Are you the hardest-working employee in your own business?

In this episode of the Atomic Business Coaching Podcast, Tom Marino and Adam Hurd dive deep into The Founder’s Trap—the challenge that keeps many successful business owners stuck, overwhelmed, and unable to scale.

If you've built a successful company but still find yourself handling sales, operations, customer issues, hiring, training, and everything in between, this conversation is for you.

You'll discover:

✅ What the Founder’s Trap really is

✅ Why hiring another employee isn't usually the solution

✅ The difference between a business that's growing and one that's scaling

✅ How burnout, poor systems, and "Band-Aid fixes" keep business owners trapped

✅ Why successful entrepreneurs must focus on both the business they're in and the business they're becoming

✅ The powerful question every business owner should ask: "What's Missing?"

Tom and Adam share real-world examples from business owners across multiple industries—from plumbing and carpet cleaning to printing and professional services—who discovered that their biggest obstacle wasn't a lack of effort, but a lack of systems, structure, and strategic thinking.

Whether you're generating six figures, multiple seven figures, or simply trying to reclaim your time, this episode will help you identify what's holding your business back and what it takes to truly become the CEO instead of the chief employee.

🔔 Subscribe for more insights on entrepreneurship, leadership, mindset, sales, and business growth.

📈 Ready to build the business you're becoming?

Visit: https://atomicbusinesscoaching.com

Are you a business owner, entrepreneur, or CEO who feels like you're carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders? You're not alone.

In this episode, Tom Marino and Adam Hurd explore one of the most common yet least discussed challenges of entrepreneurship: CEO isolation. While friends, family, and employees may support you, few truly understand the pressure, responsibility, and uncertainty that comes with being the person steering the ship.

That's why they created their CEO Mastermind experiences.

For the past several years, Tom and Adam have brought together groups of ambitious business owners to share what's working, what's not, and where they need support. These mastermind groups aren't sales pitches, networking events, or lead generation opportunities. They're real conversations among entrepreneurs who understand the unique challenges of building a business and leading a life of purpose.

In this episode, they discuss:

✅ Why so many business owners feel isolated

✅ The power of surrounding yourself with like-minded entrepreneurs

✅ How mastermind groups provide perspective, accountability, and support

✅ Why breakthroughs often come from hearing someone else's experience

✅ How asking better questions leads to better results

✅ The philosophy of "Success Always, In All Ways"

✅ Why identifying what's missing is often the key to your next level of growth

The mastermind dinners and online sessions provide a space where business owners can openly discuss challenges, celebrate wins, receive honest feedback, and gain fresh perspectives from others who have faced similar situations. Sometimes the greatest value isn't receiving advice—it's realizing you're not the only one facing a particular challenge.

Whether you're struggling with growth, leadership, decision-making, work-life balance, or simply feeling stuck, surrounding yourself with people who understand the entrepreneurial journey can be a game-changer. Success isn't meant to be pursued alone. If you're looking for a community of growth-minded business owners who challenge, support, and inspire one another, this conversation is for you.

📩 Interested in attending a future CEO Mastermind Dinner or Online Mastermind Session?

Reach out to Atomic Business Coaching to learn more about upcoming opportunities to connect with fellow entrepreneurs. www.atomicbusinesscoaching.com

🔔 Subscribe for more conversations on entrepreneurship, leadership, mindset, sales, business growth, and personal development.

Why do so many entrepreneurs achieve success… yet still feel dissatisfied?

In this powerful episode, Tom Marino and Adam dive deep into the psychology of success, happiness, dissatisfaction, and personal evolution as a business owner. They explore why reaching your goals often creates a brand-new question instead of lasting fulfillment — and why high achievers constantly feel pulled toward “what’s next.”

This conversation is for entrepreneurs, CEOs, business owners, and ambitious professionals who have built something meaningful but still feel like something is missing.

Inside this episode:

• Why success is only temporary
• The difference between happiness and dissatisfaction
• Why entrepreneurs constantly evolve
• How success changes your identity
• The hidden cycle of achievement and fulfillment
• Why many business owners feel lost after reaching goals
• The philosophy behind “Be The CEO”
• How to redefine success at every level of growth

Tom and Adam also discuss:

• Naval Ravikant’s philosophy on happiness
• Building the business you’re in while becoming the next version of yourself
• Why driven people struggle with complacency
• How to avoid burnout while pursuing growth
• The mindset shifts necessary for long-term fulfillment

If you’ve ever thought:

“I should be happy… so why do I still feel dissatisfied?”

…this episode is for you.

