What Are You Resisting? How Founders Block Growth by Avoiding Emotion

✅ ARE YOU BOOTSTRAPPING? YOU NEED THIS:https://bootstrappedgiants.com/subscribe

✅ Master the Inner Game of Entrepreneurship here:https://www.davekashen.com/newsletter-sign-up

Show Notes: 00:00 – Intro + recap: resisting emotions, what it means for founders 02:00 – Why emotions feel unsafe (and how that started in childhood) 06:00 – “I’m not an angry person” and other signs of repression 08:30 – Judging others = a sign of emotional resistance 11:00 – Conscious vs. unconscious resistance patterns 13:00 – How emotions physically manifest in the body 15:00 – Jesse's empty calendar anxiety & shame around not being busy 17:30 – Why repressing feelings blocks clarity and reinforces false beliefs 20:00 – Welcoming vs. resisting: the energetic shift 23:00 – The illusion of “fixing” feelings vs. fully allowing them 26:00 – Getting started: how to actually feel your feelings 29:00 – Mapping physical sensations to specific emotions 31:00 – Live guided practice: check in with your body 33:00 – Emotion + resistance vs. emotion without resistance 35:00 – Expressing emotions physically: cars, bats, pillows, and yelling 38:00 – Why adults need temper tantrums too (just healthier ones) 41:00 – Gender bias and feeling shame at work 43:00 – Making emotions safe in work cultures 46:00 – Why “I’m stressed” is just code for fear 48:00 – The emotional gym: building strength through feeling

What You’ll Learn:

If you’ve ever thought “I’m just not an emotional person,” this episode is for you.

Jesse Pujji and Dave Kashen break down how founders unknowingly block their growth, clarity, and power by resisting key emotions—like anger, fear, sadness, and shame. They explore how childhood patterns shape adult reactions, and offer a practical roadmap to help entrepreneurs reconnect with the full range of human feeling.

You’ll learn:

The unconscious signs of emotional resistance (and why we all do it)

How repressing emotions creates physical tension and false beliefs

A live body scan to detect where emotions show up

How to healthily express anger, sadness, and fear

Why workplaces suffer when emotions are avoided or hidden

The metaphor of the “emotional gym” and how to train yours

In this episode of Heart of Entrepreneurship, Jesse and Dave explore the invisible ways founders resist emotions—and how that resistance sabotages performance, leadership, and personal growth.

They cover the neuroscience and psychology behind emotional repression, how to identify suppressed emotions through physical sensations, and why expressing feelings (not fixing them) is the key to unlocking clarity and presence.

This episode is a must-listen for founders working on self-awareness, emotional intelligence, or unblocking limiting patterns in both their work and life.

Like what you heard? Drop us a comment with your reflections, like the episode, and subscribe for more raw, practical conversations about what it really takes to grow as a founder.

#emotionalintelligence #entrepreneurshipgrowth #foundermindset

Episode ID: 1000723534001

GUID: 319851a4-5ab9-42a8-94bd-396227c622e5

Release Date: 26/08/2025, 09:00:09