Founder Fires

Iggy
  • 5.0 (1)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Founder Fires is for the builders, the risk-takers, and the ones figuring it out as they go. Hosted by Iggy Odighizuwa, this podcast is raw, real, and all about what it takes to build something big. There is no fluff, just straight-up lessons from the trenches, personal stories, hard truths, and conversations with other founders who are eating glass and still showing up. Whether knee-deep in your startup or still dreaming from the sidelines, this is your spot to learn, get inspired, and stay grounded in the chaos. Let's build, fire and all.

  1. Why I shut down my Million Dollar Fitness Business (The Truth About Sustainable Growth)

    12/03/2025

    Why I shut down my Million Dollar Fitness Business (The Truth About Sustainable Growth)

    I built a fitness business that did hundreds of sales a month. Then I shut it down. Here's why: we were essentially running a promotional company.  Zero recurring revenue. Zero resigns. We started from scratch every single month. Our sales team was crushing it, but our backend was a disaster.  Operations got so bloated that we needed those hundreds of sales just to cover payroll.  When I tried to fix it, the government wouldn't let us lay people off. So I shut the whole thing down. That failure taught me more about sustainable business than any success ever could. In this episode, I break down the exact mistakes that killed my fitness brand, why backend systems matter more than your ability to sell, and how to build a business that doesn't require you to hit massive numbers just to survive. If you're in coaching, service delivery, or any business that depends on constant sales to stay alive—watch this now.  The scars I earned shutting down a seven-figure brand could save you from making the same mistakes.

    10 min
  2. Founder Insecurity: How to Lead a Team When You Feel Unqualified (Imposter Syndrome)

    11/07/2025

    Founder Insecurity: How to Lead a Team When You Feel Unqualified (Imposter Syndrome)

    What do you do when you're leading a team, building something bigger than yourself, and you don't feel qualified to do any of it? I deal with this on a regular basis. I don't feel like I'm good enough to be building what we're building with Charlie.  I don't feel like I'm smart enough to lead the team, to guide them, to help them solve problems and grow to the level we need them to be for us to accomplish the vision we've been called to. Most founders hide their insecurities.  They put on a confident face. They fake it till they make it. But what if that feeling of being completely out of your depth isn't a bug—it's a feature? In this episode, I'm opening up about the most unexpected way to deal with founder insecurity: embracing it. Not as a weakness, but as the very reason I was called to build this in the first place. Over 10 years ago, my mentor read me 1 Corinthians 1:27—"God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise." Man, I was so offended. He looked at me and said, "God chose you because you are foolish." I was like, "No way. I'm an intelligent individual." And he said, "When you realize that God is calling you to do things because of the things you lack, not because of what you are, you're going to unlock your potential and see God work in ways you couldn't dream." It didn't hit me until today how powerful that was. There is not a single doubt in my mind that our progress is 1 million percent because God has filled in the gap.  So many times we've been staring down the barrel of a loaded gun, the trigger got pulled, and somehow we're still here.  How? That's God. One thousand percent. I don't pray for God to get rid of my insecurities or make me feel capable. I thank God that we're doing something I don't feel capable of doing.  Because when it's all said and done, all glory goes to Him. The reason we're innovating at the rate we're innovating is because I've been filling in the gap on my knees—praying and asking the Holy Spirit to move in ways that I can't. Don't let insecurity keep you from answering the call. When you answer it, you could be the answer to somebody else's prayers.  And what an honor it is to be building something that's become an answer to prayers with Charlie. This is exactly where God wants me to be. It's a dichotomy to manage and embrace, not get rid of. If you're feeling this way, give glory to God, lean into it, and go on your knees. Let Him fill in the gaps. Till next time, stay calm, change lives, and run that business on your service. Peace. 👉 Watch the full episode now and discover how to turn your biggest weakness into your unfair advantage as a founder. Like and subscribe if this resonates with you, and drop a comment sharing your own experience with founder insecurity.

