He grew up sleeping on bricks in a tent extension of a caravan — and turned that raw struggle into a life of building and exiting companies.From bankrupt parents filleting fish in New Zealand to bootstrapping a tech platform out of the printing business, this is the story of resilience, obsession, and choosing struggle as a way of life. In this conversation, the masks come off: money raised too early, founders eating tuna and rice for years, and the real cost of chasing KPIs.Key Episode Highlights:From signboards to tech platforms — how a “boring” problem created a powerful businessWhy bootstrapping teaches lessons no VC cheque ever couldThe brutal caravan childhood that forged founder resilienceStruggle meals, scams, and survival abroadHonouring family sacrifices while building something biggerWhy business becomes identity — and the richest version of lifeThe crossroads of raising VC vs. keeping controlWhy monetisation is the ultimate validation test100 true fans vs. 500,000 free usersTall poppy syndrome, Gen Z ambition, and thinking differently in AustraliaTimestamps:00:00 Intro – Business talk finally begins00:01 First Startup – From signboards to tech platform00:04 Bootstrapping – Hard lessons and discipline00:07 Market Validation – Data, pain points, and talking to users00:11 Struggle Story – Growing up in a caravan00:16 Chosen Struggle – Founders chasing hardship00:17 Struggle Meals – Scams, survival, and hunger in Germany00:18 Family Sacrifice – Honouring parents’ struggle00:20 Business Identity – Why founders keep building00:25 VC Crossroads – Deciding whether to take funding00:29 Monetisation – Paying users vs. free noise00:31 100 True Fans – Why depth beats scale00:36 Content Leverage – Documenting, building in public, and strategy00:40 Tall Poppy Syndrome – Thinking differently in AustraliaFollow Our Podcast Studio:Follow Our Podcast Studio:🎥 https://www.linkedin.com/company/candid-studios/Nick’s Apps:🧠 SCULPTED → https://sculpted.site📚 LivFree → https://livfree.live⚽️ B42 → https://b-42.comFollow Nick:🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicholas-kratochvil/📸 https://www.instagram.com/nickratochvil/Meet The Team:🎬 Editor – https://www.instagram.com/jethropaco/🎨 Design – https://www.instagram.com/shanika.j11/🎙 Producer – https://www.instagram.com/_charlieslattery/📂 Podcast Manager – https://www.instagram.com/alfiogangemi_/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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