Are Founders Becoming Their Own Bottleneck?

In the early days of building something, founders are everything—
the idea, the energy, the decision-maker, the problem solver.

But somewhere along the journey… something shifts.

What once helped the business grow—speed, control, and constant involvement—can slowly start to hold it back.

Teams begin to wait.

Decisions pile up.

And unknowingly, the founder becomes the center of everything.

We have discussed loads.

Join us as Kaapi and Conversations is joining hands with HR UpStart.

-------

About Susan from HR UpStart

Susan DSilva is the founder of HR UpStart. With nearly 30 years of experience in human resources, including over 15 years in CXO-level roles, she has led HR functions for rapidly scaling organizations that required strong alignment between people strategy and business priorities.

Over the course of her career, Susan has handled a wide spectrum of HR responsibilities—from leadership hiring and performance frameworks to managing complex exits and building culture during challenging growth phases. Her experience has given her deep insight into what works effectively and what can quietly disrupt a team’s foundation.

This understanding led her to establish HR UpStart, driven by her belief that startups deserve more than templated HR solutions. Her approach focuses on bringing clarity, facilitating tough conversations, and building resilient systems that can support growth beyond early stages.

An important milestone in her journey was the incubation experience at NSRCEL, IIM Bangalore, which helped refine her perspective on the real needs of early-stage founders. She recognized that challenges are rarely limited to policies or hiring—they often require a thoughtful blend of strategy, communication, and scalable systems.

Today, HR UpStart works with over 22 clients, including startups and mid-sized businesses, helping them build strong people strategies while retaining their entrepreneurial spirit.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/susandsilva/

----

About Meera V

Meera V is an AmmaPreneur, Storyteller, and Communication Mentor with over 17 years of experience in recruitment and talent consulting in the Corporate

She is the founder of Mayaakatha Storytelling, an organisation Incubated at NSRCEL IIM Bangalore, is a platform that uses stories as powerful tools for reflection, confidence-building, and emotional expression.

For the past 6-7 years, she has been mentoring children, educators, and professionals in storytelling and writing as a means of personal growth. Meera also hosts conversations and learning spaces through initiatives like Kaapi and Conversations and LetsMakeStoriesDino. Through her work, she encourages people to rediscover their voice, their stories, and their inner clarity.

https://linktr.ee/mayaakathameera?utm_source=linktree_profile_share

Where am I in your Priority List

is a leaflet from my first book, Mayaakatha

https://notionpress.com/in/read/mayaakatha/mayaakatha/

It was my last promise to my Appa (my father) and my first book.

This podcast episode is about the normal human tendency we have to be accepted to be a priority in other's list.

Grab a listen andDo share your thoughts on dinoinoasis@gmail.com --I am your host Meera, I am an AmmaPreneur, just spinning yarn out of words to stories...Little bit more what I do at my ecosystem called Mayaakatha --Mayaakatha is a Kitchen story After quitting Corporate journey, I started working on stories like sharing/writing.My daughter Maya pushed me to an edge that the Dinosaur within me started roaring and today we run🦖 LetsMakeStoriesDino, a writing community 🌎 Mayaakatha, Storytelling community and ☕ Podcast Kaapi and Conversations with Meera☀️🙏🏻🪷----We offer Storytelling as a service and workshop & training to Schools, Colleges, Institutions, Individuals On-line & Offline. We will work with people to transform their Narrative into an Impactful STORY! https://linktr.ee/mayaakathameerawww.mayaakatha.com

SITA DRAUPADI, the YAKSHI in us is awake

A mythological story with a take on the current modern day .
This was a submission for an anthology competition in 2019 and got selected to be published.
A story and a conversation in Author’s mind when Sita and Draupadi wanted to meet each other, and they have the conversations in the author’s mind.

Also you can read on https://meeramayaakatha.wordpress.com/2024/01/05/yakshi-in-us-is-yet-to-sleep/

This is just an imagination where I tried bringing back Mother Sita and Mother Draupadi in an author's mind where both the characters are excited and waiting to meet each other and share all the stories.

It's a mere imagination connecting what we woman are facing in today's scenario, where nothing has changed.

Infact Duryodana (Suyodana) and Raavana, after realizing their mistakes are standing today as a guard to Mother Draupadi and Sita.

As you grab a listen, how about sharing your thoughts in comments or writing to me on dinoinoasis@gmail.com or mentoratmayaakatha@gmail.com

I would love to knonw

With best from an

AmmaPreneur Meera

www.mayaakatha.com

https://linktr.ee/mayaakathameera (you can reach me on SM/ grab a copy of my book on Amazon/flipkart)