The practical playbook for building the next generation of great companies is coming Tough Enough is landing on bookshelves at the end of September Matt Hunter • May 6, 2026 I just finished co-writing a new book, Tough Enough: How to Lead a Team to Greatness Without Being a Jerk, which Hachette will publish in September 2026. As an exited founder turned executive coach, I’ve partnered with John Baird, one of Silicon Valley’s most respected executive coaches (Apple, Nike, DoorDash,...
19 days ago • 3 min read
How ChatGPT hit 1M users in 5 days The deadline trick that makes teams elite Matt Hunter • April 21, 2026 A launch serves as the defining moment of a company’s work. There’s a date on the calendar, a promise to stakeholders, and everyone must come together to make it succeed on time. A launch represents a public commitment. The world is watching, and you’ll be on stage, presenting real work or otherwise falling flat. This creates positive drama and tension, along with a supercharged layer of...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
The warfare tactic your team is missing… How a common enemy sharpens everything. Matt Hunter • April 7, 2026 Every business benefits from a little healthy competition. A common enemy is a warfare tactic that sharpens priorities and heightens intensity around an important goal. When this approach is in balance, it looks like healthy competition. You’re doing this to channel the team’s competitive spirit because defeating the opponent would materially improve your position. Choose a larger...
about 2 months ago • 4 min read
The Hidden Power of Secrecy Why many of the world’s best builders keep their most important work in the dark. Matt Hunter • March 24, 2026 Michele Ferrero, the mastermind behind Nutella, Kinder, Tic Tac, and Ferrero Rocher, spent roughly sixty years inventing products for an imagined customer he called “Vale- ria.” David Senra, on his Founders podcast, recounts how Ferrero owned 100 percent of the company, lived in tasting labs, and iterated tens of thousands of times to perfect flavor,...
2 months ago • 3 min read
Assemble War Rooms: How Jensen Huang and Lisa Su Rally Small Teams to Solve Existential Threats Fast Eight ingredients for mobilizing when the stakes are existential. Matt Hunter • March 3, 2026 If you’re leading a company right now, you probably have at least one issue that’s quietly compounding damage. A stalled launch.A reliability incident.A sales dip no one can quite explain.A competitor moving faster than you expected. Most teams handle these problems inside normal operating...
3 months ago • 7 min read
How to Give Robust Feedback A System for Delivering Truth Without Losing Trust Matt Hunter • February 17, 2026 One of the questions I get most often from founders and executives is: How do I give hard feedback without damaging the relationship? Below is the framework my co-author John Baird and I teach to founders, CEOs, and leadership teams. Deploying feedback is among the most energy-intensive acts of leadership, requiring you to hold truth and care in the same hand. Many leaders either...
3 months ago • 4 min read
Praise Publicly and Criticize Privately? Group meetings may be the best place to deliver constructive feedback. Here’s why. Matt Hunter • February 3, 2026 Most leaders follow the old adage “Praise publicly, criticize privately,” and for good reason. This approach protects morale, avoids public shaming, and makes it easier for feedback to land without triggering defensiveness. It’s a rule that prioritizes psychological safety, and in many environments, it works well. This is a solid rubric for...
4 months ago • 5 min read
The Right Way to Hold People Accountable Feedback without follow-through often falls flat. As a leader, you have to be willing to enforce real consequences. Matt Hunter • January 20, 2026 The ability to deliver feedback and follow through with consequences are two of the core qualities of effective accountability. This comes up all the time in my coaching practice. Almost every week, I speak with leaders who are hesitant to give tough feedback—or are even more hesitant to enforce...
4 months ago • 2 min read
The Number-One Sign of a Toxic Workplace Workplace drama isn’t harmless. It’s a culture problem. Matt Hunter • January 6, 2026 When it comes to drama, tough leaders have a zero-tolerance policy. Back-channeling, gossiping, rumors, and politicking happen in almost every organization—but tough leaders know that these behaviors aren’t harmless. They’re signals that something is off. If you start to catch the whiff of drama in your organization, it’s a signal that something is not right in the...
5 months ago • 2 min read