Delusional

Sammy Kennedy
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Weekly

Every founder is called delusional before they're called successful. The world has never been changed by people who thought realistically. Every breakthrough, category-defining business and industry leader was once dismissed as too ambitious, too risky or completely delusional. DELUSIONAL is where entrepreneurs, founders, creators and high performers come to challenge conventional thinking and hear the conversations most people never get access to. Hosted by Sammy Kennedy, each episode goes beyond the highlight reel to uncover the decisions, failures, mindset and strategies behind people building extraordinary businesses and lives. From multi-million-dollar founders to industry disruptors, you'll discover what it really takes to create something that everyone else thought was impossible. This isn't motivation. It's the blueprint for thinking bigger, leading differently and building a life most people will never have the courage to pursue. If people aren't questioning your vision... You probably aren't thinking big enough. New episodes every Monday. Welcome to DELUSIONAL. Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial/ https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ Email hello@sammykennedy.com.au

  1. 12h ago

    From Business Failures to Building Our Dream: The Wild West Bowling Story with Tom Kennedy (Part 2)

    Send us Fan Mail Our first rodeo lost around $90,000. By the fifth, 5,000 people were singing Sweet Caroline in the stands. The biggest change? We moved the date. This is part two of our family business story with my dad, Tom Kennedy. We pick up after the go-karts and take you through six rodeos, a music festival, and the build of Wild West Bowling: a $1.2 million building we signed for with no finance in place, holding costs of around 20 grand a month, and the 87-year-old businessman who stepped in when we needed it most. It's the turnaround, the people who believed in us, and what we finally learned about working smarter, not just harder. WE GET INTO: → The mentor who told Dad to shut down his own event because nobody was at the bar → Why we refused to sell our last muscle car and paid off every creditor instead → How a trip to the library uncovered the date that made our rodeo work → How rodeo profits paid for our bowling lanes and the deposit on the new building → Holding costs, private loans and the months when $50,000 felt like a $5 note → The day Dad's spending had to be approved by "the Board" → Our rough opening, the one-star reviews, and the pizza complaint we learned from → Why we're still $2.8 million in debt, and why it's 100% worth it If you're in the middle of a build that's taking everything you've got, listen to this one. And if you haven't heard part one yet, start there. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Part two: where we left off 00:04:00 Bruce arrives, and the rodeo idea 00:07:00 Losing $90K on the first rodeo 00:10:00 The mentor who said shut it down 00:13:00 Don't sell the Torana 00:17:00 Changing the date changed everything 00:25:00 How the rodeos funded the bowling alley 00:32:00 The final rodeo and music festival 00:43:00 Following the cars to a new site 00:48:00 Holding costs and buying time 00:56:00 Brian Hammer steps in 01:02:00 Mike quits FIFO to help finish the build 01:09:00 A rough opening and learning from feedback 01:20:00 $2.8 million in debt, and worth it 01:23:00 Dad's advice: make sure the idea is good If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    From Business Failures to Building Our Dream: The Wild West Bowling Story with Tom Kennedy (Part 2)

  2. Oct 25

    The Expensive Reality of Turning Your Passion Into a Business with Tom Kennedy

    Send us Fan Mail My dad once stood outside a half-million-dollar fit out he'd poured everything into, and watched a group of school kids glance at it and keep walking.  That's when he knew it wasn't going to work. This week my dad, Tom Kennedy, joins me for part one of our family business story. Before Wild West Bowling, there was a film he never made, an arcade business, a racing simulator shop in two shopping centres, a partnership that fell apart, go-karts and a drive-in cinema he had to get certified in three days. It's honest, funny and a little painful: what happens when passion overclouds your judgement, and the lessons we only learned by living through it together. WE GET INTO: → Why Dad walked away from making a film because he was scared of the debt → Buying Southwest Amusement with vendor finance, and why businesses where machines do the work appealed to him → Cutting up a brand-new $9,000 arcade game to build our first motion simulator → Why opening in a shopping centre that couldn't trade on Sundays or long weekends was "the dumbest move" → How a Scoopon deal brought in our worst customers → Running a partnership on word of mouth, with nothing written down → Why Dad's only business partners now are Mum and us kids → The difference it makes when the whole family is on board, not dragged along If you've ever backed an idea with everything you've got and watched it fall flat, this one's for you. Part two, and the turnaround, is coming next week. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Welcome, Dad 00:01:00 Growing up near the beach 00:03:00 The film he never made 00:15:00 Buying Southwest Amusement 00:18:00 Letting the machines do the work 00:21:00 Cutting up a $9,000 game to build Simworld 00:26:00 Why the shopping centre was the dumbest move 00:28:00 The Westfield dream 00:35:00 The Scoopon mistake 00:43:00 A partnership with nothing in writing 00:46:00 Go-karts and winter rent 00:54:00 The drive-in and three days to get it certified 00:59:00 Doing it all as a family 01:08:00 What a $20 day taught me 01:11:00 Bringing everyone on board If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    The Expensive Reality of Turning Your Passion Into a Business with Tom Kennedy

