Built Not Born In Business Podcast

Chris and Helen Butler

What if the difference between your business thriving and barely surviving isn't more capital, better timing, or a lucky break. Instead it’s the lessons you haven't learned yet from people who've already been exactly where you are? Every episode, we sit down with founders, investors and business leaders who've actually built something. The ones who've risked their own money, made tough calls, navigated failures and created businesses that endure and turnover millions. We talk about the decisions that kept them up at night. The pivots that worked. The mistakes that didn't. The moments when quitting looked easier than continuing. And the strategies, mindset shifts and lessons that made the difference between barely surviving and actually succeeding. If you're building a business, you'll hear stories that validate what you're going through and give you insight you can apply immediately. If you're thinking about starting, you'll get an honest view of what's actually involved and whether it's the right path for you. If you've been doing this a while, you'll find others who understand the pressure you carry and the vision that keeps you going. This is for the people building something meaningful. The ones willing to do what's difficult today for what matters tomorrow. The ones who understand that success comes from consistent execution, smart choices and pushing through when it gets uncomfortable. Built Not Born In Business Podcast. Every episode could save you years of trial and error. Subscribe now.

  1. 4d ago

    Should You Start a Business in 2026? Our Honest Answer

    Should you start a business in 2026? After 12 years running businesses together, Chris and Helen give their honest answer, and it’s not the one Chris was giving until recently. Costs are rising, taxes and minimum wage keep going up, and micro-businesses feel squeezed. At a recent London business event, two of the three audience questions were really the same one: when is the right time to start a business? This episode answers it. Chris and Helen talk openly about why they deliberately scaled their team back, why they’re happier for it, and why so many business owners feel ashamed to admit they’ve done the same. They challenge the idea that success means a huge team and a multi-million-pound exit, and they lay out a simpler way to work out what your business actually needs to give you. You’ll learn: Why there’s never a “right time” to start a business, and the better question to ask yourselfWhy turnover means almost nothing for most small businesses, and profit is what countsThe simple monthly numbers check every owner should do, and why leaving it to quarter-end or year-end is too lateHow Chris and Helen run a quarterly “what can we live without?” cost reviewHow to work out your own number: what you need to earn each year for the life you want, instead of betting everything on a saleWhy scaling back can be the smartest move you makeIf you’re thinking about starting a business, or you’re already running one and wondering what it’s all for, this one’s for you. 🎧 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/05AFjyKuRDHg7kYGozfvNP🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/built-not-born-in-business-podcast/id1707837047🌐 Episodes and guest profiles: https://builtnotborninbusiness.com💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-not-born-in-business-podcast/📸 Instagram: @built_not_born_in_business | TikTok: @built_not_born_podcast Subscribe for honest conversations with people who’ve built real businesses: what to copy, and what to avoid. Filmed and produced by Two Krakens: https://twokrakens.studio #StartABusiness #SmallBusinessUK #Entrepreneurship #BusinessPodcast #BuiltNotBorn

  2. Oct 9

    Why Mike Soutar Walked Away From a Guaranteed £1M Bonus

    Why Mike Soutar Walked Away From a Guaranteed £1M Bonus The Apprentice interviewer Mike Soutar reveals why so many candidates fail Lord Sugar's interviews, and the business lessons behind 14 series in the interview room. Before The Apprentice, Mike wrote horoscopes at 17, became editor of Smash Hits at 23, grew FHM from 35,000 to half a million copies in three years, and then walked away from a guaranteed £1 million bonus in New York. He went on to raise £4 million to launch Shortlist Media, built it to around 250 people and sold it eight years later. In this episode of Built Not Born in Business, Mike shares what he has learned about leadership, investment and building a business that's ready to sell, including why he walked away from a guaranteed £1 million bonus to take a bigger leap. You'll learn: What really happens in The Apprentice interview room, and the one question that makes candidates crackHow he grew FHM from 35,000 to 500,000 copiesThe billionaire’s call that took him to New York to run MaximWhy he walked away from a guaranteed £1M bonusHow to raise investment, and what changes when you have shareholdersHow to build a business that's ready for due diligence and an exitWhy asking for help is the hardest thing in businessIs AI making us stupid? A leader's viewStrategy vs tactics: the two-page lesson that makes leadership easier Mike's book, Next Gen CEO: 60 Lessons in Leadership for an Uncertain World, is for leaders facing AI, a new generation of workers and a changing world, and for the emerging leaders coming up behind them. Get Next Gen CEO: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Next-Gen-CEO-Essential-Apprentice/dp/B0GJT3218K Free workbooks and blueprints: https://builtnotborninbusiness.com/podcast/episodes/ Subscribe for weekly conversations with founders who've built it, not been born into it. #TheApprentice #LordSugar #MikeSoutar #BusinessPodcast #Leadership

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What if the difference between your business thriving and barely surviving isn't more capital, better timing, or a lucky break. Instead it’s the lessons you haven't learned yet from people who've already been exactly where you are? Every episode, we sit down with founders, investors and business leaders who've actually built something. The ones who've risked their own money, made tough calls, navigated failures and created businesses that endure and turnover millions. We talk about the decisions that kept them up at night. The pivots that worked. The mistakes that didn't. The moments when quitting looked easier than continuing. And the strategies, mindset shifts and lessons that made the difference between barely surviving and actually succeeding. If you're building a business, you'll hear stories that validate what you're going through and give you insight you can apply immediately. If you're thinking about starting, you'll get an honest view of what's actually involved and whether it's the right path for you. If you've been doing this a while, you'll find others who understand the pressure you carry and the vision that keeps you going. This is for the people building something meaningful. The ones willing to do what's difficult today for what matters tomorrow. The ones who understand that success comes from consistent execution, smart choices and pushing through when it gets uncomfortable. Built Not Born In Business Podcast. Every episode could save you years of trial and error. Subscribe now.