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Business Owners Tell All

Business Owners Tell All

By: Jamie Seeker
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 On The Seeker Solution Podcast, your host, Jamie Seeker encourages business owners to tell all! They'll share not only their expertise, but their stories and their purpose and what it takes to run a successful business. We cover a wide range of topics – the good and exciting, the challenges and sometimes the ugly. Experiences and lessons learned that our guests have faced along the way. We believe that every person has a unique message which can make a positive impact . We let our guests share on the subjects they’re well-known for. No matter the topic, you’ll be hearing real stories from real people. *This podcast is not affiliated with any other show of the same or similar name. Business Owners Tell All: What It Takes is a project of Seeker Solution, featuring conversations with real business owners.Copyright 2026 Jamie Seeker Economics Leadership Management Management & Leadership
Episodes
  • Women in leadership, business strategy, and intentional planning in mission‑driven organizations

    Women in leadership, business strategy, and intentional planning in mission‑driven organizations
    Apr 30 2026
    Amber Sheikh joins Jamie Seeker for a powerful conversation on what it truly takes to lead — not just a business, but a mission. As the founder and CEO of Chic Impact, Amber supports nonprofit organizations across California by strengthening their fundraising, leadership, and strategic planning. But her journey to ownership was anything but linear.In this episode, Amber shares how her early work in poverty alleviation abroad revealed a major gap in nonprofit operations, ultimately leading her into fundraising, consulting, and eventually ownership. She opens up about buying her firm during the pandemic while navigating divorce, single motherhood, and financial uncertainty — all while trusting an intuitive vision she had been building for years.Together, Jamie and Amber explore business planning as a leadership discipline, particularly in the nonprofit space: why scarcity thinking limits growth, how planning horizons should be realistic, and why founders must intentionally make time to step away in order to think clearly. The conversation closes with a deeply honest reflection on identity, leadership, and what it takes to sit in the owner’s seat.🧠 Key Notes & Takeaways🌱 Origin Story & PurposeAmber’s career began with international poverty alleviation work in Delhi, India.She realized many nonprofits were strong on mission but weak on operations, planning, and sustainability.This insight pulled her “one step away from the front line” into administration, fundraising, and eventually consulting.She spent 10+ years at a consulting firm before purchasing it and relaunching it as Chic Impact.Key insight: Mission alone doesn’t sustain organizations — strategy does.💼 Becoming a Business Owner (During Crisis)Amber bought the firm during the pandemic while finalizing a divorce and raising two young children.She had $400 in her pocket at the time of purchase.There was no backup plan — execution became a necessity, not a choice.Clients and staff followed her, reinforcing trust and shared vision.Lesson: Sometimes commitment — not certainty — is what drives success.🧭 Business Planning in the Nonprofit SectorCommon mistakes:Not planning at allPlanning too far ahead without knowing variablesAmber recommends 2–3 year strategic plans instead of rigid 5‑year plans.Nonprofits often operate in scarcity due to systemic pressures — language, funding models, and expectations.Organizations must allow themselves to think in terms of abundance and sustainability, not survival.Key belief: Nonprofits must “run in the black” to serve their mission long-term.📊 Growth, Strategy & ScalingChic Impact has grown ~20% annually in revenue, profit, and team size.Growth was initially reactive — responding to demand.Recently, Amber intentionally overstaffed to prepare for growth instead of chasing it.This allowed time for internal strategy, team-led problem solving, and long-term visioning.Shift: From reactive leadership → proactive planning.🧠 Planning Starts with SpaceAmber emphasizes the need to “break up with your own story.”The problems that once defined the business should not dictate future strategy.She schedules quiet, solo retreats quarterly to reflect and recalibrate.True clarity surfaces only when leaders step away from daily noise.Practical takeaway: You must plan time to plan.🎯 What It Takes to Be a Business OwnerAmber highlights the challenge of separating identity from the business.Especially as a female founder, learning not to take decisions personally was transformative.Leadership requires making decisions for the organization and team — not ego or fear.That separation makes growth, delegation, and rest possible.💬 Memorable Quotes“I spent years creating an intuitive business plan — and then survival required me to execute it.”“Nonprofits are really good at doing the work — but not always at running the organization.”“A five-year plan is a lot of time planning for variables you don’t know yet.”“Break up with your own story. The challenges you had five years ago are not the ones you should be solving today.”“You’re always worried about something as a business owner — but what you’re worried about has to evolve.”“Planning isn’t just about numbers. It’s about being intentional with your mission, your team, and your impact.”“The company is mine — but it is not me.”
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    22 mins
  • Food Fire + Knives: Where Business Meets the Dinner Table

