Dear Founder

Mario Cedillo
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Dear Founder is a podcast for the ones who walked away from certainty and chose the unknown. This isn’t about hype, exits, or highlight reels. It’s about the decision—the quiet moment when you let go of the predictable paycheck and step into uncertainty for the people you love and the future only you can see. Built on real stories from ordinary people who showed up scared and kept going, Dear Founder is a home for the becoming. Not the arrival—but the leap. If you’re in that season, you’re not behind. You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. Welcome home.

Episodes

  1. From Divorced & Bankrupt to Married & Thriving: What Nobody Tells You About Starting Over

    Apr 29

    From Divorced & Bankrupt to Married & Thriving: What Nobody Tells You About Starting Over

    Want to grow your YouTube channel without doing all the heavy lifting? Galera Media handles everything from strategy to distribution. Book a call and let’s scale your reach: https://galeramedia.com/Try a bag from Dear Founder's exclusive roaster at: https://lvl3coffee.com/discount/DF10From Divorced & Bankrupt to Married & Thriving: What Nobody Tells You About Starting OverShe trusted her best friend of 18 years with her life savings — and watched her walk out the door with the entire staff behind her. Misty Don Smith put herself through cosmetology school pregnant with her third child, survived two divorces while raising four kids alone, built her clientele from scratch, bought the salon she always dreamed of owning, and lost it all to bankruptcy when the financials turned out to be a lie — then rebuilt everything without looking back once. This is what starting over actually looks like.

    1h 5m
  2. He Almost Died, Lost Everything—THEN DID THIS To Prove Them Wrong | Ep. 006

    Apr 21

    He Almost Died, Lost Everything—THEN DID THIS To Prove Them Wrong | Ep. 006

    Want to grow your YouTube channel without doing all the heavy lifting? Galera Media handles everything from strategy to distribution. Book a call and let’s scale your reach: https://galeramedia.com/Try a bag from Dear Founder's exclusive roaster at: https://lvl3coffee.com/discount/DF10He Almost Died, Lost Everything—THEN DID THIS To Prove Them Wrong | Ep. 006Almost died. Lost two grandparents. Got screwed by business partners. Then a stranger in Walmart changed everything. Lee Pelmore went from a town of 1,600 people to building multiple businesses, getting knocked down every time, and getting back up anyway. This is what founder grit actually looks like.

    1h 10m
  3. No Victim Mindset: Turning Poverty & Abuse Into Success in Marriage & Business | Ep. 005

    Mar 31

    No Victim Mindset: Turning Poverty & Abuse Into Success in Marriage & Business | Ep. 005

    Want to grow your YouTube channel without doing all the heavy lifting? Galera Media handles everything from strategy to distribution. Book a call and let’s scale your reach: https://galeramedia.com/Try a bag from Dear Founder's exclusive roaster at: https://lvl3coffee.com/discount/DF10No Victim Mindset: Turning Poverty & Abuse Into Success in Marriage & Business | Ep. 005He was beaten as a child. She was working at 12. Today they’ve built a life most people will never understand.In this episode of Dear Founder, I sit down with Moses and Janet, an incredible husband and wife duo whose story is as raw as it is inspiring. Janet grew up in Dallas to immigrant parents from Mexico and started working at just 12 years old to help keep the lights on, later working at McDonald’s at 15 with a deep conviction that her future would look different. Moses faced a much darker upbringing, enduring physical abuse from his father before being taken in by his uncle, where he would eventually meet Janet. Together, we dive into the unfiltered reality of their journey, the trauma, the pressure, the setbacks, and the grit it took to break cycles and build a thriving business in the financial services industry. This isn’t the polished version of success, it’s the truth behind it.

    1h 6m
  4. From Marine to Millionaire: How a Small-Town Arkansas Kid Built a Business Empire | Ep. 004

    Mar 24

    From Marine to Millionaire: How a Small-Town Arkansas Kid Built a Business Empire | Ep. 004

    Want to grow your YouTube channel without doing all the heavy lifting? Galera Media handles everything from strategy to distribution. Book a call and let’s scale your reach: https://galeramedia.com/Try a bag from Dear Founder's exclusive roaster at: https://lvl3coffee.com/discount/DF10In this episode of Dear Founder, Nate Roberts opens up about the moments that shaped him—from the Marine Corps breaking him down to the moment he hit rock bottom… and the hard truths that forced him to become who he was always meant to be. We talk about pain, identity, fatherhood, business, burnout, and what it really takes to build something that lasts.

    1h 29m
  5. Pyramid Scheme or Ethical Selling? - How to Get RICH with an MLM | Ep. 003

    Mar 18

    Pyramid Scheme or Ethical Selling? - How to Get RICH with an MLM | Ep. 003

    What if everything you thought you knew about network marketing was wrong?Tristan Ghazal built real wealth through an industry most people write off in 5 seconds.We let him make his case. You can decide for yourself.

    1h 32m
  6. Ancient Spiritual Laws That Turn Ordinary People Into MILLIONAIRES

    Mar 10

    Ancient Spiritual Laws That Turn Ordinary People Into MILLIONAIRES

    In this episode of Dear Founder, I sit down with Joshua Tew to discuss the ancient spiritual laws that turn ordinary people into millionaires. Joshua grew up surrounded by violence. Four of the five guys he played backyard football with are now in prison for murder. After fights, jail time, and a turning point in his life, he chose a different path. We dive into the biblical principles, faith, and core values that transformed his life and helped him build real wealth through real estate.

    1h 48m
  7. The Hidden FAILURES of an Entrepreneur (This Is NOT The Highlight Reel) | Ep. 001

    Feb 24

    The Hidden FAILURES of an Entrepreneur (This Is NOT The Highlight Reel) | Ep. 001

    Want to grow your YouTube channel without doing all the heavy lifting? Galera Media handles everything from strategy to distribution. Book a call and let’s scale your reach: https://galeramedia.com/On this episode of Dear Founder, I sit down with Tomas Keenan — a guy who, by every outside metric, had it all. Multi-million dollar business. Beautiful family. The American dream. But behind the scenes? Infidelity. Addiction. Divorce. Lawsuits. Loss after loss.We don’t hold anything back in this conversation.We talk about what really happens when your foundation is built on things you never dealt with. We talk about uncomfortable truths. We talk about what it means to “get your house in order” — not just in business, but in life.If you’re a founder who feels like you’re carrying something no one else knows about… this one’s for you.

    1h 14m
  • 7 Episodes

About

Dear Founder is a podcast for the ones who walked away from certainty and chose the unknown. This isn’t about hype, exits, or highlight reels. It’s about the decision—the quiet moment when you let go of the predictable paycheck and step into uncertainty for the people you love and the future only you can see. Built on real stories from ordinary people who showed up scared and kept going, Dear Founder is a home for the becoming. Not the arrival—but the leap. If you’re in that season, you’re not behind. You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be. Welcome home.

Information

  • Creator
    Mario Cedillo
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    7
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Mario Cedillo
  • Show Website
    Dear Founder