivot since then.

Partner Spotlight;We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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In today’s episode, we explore the power of founder-led brands and what it really means to build through founder-led marketing.

More than just visibility, founder-led marketing is about becoming the primary channel for trust, storytelling, authority, and distribution. It’s strategic, intentional, and deeply human.

If you’re building a brand, this episode will challenge you to step forward not just as a founder, but as the face and voice that brings your vision to life.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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In today`s episode, we feature Lynn Ngugi (commonly knows as Miss Turu), who is a well celebrated Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, and founder of ANO Advocates LLP as she takes us through her journey of becoming a lawyer, transitioning from a well paying job into building businesses that are thriving in the market.Partner Spotlight;We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.comNow, you`ve heard me talk about DigiTax for a while now and I'm here to plug you again. When you think Digitax think tax and e-tims simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403Digitax — your tax assistant in your pocketSponsor highlight;This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...Tiktokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diari...Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0ZgFollow our host on socials:Instagram⁠ https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1wTikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

This episode is a follow-up on Minisode 4, where we go deeper into what it really takes to build systems that support growth, not just survival.We break down the power of SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures), the franchise mindset, and scaling properly and how small consistent structures allow a business to scale.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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In this episode, we unpack key insights from The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber—and the hard truth about what’s really holding most businesses back.

The difference between working in your business and working on your business.

Most small businesses don’t fail because the owner lacks skill but because the owner never stops being the technician.

Technical skills may generate income, but systems build sustainable businesses.

This episode will challenge how you think, build, and operate.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

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https://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...

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Did you know that the Melvin Marsh company didn’t start as a tea brand—it started by solving a practical everyday problem through Kenya’s first free-flowing salt?

In today`s episode, we sit down with the Founder & CEO of Melvin Marsh International as she shares her journey into building this well celebrated tea brand that has become a household name across boarders.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...

Tiktok

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Spotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0Zg

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TikTok⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

According to Rory Sutherland, (a well-known behavioral science expert at Ogilvy in the U.K), human beings don't buy things for purely logical or practical reasons. Instead, their decisions are driven by subconscious desires, emotional triggers, and perceived meaning.

In this episode, we’ll be unpacking the real reason VS the practical reason behind consumer behaviour, exploring what truly influences people to say “yes.” More importantly, we’ll dive into how founders can tap into emotion and market to the feeling in a way that genuinely connects and converts.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honoured to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...

Tiktok

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diari...

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0Zg

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1w

TikTok⁠

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

Imagine having a phone that doesn`t force you to be on your screens all day but you still get your notifications on time. In this episode, we talk about an entrepreneur called Kat Goetze who invented a bluetooth landline phone that is able to connect to your smartphone, which means if your phone rings, the landline rings. The phone was designed to help users reduce screen time by allowing them to take calls on a familiar handset without picking up their smartphones, how cool.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honoured to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

When you think DigiTax think tax and e-TIMS simplified. Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403DigiTax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiar...

Tiktok

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diari...

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0Zg

Follow our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1w

TikTok⁠

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

Imagine being able to access real data to understand your business operations, reduce stock-outs and who your consumers are. In this episode, Michelle Watiki, Co-founder of Duck Analytics takes us through the importance of data and client segmentation in business building to make better decisions that boost revenue.

Duck Analytics helps retailers optimise their pricing and location strategies using an AI-powered platform empowering you with real-time data for smarter decisions.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honoured to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration.

Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Now, you`ve heard me talk about DigiTax for a while now and I'm here to plug you again. When you think Digitax think tax and e-tims simplified.

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

Digitax — your tax assistant in your pocket

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.com and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram⁠\TikTok - @founderdariespodcast

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/show/1CBpdVjLHAuO96jyYCLo4S?si=SJOyRSTQS_GXgTOFzZc0Zg

Find our host on socials:Instagram⁠:

https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi?igsh=Y3NiczB1YWR1eW1w

TikTok⁠:

https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake?_r=1&_t=ZS-95NMkTDQ6wD

Welcome to Season 2 of Founder Diaries! 🎙️

In this first minisode, I take you back to where it all began—my story, my journey into business, and how we got here.

From selling noodles in high school to building two thriving beauty and skincare brands, this is a raw and honest look at the process behind the progress.

One thing I’ve learned? Skincare is like math—there’s a formula for everything.

If you’ve ever wondered what it really takes to start, grow, and stay consistent in business, this one is for you.