    16 min
  3. From almost bankrupt to unbreakable: How founders adapt to extreme pressure | Founder Fires

    10/30/2025

    From almost bankrupt to unbreakable: How founders adapt to extreme pressure | Founder Fires

    Look, I'm not going to sugarcoat it - there was a season where I thought we were done. $250K in refunds in 45 days. Crypto losses that wiped us out.  A lawsuit that drained us dry.  I had to let go of 5 people because we couldn't make payroll 60 days out.  Every morning I woke up feeling absolutely cooked. But here's what nobody tells you about those moments when your back's against the wall: that's when you're actually growing. My mentor used to pile so much work on my plate that I'd lose my mind.  One day I snapped. "Dude, why can't you ask somebody else to do this?" He just laughed and said, "Iggy, what's the best way to eat an elephant? One bite at a time.  And when everything on your plate is important, you can't take stuff off. You need to get a bigger plate." Get a bigger plate. That hit different. See, most people think stress and overwhelm are bad things. Something you need to avoid or fix.  But what if I told you that feeling stretched beyond your capacity is exactly where growth happens?  Your body adapts the same way muscles do - you push past what you think you can sustain, it tears a little, then it comes back stronger. The thing that got me through those brutal 45 days wasn't some complex strategy.  It was this: "Man, I can't wait to get on the other side of this so I can tell the story." Sounds sick and demented, right? But thinking about how I survived what felt unsurvivable actually got me excited to endure. And you know what? I didn't die.  My capacity for what I can handle turned out to be way higher than I thought.  Your nervous system adapts to the new standard. What used to feel impossible becomes just another day at the office. Most founders tap out right before the breakthrough. They exit the fire too soon because they can't take the heat.  But if you can train yourself to stay in the pocket just a little bit longer, to actually reframe overwhelm as your growth season, you become hard to kill in business. If you're a founder who feels like you're drowning right now, this episode will change how you see pressure forever.  Watch the full episode, subscribe to Founder Fires, and let's build you a bigger plate together.  Drop a comment and tell me what season you're in right now. Stay calm, change lives, do business on your terms.

    13 min
  4. How to Keep Your Head When Your Business Is Falling Apart | Founder Fires

    10/09/2025

    How to Keep Your Head When Your Business Is Falling Apart | Founder Fires

    As a founder, you're gonna get tested. You know that feeling when you're looking at your burn rate and realize you've got three months before you can't cover payroll?  Or when your best month suddenly looks like your worst, then flips to a record month in the same week? That's the chaos we live in. But here's what I've learned - the biggest threat isn't running out of cash. It's your own emotional volatility.  How you react under pressure. That's what'll get you. I've been in some wild situations that taught me how to stay levelheaded when everything's falling apart. Armed riots in Nigeria.  Life-threatening moments.  Business decisions with everything on the line.  And through it all, I learned something critical about keeping your head and making solid decisions when you're terrified. In this episode, I'm breaking down how I handle the chaos.  And I'm gonna be real - I don't know how people do this without God.  For me, He's been the ultimate hack for staying calm and showing up with courage when I'm scared out of my mind. If you're in the pressure cooker right now, this one's for you. Watch the full episode of this Founder Fires episode. You need this.

    12 min
  5. The Divine Flywheel: How $350K in Refunds Became My Greatest Business Investment

    09/23/2025

    The Divine Flywheel: How $350K in Refunds Became My Greatest Business Investment

    What's up, Founder Fires family! This episode is straight from the heart, and honestly, one of the hardest stories I've ever shared publicly. Back in 2023, I had to issue over $350,000 in refunds - money our business didn't even have. I'm talking about reaching into my own pocket to make things right with customers when our early product just wasn't delivering. It hurt. BAD. I'm staring into the abyss thinking, "I don't know how we're going to make it." But here's the thing - I knew I had to choose between protecting my reputation or protecting my bank account. And for me, that choice was clear. Fast forward to last week at an industry event, and I'm having complete strangers walk up to me with referrals from people I had to refund years ago. These "failed" customers became my biggest advocates, telling everyone they meet: "If it doesn't work, they'll take care of you. That's all I need to know." In this episode, I break down what I call the "Divine Flywheel" - this concept where giving freely allows you to receive abundantly, which increases your capacity to give even more. It's a game I play with God where I try to out-give Him, and He keeps raising the bar. If you're going through hell in your business right now because you're doing things the right way, this one's for you. Sometimes the most generous thing you can do is the thing that hurts the most - but I promise you, God repays integrity tenfold. Let's dive in. Stay calm, change lives, and do business on your terms. 🎬 Watch the full episode on my YouTube channel or listen on all podcast platforms!  Subscribe and share with a founder who needs this message. Let me know in the comments - what generous decision changed your business?

