Growth Capital Podcast

From Forgettable to Essential: One Founder’s Pivot Story with Trevor Lee

💡 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 39 💡
What happens when your product is good—but not good enough?
In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Trevor Lee, Co-founder & CEO of Myko AI, to unpack the hard-earned lessons behind one of the smartest pivots in early-stage tech. Originally a financial modeling tool, Myko is now an AI-powered platform helping field sales teams eliminate admin work and streamline post-meeting execution—entirely by voice.
Trevor shares how he navigated early failure, what it takes to earn product-market fit, and why most founders wait too long to pivot. From fundraising rejection to enterprise traction, this is a candid look at what it takes to go from nice-to-have to must-have.
🔍 In this episode:
The moment Trevor knew it was time to pivot
Why product-market fit isn’t about features—it’s about pain
How AI can automate sales workflows without losing trust
The tools founders should use to scale smarter, faster
What enterprise adoption of AI looks like today
📩 Connect with Trevor on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevorlee20/
🎧 Available now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and right here on YouTube.
👉 Subscribe for weekly insights from founders, operators, and PE-backed CEOs.

Betting on Yourself and Building What Matters with Téa Phillips

🧩 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 38 🧩
 
What does it really take to launch a medical device company without outside funding? In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, Justin Dixon sits down with Téa Phillips, Founder & CEO of ATS Innovations, to share her remarkable journey from engineering student to first-time founder—and what it meant to risk everything to build a product that could change lives.
Téa developed the Metaflex Glove—now an FDA-registered medical device — that combines compression, grip strengthening, and finger stretching for individuals with arthritis, carpal tunnel syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, and other conditions.
💥 But getting to market wasn’t easy. Téa shares:
Why she quit a secure engineering job to bet on herself
How she bootstrapped a capital-intensive business with no outside funding
Lessons learned from bad hires, ex-partners, and hard pivots
How she navigated tariffs that nearly shut down her business overnight
Why building something meaningful starts with deep personal conviction
Whether you're a founder, investor, or operator—this is a masterclass in grit, creativity, and purpose-driven building.
🛠 Learn more about Metaflex: https://www.metaflexglove.com📩 Connect with Téa: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tsphillips/You can also check her company's LinkedIn account: https://www.linkedin.com/company/ats-innovations/
💬 Drop a comment: What’s the boldest bet you’ve made on yourself?👉 Like, Subscribe, and hit the bell so you don’t miss future episodes.🎧 Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.

Raising Capital vs. Raising a Business: Know the Difference with Adam Spector

📉 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 37 📉
 
Is venture capital always the right move? Or is it just a shortcut to pressure, burn, and misalignment?
In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with four-time founder and prolific angel investor Adam Spector, now Founder & CEO of Chore, a bootstrapped startup helping founders offload the back-office work that slows them down.
Whether you're an early-stage founder, PE-backed CEO, or VC investor, this episode challenges conventional wisdom around fundraising, automation, and the real cost of growth.
🔍 What you’ll learn: ✅ Why most operational tasks can’t be automated ✅ The hidden danger of taking venture capital too early ✅ The critical difference between founder energy and founder leverage ✅ What it takes to scale a startup around your strengths
📩 Learn more about Adam’s company: https://www.hirechore.com 💼 Connect with Adam on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamspector2/
 
🎁 Want to try Chore?
Click this link and get 15% off the first month.
🔗 https://www.hirechore.com/partner/growth-capital-podcast
 
👍 Like this video? Subscribe for weekly interviews with growth-minded founders and PE leaders.🧠 Drop a comment: How do you think about capital vs. control?

From Firefighting to Forecasting: How Systems Create Scale with David Forster

🔧 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 36 🔧
 
Most founders in the trades don’t hit a ceiling because of demand—they stall because the business depends entirely on them. In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, Justin Dixon is joined by David Forster, Founder and CEO of Systems Over Sweat, a strategic advisory firm helping home service businesses escape founder dependency and build scalable operations.
David shares how he transitioned from building and selling multiple companies (including landscaping, logistics, and a bike shop) to helping others systematize everything from job site decisions to customer communication. This conversation is a must-listen if you're scaling past $2M in revenue or trying to make your business less reliant on you.
📌 What You'll Learn:
Why most service businesses stall between $1M–$5M
The “Think Like Me” training framework that empowers frontline decision-making
How to turn customer chaos into a repeatable, scalable process
Why systems—not hustle—create real profit and freedom
How AI and automation are quietly transforming trade-based businesses
🧰 Learn more about Systems Over Sweat: 🌐 Website: https://systemsoversweat.com 📬 Connect with David on Facebook
👇 Watch, comment, and subscribe to Growth Capital, a Hire Tomorrow Podcast with Justin Dixon, for more interviews with leaders scaling real businesses.
📣 Share your thoughts: Where does your business still rely too heavily on you?

How AI Is Helping Sales Teams Sell Smarter, Not Harder with Steven Atkins

🧠 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 35 🧠
In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Steven Atkins, Co-Founder & CEO of Ease AI, a sales enablement platform using AI to upskill reps and optimize the sales journey, without relying on massive teams or external funding.
Steven shares his journey from high-performing sales leader to startup founder, how he met his co-founder through YC’s Co-Founder Matching tool, and why they’re betting on lean, scrappy growth powered by AI, not venture capital.
🔍 What you’ll learn:
How AI roleplay tools train sales teams faster and better
Why Ease AI is focused on platform-building, not just features
How startups can scale through channel partners, not headcount
What makes co-founder alignment so crucial
Why self-funding can be a smart path in today's market
📨 Connect with Steven: steven@easeai.ai 🔗 Follow Ease AI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/easeai
🎧 Watch the episode now and subscribe to The Growth Capital Podcast for more stories from founders and private market leaders.
👇 Like, comment, and let us know: How are you using AI to drive smarter sales?

