What You’ll Get From This Episode:
In this insightful panel from the Man on a Mission Show, two dynamic entrepreneurs Sanee Yeo(CEO of Custom Made Costume & Merchandise) and Stefan Ye (Founder of Compass Events) share the real transition from being an operator to becoming a business owner.
Both leaders went from small teams to managing multi-million-dollar companies and hundreds of employees, but the road there wasn’t easy. From managing emotions, building the right team, firing without regret, to adopting AI in business, this episode dives deep into the leadership mindset needed to scale sustainably in today’s world.
You’ll discover:
What it really means to move from operator to owner
How to handle emotional burnout and identity shifts as a founder
The secret to hiring and leading the right team even when they can’t do it like you
Why clarity, not hustle, drives real business growth
How AI is reshaping leadership and why it’s not replacing jobs, it’s replacing excuses
The role of mentorship and community (EOA & EO) in achieving 4x business growth
If you’re an entrepreneur scaling your business or leading a growing team, this episode is your roadmap to evolving from doing it all to leading it well.
🕒 Timestamps
00:00 – Opening Quote: “If you want to go far, go together.”
00:20 – From Operator to Owner: The mindset shift
02:00 – Stefan’s story: From live bands to building a conference empire
03:45 – Managing emotions as a business owner
05:30 – Sunny’s turning point: “My clients wanted me cloned.”
06:20 – Realizing the need to build a team
07:00 – Identity shift: Letting go and trusting your team
09:00 – Controlled risk: Hiring, testing, and learning fast
10:30 – Flat vs hierarchical structure: Why speed matters more than size
12:20 – Managing emotions & delayed responses as a leader
14:30 – When is it too early to become an owner?
15:40 – Hiring generalists vs specialists in the age of AI
17:00 – Why attitude beats knowledge (DBS CEO quote)
18:00 – How Sunny and Stefan “vibe check” new hires
19:30 – Firing without backlash: How to end things well
21:00 – AI adoption: “AI doesn’t replace jobs, it replaces excuses.”
22:00 – Usain Bolt analogy: Why you can’t stand still in the AI era
23:30 – Using AI to do “stupid work” so humans can do smart work
24:45 – Key lesson: Why clarity is the real currency of growth
26:00 – Stefan’s mentorship story: From $400k to $1.8M revenue
28:00 – The 4 client categories that changed his business
29:30 – Closing message: “Cheap is never good, and good is never cheap.
If this episode inspired you, don’t forget to like, subscribe, and hit the bell icon 🔔 for more conversations with leaders who are redefining success and scaling with purpose.
👉 Share this episode with a founder who’s learning to lead.
👇 Your hosts:
Tammy Ng
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ngtammyyy/
🎬 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ngtammyyy
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ngtammyyy/
Adeline Ng
🌐 Website: https://adelineng.com/
📝Free Marketing Notes: https://linktr.ee/adeline.ng
📱Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ng.adelinee
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ade_ysc/
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ade-ng/
🎥 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ng.ade
Follow Man on a Mission here:
🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@manonamissionshow?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/manonamissionshow/?hl=en
🏢 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/manonamissionshow
📌 Subscribe here:
▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@ManOnAMissionShow
