Freelance to Founder

Hosted by Millo

Business EducationInterviews guests

Website RSS feed

Episodes

663

Latest episode

Oct 2026

Language

About the show

Freelance to Founder is a call-in show helping real-life freelancers grow their businesses and escape the feast-famine lifestyle. The podcast is hosted by Preston Lee, a former freelancer who has started, built, and even sold successful businesses of his own. Preston is joined nearly every weekday by other expert founders, freelancers, and entrepreneurs to help you take your solo business to the next level. You can submit your questions at FreelanceToFounder.com/ask If you enjoy content from shows like The Futur, Being Freelance, The Accidental Creative, Smart Passive Income, or The Side Hustle Show, then you'll love Freelance to Founder. Join us every weekday to take the next step on your journey from ... freelance to founder.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

October 23, 202614 min

Put Your Business in Airplane Mode

Feeling burned out on the business side of freelancing? You still love the creative work, but networking and client acquisition feel overwhelming? You're not alone. In this episode, Rachel asks how to reconnect with her passion for her business when the hustle feels exhausting. Preston and Clay dive deep into why we lose motivation, the importance of slowing down, and how to give yourself permission to coast without guilt. This is a conversation every entrepreneur needs to hear—because your mental health matters more than your growth metrics. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 22, 202620 min

You're Not Bad at Delegating. You're Bad at Hiring.

As your freelance business grows, you hit an inevitable ceiling: there's only so much you can do yourself. But delegating effectively is harder than it sounds. How do you train team members to run with tasks independently without constant check-ins? How do you avoid becoming a bottleneck that slows everyone down? And how do you set boundaries without seeming hostile or unavailable? In this episode, Preston and Clay answer listener Peter's question about delegation, drawing on Clay's experience managing a 20+ person team generating over a million in recurring revenue. They share practical strategies for creating SOPs, setting communication boundaries, and hiring people who can actually think for themselves—so you can focus on growing your business instead of micromanaging every detail. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → ⁠⁠https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 21, 202614 min

5:22 PM on a Friday and Your Client Calls...

It's 5:22 PM on a Friday, and a client emails asking if you can design an ad tonight. Do you drop everything and work late? Charge a rush fee? Or simply say no? In this episode, Preston and Clay tackle listener Kirsten's question about handling urgent client requests outside business hours. They break down when to charge rush fees, how to set boundaries without damaging relationships, and why communication is the secret weapon for managing client expectations. If you've ever felt pressured to work weekends or evenings because a client needed something "right now," this conversation will help you draw the right lines while still being a great service provider. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → ⁠⁠https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 20, 202617 min

For Hourly Rates, This is Your Punishment

Should you charge by the hour or by the project? If you've ever struggled with this question, you're not alone. But here's the truth: you might be asking the wrong question entirely. In this episode, Preston and Clay dive deep into pricing strategy with a question from Lanya, revealing why hourly pricing punishes you for being good at what you do—and introducing the game-changing concept of value-based pricing. Learn how to have conversations with clients that uncover the true worth of your work, why asking about impact matters more than counting hours, and how solving a $300,000 problem for $10,000 isn't sleazy—it's simply understanding your value. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → ⁠⁠https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 19, 202622 min

Pressure to Be a Marketer?

Feeling pressured to add marketing services to your web design business just because a course told you to? In this episode, Preston and Clay challenge the "supposed to" mentality that keeps freelancers stuck offering services they don't enjoy. Erica, a web designer, asks how to balance project work she loves with repetitive marketing tasks she wants to outsource—but the answer might surprise you. Clay shares his game-changing monthly recurring revenue model for websites (no contracts required!) and reveals how eliminating one major client bottleneck doubled his revenue. If you've been following someone else's blueprint and feeling like an imposter, this conversation will give you permission to build a business that actually lights you up. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → ⁠https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 16, 202622 min

Pick a Tactic... Any Tactic.

Feeling paralyzed by the endless stream of marketing tactics you "should" be doing? You're not alone. In this episode, Matt from Barrow Studio asks the question every service business owner wrestles with: with so many marketing strategies out there—from email lists to podcasts to paid ads—where should you actually focus your limited time and resources? What's the "silver bullet"? Clay and Preston cut through the noise with a refreshingly simple framework that helps you identify what will actually move the needle for YOUR business, not someone else's. If you've been stuck in analysis paralysis while your marketing sits on the back burner, this episode will give you permission to start small, focus strategically, and build momentum without burning out. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → ⁠https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 15, 202622 min

Introverts Can Become Millionaires

Feeling nervous about networking? You're not alone. In this episode, Brittany asks how to break into local networking as a shy person, and Clay shares exactly how he built a million-dollar agency through local connections—even as a total introvert. From joining your first chamber event to creative strategies that put you front and center without the awkward sales pitch, this episode is packed with actionable steps for anyone who wants to grow their business locally but dreads walking into a room full of strangers. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Check out Clay's business → https://golinus.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 14, 202624 min

Fire Your Inbox

As your freelance business grows from solo operator to team leader, the chaos can hit fast. Emma Clark's question about transitioning from inbox management to real systems is one every growing freelancer faces. In this episode, Preston and Christine Olivas dive deep into the practical side of scaling—revealing why your tool choice matters less than you think, and what actually needs to happen first. Christine shares how her team of 24-28 people stays incredibly agile using surprisingly simple systems, and why defining roles before deploying tools is the secret to avoiding the productivity trap that kills so many growing businesses. Support our show sponsors → https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors Submit your own question → https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Learn more about guest co-host, Christine → ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/colivas/⁠ — ⁠https://nosingleindividual.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 8, 202622 min

Your Client Hired YOU. Can you hand off?

Omar's business is growing, and so is his workload. His longtime clients love working with him, which is the problem. As he builds Vision Craft Studios into an agency, every project still runs through him, because handing it off feels like breaking a promise. Preston sits down with Christine Olivas, founder and CEO of No Single Individual, to talk about trusting subcontractors, setting client expectations, and making the move from doing everything yourself to leading a team your clients can trust. Support our show sponsors → ⁠https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors⁠ Submit your own question → ⁠https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

October 7, 202624 min

What's Your Cut When You Hire Help?

Layla built Bright Horizon Media from the ground up, and now her social media agency has a team and real momentum. Her next challenge is splitting the revenue: what's fair to her subcontractors, what's fair to her clients, and what's fair to her as the owner? Preston and Christine Olivas take on the "is this cheating?" guilt many agency owners feel. They cover pricing strategy, how to talk about your value with confidence, and how choosing the right audience makes charging what you're worth feel natural. Support our show sponsors → ⁠https://freelancetofounder.com/sponsors⁠ Submit your own question → ⁠https://freelancetofounder.com/ask Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices