Welcome to the ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator Podcast! Host Steve August , Founder of ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator and August & Wonder , also a Founder, Coach & Leader of The Focus Formula ADHD Coworking Community, and creator of the 2X Accelerator, shares a powerful idea that changed his work life, the 2-Hour Workday. Steve talks about how ADHD isn’t a lack of attention, but a challenge with using it well. He explains how managing your executive function can help you get more done with ...
Jul 17, 2025•12 min•Ep. 102
Welcome to the ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator Podcast. Host Steve August is joined by Jennifer Adelhardt , founder of Strategic Curiosity and Adjunct Faculty & Associate Graduate Faculty, Department of Management at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte , and a TEDx Speaker. Jennifer shares her journey from corporate consulting to studying ADHD in entrepreneurship. She talks about how ADHD traits can both challenge and fuel entrepreneurial success, and offers insights on building envi...
Jul 10, 2025•34 min•Ep. 101
Welcome to the ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator Podcast. Host Steve August , Founder of ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator and August & Wonder , and an expert ADHD coach and productivity specialist. He is also the founder, coach, and leader of The Focus Formula ADHD Coworking Community, and creator of the 2X Accelerator, helping ADHD entrepreneurs grow with focus and clarity in Steve August Coaching. In today’s episode, Steve shares how ADHD brains struggle with planning and time, and why typical to...
Jul 08, 2025•21 min•Ep. 100
Welcome to the ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator Podcast! Host Steve August , Founder of ADHD Entrepreneur Accelerator and August & Wonder , also a Founder, Coach & Leader of The Focus Formula ADHD Coworking Community, and creator of the 2X Accelerator, helping ADHD entrepreneurs grow with focus and clarity in Steve August Coaching. Steve shares his personal journey as a long-time entrepreneur who discovered his ADHD later in life. He opens up about the struggles he faced, how ADHD shaped hi...
Jul 08, 2025•11 min•Ep. 99
After 98 episodes, The Rocket Ship Founder Podcast is coming to a close—but this is just the beginning of something new. In this final episode, I reflect on my journey as a late-diagnosed ADHD entrepreneur and how embracing my ADHD has transformed my approach to business and life. I share: ✅ Why getting diagnosed at 54 changed everything for me ✅ How I transitioned from working with startup founders to ADHD entrepreneurs ✅ The power of making decisive choices instead of staying stuck in indecisi...
Feb 06, 2025•14 min•Ep. 98
I've been a bit hesitant to push send on this one. You see, there's been a number of research studies* showing that ADHD brains are, depending on the study, between 2x and 5x more likely to become entrepreneurs. I often cite this research in things I put out in my content. But there's one question that I consistently get back, that deserves an answer: "Does ADHD make you a great entrepreneur?" Based on my research and my own experience, the answer is...yes and no. Yes, ADHD super powers can make...
Dec 20, 2024•12 min•Ep. 97
Key Takeaways from This Episode: • Core Idea: Customers don’t buy our product or service—they buy our offer . An offer is a promise to solve an urgent pain within a specific timeframe for a specific cost. Products and services? They’re just the tools we use to deliver on that promise. • Your Business as a Stack of Offers: A thriving B2B business only needs three key offers: 1. Core Offer – The cornerstone of your business, the main product or service you’re built around. 2. Hand Raiser Offer – A...
Dec 05, 2024•14 min•Ep. 96
Episode Title: Thriving in a Tough Market: The 3 Keys to Business Growth When Money’s Tight Episode Description: In today’s episode, we’re tackling a challenge many entrepreneurs are facing: “People aren’t buying, and the ones who do are taking longer to decide.” It’s something I’ve been hearing across the board – from clients, fellow coaches, and entrepreneurs. The business environment has changed, and with inflation, a tighter money supply, and more selective spending, the boom has slowed, lea...
Nov 14, 2024•11 min•Ep. 95
It's been a minute or two since my last new Rocket Ship Founder podcast episode. During the podcast hiatus, I've been leaning in to my journey as a late diagnosed ADHD entrepreneur. Over the past two months, I've been reshaping my coaching practice. After focusing on helping Seed Stage to Series A Founders for the past seven years, I'm evolving my practice to supporting ADHD entrepreneurs and solopreneurs get out of overwhelm, harness their focus and 2X their business progress. Rocket Ship Found...
