Episode 6: How High-Integrity Founders Avoid Dogma And Drift

Dec 10

“I am someone I would consider very values-driven… that's the way I do business. Now that I have so many people on my team and so many clients, it can feel like I just have this like tsunami of opinions from everyone all the time… are you porous enough and flexible enough and self-reflective enough to be able to continue to evolve yourself.”

That’s the tension that runs through this Season 1 Finale of Breaking The Bottleneck, where Co-Hosts Charlie Birch and Laurel Carpenter sit down with Makena Finger Zannini, Founder of The Boutique COO, a seven-figure operations agency.

In this conversation, Makena explains that in an industry that often overpromises and underdelivers, she operates on three non-negotiables: integrity, transparency, and mutual respect.

You’ll hear:

The three principles that anchor how she leads
About keeping to your standards even when it means losing money, time, and relationships
How to identify cult-adjacent behavior in entrepreneurial spaces
What distinguishes grounded leadership from dogmatic leadership
Why she invites and integrates feedback constantly, even when it’s uncomfortable
The role evidence-based mindset work plays in sustainable entrepreneurship
Why she installed a personal “board of directors” to call her out and tell her the truth

For founders committed to building values-driven companies, Makena’s story is a reminder that clarity, self-awareness, and a willingness to evolve are just as operationally important as systems, offers, and revenue.

We’ll be back in 2026 with more great guests.