  3. Oct 18

    The Story Behind My “Overnight Success” (18 Years of Failure)

    Send us Fan Mail I used to work 12-hour days at the family bowling alley for a $20 note. Some days we only had three customers. Now we have $15,000 days. This is my story, and for the first time I'm not telling it alone. Alyce Swarts takes the host's chair to take me back through two decades in my family's businesses, from arcade machines to $800,000 of debt to rodeos and a new bowling alley, plus everything I've built on my own: a booked-out beauty salon, a course, business coaching, watch clients and this podcast. It's the highs, the lows and the lessons I'd want any founder to hear before they bet on themselves. We also talk about something I'm building now: the DELUSIONAL Founders Dinner Series. I know what it's like to have big ambitions and not always have people around you who understand them. These dinners are about bringing ambitious founders and business owners together for real conversations, new connections and a room full of people who are building something of their own. Want to be considered for an upcoming founders dinner? Apply here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfC8Hb6yLQKYzrp5CTbs-pf7kBfY3GkSIEOIrC7aTcc6Pryhw/viewform We get into: → How our first two rodeos lost $80K and $60K, and how the later ones helped fund a new bowling alley → Why our venue now makes in one to two months what the old one made in a year → How Bruce the bull went viral after eight years of daily posting → The copywriting shift that had me booked out at 18 → Getting paid $1,000 instead of $150 for the exact same skill → What my watch clients taught me about who really has money → Why I master one missing skill every year, and how I made over $100K in my first year of business coaching at 18 → Why I'm creating the DELUSIONAL Founders Dinner Series and bringing ambitious business owners into the same room If you've ever played down your achievements, or felt like the only one in the room who's betting on yourself, this one's for you. And if you're looking for more people who understand what you're building, I'd love for you to apply to be considered for one of our founders dinners. Chapters: 00:00:00 Welcome, and why Alyce is hosting 00:03:00 Eight family businesses and $800K of debt 00:15:00 The visionary, the executor and the strategist 00:19:00 Bruce the bull: eight years before going viral 00:24:00 500K in 14 weeks at the new bowling alley 00:27:00 Burnout, and coming back to bowling 00:31:00 Booked out at 18 00:37:00 A cancelled degree and a course launch 00:41:00 Same skill, 10 times the price 00:50:00 Who really has money 01:02:00 Mastering one missing skill every year 01:10:00 DELUSIONAL Founders Dinner Series 01:17:00 My most delusional move 01:23:00 Give yourself a decade 01:29:00 Why Delusional, and why now Apply for the DELUSIONAL Founders Dinner Series: We're bringing ambitious founders and business owners together around the dinner table. If you'd like to be considered for an upcoming dinner, submit your application below. → https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfC8Hb6yLQKYzrp5CTbs-pf7kBfY3GkSIEOIrC7aTcc6Pryhw/viewform If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

