Hey bootstrappers,

Of all the amazing founders we interview, one thing stands out:

The most successful founders have an entrepreneurial mindset. 

You probably won’t find that surprising, but what does it mean exactly?

Never giving up? Learning from failure? Embracing change?

It’s all of those things and more: to think like an entrepreneur, you need to be inquisitive. 

Question how things work, be curious about people, and never stop learning. 

Your answers might lead you to places you never thought possible – like this week’s founders whose “what ifs” led to surprising yet rewarding changes in their lives. 

Why not cultivate your entrepreneurial mindset now by reading their stories? 🤓

Jonny White beat imposter syndrome to build an efficient, privacy-focused ticketing platform for event organizers. But after selling, he wondered: How far could I take this if I bought it back?

How This Founder Sold His Ticketing Company Only to Buy It Back and Make It More Profitable Than Ever

“The thing that gets me out of bed is that the world needs more examples of businesses that do good. We are a profitable company and we’re doing well. We’re growing, we don’t have any investors and we can do exactly what we want and there’s a lot of freedom in that.”

Finding authentic tourism experiences is like panning for gold: so many mass-market attractions compete for your attention that the locals miss out. After a life-changing trip, these founders hope to change that.

Bringing the Best Tours You’ve Never Heard of Online for Over $150K MRR

“Gen Z and millennials told us they wanted great, unique experiences in every city. They knew about Burj Khalifa and the Eiffel Tower. They wanted to know how to connect with locals, see real local things, and eat real local food.”

Skyler Mapes dreamed of building skyscrapers but was disillusioned by architectural bureaucracy. When her husband introduced her to his family’s olive oil, it was the taste of a promising new life (and business!) she’d been waiting for.

How This American Designer Built a Million-Dollar Business Producing Premium Olive Oil From a Tiny Italian Village

“You have extra-virgin, virgin, and regular olive oil, and different qualities of each. So you have the premium version of the specialty extra-virgin olive oils. And then you have bulk regular extra-virgin oil. There are a lot of layers to the industry overall.”

 - Skyler Mapes, EXAU

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What did you think of this week's stories?