The founder pay squeeze: What can actually be done 💷

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Earlier this month, we launched a report that found many business founders are keeping the lights on by paying themselves less than minimum wage. At a time when the Employment Rights Act means higher salaries and rights for workers, it seems the trade-off is that it's the owners, the ones driving the business and taking all the risk, who are now worse off. How sustainable is that?

The report got a lot of traction, picked up by five national newspapers. Two weeks on, we're asking: what can actually be done about it? You can read our take here.

All eyes are now on the Budget, the date for which landed this week. We hope the new Chancellor, John Healey, will read our report and take heed.

Also in this edition: protecting your IP is one thing and we recommend it. But enforcing it against copycats rarely comes cheap. We spoke to a former lawyer who's launched an IP insurance broker to help small firms with affordability.

And finally, if the hot weather's made it hard to get anything done lately, that's decision fatigue, and it happens to the best of us. Here's how to handle it.

Small business owners tighten belts as Burnham prepares first Budget

How one lawyer built a business after watching small firms lose IP battles they couldn't afford to fight

Four ways government could ease the founder pay squeeze

Decision fatigue: How it affects founders and how to manage it

The cost of neglecting existing clients

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