  4. Oct 11

    Your Brain Doesn't Want You to Be Rich with Alyce Swarts

    Send us Fan Mail Your mind only cares about keeping you safe. It doesn't care whether you're rich. So if you want a big life, you're going to have to work against your own wiring. Alyce Swarts is an entrepreneur, speaker and mentor who works with ambitious women and female founders on the internal side of business, the subconscious, nervous system, beliefs and identity behind the person executing the strategy.  She studied interior design architecture, landed her dream job at a prestige Perth building company, and quit a month later to start her own female wellness events brand. This conversation is about why strategy alone isn't enough, why you procrastinate, and what it actually takes to become the version of you who already has the business you want. WE GET INTO: → Why Alyce believes procrastination and self-sabotage are really you going against your identity → Her "two lists" method for big goals, so your brain sees proof it's working → Why your current reality is the result of who you were three months ago → The hourly alarm exercise that shows you what your mind is really thinking → How Sammy asked "how would a multi-seven-figure owner show up?" when relaunching the bowling alley → Why Alyce's first retreat sold out when she was told it was too risky → Emotional discipline: feel it, then come back to the business → Why she calls social media "service media" If you've done all the strategy and still feel stuck, this one is for you. Alyce is blunt, and that's exactly why it lands. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Cold open and welcome 00:01:00 Who Alyce is and the work she does 00:03:00 Quitting her dream job after a month 00:04:00 Starting Aligned Wellness 00:07:00 Why procrastination is an identity problem 00:10:00 Getting specific about the life you want 00:16:00 Give more than you take 00:19:00 Pay yourself and stack your wins 00:29:00 Two lists for big goals 00:31:00 The crumble before the quantum leap 00:34:00 Acting as the person who's already there 00:36:00 The hourly identity check 00:41:00 Emotional discipline in business 00:44:00 Slow mornings and gratitude 00:55:00 Your reality is your identity from three months ago 00:56:00 Selling out the first retreat 01:21:00 Assume it will land with the right people 01:23:00 Social media is service media Alyce Swarts: https://www.instagram.com/iamalyceswarts/ If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    Your Brain Doesn't Want You to Be Rich with Alyce Swarts

  5. Oct 4

    "You Can't Build Six Brands in One Day." She Did It Anyway with Cass Emmerson

    Send us Fan Mail Brand strategists slid into Cass Emmerson’s DMs to tell her it was impossible to build six brands in one room, in one day. She's now done it around eight times. Cass left a high-powered corporate career in her 40s to build a brand consultancy - and refused to wait three years to start travelling. I've known her for about six years and watched her build her business her own way, often against the advice of the coaches around her. This conversation is about what brand actually is (hint: it isn't your logo), why it should come before your offers, and how getting clear on what you value makes every business decision easier. WE GET INTO: → How Cass signed contracts before resigning so she started with 10K months already locked in → Her year-by-year plan: brand management, then consultancy, then one-to-many → Why she capped her business at 30 people — and how that gets her to 50K months → Her four pillars of brand: purpose, positioning, personality and picture → The client who discovered her $6,000 offer meant she only needed four clients a month — and closed everything else → Why your offers will change, but your brand shouldn't → The real difference between a refresh and a rebrand → Why she paid $1,200 for a venue when she was told to book a $500 one If you've ever felt like your business looks like everyone else's, or you're chasing a number that doesn't match the life you want, this one will make you rethink both. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 Cold open 00:02:00 Welcome Cass, and building the parachute on the way down 00:04:00 Locking in 10K months before leaving corporate 00:07:00 The five-year plan: management, consultancy, one-to-many 00:08:00 Six brands in one day 00:12:00 Saying no to advice that doesn't fit your life 00:15:00 How much do you actually need to earn? 00:19:00 30 clients and 50K months 00:22:00 What most founders miss about brand 00:24:00 The four pillars of brand 00:27:00 Finding your point of difference 00:39:00 Start with your why 00:42:00 Brand or product first? 01:03:00 Refresh vs rebrand 01:06:00 Build for where you're going 01:15:00 Community and the offline trend 01:17:00 Permission to do it your way Cass Emmerson: https://emmersyn.com.au/about/ https://www.instagram.com/emmersyn_brandstrategy/ If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    "You Can't Build Six Brands in One Day." She Did It Anyway with Cass Emmerson