Partner Spotlight;

We’re honored to have Sarova Hotels as our Season 2 partner on Founder Diaries. From creating beautiful spaces to curating unforgettable experiences, Sarova is the best fit for your staycation, business meeting or that special celebration. Visit their website to check out their facilities and services at www.sarovahotels.com

Sponsor highlight;

This podcast is proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquare.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTI2NzNndTgyZGUydg==

Tiktok

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-95LDUI5VlHY

Listen to the story of how Cellulant was built, the businesses Ken Njoroge built prior to getting investors into the business. He built with a larger market in mind and today that is a reality.

Today's hustle is Komini which is a business built to create community for small business owners and helping them "arrive alive."

Then hear the perspective of Kui Njoroge who built alongside him and continues to do so in Komini.

Asking: "How big the business shall be vs how big it can be."

Find Komini on socials: Instagram

Find our host on socials:Instagram⁠ -   / yvonnekanyi  TikTok⁠ -   / entrepreneurmamake  Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠\TikTok - @founderdariespodcast Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Hear my thoughts on how I would market my business if social media was no longer available. Social media is becoming saturated and more people sensitive to promotional content thus affecting it's effectiveness. We need to start thinking about offline ways to engage and attract new customers.

What are your ideas? Engage us in the comment section.

Find our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

TikTok⁠

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠

Instagram⁠

TikTok - @founderdariespod

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠HERE⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke, and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co, and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Catch up on Waithera Mugo's story and how she went from a law student to owning her own firm and building a niche business with Ithera Africa, a tax & wealth advisory firm. I learned from here there are so many ways to legally reduce your tax liability as a business and to think through your corporate structure and the implications that has on your tax points. The true point of a business is to make money for the business owner - hear more on how to maximize this.

Find Waithera: https://ithera.africa/, on Instagram: @waithera_mugo

Find our host on socials:

Instagram⁠ - https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyi

TikTok⁠ - https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake

Follow Founder Diaries on socials:

⁠Instagram⁠\TikTok - @founderdariespodcast

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke, and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Find our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

TikTok⁠

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠

TikTok - @founderdariespodcast  

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: HERE⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke, and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co, and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

You know… running a product business will teach you math you didn’t even know you needed.
Not the cute math… the painful math.
The “why is my cash gone yet my shelves are full?” math.

Today we’re talking about inventory mistakes, the true cost of dead stock, and why inventory turnover and run rate are non-negotiable if you want a healthy business.

Inventory is a beast to master and has to be mastered to really optimize your business - most importantly cash flow!

Learn why dead stock is detrimental to your business and get specific and practical tips on how to better manage inventory.

"Inventory doesn’t care how passionate you are.
It doesn’t care how good your brand is.
It doesn’t care how many followers you have.

Inventory rewards:

If you master your turnover, your run rate, and your inventory planning, you stop running your business like a kiosk…"

Find our host on socials:

Instagram⁠

TikTok⁠

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠\TikTok - @founderdariespodcast  

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke, and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co, and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Pricing might seem straightforward — but over time, I’ve learned that most of us underestimate how many things quietly eat into our margins.We price for the product.But we forget to price for the business. Your pricing should factor in:

Your salary and compensation as a founder/directorGovernment compliance (taxes, licenses, statutory requirements)

Rent and operational overheads

Staffing and labor

Software, tools, and systems that keep everything running.

If these aren’t built into your pricing structure, your profit is an illusion. And here’s the part we don’t talk about enough: pricing is emotional. For many founders, pricing feels deeply tied to self-worth. If you struggle with valuing yourself, charging higher prices can feel like you’re building a wall to push customers away. But that’s not what strong pricing does. Strong pricing creates sustainability.It allows you to serve well.It gives your business room to breathe.

Here are signs your pricing likely needs adjusting:

High revenue… but just as much money going out.

Constantly tight cash flow.

You can’t scale without feeling financially stretched.

You’re overworked and underpaid.

Revenue is vanity.

Margin is sanity.Cash flow is survival.

If your business is growing but you constantly feel pressure, the issue may not be effort — it may be"Profit is not extra - it's how the business stays alive."

Find our host on socials:

Instagram⁠ - https://www.instagram.com/yvonnekanyiTikTok⁠ - https://www.tiktok.com/@entrepreneurmamake

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠\TikTok - @founderdariespodcast

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke, and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

I've been in business for many many years and I have one particular season where I truly thought about quitting. I sat down to figure out how to replace my income and actually got the ball rolling until I realized where the pain point truly was.

What happens when you're faced with the end of the business you built from scratch?

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

Find our host on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠TikTok⁠

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠TikTok⁠

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: ⁠https://digitax.tech/⁠ | ⁠+254795279403

Hear the story of Liz Njuguna and how she started off with buying and flipping land at 19. She started off with one parcel being paid in installments of 20K a month which down the road was flipped into 700K pain in a lumpsum. Learn how her discipline and reinvesting grew that hustle into Risiih Investments. Five years down the road Risiih is working on putting more land into the hands of women and breaking down the barriers to women owning land.

Find our guest on socials: Liz Njuguna

Find our host on socials: Instagram, TikTok

Follow Founder Diaries on socials: Instagram, TikTok

Reach out to DigiTax to make your eTIMS compliance much easier: https://digitax.tech/ | +254795279403

Dreaming is dopamine and doing is discipline.

It's not because you're lazy or lack of motivation. Thinking about your dream life of driving the car you'd want, the freedom of time you crave and dream travel destinations is VERY easy but different to when it comes to taking the action required to achieve that.

There is a physiological reason to this - your nervous system is wired to avoid change and it's a survival mechanism. Listen to how this works and how to counter it to set the ball rolling for the dream life you want. Get some practical steps to beat how your body has been wired to achieve what you want.

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

At some point, every founder has to ask:Am I building a real business… or just surviving?In Minisode17, Yvonne shares the practical shifts that helped her stop running her business like a kiosk and started structuring it properly, from paying herself consistently, building systems, delegating intentionally, to planning financially and creating cash reserves.If you’re still in survival mode, this one is for you.

We’ve been sold the myth that businesses need to be revolutionary, AI-powered, or completely novel to succeed.In this minisode, we strip it back to the basics and unpack the 4 pillars of a good business — and why simple, needed, profitable ideas often win.If you’ve been overthinking your idea, this episode is for you.Let’s share about our partners, DigiTaxAs someone running a business, staying compliant shouldn’t be complicated…and that’s where DigiTax comes in.

DigiTax is an eTIMS invoicing platform that helps you issue, receive and track all your tax invoices in one place, with ease.

With DigiTax, you can:

✅ Issue, receive, and track tax invoices in one place

✅ Access via web or Android app — no technical skills needed

✅ Get real-time tax reporting that syncs automatically with KRA

✅ Enjoy reliable customer support for setup and compliance

DigiTax makes eTIMS compliance simple, affordable and stress-free.

📱 WhatsApp Support: 0112685368

🌐 Website: digitax.tech

Many founders think they’re building businesses... but have actually created full-time jobs for themselves.In this minisode, we unpack the difference between being self-employed and being an entrepreneur, the signs your business depends too heavily on you, and practical steps to start building systems that scale without burning you out.If your business stops when you stop, this episode is for you.

Watch on Youtube: https://youtube.com/@founderdiariespodacst?si=JJAYjtB1vW5BlTfE

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-93DygkaNo4C

What does it take to build a sustainable catering business?In this episode of Founder Diaries, Yvonne sits down with Esmeralda Founder & CEO of Spez Catering Limited, to unpack her journey from starting to running multiple corporate cafeterias.We talk about:• Why event catering alone isn’t sustainable• How corporate cafeterias create steady daily cashflow• Turning one client into long-term institutional contracts• Starting a business young and scaling through real hustle

What if the reason your business feels stuck isn’t strategy —but mindset?

In this Minisode, Yvonne breaks down Outwitting the Devil by Napoleon Hill — the one book she believes every entrepreneur must read.

This episode explores how fear, drifting, habits, and lack of purpose quietly control founders and keep businesses stagnant. Framed as a psychological conversation, the book reveals how most people operate on autopilot — and how founders can reclaim control of their minds, decisions, and direction.

In this episode, we cover:

• Drifting vs intentional leadership

• How fear shows up in business decisions

• Definiteness of purpose and why it makes founders “unownable”

• The power of habits and hypnotic rhythm

• How environment shapes your growth

• Why mastering your mind comes before scaling your business

This isn’t motivation — it’s mental discipline.

Just because an idea didn’t make money doesn’t mean it failed.In this minisode , we unpack why founders often label ideas as “failures” too quickly and how that mindset can cost you valuable insight, growth, and momentum.We talk about:Why failure feels personal (and why it shouldn’t)How to reframe “failed” ideas What to audit after an idea doesn’t perform financiallyWhy money is not the only metric of successFamous brands that launched flops — and what those flops becameFrom Apple and Amazon to Coca-Cola and Dyson, this episode reminds you that every idea can give you data, clarity and direction only if you’re willing to look closely.This one is for founders who’ve tried something, paused it, or walked away wondering if it was all a waste.

Delegation sounds great in theory… but in practice? It can be terrifying especially when it comes to the big things.In this Minisode of Founder Diaries, Yvonne shares her personal journey with delegation …from doing everything herself , to slowly handing over responsibilities, to finally bringing in management-level support.We talk about: •Why founders cling to control (even when it’s hurting the business) •The hidden cost of staying in “busy work” •Delegating before you feel ready •Why hiring an Operations Manager changed everything •How delegation creates space for growth, strategy and clarity

In this minsode of Founder Diaries, we’re unpacking something most founders never stop to define …your job description as the founder or CEO.So many of us struggle with focus, delegation, and time management not because we’re lazy or disorganised, but because we’ve never clearly defined what our role actually is in the business.We talk about: •Why founders end up doing everyone else’s job •How not having a JD creates confusion, burnout, and poor delegation •How to draft your own founder JD based on your strengths, vision, and impact •Using SMART goals to objectively measure your performance •Protecting your time once tasks are delegated •What not to include in your founder JDPlus, we share a practical framework (and a real example) to help you get started.This episode is for founders who want clarity, better use of their time, and a more intentional way of showing up in their business.Partner: Digitax — your tax assistant in your pocket

In today’s episode of Founder Diaries, we sit down with Murugi Munyi for a conversation that goes beyond content creation…the space most of us know her for.

Murugi shares her journey of starting her first business while still in university, navigating entrepreneurship as a young mum, and growing into a founder who has built multiple businesses over time.

We talk about starting before you feel ready, evolving through different seasons of life and what it really takes to keep building

This episode is for anyone building, pivoting, restarting, or figuring things out as they go.

In today’s episode, Yvonne shares 6 lessons from 6 years in business…From hiring and money to boundaries, self-awareness and trusting your instincts, this episode is a reflection on what it really takes to build and sustain a business over time.If you’re building something of your own, or thinking about it …this one’s for you.

In this episode, we’re talking about overplanning and why it’s quietly holding you back.

Planning feels productive because it’s safe. You get to keep the idea in your head without exposing it to the world. But real clarity doesn’t come from thinking, it comes from moving.

In this episode, I share:

•Why money loves speed

•How getting the first ball in motion forces execution

•Why you don’t need the full plan to start

•How I finally launched this podcast without having everything figured out

• Simple habits to move from planning into action

If you’ve been waiting for the “perfect strategy,” this episode is your sign to start now…refine later.

In this episode, we talk about why founders struggle to trust their own decisions, and how constantly seeking validation slows down execution, growth and impact.If you were given responsibility early in life, you might feel the need to overthink every move, ask multiple people for approval, or wait until something feels “perfect” before acting. But the truth is, clarity often comes after action.We explore:Why founders seek validation before making decisionsHow outsourcing responsibility protects you emotionally but costs you speedWhy money loves speed, not perfectionReal examples of founders who made “crazy” decisions that paid offHow trusting yourself helps you move faster and build with confidenceThis episode is a reminder that not everyone will understand your vision and that’s okay. Some ideas only make sense after they work.

In Minisode 7 of Founder Diaries, Yvonne shares why going to therapy is not a weakness…it’s a leadership tool

Unhealed trauma shows up in how we lead, delegate, price, overwork, avoid hard conversations and even burn out.

You don’t leave your past at the door when you build a business

In this episode, Yvonne sits down with Robert, an executive leadership coach and entrepreneur trainer (also known as The Business Therapist) for a deep and honest conversation about burnout, pressure, identity, and what it really costs to “hold it all together especially as a female entrepreneur/founder.

This episode goes beyond business tactics and zooms in on the person behind the business …because you are the biggest asset your business has.

Robert unpacks:

•Why burnout isn’t just about exhaustion, but loss of control

•The hidden pressures many entrepreneurs carry (especially those juggling multiple roles)

•Why working harder doesn’t always mean working better

•The difference between time management and priority setting

•How constantly giving without recharging leads to breakdown, not breakthrough

Minisode 6 of the Founder Diaries, Yvonne shares why working longer hours doesn’t always lead to better results.

She breaks down the shift from being busy to being intentional and why clarity, decision-making, and systems matter more than constant hustle.

If you’ve been feeling stuck in overwork mode, this episode is a gentle but honest reset.

Let’s talk about our partners, DigiTax

As someone running a business, staying compliant shouldn’t be complicated…and that’s where DigiTax comes in.

DigiTax is an eTIMS invoicing platform that helps you issue, receive, and track all your tax invoices in one place, with ease.

With DigiTax, you can:

✅ Issue, receive, and track tax invoices in one place

✅ Access via web or Android app — no technical skills needed

✅ Get real-time tax reporting that syncs automatically with KRA

✅ Enjoy reliable customer support for setup and compliance

DigiTax makes eTIMS compliance simple, affordable, and stress-free.