    Food Fire + Knives: Where Business Meets the Dinner Table
    Apr 23 2026
    Michael shares his journey from a 14-year-old working at a produce stand to a CIA-trained chef who hit burnout and reinvented his career. That pivot led to the creation of Food, Fire, and Knives — a private chef platform that now serves clients across the country, bringing restaurant-quality dining into homes. What began as side gigs turned into a full-scale business that empowers chefs to regain control of their careers.This episode dives deep into:His unconventional founder storyBuilding a nationwide team of chefsHR systems and culture buildingLeadership lessonsAnd of course, what it really takes to run a business🧠 Key Takeaways & Notes🚀 Origin Story: From Burnout to BreakthroughMichael fell in love with food early, working at a produce stand, then in fast-casual kitchens.Dropped out of law enforcement school to pursue culinary school.Moved to Charleston to “live on vacation” before marriage — but after a personal breakup, he doubled down on building something new.Started picking up private chef gigs and built a simple website.After getting double-booked, he brought in another chef — and a business model was born.“I just thought… what if I go on the other side of this — hire chefs and help them leave the grind too?”👨‍🍳 The Business Model: Platform for Chef EmpowermentFood, Fire, and Knives provides autonomy, income, and exposure for chefs.It offers clients custom, in-home dining experiences with vetted chefs in 48 states.Michael intentionally built a platform that helps chefs exit the restaurant rat race, especially as many face burnout and physical wear.📋 HR Deep Dive: Hiring, Training, and TrustHiring strangers to represent your brand is scary — but essential.Trust was built slowly through personal referrals and clear expectations.Created unique interview questions like:“Tell me your favorite kitchen story” to assess both skills and personality.Focused on soft skills: can chefs cook and engage with customers?Developed automated HR systems, background checks, and orientation workflows.Relies heavily on Slack for daily communication with contractors to build a sense of team.“You’re trusting people you don’t know to handle your baby.”“If they can talk to me, they can talk to a client.”🌍 Culture & Connection — Even Without a Physical OfficeMichael hosts bi-weekly "Coffee Chats” with chefs to keep the team motivated.Maintains culture through constant communication and peer support in Slack.Intentionally keeps a flat, responsive culture where contractors feel heard and valued.“They’re not employees, but they feel like they’re part of the team.”⏳ Time Management = CEO Skill #1Learned to protect his time from meeting overload.Delegates or declines non-impactful meetings.Stresses the importance of maintaining a personal life and mental space.“If you don’t enjoy your personal life, you’re not going to enjoy your business.”💬 Memorable Quotes“No one cooks like you. No one will care as much as you. Once you accept that — and embrace other people’s quirks — your business grows.”“Sometimes doing the right thing doesn’t look like the right thing to everyone else.”“You're going to be the bad guy in someone's story. But no one tells the story from your perspective.”“Culture doesn't happen by accident — you have to build it when you're not in the same room.”“The most valuable thing I’ve learned? Create time. Protect your time. That’s what it takes.”🎯 What It Takes — Michael’s Answer“It’s about doing the right thing — even if you’re the only one who sees it that way.”Making tough calls with long-term vision, even when it’s uncomfortable or unpopular, is part of the job. You need clarity, integrity, and resilience.
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    26 mins
  • Your Team’s New Superpower? An AI That Actually Does the Work

    Your Team’s New Superpower? An AI That Actually Does the Work
    Apr 16 2026
    In this episode, Jamie sits down with Seva Ustinov, a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Elly Analytics — a performance marketing company reimagined with an internal AI Operating System at its core.Seva shares his 20-year journey from founding a marketing agency in Russia to scaling a tech company in the U.S., and how the chaos of managing large teams led him to create a unified AI-powered “company brain.”But what sets this conversation apart is the focus on HR, team dynamics, and operations — not just tech. Seva breaks down how automation and intelligent agents have drastically reduced meeting bloat, onboarding time, and internal interruptions — while still empowering human teams.Jamie and Seva dive into how AI is changing the people side of business, and how any founder (technical or not) can begin building a smarter, more autonomous company.📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS“Professional services is a constant rollercoaster.” Seva scaled a 100+ person agency, then started over in tech, learning each level of leadership and operations by doing.Internal AI Operating System: Elly uses AI agents and shared company memory to automate everything from onboarding to sales support and product feedback loops.Hiring Tip: One of Seva’s first hires was a head of operations (aka “Chief of Everything Else”), relieving him from all the stress-inducing "other" problems most founders try to juggle.AI-Driven HR: Elly’s system reduces Slack clutter and meeting overload by giving team members AI access to every piece of company knowledge — from past emails to product roadmaps.True Automation Wins: A non-technical team member used their internal AI tool to build a complete customer sentiment dashboard in 6 hours — something that previously required entire teams.💬 MEMORABLE QUOTES"Everything else is always your personal problem — unless you hire someone to own it."– On the role of a head of operations"Your past experience often doesn’t help with the next level. You have to unlearn and rebuild."– On leveling up as a founder"Our company brain is always learning. It sits in on every meeting, remembers everything, and makes everyone smarter."– On the power of an internal AI system"It took me 5 minutes to generate a custom sales email from transcripts, competitor data, and context — something that would take a team hours before."– On real-world automation with AI"You can delegate tasks, but you can’t delegate responsibility."– When asked what it really takes to be a business owner🎯 WHO THIS EPISODE IS FORFounders struggling with team scale, info overload, and inefficient workflowsOperations leaders interested in AI tools beyond dashboardsHR teams exploring how AI can support onboarding, knowledge sharing, and internal communicationAnyone curious about turning AI from hype into a real operating advantage🔗 WHERE TO FIND SEVAWebsite: ellyanalytics.comLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sevaustinovAI Agent Setup Template (mentioned in episode): Available on his LinkedIn postsTwitter/X: @sevaustinov (less active currently)
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    24 mins
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