In this episode, we explore what we truly want and how we often stand in our own way, covering the importance of clear goals, spotting self-sabotage, and building the self-awareness needed before attempting real change. We dig into our work with founder-dependent companies and the shift from founder-led to team-driven structures, sharing a personal story of rebuilding after business failure and how identifying a recurring pattern helped us change behavior and continue growing. We close with a practical challenge: write down what you want, talk it over with people you trust, and honestly reflect on where you might be holding yourself back.

Episode Highlights & Time Stamps

0:07 Know What You Want
3:58 Find Your Self-Sabotage
6:27 Unlock the Hidden Pattern

Transcript:

Know What You Want

Today, I want to ask you a couple of key questions to help you clarify where you’re going and what’s getting in your way.

When you think about what you want, do you look at it through the lens of what you already know how to do or what feels comfortable? Or do you look at it through the lens of what you truly want?

Many people never permit themselves to think about what they really want in their business and often in their lives as well.

Since I focus on leadership and growth-oriented companies, my question to you today is simple:

What do you really want?

If you can’t answer that question for yourself, how do you expect to create it? How do you execute on it? How do you align your team around it?

If you’re running a $5 million company and want to grow to $10 million, say it. Be clear about it.

The truth is, knowing what you want is the easy part. This is the dreaming phase.

You don’t need to know how you’ll get there. You don’t need all the resources. You don’t need to be ready.

You simply need to know what you want.

Hi, my name is Gene Hammett. I’m a founder coach and CEO coach, and I’ve been doing this work for more than 16 years. I help fast-growth companies—and companies struggling with founder dependency create sustainable growth.

If you feel like you’re the only person who can make decisions, drive projects forward, or put out fires, you have a founder-dependent business. And that business isn’t as valuable as it could be.

Our focus is on helping leaders move from founder dependency to becoming founder-led. We do that through a three-month program, and then we help companies transition into team-driven businesses.

That transformation takes time, but it’s where the real value is created.

If you’re curious about our process, you can learn more in my book, Get Founder Freedom. Download your free copy at GetFounderFreedom.com. If you qualify, you’ll also have the opportunity to speak with me about what’s really holding you back.

So let’s come back to the original question:

What do you want?

If you can’t answer that question about your business, you can’t expect to create the future you desire.

It doesn’t have to be about revenue or products. It could be about legacy, impact, or the lives you want to change.

When I started coaching 16 years ago, I had just shut down a business that had failed dramatically.

I won’t go into the full story today, but I had built a successful company over nearly a decade, and it all unraveled with a single phone call.

After that, I had to rebuild myself.

During that process, I discovered what I wanted to do next. One of the most influential people in my journey was my first coach, Linda. She helped me see myself differently, grow, and transform.

I realized I wanted to do that for others.

I didn’t know how I would get there. I didn’t have the resources. The timing wasn’t ideal. Everything in my life had fallen apart.

But that experience forced me to rebuild—and that rebuilding led me here.

So I want to ask you again:

What do you really want?

If you’re honest with yourself, you’ll find the answer.

Write it down. Use AI to help you refine it. Talk about it with your team. Share it with your spouse or trusted friends.

You don’t need to know how.

You don’t need the resources.

And you don’t need to feel ready.

Find Your Self-Sabotage

Now let’s move to the second question:

How are you sabotaging yourself?

How are you getting in your own way?

Where are you holding yourself back?

This question is harder, but it’s the one that creates real change.

When you’re honest, vulnerable, and courageous enough to answer it, you create an opportunity to reflect, grow, and make better choices.

If you don’t identify your patterns, you’ll continue to repeat them.

I want to share a story about a mentor who helped me uncover one of my own blind spots.

Last year, I realized I needed a new marketing strategy because what I’d been doing hadn’t worked for the previous 18 months.

I didn’t recognize the problem until it was too late, but eventually I got honest with myself.

I reached out to a mentor of mine, Mike Agugliaro.

Mike has been a guest on my show, and he’s an exceptional coach. If you own a plumbing or electrical business, he’s one of the best people you could learn from.

During one of his programs, he said something that changed the way I think:

“If I gave you a strategy to get what you want, but you didn’t identify how you’re sabotaging yourself, you’d continue to sabotage yourself.”

That idea stuck with me.

Mike asked, “What’s your biggest problem?”

I said, “Marketing.”

Then he asked, “How are you sabotaging yourself?”

I didn’t have an answer.

He followed up with another question:

“Have you ever invested money in an agency, strategy, or marketing campaign that didn’t pay off?”

Of course I had. Many times.

Then he looked at me and said:

“There’s your sabotage. There’s your trauma.”

That insight changed everything.

I realized I wasn’t making the right moves, investing consistently, or fully committing because I was carrying the stories of past disappointments.

Understanding that pattern allowed me to move forward.

Your self-sabotage may look different than mine.

It may not be marketing.

But identifying the story you’re telling yourself is the key to breaking through it.

Unlock the Hidden Pattern

This is the work I do with my clients, and it’s also why I create free content through this podcast and our business.

We help founder-dependent companies become founder-led and eventually team-driven.

The result?

Businesses that are more valuable, more enjoyable to run, and capable of creating greater impact.

I didn’t get here because everything came easily.

I got here because I was willing to work through my challenges.

Since that conversation with Mike, I’ve worked with four different marketing mentors.

None of them have been the perfect solution I hoped for, and that’s okay.

Each one has helped me learn and grow.

I’m more committed than ever to figuring out the marketing side of my business.

In many ways, this podcast is part of that journey.

I’ve never been afraid to show up, share my message, and serve others. The challenge wasn’t visibility—it was the details behind the strategy that I needed to improve.

Today, we’re seeing results.

Over the last six months, we’ve added five to seven new clients who are a great fit for our brand, and we’re continuing to grow.

That progress happened because I got clear about what I wanted and addressed the ways I was getting in my own way.

Maybe hearing this story is enough to help you unlock something in your own journey.

Maybe you need something more.

If you’d like to explore this further, download a free copy of Get Founder Freedom at GetFounderFreedom.com.

If you qualify, you’ll have the opportunity to schedule a conversation with me.

Before we wrap up, I want to leave you with two questions:

• What do you really want?
• How are you sabotaging yourself?

Those two questions can unlock tremendous growth and transformation.

If you want help answering them, I’m here to help.

I’m Gene Hammett.

When you think about growth and leadership, think of Growth Think Tank.

As always, courage wins.

We’ll see you next time.

🎯Key Takeaways

• Get clear on what you really want in your business and life don’t limit it to what feels comfortable or realistic today. You don’t need the “how” yet clarity on direction comes before strategy. Founder dependency limits growth the goal is to move from founder-led to team-driven. Self-sabotage blocks progress often through fear, hesitation, or repeating old patterns. Past failures can shape current decisions without you realizing it. Awareness is the turning point you can’t change what you don’t see. Growth requires honesty and courage to face your own patterns. Two core questions drive change:
• What do you really want?
• How are you getting in your own way?

Ideal For:
Founders, CEOs, executives, managers, and anyone committed to elevating their leadership capacity.

Resources & Next Steps

Ready to take your leadership energy to the next level?
Explore free training and resources at training.coreelevation.com and getfounderfreedom.com
to help you identify energy leaks, strengthen your leadership presence, and elevate your team’s performance.

🌐 Explore More: training.coreelevation.com
🎧 Listen to the Full Episode: Growth Think Tank Podcast