Oct 25, 2024•13 min•Ep. 94
This week, two of my past clients announced their companies were being acquired. Together they mark the 11th exit of Founders I’ve coached over the past seven years. I certainly can’t take credit for the outcomes of the clients I’ve coached. After all, they did the work. But I can say I’ve been part of the story in helping people along the path that got them to their exits. I learn something from every exit I've been a part of. So in this week's episode of The Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, I'd li...
Aug 08, 2024•14 min•Ep. 93
Episode Summary: In this episode, we explore the difference between marketing to niches and tribes, and why understanding this distinction can shape your entrepreneurial approach. After a provocative listener response to a previous episode on founder anxiety, I realized the importance of identifying your tribe—those who share your values and vision. Key Takeaways: • Niche vs. Tribe : A niche targets a specific market segment, while a tribe connects people through a shared mentality or purpose. •...
Aug 01, 2024•13 min•Ep. 92
In this week’s Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, we dive into a common yet perplexing scenario many founders face: having a great network and product, yet struggling to convert meetings into sales. Through a real-life example and personal insights, we explore the root causes and provide practical strategies to overcome this challenge. Episode Highlights: • A founder’s dilemma: great network, positive conversations, but no sales. • The hidden trap of relying on warm introductions without addressing pr...
Jul 25, 2024•10 min•Ep. 91
In this week’s Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, we tackle a pressing question that resonates deeply with every entrepreneur: “Does Founder anxiety ever end?” Inspired by a thought-provoking article shared in my 2X Accelerator community, we dive into the persistent nature of anxiety in the founder journey. Despite achieving significant milestones, the anxiety doesn’t seem to fade, but there are ways to manage it effectively. Episode Highlights: Discussion sparked by a 2022 article by Wil Shroter, “Wh...
Jul 18, 2024•15 min•Ep. 90
In this week’s episode, I share a personal story about surviving a plane crash. But don't worry, it’s not what you might think – this crash involved my remote-controlled airplane, a birthday gift that quickly became a learning experience. Episode Highlights: The Gift : Received a remote-controlled airplane for my birthday in June. Excitement of flying it for the first time at age 56. The First Flight : Kept the plane in SAFE mode for the first flight. Managed to get the plane up in the air and l...
Jul 11, 2024•12 min•Ep. 89
In this week's episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, Steve dives deep into the topic of business re-creation. With the economic shift that began at the end of 2022, many founders and business coaches are finding the need to re-create their businesses to adapt to the new normal. Drawing from his extensive experience through multiple economic cycles, Steve shares his insights and practical steps for recognizing when it's time to re-create and how to effectively do so. Economic Shifts and The...
Jun 27, 2024•14 min•Ep. 88
In this special episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, we mark a significant milestone: the 10th anniversary of my first startup exit. Join me as I share the emotional rollercoaster of that momentous day and reflect on the journey of exiting a business. Exits can be life-changing, but they are rarely "you changing" Understand that while a successful exit can bring financial transformation, it may not necessarily change who you are as a person. The Work is actually the Thing Embrace the jour...
Jun 26, 2024•12 min•Ep. 87
In this episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, we delve into one of the most common and frustrating challenges for businesses: the revenue plateau. Every business encounters these moments where growth seems to stall, and getting to the next level becomes an uphill battle. But often, the key to breaking through a plateau isn't doing more of the same—it's about doing something different. Understanding Revenue Plateaus: Definition and common levels where businesses hit plateaus (0->$350k, $...
Jun 26, 2024•14 min•Ep. 86
Episode Summary: Steve shares his thoughts inspired by the Amazon series "Fallout" and an interview with actor Walton Goggins. Goggins' journey and advice resonate with the founder's journey, emphasizing persistence and the cumulative effect of consistent effort. Key Points: The Struggle of Success: Walton Goggins' career journey and his breakthrough role in "Fallout." His agent's life-changing advice: Success is the sum total of all efforts, not a single silver bullet. Parallel to Founders' Jou...
Jun 26, 2024•6 min•Ep. 85
Episode Summary: In this episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, Steve addresses a common frustration among Founders: knowing what to do but struggling to take action. During a recent Office Hours session with the 2X Accelerator Community, one member voiced this sentiment, echoing a challenge many entrepreneurs face. Steve delves into the reasons behind this inaction and offers practical strategies to overcome it. Key Topics: Understanding the Inaction Dilemma Explore why Founders often know...