  6. Sep 27

    From Selling His House to Selling His Company with Craig Joel

    Send us Fan Mail What would make you sell your house and put the money into a business you weren’t even sure would work?  For Craig Joel, part of the answer was being naive enough not to fully understand how hard it was going to be.   Craig is the founder and CEO of Now Book It, but his story started long before software.  He bought his first restaurant at 24, learned some brutal lessons about tax, numbers and running a business, then spent years inside hospitality before spotting a problem restaurant owners kept complaining about. We talk about what happened when he put everything behind Now Book It, the moment COVID shut down virtually his entire customer base just as the company had finally become profitable, and how they went from signing roughly 150–160 restaurants a month pre-COVID to as many as 400–500 in some months afterwards.  Then we get into the part most founders barely think about until it’s happening: selling the business. We get into: → Why Craig believes hospitality, financial and marketing acumen are the three skills that can make or break a hospitality business → How listening to restaurant owners complaining about booking fees and losing control of their customer data became the opportunity behind Now Book It → The roughly $600,000 initial software build, why Craig sold his house to protect his equity, and why he says knowing what he knows now might have stopped him doing it → Going from finally reaching profitability to watching COVID shut down the restaurant industry, then building a takeaway solution in four days → How Now Book It jumped from around 150–160 new restaurants a month pre-COVID to 400–500 in some of its biggest months → Why AI makes software dramatically easier to build, but relationships, integrations, distribution and customer understanding create the real moat → What Craig learned selling Now Book It, including EBITDA, revenue multiples, earnouts and why you need to know your numbers before talking to a buyer → Why the highest offer isn’t necessarily the right exit when your team, your role and what happens to the business afterwards actually matter You can spend years obsessing over how to start and grow a business without ever thinking seriously about how you’ll eventually leave it. Craig has lived both sides, including what happens when the founder sells but isn’t actually ready to walk away. Chapters: 0:00 Meet Craig Joel, founder of Now Book It 1:00 Selling the house and going all in 3:00 Starting in hospitality at 16 6:00 Buying a restaurant at 24 10:00 The three types of acumen business owners need 14:00 Finding the problem that became Now Book It 17:00 Finally profitable… then COVID hit 22:00 Why human customer service still matters 23:00 The $600,000 build and bootstrapping Now Book It 28:00 AI has changed the cost of building software 33:00 The booking fee problem Craig wanted to fix 38:00 Pricing Now Book It and investing in AI 45:00 What breaks when a business scales 49:00 Selling the business without planning to sell 57:00 Valuations, EBITDA, multiples and preparing to exit 1:00:00 Why Craig stayed after selling 1:16:00 Craig’s advice for founders considering an exit If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    From Selling His House to Selling His Company with Craig Joel

  7. Sep 20

    Why Profitable Businesses Still Go Broke with Cameron Tilly

    Send us Fan Mail The difference between debt that grows your business and debt that quietly destroys it often comes down to one thing: whether you actually understand the numbers before you sign.  Cameron Tilley has been our finance broker for almost two decades, which means he’s had a front-row seat to some of the Kennedy family’s more delusional business decisions. He’s also seen businesses across countless industries borrow, expand, refinance, struggle and grow. We get into the side of business finance most owners only learn once it hurts: why profit doesn’t necessarily mean you have cash, how banks actually assess your business, when debt makes sense, what being overleveraged really looks like and why getting the right advice before you need money can completely change your options. We get into: → Why Cameron believes even a 10% profit margin can be cutting it skinny when things go wrong → How a business can report a $400,000 net profit and still end up bankrupt because of cash flow → The numbers behind our bowling alley, from almost running out of money during the fit-out to getting finance moving after just nine months of trading → Good debt vs bad debt, and why an income-producing asset is very different from buying something because you want it → How leverage changes across houses, commercial property, business assets and specialised assets like a bowling alley → Why going straight to your bank can limit your options, and Cameron’s explanation of what a finance broker actually does → The cash flow system we’re building around weekly breakevens, separate bank accounts, tax, buffers and seasonal revenue → Interest rates, refinancing, fixed vs variable debt and why flexibility can matter just as much as getting the lowest rate If you’re building something ambitious and debt is part of the plan, this conversation will make you think much harder about what you borrow, what you buy and whether your cash flow can actually carry it. Chapters: 0:00 Meet Cameron Tilley  3:00 The most “delusional” businesses Cameron has financed  5:00 Credit card surcharges and hidden business costs  8:00 How much financial buffer does a business need?  11:00 Building the right professional team around your business  15:00 Profit margins across different industries  20:00 What a finance broker actually does  23:00 When should a business refinance its debt?  26:00 Why profit and cash flow are not the same thing  32:00 Arcade or hospitality venue? Our real expansion dilemma  34:00 How to know when you’re overleveraged  36:00 Good debt vs bad debt  41:00 How banks assess business owners and ABN history  44:00 Finance broker vs going straight to the bank  47:00 Building a better cash flow system  53:00 Using seasonality to plan your marketing and revenue  56:00 What interest rate rises mean for small businesses  59:00 Fixed vs variable debt when you’re still growing  1:01:00 Restructuring, tax changes and protecting your exit  1:08:00 Submarines, planes and Cameron’s strangest finance requests Got a question about your own business right now? Drop it in the comments, I read every single one. If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