📱 WhatsApp Support: 0112685368

🌐 Website: digitax.tech

This podcast has been proudly sponsored by Beauty Square Ke and Sage Sknn. Visit and patronize at beautysquareke.co and use the code FOUNDER10 for some coins off.

In this minisode, Yvonne shares her honest take on work-life balance, especially as a woman and a mother.She explores why balance often feels impossible and offers a more realistic approach: creating harmony by aligning your calendar with your values, roles and season of life.A grounding listen for founders juggling many responsibilities.

Watch on Youtube:

https://youtu.be/RouYAzRrqbM

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Tiktok: https:

//www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-93DygkaNo4C

Feeling overwhelmed at work or during a busy day?

In this minisode, Yvonne shares a simple, practical framework she uses to reset when everything feels urgent and overwhelming, especially on days filled with deadlines, interruptions and mental overload.

She walks you through:

•How to pause and re-center

•A simple way to organize your tasks

•How to plan your time more realistically so the day feels manageable again

A short listen you can return to whenever you need clarity and calm.

Watch on Youtube:

https://youtu.be/0x3B2lqbAHU

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Tiktok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-93DygkaNo4C

Welcome to Minisode 3 of the Founder Diaries Podcast.

In this episode, Yvonne dives into a tough but necessary conversation about overworking…and how many of us unknowingly tie our identity and self-worth to productivity, roles, and output.

She unpacks how long-term stress, early responsibility, work culture and capitalism condition us to feel “safe” only when we’re busy.

When rest, silence or slowness feels uncomfortable, it’s often because our nervous systems have become used to high alert which is a state known as hyperarousal.

In this minisode, Yvonne explores:

•How identity becomes entangled with work

•Why rest can feel unsafe or uncomfortable

•Signs your nervous system may be addicted to productivity

•How overworking can be a coping mechanism

•Why learning to not do is just as important as doing

This is a space to feel validated, comforted and gently challenged.

A reminder that you are not your work, not your output and not your productivity.

Youtube:

https://youtu.be/9mOBEkcykXMInstagram:

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Tiktok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-93DygkaNo4C

In this episode , we sit down with Charles, the founder of Royal Reel Photography and one behind the production of the Founder Diaries Podcast.Charles introduces himself as a visual strategist, someone who goes beyond photography and videography to intentionally create visuals that communicate meaning for brands and personal brands.

He shares how his journey didn’t begin with a polished plan or a grand vision, but as a hustle...assisting, carrying equipment, learning on the job and slowly building skill, confidence and clarity.Over time, that hustle grew into purpose and a deeper understanding of storytelling through visuals.In this episode, we talk about: • What it really means to be a visual strategist • Starting out with what you have and learning as you go • Turning a hustle into a sustainable creative business • Building a brand that communicates meaning through visuals • Finding your “why” as a founder and creativeThis conversation is honest, grounding and especially relatable for creatives, founders and anyone building from the ground up.Youtube:

https://youtu.be/9mOBEkcykXMInstagram:

https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Tiktok:

https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-93DygkaNo4C

In Minisode 2, Yvonne walks through a simple morning formula for a productive day...why avoiding social media first thing matters, how to ground yourself before the day begins and small habits that help you pour into yourself before giving to the world.

What’s Your Tip for Success? This is a Minisode segment of the Founder Diaries Podcast, where Yvonne shares hot takes, tips, tricks, and real experiences from the entrepreneur journey.

In this 1st minisode, Yvonne talks about her personal tips for success ... the lessons, mindset shifts, and practical tips that have guided her journey as a founder and entrepreneur.

An important plug:

We have to share about DigiTax, such an amazing platform, especially for small and medium businesses. It helps you:

- Raise and manage invoices easily

- Keep accurate records

-Stay compliant with tax requirements

- Manage multiple businesses under one account.

It’s a simple, reliable way to make invoicing and compliance much easier, a must-know for any entrepreneur!

Watch more minisodes and full episodes of the Founder Diaries Podcast on Youtube: https://youtu.be/JdPayTnUWA4

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In our very first episode of Founder Diaries Podcast with Yvonne Kanyi, we sit down with Victoria, a serial entrepreneur building and scaling multiple businesses in Kenya.

She shares her journey running a multi-branch spa VSPA Kenya, alongside her other ventures, Titi Kenya and Thao Tree and talks about how marketing strategy has been key to her growth. She also opens up about the realities of leading multiple ventures, the challenges of scaling and the lessons she’s learned along the way.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@founderdiariespodacst?si=JJAYjtB1vW5BlTfE

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/founderdiariespodcast?igsh=MTRxcnZjcm5zM3pwdg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@founder.diaries.po?_r=1&_t=ZS-9344MIiFFHp