👇 Connect with Atomic Business Coaching:

🌐 https://atomicbusinesscoaching.com

🌐 https://bethe.ceo

Are you building a business… Or did you accidentally build yourself a job?

In this episode of the Atomic Business Coaching Podcast, Tom Marino and Adam Hurd dive deep into The Founder’s Trap — the stage where entrepreneurs become overwhelmed, overworked, and stuck doing everything inside their business, essentially they have become the best employee in their business.

Many business owners hit a ceiling before reaching $1 million in revenue because they stay trapped in the identity of the employee instead of evolving into the CEO. In this conversation, Tom and Adam break down:

* What the Founder’s Trap actually is

* Why entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed even when they’re successful

* The hidden mindset keeping business owners stuck

* Why delegation alone doesn’t solve the problem

* The identity shift required to become a true CEO

* How systems, people, and leadership create scalable growth

* Why many founders lose themselves in their business

* The difference between being self-employed and being a business owner

If you’re constantly wearing every hat in your business, struggling to scale, feeling burned out, or wondering why success still feels exhausting — this episode is for you.

## Topics Covered

✔ Founder’s Trap Explained

✔ Entrepreneur Burnout

✔ CEO Mindset

✔ Small Business Growth

✔ Leadership Development

✔ Business Systems & Processes

✔ Scaling a Business

✔ Entrepreneur Identity Shift

✔ Business Coaching

✔ Revenue Ceiling Problems

Whether you’re a solopreneur, startup founder, coach, consultant, or small business owner, this episode will help you recognize the patterns holding your business back and show you how to start thinking like a true CEO.

👇 Connect with Atomic Business Coaching

🌐 https://atomicbusinesscoaching.com

Steve DeAngelis didn’t set out to become a CEO—he set out to create.

What started as a simple Instagram DM turned into years of collaboration, storytelling, and building alongside others. From producing music festivals and independent films to founding MMP Creations, Steve’s journey has always been rooted in one core belief: if you can bring the right people together, you can make anything happen.

That belief now shows up fully in Bella Vita Studios, a professional podcast and content studio in Huntington, NY, designed to help entrepreneurs and brands create high-quality, authentic content without the overwhelm. More than just a studio, it’s a space built for real conversations and real storytelling—because in today’s world, authenticity builds trust.

In this episode, Steve breaks down how he turned content creation into multiple businesses by focusing on what he does best—vision, strategy, and storytelling—while building a team to execute. Instead of trying to do everything himself, he leaned into collaboration, allowing him to scale faster and more effectively.

If you're an entrepreneur, business owner, or content creator looking to grow, this conversation will challenge how you think about building a business. From CEO mindset and leadership to content creation and scaling, Steve shares what actually works—and what most people get wrong.

Whether you're just starting out or trying to take your business to the next level, this episode is a reminder that becoming the CEO isn’t about doing more—it’s about trusting others, staying focused on your strengths, and building something bigger than you could alone.

Connect with Steve

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bella.vitastudios/ and https://www.instagram.com/mmpcreations/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steven-deangelis-media/

Atomic CEO

We help business owners escape the Founder Trap | Stop thinking and acting like the best employee in your own company and start leading like the CEO.

https://www.bethe.ceo

Brandon Havrilla’s story is one of natural entrepreneurship evolving into intentional leadership. Now the CEO of Redmax Life, a creative ecosystem that produces large-scale experiential builds for major brands, Brandon didn’t arrive at success through a single breakthrough moment. Instead, his journey reflects a steady progression from instinct-driven hustle to strategic, CEO-level thinking.

From a young age, Brandon was wired differently. Whether it was running lemonade stands, shoveling snow, or cutting lawns, he was always looking for ways to create income and opportunity. That early mindset became the foundation for everything that followed. He didn’t wait to be taught entrepreneurship—he practiced it.

His first real venture began in the DJ and entertainment space, but like many entrepreneurs, he faced a defining challenge during COVID. Rather than retreat, Brandon pivoted. That shift led to what Redmax is today: a company that designs, fabricates, and installs immersive brand experiences for events, trade shows, and major activations across the country. What appears seamless to attendees is, in reality, the result of complex logistics, creative design, and relentless execution behind the scenes.

Central to Brandon’s success are a few core beliefs. One stands out above all: “If they can do it, why can’t I?” That perspective fueled his confidence early on, allowing him to approach high-level corporate clients in his early twenties without hesitation. He paired that belief with discipline—defined not by rigid routines, but by his ability to trust his gut and block out external noise, even when it came from people close to him.

Failure, in Brandon’s view, is simply part of the process. He frames it through perspective: if most efforts are working, the occasional miss is not a setback—it’s expected. That mindset keeps him moving forward without hesitation.