    Why Profitable Businesses Still Go Broke with Cameron Tilly

  8. Sep 12

    Why It's Harder to Sell in 2026 (And What's Actually Changed) Part 2

    Send us Fan Mail What actually keeps a business alive when customers are more cautious, cash flow is tighter, and “average” no longer cuts it? The answer isn’t simply more sales.  Five years ago, getting people to spend was easier. In 2026, customers are researching more, comparing harder and asking whether what you sell is genuinely worth their money. In part two of this series, I’m breaking down what I believe business owners need to focus on now: protecting profit, building cash reserves, fixing unprofitable pricing, improving team productivity, controlling debt, sharpening your positioning and making it ridiculously easy for customers to buy. We get into: → Why knowing your weekly breakeven number changes the way you manage cash flow → The $10,000 cash buffer I struggled to build, and why automating savings finally made it happen → Why more sales can actually create more problems when your pricing isn’t profitable → What 50–60% staff capacity is telling you before you even think about hiring again → The danger of overleveraging, including $150,000 purchases that don’t have a clear path to ROI → Why lowering your prices when customers say “that’s expensive” can make the problem worse → How constant discounts train customers to wait instead of buy → Why “average” marketing, service and customer experience are becoming the danger zone in 2026 This is about building a business that can handle pressure without forcing you into reactive decisions, and becoming the business customers deliberately choose when they’re thinking harder about every dollar they spend. Chapters: 0:00 Why selling is harder in 2026: Part 2  1:45 Why profit has to come first  3:28 Work out your weekly breakeven  6:22 Building cash reserves before you feel ready  8:05 My $10,000 cash buffer  12:13 Reassessing pricing and operating costs  13:50 Fix productivity before hiring more staff  15:16 Turning fixed costs into variable costs  17:38 Debt, overleveraging and $150,000 purchases  20:03 Your brand needs a real point of difference  22:25 How consumer spending has changed since 2021  24:30 Why lowering your prices can backfire  26:12 Discounts can train customers not to buy  28:14 Why average is becoming the danger zone  29:21 Remove friction from the buying process  31:47 Give people something worth talking about If you have any questions about the episode, have a burning question you would like me to answer on the show, connect with me and the rest of our incredible community on Instagram: → https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ → https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial

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About

Every founder is called delusional before they're called successful. The world has never been changed by people who thought realistically. Every breakthrough, category-defining business and industry leader was once dismissed as too ambitious, too risky or completely delusional. DELUSIONAL is where entrepreneurs, founders, creators and high performers come to challenge conventional thinking and hear the conversations most people never get access to. Hosted by Sammy Kennedy, each episode goes beyond the highlight reel to uncover the decisions, failures, mindset and strategies behind people building extraordinary businesses and lives. From multi-million-dollar founders to industry disruptors, you'll discover what it really takes to create something that everyone else thought was impossible. This isn't motivation. It's the blueprint for thinking bigger, leading differently and building a life most people will never have the courage to pursue. If people aren't questioning your vision... You probably aren't thinking big enough. New episodes every Monday. Welcome to DELUSIONAL. Instagram https://www.instagram.com/sammykennedyofficial/ https://www.instagram.com/delusionalwithsammykennedy/ Email hello@sammykennedy.com.au

Information

  • Creator
    Sammy Kennedy
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    125
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Delusional
  • Show Website
    Delusional

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