Eight founders share the books, podcasts and Substacks they turn to for motivation
image via @catwebb__/instagram
as told to daisy henry
“I’m drawn to writing that offers clarity rather than instruction.”
Though I’d consider myself a fairly avid consumer of pop culture, I’ve never quite ventured into the self-help territory before. Beyond muttering “Let them” under my breath when someone cuts me off in traffic or really gets on my nerves, the idea of consuming ‘motivational’ media never really occurred to me.
However, that’s not for lack of need. Beyond my nine-to-five, I’ve had a number of side projects lingering in my mind. What’s missing is that final push – the shift from fantasising and ideating, towards something more considered.
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Business founders, on the other hand, tend to sit at the total opposite end. Whether they’re at the helm of a beauty brand, a fitness studio or a PR agency, from my experience, they’re the kind of people who know how to maintain a consistent surge of motivation.
It comes as no surprise, then, that when I reached out to a number of founders in my network, they were quick to name the books, podcasts and Substacks that help them channel momentum.
Sophie McGrath, founder of Bed Intentions and Sophie McGrath PR
When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön
I love self-help and motivational books so much that lately I’ve had to steer myself more toward fiction to offset the obsession. But one title that has always stayed with me is When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön. While it leans into the spiritual side of self-help, it’s deeply rooted in practical emotional tools and a way of thinking that feels incredibly grounding.
What resonated most was its invitation to sit with uncertainty rather than rush to resolve it, something that feels especially relevant as a founder. It’s shaped how I navigate change in both life and work, and I’d recommend it to anyone moving through growth, transition or reinvention.
Erika Geraerts, founder of Fluff
Book: Nine Stories by J D Salinger
I can’t remember how this book came into my life but when it did, it hit me like a tonne of bricks. Perhaps because I’d never encountered someone write so simply and beautifully about such sad things, so many times. It’s the kind of book that reminds me why I am and want to continue being a writer.
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Podcast: Rick Rubin’s Tetragrammaton
I’m a bit at capacity with podcasts of late, which is perhaps why I find Rick’s conversations interesting. There seems to be less expectation and performance, and it feels like you’re simply listening to a couple of creatives geek out and go off on wonderful tangents. Also, his approach to ads is the best.
Avigon Paphitis, founder of Gorgeous Nothings
Essay: On Self Respect by Joan Didion
I’m drawn to writing that offers clarity rather than instruction. In my twenties, Joan Didion’s essay On Self Respect, originally published in Vogue in 1961, stayed with me. As she writes, “In brief, people with self respect exhibit a certain toughness, a kind of moral nerve…” That idea still resonates.
Book: A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf
A Room of One’s Own felt equally formative. Woolf’s argument that financial independence and space are prerequisites for meaningful creative work stayed with me for a different reason. As women, we’re often taught that self-sacrifice is a virtue. Together, these works sharpened something essential: not losing self-respect, not giving up one’s time, space, or independence and knowing a healthy relationship should not require that you do.
Cat Web, founder of Good Times Pilates
Book: The Brain That Changes Itself by Norman Doidge
I first read The Brain That Changes Itself in 2014 when I was starting to teach Pilates and had become obsessed with motor learning, how humans acquire skills and how profoundly regular movement can shape the brain. Doidge cracked something open in me. The idea that the brain isn’t fixed, that it’s capable of physically rewiring itself at any age and in any circumstance, felt quite radical.
Written by a psychiatrist and researcher, he makes his case through real clinical stories and documented evidence. It informs rather than motivates, which is ultimately far more persuasive and probably why I keep coming back to it (I’m not a huge fan of being told what to do). I’d recommend it to anyone navigating recovery, burnout or anyone who catches themselves thinking “this is just how I am.”
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Podcast: Becoming You with Suzy Welch
I also listen to Becoming You with Suzy Welch. She’s a professor at NYU Stern School of Business who built a course around helping people craft an authentic life. It started as an undergraduate MBA program and became so popular that she eventually opened it up beyond the university. Her website offers self-discovery assessments covering values, the beliefs that hold you back and honest feedback from the people who know you best. But the podcast sits firmly in the actionable self-help space, focused 20 to 30 minute episodes grounded in her own real experiences. It’s for anyone sitting with the question “what should I do with my life?”.
Sophie Marshall, Gentle Habits
Book: Small Giants: Companies That Choose to be Great Instead of Big by Bo Burlingham
There are plenty of books that have shaped how I think about business, but Small Giants: Companies That Choose to be Great Instead of Big by Bo Burlingham genuinely shifted my perspective. I picked it up on a whim at an airport and nearly put it back, but I’m so glad I didn’t! It challenges the idea that success equals scale, instead highlighting companies that have chosen to stay small and value-driven.
I read it while considering bringing in investors, assuming growth required it. It pushed me to reflect on what actually makes our brand distinct and what we could lose. It ultimately reinforced that bigger isn’t always better, and that protecting what matters is just as important as growing.
Sophie McIntyre, founder of Club Sup
Substack: Holly Garber
It’s not a book but it’s a Substack by my business coach Holly Garber. I read it a lot before we ended up working together on building out my confidence in running Club Sup and how to actually turn it from a hobby into a financially viable business. Her Substack always includes really great thought starters and check-lists that you need as a small business owner. I highly recommend it. It’s also interesting to have such an amazing, rational approach to the business world from woman to woman.
Dr Bonnie Fergie, founder of Bon Elliot
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Book: The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J Mazzeo
I found The Widow Clicquot while away in the Southern Highlands. We were staying in a beautiful old house filled with books. It was cold and rainy, and I sat by the fire and read it in three days. It tells the inspiring story of Barbe-Nicole Clicquot, who took on the family vineyard after her husband died, and with great courage and resilience, created the champagne that established Veuve Clicquot.
At the time, I’d just started down the path towards creating our own brand and it’s since taken me five years to develop the science behind our products. We launched last month and along the way, I’ve often been reminded of her innovation, risk-taking and determination.
Sienna Belle, founder of ChopIt
Book: Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It by Kamal Ravikant
During the Covid pandemic, I met with a dear friend who happens to be a life coach. I’ve always trusted their recommendations, so all it took was a quiet mention of Love Yourself Like Your Life Depends On It over dinner and I downloaded it to my Kindle that night.
There’s a quote that I still return to daily: “If I loved myself truly and wholly, would I be doing this?”. It’s the kind of question that stays with you – simple yet disarming. It can be asked at any given moment and helps ensure your choices are rooted in self-love and self-respect.
The entire book is an exploration of self-love as a practice, shifting your mental diet, interrupting negative self-talk and the discipline of showing up for yourself with consistency, setting boundaries where necessary. It’s highly digestible – no heavy theory, just one idea repeated until it lands.
As a solo founder building ChopIt, this is a standard I live by. Operating from self-love isn’t soft; it’s discipline. It’s choosing clarity over noise, intention over reaction. This book reshaped that for me.
For more motivational reads, try this.
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