Today, his growth strategy reflects his forward-thinking approach. Instead of relying on traditional marketing, Brandon invested in content creation, documenting the behind-the-scenes of his work to build visibility and trust. This consistent presence has become a major driver of new opportunities.

At his core, Brandon operates with a simple philosophy: take action, learn quickly, and let the business evolve. For him, success isn’t about waiting until everything is perfect—it’s about doing the thing and figuring it out along the way.

Connect with Brandon:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandonhavrilla/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonhavrilla/
• Website: https://redmax.life
• Events Page: https://redmax.events

Atomic CEO

We help owners who build small business CEOs installing a CEO Operating System so they can think differently, lead differently, and grow the business beyond themselves.

Https://www.atomicbusinesscoaching.com

Mike Deaton’s journey begins on a familiar path—college, career, and climbing the corporate ladder. Without a clear long-term vision early on, he found his footing in big tech, building a career with companies like Motorola, Nokia, and Microsoft.

At Motorola and Nokia, Mike developed his foundation in operations during the rise of the mobile industry. He later joined Microsoft, where he led supply chain operations across the Americas for hardware products like Xbox and PCs. In these roles, he operated as a senior leader—managing teams, budgets, and business units—essentially running “businesses within businesses.”

His career offered stability, growth, and the traditional promise of success—until 2016.

Mike was laid off from Microsoft, and within days, his wife also lost her job. Faced with uncertainty, his instinct was to return to corporate life. But something didn’t feel right. Instead, he paused and, with his wife, began asking deeper questions about their values, lifestyle, and what they truly wanted next.

That moment sparked a complete shift.

Transitioning into entrepreneurship required more than a career change—it demanded a new identity. Mike leaned on his operational background, implementing structure through KPIs, goal-setting, and disciplined execution. But he quickly realized that mindset—not tactics—was the real challenge.

Exploring new opportunities, he was drawn to land investing—a niche in real estate with strong returns and low competition. He and his wife committed, invested in education and coaching, and within a year built a business capable of replacing their income.

At the same time, they made a bold move from Texas to Colorado, creating space to reinvent themselves away from familiar expectations.

Today, Mike blends corporate discipline with entrepreneurial freedom. His journey reflects a powerful truth: success isn’t just about what you build—it’s about who you become in the process.

Connect with Mike:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelbdeaton/

Website: https://flippingdirt.us/realitycheck/

Atomic CEO

We help owners who build and maintain buildings install a CEO Operating System so they can think differently, lead differently, and grow the business beyond themselves.

Https://www.atomicbusinesscoaching.com

Stevie Ghiassi is not your typical tech entrepreneur. Based in Australia and operating on a global scale, he’s spent over a decade at the forefront of innovation—building and scaling technologies across major internet protocols like VoIP, WebRTC, and blockchain. As the co-founder of Techno Ventures, Stevie describes himself as a “techno-optimist,” someone who doesn’t just believe in the future of technology but is actively building it.

In this episode, Stevie shares a journey that is anything but linear. From growing up under the influence of a high-performing father—a professional athlete turned successful entrepreneur—to navigating his own path through sports, business, and eventually technology, Stevie’s story is one of evolution, discomfort, and relentless curiosity.

What makes Stevie’s perspective so compelling is that he didn’t arrive in tech through a traditional route. In fact, much of his career has been shaped by stepping into rooms where he felt he didn’t belong and choosing to move forward anyway.

Stevie opens up about one of the most difficult transitions a person can face: letting go of an identity. As a young athlete, his world revolved around performance, competition, and the expectation of success. But injuries forced him to confront a new reality, one where he had to redefine who he was and what he was capable of.

That shift, while challenging, became a turning point. It taught him that identity is not fixed, it’s something we continuously shape. And often, growth begins the moment we’re willing to step away from who we thought we were supposed to be.

At the core of Stevie’s philosophy is techno-optimism, the belief that technology, despite its risks, is one of humanity’s greatest tools for progress.

He acknowledges that we are living in a time of massive uncertainty:

• AI is reshaping industries
• Career paths are becoming less predictable
• The pace of change is accelerating faster than ever

Yet, instead of fear, Stevie sees opportunity. He believes that technology will eliminate much of the “meaningless work” that consumes our time, allowing people to focus on creativity, strategy, and human connection.

Today, he’s actively building AI-first, agent-driven companies, rethinking not just how businesses operate, but also what it means to be a leader in this new era.

• 🌐 Techno Ventures:https://www.techno.ventures/#intro
• 💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ghiassi