Jan Cavelle

Jan built and scaled businesses for nearly 40 years before she started writing about what actually works—and what's complete hot air and hype.

Her two books, Scale for Success (Bloomsbury, 2021) and Start for Success (2023), cut through the startup mythology to give aspiring entrepreneurs the practical, hard-won lessons she wishes she'd had when she was building her own companies as a single mother.

Jan's writing—featured in Real Business, Elite Business, Management Today, Sussex Bylines, and Medium (where she's built a substantial following)—is known for being direct, authentic, and occasionally uncomfortable. She doesn't do guru BS or Instagram inspiration. She does real talk about what it takes to start, run, and grow a business when you're figuring it out as you go.

She's interviewed hundreds of entrepreneurs globally, always approaching it as a fellow traveller rather than an expert. Selected as one of the first 50 women to represent the UK in the European Union for entrepreneurship, she remains passionate about supporting other business owners—particularly those who don't fit the typical startup founder mould.

If you want straight answers instead of motivational platitudes, you're in the right place.