Founders' Fears & Failures Dr. Melissa Parks

In this episode I’m excited to introduce you to Aaron Chatterly, an exited serial founder who, having sold his beauty retailer to Sephora in 2021, is living the dream so many founders aspire to when they start their companies. However,  in this episode we’re going to be talking not only about the highs, but also some of the lows he’s experienced along the way and what’s helped him stay optimistic and resilient through it all.

Aaron co-Founded beauty retailer feelunique in 2005. feelunique was Europe's leading premium online beauty retailer with 80,000 health and beauty products from over 900 major brands such as Chanel, Estee Lauder, bareMinerals, Dior, Clinique, Decléor, Benefit, YSL and Lancôme.

He led a partial sale of the business to Private Equity in 2012, and in September 2021 sold the company to LVMH/Sephora. Aaron has recently launched a new teen beauty brand called indu. He is also an independent Director of Nasdaq listed beauty acquisition company Waldencast, a non-Executive Director of Digital Jersey and an Ambassador for the Prince’s Trust Women Supporting Women. He was voted one of the 50 most powerful people in Online Retail for 2014 by Retail Week, IoD Director of the Year for a Large Organisation 2013 and finalist in the UK Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2012.

We cover a wide range of topics in this interview including how Aaron and his business partner broke into the competitive beauty industry, how he stays optimistic and resilient despite the inevitable challenges of entrepreneurship, and his experience of selling his company and the lessons he learned along the way.

We also explore some of the mental health challenges he’s faced, how he juggles family life alongside the demands of entrepreneurship, and how being a parent to twin teen girls inspired his next business venture.
Find Aaron online:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaronchatterley/LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/aaronchatterleyYou can learn more about Indu, Aaron’s recently launched teen beauty brand - http://www.indu.meConnect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/

Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if executive coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/
If you’d like additional support for your mental and emotional well-being as a founder please visit Melissa’s website for a list of resources to help you find a coach, therapist, or peer support.

Founders Taboo is a UK-based startup working to increase awareness, access, and affordability of support for startup founder mental health and well-being. They aim to solve the problem of founder well-being at scale in order to disrupt the entire startup ecosystem’s view on this topic. They’re building the world’s largest online community and resource hub offering psychoeducation, online support, and connections to providers specialized in offering treatment and crisis support specifically for founders. In addition to online offerings they also offer regular retreats for founders. All of this is available to founders at any stage, anywhere in the world, and you’ll find a link to join below.

With a track record in building world-class accelerators and applied academic research, Janos Barberis has seen first-hand how prioritising the health of the founder is critical to the performance, success and continuity of one’s venture. Janos has turned lived experience into pioneering a movement to build a healthier, more fruitful startup ecosystem with founder wellbeing, mental health and performance at the core.

With a background rooted in psychology, Annabelle works at the intersection of psychology, entrepreneurship and performance, and the relationships between these. Through the Founders Taboo movement, she is working to improve the provision of and access to wellbeing support for current and aspiring entrepreneurs. Collaborating with experts, researchers, and key ecosystem stakeholders, Annabelle and Founders Taboo are driving for a healthier, more sustainable startup ecosystem.

As you’ll hear Janos say in this interview “the world needs more entrepreneurship, not less.” However, we also need to ensure that founders are able to grow their businesses without harming their mental health and relationships, which is exactly what Founders Taboo is aiming to do.

In our conversation you’ll learn about Janos lived experience that inspired him to start Founders Taboo, Annabelle’s observations on the challenges faced by the founders supported by Founders Taboo, and the ambitious and inspiring ways in which Founders Taboo is working to support founders and shift the global conversation around founder mental health amongst all key players in the startup ecosystem.

Any founder can sign up to Founders Taboo, the free online community and resource-hub tailored to entrepreneur wellbeing. Registration form: https://airtable.com/shrg17RA65wjUBi5i

Find Annabelle, Janos, and Founders Taboo online:
Founders Taboo website: https://www.founderstaboo.comFounders Taboo on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/company/founders-tabooJanos on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/janosbarberis/Annabelle on LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/annabelle-cameron
Connect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if executive coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/
If you’d like additional support for your mental and emotional well-be

In this episode, I’m introducing you to an inspiring femtech founder, Olivia Ochowski. In a previous chapter, Olivia worked as personal trainer, women's health coach, and doula. Today, as the founder and CEO of Femtek, Olivia introduces the first Basal Body Ring designed for women's menstrual health; all while they sleep.
I absolutely loved Olivia’s story because it’s not the typical startup founder story, and it’s certainly not the typical story of a tech founder. Olivia’s entrepreneur story started as a personal trainer and owner of a gym which introduced her to a gap in the women’s health market, particularly in relation to cycle and body literacy.
In this episode we talk about the challenges Olivia has faced as a non-technical tech founder and how she’s overcome then, as well as how her years of working 1:1 with women gives her a competitive advantage. We also discussed the mistakes she’s made along the way, what she’d do differently if she could go back in time (and why she’s grateful this isn’t an option).
The podcast is shifting from weekly to biweekly episodes. You can expect new episodes on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month!
Find Olivia online:
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Femtek website: www.femtek.coOlivia’s website: http://www.oliviaorchowski.comOlivia’s instagram: http://www.instagram.com/theliftingdoulaFemtek instagram: http://www.instagram.com/fem.tekOlivia’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/olivia-orchowski/‌
Connect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if executive coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/