    13 min
  6. How I lost millions by not learning from my mistakes?

    09/10/2025

    How I lost millions by not learning from my mistakes?

    Look, I'm gonna be real with you. I've made some absolutely stupid business decisions. Like, embarrassingly dumb. The kind where you look back and think, "What the hell was I thinking?" I got burned. TWICE. Same exact situation, same red flags, same outcome. Ended up in lawsuits both times. Cost me millions of dollars. All because I didn't learn from the first time it happened. That's what I call "clinically dumb failure" - and if you're honest with yourself, you're probably doing it too. This episode is for you if: You keep having the same problems in your business You're tired of getting burned by the same type of people/situations You want to stop being a victim of your own patterns You're ready for some uncomfortable truth-telling I'm not here to sugarcoat anything. If you find my language offensive, you're probably not my people anyway.  But if you want real talk about how to stop being your own worst enemy in business, this is it. Your failures are trying to teach you something. The question is: are you finally ready to listen?   P.S Hit play, grab a notebook, and get ready to identify where YOU'RE exhibiting clinically dumb behavior in your business. Trust me, you'll find at least three areas. I guarantee it.   #FounderFires #BusinessTalks #Entrepreneurship #BusinessFailure #BusinessLessons #EntrepreneurMindset #FounderStruggles #BusinessStrategy

    15 min
  7. Why Doing Hard Stuff Now Pays Off?

    08/27/2025

    Why Doing Hard Stuff Now Pays Off?

    Welcome to Founder Fires.  I'm Iggy Odighizuwa, and this show is about one thing: Hard now, easy later.  Everybody wants the wins, the freedom, the highlight, but few are willing to face the hard work that actually creates those results. Here, I break down what "hard" really means. Because most of the time, what we call hard isn't hard at all; it's just sloppy decisions, bad systems, or a fear of doing what needs to be done.  Real hard is fighting for your life with malaria, almost getting kidnapped in a foreign country, or walking through dangerous streets at midnight just to make it home alive. I've lived that.  And I can tell you this…. business hard is nothing compared to survival hard. That's why I push you to face the real constraints in your business now instead of putting them off.  Because if you choose the hard now, you get the easy later. The pain will pass, but the beauty you build out of it will remain. 🔥 If you're serious about building something that lasts, tune in, get uncomfortable, and let's do the hard now. Watch the full episode now and don't forget to stay tuned to Founder Fires for more raw, unfiltered conversations about business, leadership, and life. 👉▶️ https://youtu.be/XodGN4-wSVs

    13 min

  8. 08/13/2025

    How I turned my worst season into my best

    There's a moment in every founder's journey when you realise the real obstacle isn't the market, your competitors, or even your product… it's you. For me, that moment came on a football field in high school, staring down a human tank. Literally. His name was Frank, and every time we collided, I walked away feeling smaller, weaker, and more frustrated. It was a mismatch, and deep down, I knew why my habits weren't matching my ambition. That off-season, I made a decision: I wasn't going to be the same person when we lined up again. I trained four to five times a day, fixed my nutrition, and built the discipline I'd been avoiding. When the next season came, I hit Frank so hard he flew back ten yards. That moment wasn't just a win; it was proof that the unseen work pays off. Business is no different. You say you want explosive growth, but are your habits, your discipline, and your character strong enough to hold it when it comes?  True growth happens before the world notices, when you're fixing the weak spots no one sees and doing the work that doesn't get applause. In this episode, I share how to identify the "Franks" in your life and business, confront the habits betraying your vision, and put in the kind of work that makes you ready for success before it arrives.  Because before God grows your business, He grows you. If you're ready to stop chasing growth you're not prepared for and start building the discipline to handle it, watch the latest episode of the Founder Fires..  This newest episode will challenge, push, and give you the clarity to do the work that matters, before success shows up.

    16 min
See All (20)

About

Founder Fires is for the builders, the risk-takers, and the ones figuring it out as they go. Hosted by Iggy Odighizuwa, this podcast is raw, real, and all about what it takes to build something big. There is no fluff, just straight-up lessons from the trenches, personal stories, hard truths, and conversations with other founders who are eating glass and still showing up. Whether knee-deep in your startup or still dreaming from the sidelines, this is your spot to learn, get inspired, and stay grounded in the chaos. Let's build, fire and all.

Information

  • Creator
    Iggy
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    20
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Founder Fires