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The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu artwork

The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu

Harvard Business School·Hosted by Reza Satchu·7 episodes

BusinessFounder interviewsStartup mindsetHarvard Business School35-45 minStandalone episodesVideo podcast

For more than 20 years, Reza Satchu has been both a serial founder and a leading educator in entrepreneurship. He has built multiple high-profile companies and mentored hundreds of students and founders through the realities of starting and scaling ventures. Now, in this new video podcast from Harvard Business School Foundry, Reza breaks down what it truly takes to be a founder. Reza interviews the world’s most successful entrepreneurs, showing the motivation and principles of the human behind the brand and their hero's journey. He dissects their underlying mindset, how they developed their judgment and committed to it — and thereby achi...

Why listen

The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu gives you founder stories through the lens of judgment, risk, and personal operating principles rather than generic startup advice. Reza Satchu interviews highly recognizable entrepreneurs and builders, including figures like Tim Ferriss and Reese Witherspoon, and pushes toward the decisions, experiments, and mindset shifts behind their companies. It is a strong fit for founders, operators, business students, and anyone who likes polished conversations about how ambitious ventures are actually built.

Episodes

37 min
Jul 15, 2026
Reinventing a Giant: How Galen Weston Employs the Founder Mindset in a Family Empire

What does it take to be a founder? Galen Weston didn’t build from zero — he rebuilt at scale. As leader of Loblaw and George Weston Limited, he transformed a legacy retail empire into a modern national powerhouse, proving that reinventing a giant can demand the same bold decisions as starting from scratch. -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting HBS Foundry Bootcamp applications now. An 8-week, virtual bootcamp to take your idea to a funding-ready pitch. Apply here: https://hbs.me/2p9e5uej *Open to founders based in the U.S. for now. Top participants are invited to Foundry Catalyst with the opportunity to later compete for up to $100K in funding.  All podcast episodes and more info can also be found on Harvard Business School’s official site:  https://www.hbs.edu/foundry

53 min
Jul 1, 2026
Dissecting the Founder Mindset: David Deming and Reza Satchu

What does it take to be a founder? David Deming is one of the world's leading economists on soft skills and the future of work, research that sits at the heart of the founder mindset. Today, as Dean of Harvard College, he's leading one of the world's great institutions through one of its most turbulent moments. This is The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu. -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting HBS Foundry Bootcamp applications now. An 8-week, virtual bootcamp to take your idea to a funding-ready pitch. Apply here: https://hbs.me/2p9e5uej *Open to founders based in the U.S. for now. Top participants are invited to Foundry Catalyst with the opportunity to later compete for up to $100K in funding.

42 min
Jun 17, 2026
Shark-Infested Waters: How Kevin O'Leary Built a Brand on Brutal Honesty

What does it take to be a founder? From a Toronto basement startup to a multibillion-dollar exit, Kevin O’Leary built his career by betting on himself and doing the hard things most people avoid. Now, after investing in hundreds of companies on Shark Tank, he shares what founders need to know about building, surviving, and what it really takes to win. This is The Founder Mindset, with Reza Satchu. -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting HBS Foundry Bootcamp applications now. An 8-week, virtual bootcamp to take your idea to a funding-ready pitch. Apply here: https://hbs.me/3y4h3kuf *Open to founders based in the U.S. for now. Top participants are invited to Foundry Catalyst with the opportunity to later compete for up to $100K in funding.

43 min
Jun 3, 2026
From Influencer to Founder: Alix Earle’s Next Chapter

What does it take to be a founder? Alix Earle built one of the most powerful creator brands of her generation, gaining millions of followers and sparking what fans call the Alix Earle Effect, where a single post can sell out products overnight. Now she’s making the leap from influencer to founder as she launches Reale Actives, her very first company.  -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting HBS Foundry Bootcamp applications now. An 8-week, virtual bootcamp to take your idea to a funding-ready pitch. Apply here: https://hbs.me/3y4h3kuf *Open to founders based in the U.S. for now. Top participants are invited to Foundry Catalyst with the opportunity to later compete for up to $100K in funding.  All podcast episodes and more info can also be found on Harvard Business School’s official site:  https://www.hbs.edu/foundry

36 min
May 20, 2026
The Curse of Optionality: Tim Ferriss on Experiments, Risk, and Freedom

What does it take to be a founder? Tim Ferriss turned experimentation into a competitive advantage — authoring multiple #1 New York Times bestsellers, launching one of the world’s most influential podcasts, and investing early in companies like Uber, Facebook, Shopify, and Duolingo. His playbook isn’t about reckless bets — it’s about calibrated risk, smart experiments, and learning faster than the competition.  This is The Founder Mindset with Reza Satchu. -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting HBS Foundry Bootcamp applications now:  https://hbs.me/499vcs7z *Open to founders in the U.S. for now All podcast episodes and more info can also be found on Harvard Business School’s official site:  https://www.hbs.edu/foundry

39 min
May 6, 2026Episode 1
Rewriting the Script: Reese Witherspoon's Entrepreneurial Leap to Impact

What does it take to be a founder? From one of Hollywood’s biggest stars to one of its most influential founders, Reese Witherspoon built her company, Hello Sunshine, to change who gets to own stories—and who gets to tell them. With a new blueprint for modern storytelling, Hello Sunshine turned projects like Little Fires Everywhere and The Morning Show into global hits, transforming the entire industry. This is The Founder Mindset, with Reza Satchu. -- Foundry is Harvard Business School’s new AI-native platform that gives high-potential founders everywhere the tools, expertise, and guidance to build ventures that succeed. Accepting Foundry Bootcamp applications now: hbsfoundry.org *Open to founders in the U.S. building in deep tech and related fields, and more industries coming soon!All podcast episodes and more info can also be found on Harvard Business School’s official site:  https://www.hbs.edu/foundry

1 min
Mar 22, 2026
The Founder Mindset - Launching May 6, 2026

For more than 20 years, Reza Satchu has been both a serial founder and a leading educator in entrepreneurship. He has built multiple high-profile companies and mentored hundreds of students and founders through the realities of starting and scaling ventures. Now, in this new video podcast from Harvard Business School Foundry, Reza breaks down what it truly takes to be a founder. Episode 1 launching May 6, 2026.