Your host, Melissa Parks, shares her reflections on the first 24 episodes of the Founders' Fears & Failures podcast. She shares some common themes guests have spoken about, lessons she’s learned as the host of this podcast, and a sneak peak at some of the guests to look forward to in future episodes.
The Founders' Fears & Failures podcast will be taking a short break in August 2023, but will be back on September 5, 2023 with more weekly episodes.
If you’re an ambitious entrepreneur who wants to take proactive action to care for your mental well-being, Melissa is accepting new 1:1 coaching clients starting in August 2023. She helps her clients to be successful and make an impact without burning out or damaging their relationships along the way. Her approach is unique to each client, and uses evidence based techniques to help improve their psychological flexibility so they can make better decisions, lead with greater emotional intelligence, and improve their ability to manage stressful situations.
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if coaching with her would be a good fit to work on improving your mental fitness and building emotional resilience: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/‌

Connect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/
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If you’d like additional support for your mental and emotional well-being as a founder please visit Melissa’s website for a list of resources to help you find a coach, therapist, or peer support.

This week on the show I’m introducing you to Mike Buonaiuto, exited founder and author of the recently released book, Founder Therapy.
Mike is a philanthropic business leader and performance coach, who founded, scaled and exited Shape History, the award-winning social impact agency. ​ He's currently a senior advisor; helping companies nurture their people, navigate growth and negotiate pivotal moments of transformation.
His book Founder Therapy was published June 2023 and explores why founders are more susceptible to anxiety, depression, and burnout. His TEDx talk, ‘No wonder people are quitting - business must do better’ was selected and featured by TED’s Editor picks. Mike supports Virgin Startup as their ‘Entrepreneur In Residence’ and NatWest’s Business Accelerator as their ‘Business Startup Coach.​’
In this conversation we explore Mike’s own journey as an entrepreneur, including an experience with burnout that almost cost him his life. We also discuss the inspiration behind writing his book, why its essential for founders to care about their own mental health, and that of their team, and how founders and leaders can innovate without burning out along the way.
TW: In this episode there’s a mention of suicidal ideation so please decide if this is the right episode for you or not.
FOUNDER THERAPY: 50 Lessons To Start, Scale & Sell Without Wounding Our Wellbeing. In partnership with NatWest, Unrest and Founders Taboo, Founder Therapy pulls together research from neuroscience, with experience from top-performing entrepreneurs, to present 50 lessons to start, scale, sell without wounding our wellbeing.
The book also presents the case for a proven link between effective stress-management and commercial success. It's specific, due to my background, in comms and marketing business, particularly scaling and selling an agency. The project is in response to research from UCSF, linking higher rates of mental health issues to success-driven entrepreneurship.
Learn more about Mike’s book here: https://www.mikebuonaiuto.com/founder-therapy
Get your copy of Mike’s book, “Founder Therapy” on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1781337985/
Learn more about Founders Taboo:
https://www.founderstaboo.com/
Find Mike online:
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Website: https://www.mikebuonaiuto.comInstagram: http://instagram.com/mike_shapes/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-buonaiuto/‌
Connect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/
‌
If you’d like additional support for your mental and emotional well-being as a founder please visit Melissa’s website for a list of resources to help you find a coach, therapist, or peer support.

Nearly 40% of entrepreneurs have one or more diagnosable mental health condition, 3% of entrepreneurs had made suicide attempts and 1.7% had a history of psychiatric hospitalization. It’s essential that we continue to destigmatize entrepreneur mental health vulnerabilities so that entrepreneurs feel less alone and that treatment options continue to grow.


This week on the show I’m honored to share with you my conversation with a leading researcher on the topic of entrepreneur mental health. Michael A. Freeman, M.D. is a psychiatrist, serial entrepreneur, entrepreneur mental health researcher, and founder of Econa. Econa is an entrepreneur mental health center of excellence that builds scalable mental health and wellbeing solutions for founders.


In this episode you’ll also learn that the very differences that make entrepreneurs more vulnerable to mental health challenges can also be part of their strengths, or according to Dr. Freeman, their “superpowers.” Caring for any mental health vulnerabilities is essential in order to ensure you can leverage these strengths and continue on in the marathon that is entrepreneur life.


In this conversation we cover a wide range of topics related to entrepreneur mental health including what makes the entrepreneur brain unique, for better or for worse, why having empirical research on entrepreneur mental health is so important for shifting the conversation in the larger startup ecosystem and allowing for the advancement of treatment options, and Dr. Freeman’s two step approach for entrepreneurs who want to make sure they’re prioritizing their own mental health and well-being.
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Find Dr. Freeman online:
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Econa website: http://www.econa.netLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelfreemanmd/‌
Connect with your host, Dr. Melissa Parks, elsewhere:
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissacparks/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/melissaparksphd
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/melissaparksphd/
Website: https://melissaparks.com/
Schedule a free 30 min. discovery call with Melissa to see if coaching with her would be a good fit: https://melissaparks.com/free-consultation-call/
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If you’d like additional support for your mental and emotional well-being as a founder please visit Melissa’s website for a list of resources to help you find a coach, therapist, or peer support.