Jun 26, 2024•12 min•Ep. 83
Episode Summary: In this episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast, Steve dives into the unique challenges and strengths that ADHD Founders experience on their entrepreneurial journey. Drawing from personal experience and recent conversations with other ADHD entrepreneurs, Steve shares three essential techniques that can help not only ADHD Founders but also anyone looking to optimize their productivity and well-being. Key Topics: Understanding Time Blindness Explore how ADHD brains struggle wit...
Jun 26, 2024•11 min•Ep. 83
To be a Founder is to be constantly (and often frantically), up-skilling yourself. If you are a Technical, Expert or Visionary Founder, you’ve been spending most of your working life creating amazing things - tech, services, methods solutions. But you likely never took a formal marketing class. Or worked in a sales or marketing role. Yet, here you are playing that CMO role because you need to get people to buy your amazing product/service. If you’re playing the CMO role on TV and/or in real life...
May 09, 2024•17 min•Ep. 82
This week I was having a session with one of my private clients. I've been working with this Founder for a couple of years since their original Seed funding. It's been a long journey to product market fit, with many a twist and turn. But in this session, this Founder reported that the signals were finally turning green: - Customers signing deals - Partners eager to integrate their offering to keep their own customers - A pipeline that is starting to fill nicely But the clincher was when he said,...
May 02, 2024•14 min
Recently of the Founders in my 2X community reported a great win. We had supported her on refining her offer around helping CEO's stand up a weekly podcast that can help drive business. She committed to sending out an email to her list to see who in her world might be interested. Me and the 2X group helped her tune the email, which essentially described the offer, who it was for and simply asked those interested to reply. The result? "We've never had a response like that!" She's now working thro...
Apr 26, 2024•8 min
This week I've been digging in deep with with private clients and the members of my 2X Accelerator community on the biggest leverage point in their businesses. It's not their product or service, though a brilliant product/service is essential. It's not their team, though great teams will move mountains. It's not their brand, marketing or funnels. So if not any of the above, what's the biggest point of leverage for your business? It's your offer. This might sound controversial, but customers don'...
Apr 18, 2024•11 min
One of the Holy Grail's of business life is a SaaS business where customers sign up and you get high margin revenue every month like clockwork, with a minimum of customer support. Investors love this model. Founders crave it. But I find that getting too attached to a business model can get in the way of bigger growth. Why is that? Because customers don't really care about your business model. They care about their pain being solved Let's make this tangible. When I was leading my first startup, I...
Apr 11, 2024•15 min
After nearly 3 weeks fighting Covid, my voice is good enough to scratch through a new episode of the Rocket Ship Founder Podcast. What's on my mind this week? Navigating pivots. Pivots enter the picture when your business isn't getting the traction you'd like in spite of great effort over time from you and your team. There are two main questions to answer when contemplating pivots: What's at the heart of the lack of traction? Where to pivot to? Getting clarity on #1 is crucial to figuring out #2...
Apr 04, 2024•15 min
One of the hardest challenges I have experienced and seen in business is not being able to count on sales month to month or quarter to quarter. Up months and quarters followed by down quarters and months make it nearly impossible to plan and execute well. Do you hire for the surge in business only to have to reduce staff when things get thin again? How often do you adjust your budget? What can you Some of this is just part of the cycles of business. But for Founders working with just a handful o...
Mar 13, 2024•13 min
What do you do when your new offering isn't taking off like you hoped? Many of the stories you read about a business taking off will spin a nice, tidy yarn about how someone saw a pain, started a waitlist, got huge signups, therefore validated their market and went on to glory, wealth and fame. Easy, peasy, right? But the reality is that it's usually way more messy. Usually it goes this way: You create something or the MVP of something you know will help the people you serve. You eagerly bring i...
Feb 29, 2024•18 min
"It's the mental game of being a Founder that's really surprised me." This week I had a call with a Founder who took advantage of my offer of a free Breakthrough Session for anyone who takes my Founder Type Quiz. Like many Founders, this person has tremendous knowledge and experience in their category. But this is their first go at sitting in the Founder seat. And it's different. Yes. Yes it is. While the Founder life has been painted with a sort of glamour, anybody who's been in the job knows t...
Feb 22, 2024•15 min
This may sound strange. In my conversations with prospective coaching clients, my goal is to not to sell. It's to diagnose. On one level the conversation is about understanding WHERE they are in their business, where they want to go and what's in the way of them getting there. But there's almost always another level. I call it the Bigger Game level. That is more about HOW they are currently experiencing their Founder journey - and how they want to be experiencing it. The phrase that often comes ...
Feb 15, 2024•13 min