Fix the Experience, Grow the Business: A New SaaS Playbook with Evan Steele

🧠 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 34 🧠
What if your biggest growth opportunity is hiding in plain sight—inside the customer experience?
In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Evan Steele, Founder & CEO of Rater8, to explore how real-time feedback and reputation management are reshaping the way healthcare practices grow.
Evan shares his founder journey—bootstrapping two companies, scaling to thousands of clients, and building a fully remote team before it was mainstream. From the spark of a bad hotel check-in to managing 30+ million data points across healthcare practices, his story is a masterclass in turning insights into innovation.
🔍 What you’ll learn in this episode:
How feedback became the foundation for a scalable SaaS business
Why reputation is the most undervalued growth lever in healthcare
The playbook for building culture in a remote-first company
How Rater8 is using AI to turn raw feedback into actionable insights
The shift from search engines to “answer engines”—and what that means for visibility
Whether you're scaling a SaaS company, investing in vertical software, or just trying to align product with real customer need, this episode delivers.
🎧 Available now on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.
👉 Like, subscribe, and tell us: How are you measuring the experience in your business?
🌐 Learn more: rater8.com
🔗 Contact their team at info@rater8.com
📌 Subscribe to the channel for more insights from investors, operators, and private equity leaders. 💬 Drop a comment: What's the one fundraising mistake you see most often?

From Deck to Dollars: Mastering the Fundraise Flow with Jeffrey Fidelman

💸 Growth Capital Podcast - Episode 33 💸
What separates a founder who pitches from one who closes?
In this episode of the Growth Capital Podcast, host Justin Dixon sits down with Jeffrey Fidelman, Founder & CEO of Fidelman & Co., to decode what it really takes to raise money from investors in today’s market.
From creating pitch decks that resonate, to navigating investor psychology and structuring effective calls, Jeffrey shares tactical insights from his years of experience in investment banking, family offices, and now as an advisor to founders raising early-stage capital.
🚀 Whether you're preparing for your seed round or looking to level up your Series A pitch, this episode will show you how to approach fundraising like a pro—from story, to structure, to strategy.
🎯 What you’ll learn: 🔹 Why most pitch meetings fail before they even begin 🔹 The investor psychology every founder needs to understand 🔹 How to structure your calls to turn interest into investment 🔹 The surprising danger of raising too much money 🔹 What $1.7 trillion in undeployed capital means for founders in 2025
 
🔗 Connect with Jeffrey: jeffrey@fidelmanco.com🌐 Learn more: https://fidelmanco.com
📌 Subscribe to the channel for more insights from investors, operators, and private equity leaders. 💬 Drop a comment: What's the one fundraising mistake you see most often?

How to Finish More by Starting Less with Steven Puri

What if the key to productivity wasn’t doing more, but choosing less?
In this episode of Growth Capital Podcast, Justin Dixon sits down with Steven Puri—former Hollywood executive turned tech founder of The Sukha Company, a productivity platform designed to help people and teams find focus and flow.
Steven shares what he learned from two failed startups, how that pain reshaped his product philosophy, and how the idea of “doing less to finish more” became the foundation of his work. From lessons in listening to users, to designing a product around neuroscience and flow states, this episode is a goldmine for founders, operators, and investors alike.
🔍 What you’ll learn:
Why most productivity tools encourage the wrong behavior
How startup failure can lead to sharper product instincts
The problem with overbuilding—and how to know when to stop
What flow state really is, and how to design your workday around it
Why users who pay are the ones worth listening to
🚀 Whether you're scaling a PE-backed company, building your MVP, or just trying to reclaim your workday, this episode will resonate.
📩 Connect directly with Steven: steven@thesukha.co 🌐 Try Sukha: TheSukha.co/?ref=justinfo (Free 7-day trial, no credit card)
🎁 BONUS: Use code JUSTIN25 for 25% off for life when you create your Sukha membership.
👉 Like, subscribe, and drop a comment—what would you do with more focus?

Scaling Secure: Building Smarter, Safer Tech Companies with Rekha Shenoy

🛡️ Growth Capital Podcast – Episode 31 🛡️
In this episode, we sit down with Rekha Shenoy to explore Scaling Secure: Building Smarter, Safer Tech Companies. Rekha shares her deep expertise in cybersecurity, data privacy, and scaling tech ventures with security built into the foundation—not as an afterthought.
We dive into how today’s fastest-growing companies can balance innovation with protection, why trust is a competitive advantage, and the leadership strategies that ensure long-term, secure growth.
🎧 Tune in now to learn how Rekha is helping companies scale with confidence—by putting security at the center of their success.

Charging the Future: Autonomous Power at Every Parking Spot with Madhav Ayygari

🔋 Growth Capital Podcast – Episode 30 🔋
In this electrifying episode, we’re joined by Madhav Ayygari, Co-Founder and CEO of Inductive Robotics, to explore Charging the Future: Autonomous Power at Every Parking Spot. Madhav shares how his team is redefining the EV charging experience with fully autonomous, wireless power delivery—turning every parking spot into a charging station.
We dive into the technology behind the innovation, the infrastructure challenges it solves, and the bold vision required to scale a solution at the intersection of robotics, energy, and mobility.
🎧 Tune in now to discover how Inductive Robotics is powering the next frontier of clean, connected transportation!