Lessons From A Repeat Founder

Being a founder can be really tough. It can be long hours, wearing several different hats at once, and at the end of the day, not all startups succeed. We decided to sit down with founders who have successfully started more than one business, and pick their brains. 

Today, we’re sitting down with Koleya Karringten (KK). Koleya is the CEO of Absolute Combustion, Executive Director of the Canadian Blockchain Consortium, and Co-Founder of the Canadian Blockchain Association for Women. Koleya is an innovator, entrepreneur and connector, and I had a fantastic time sitting down with her. 

TNT: Koleya, thank you so much for sitting down with me today! You’re incredibly busy, so let’s dive into it and get going. First question, and it’s a big one - what are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learned from your career? 

KK: (laughs) Starting off with an easy one! 

TNT: (laughs) I know right?

KK: Ok, let me think. I think a really big lesson that entrepreneurs need to learn is to believe in themselves. When you’re going on this journey, it’s never a straight path. So when you truly believe in what you’re doing, it gives you the motivation to keep going. 

You also need to be extremely passionate about what you want to do; you need to be in love with it. When you’re doing something you love, it allows you to manage the rejection (and there WILL be rejection). 

And it’s super important to have the correct mindset. I was the biggest barrier in making my own business successful. I had a lack of emotional awareness and I spent a lot of time questioning and thinking “Am I competent? Am I capable? Do I deserve the money that I’m getting now?”. 

I had to take a step back, work on myself, and start thinking about what I needed to do, to step out of my own way and achieve my goals. That type of personal development and self-growth, it allowed me to see that I’m capable and that I can achieve anything I want to achieve. Like starting my second business. It was terrifying and scary, but also exhilarating and amazing and really proved to me that I could not only do it, but that I could do it well. 

TNT: I love that you took the time to work on yourself and focus on your emotional awareness, so that you could grow personally AND professionally. I think that’s such a great skill to develop, being self-aware. What other skills do you think founders need to have and/or develop? 

KK: You definitely have to focus on your mental health. You need to learn how to take care of yourself because entrepreneurship is a lonely journey. 

I also put a very big emphasis on emotional intelligence. The more you understand yourself, the better your EQ will be, and the more you learn about developing meaningful relationships. Learning to develop those authentic relationships will really allow you to make meaningful connections with investors, vendors, partners, etc. They’ll be more likely to listen to you, to help you out, to mentor you, etc. They’ll become your cheerleaders and cheerleaders for your business. 

And the last skill I think you should develop is the ability to learn to take feedback. You’re going to have lots of humbling moments as an entrepreneur, and you need to be able to take the lows and move forward. Essentially, fail forward. 

TNT: Fail forward - what a great expression. I love that. 

Ok, let’s talk about Absolute Combustion! Congratulations on growing such a huge organization and for pushing for cleantech and setting new industry standards in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. 

KK: Thank you! 

TNT: And one of the really cool things about Absolute Combustion is that you were working with your father. What were the best parts and some of the challenges of being in business with your father? 

KK: The best part was that my dad was my best friend. He groomed me for business since I was 3! Inventiveness, critical thinking, curiosity, creativity - these were all embedded in the fabric of my daily life. 

My dad taught me a lot of little lessons; like if you’re going to sit in a boardroom, make sure you listen to everyone. Don’t be listening just to respond. Listen and pay attention and when you speak, you’ll make an impact. He exposed to me a world of different ideas and experiences, and really taught me to have a passion for business. 

Definitely one of the biggest challenges of my career was when my father passed away. That was in 2014, and then there was also the recession, oil and gas layoffs, plunging prices, etc. Our tech had been developed but I had to learn how to take it from the lab to the commercial market. It was a lot to learn how to handle the commercialization process. 

And with the recession, having a new innovative product wasn’t top priority for companies. So it was 18 months of trying to survive and get going without revenue coming in, and then pivoting and moving into a new industry. It took a LOT of hard work - it was a lot of time at the school of hard knocks.  

TNT: Definitely the school of hard knocks. I applaud your resilience. And you also mentioned that you were raising capital as well, for the first time without your father. What are some lessons you learned during that experience? 

KK: I think that when you’re a tech business, spending too much time talking about your tech will derail your pitch. For me, talking about the burner, how it was going to be successful, how it would change the industry - none of the investors cared. At the end of the day, for them, it’s a financial decision. They want to know the problem, how your solution will fix it, and the business value proposition and what they’re getting back. Basically, you need to take the perspective of the investor, and think about what would make you take the risk.

If you focus on the business case, the hard numbers, potential revenues, and your path forward, I think you’ll have a successful pitch. 

TNT: Love the idea of putting yourself in the perspective of an investor… that’s such a great piece of advice. Let’s switch topics and talk about CBC (Canadian Blockchain Consortium). What made you want to veer into blockchain and start CBC? 

KK: So we were actually pivoting at ACI into aviation, at the same time I was launching CBC. I had met and created a partnership and friendship with Suzanne West, the founder of Imaginea Energy. Suzanne was a highly respected trailblazer for environmental sustainability and women in energy tech, and was an advocate for the work we were doing with ACI. Suzanne was a big supporter, and we sadly lost her a few years ago, and I decided to start the CBC as a way to continue her legacy and to honour her. 

I’ve always been interested in exploring the cutting edge of tech developments, and I really believe blockchain applications can be a key solution to some of our biggest economic challenges.

CBC is all about spreading the word about the power of blockchain tech, and educating people about it. I also co-founded the Canadian Blockchain Association for Women, where I’m able to advocate for women in the industry, engage in meaningful partnerships, and work on social good projects. 

And during COVID, it allowed me to take a step back and to re-examine what we were trying to accomplish with CBC. I realized that we needed to pivot and change our business plan, which we did, and now we have expanded into the largest blockchain organization in Canada. 

TNT: Wow, that’s amazing! Congratulations! Given that you are running 2 successful organizations, and co-founded and board member of CBAW, as well as doing speaking engagements, coaching and mentoring, AND volunteering your time - what are your tips on finding balance? 

KK: I put a lot of emphasis on my mental health work. I work with different types of therapists and coaches, who all have different functions and goals, and they help me support my mind. 

And time management is key. I manage my schedule, and book in time to take breaks when I need to. A reminder to entrepreneurs - take the day off if you need it! Your work will still be there tomorrow. 

Lastly, my big piece of advice is when you’re growing your business, focus on your A-list tasks. That means, figure out what you’re really really good at and focus on those. If you’re bad at bookkeeping and finances, hire it out. If you’re not a lawyer, stop spending hours pouring over contracts. While hiring someone to do tasks for you can be costly, you need to remember what your own time is worth and how much of that capital you’re spending on tasks that you’re not effective at. At the end of the day, if you’re trying to focus on everything, you’re going to be ineffective in everything. 

TNT: That is such great advice, Koleya. This has been an awesome conversation. Thank you so much for sitting down with me! 

KK: You’re welcome!