Confessions of an Entrepreneur19 Aug 2025

Against the Odds: ADHD, Adversity & Ambition

In this episode of ‘Confessions of an Entrepreneur’, Carl sits down with global recruitment specialist Steve Rawlingson.

Founder of Samuel Knight, Steve overcame a challenging childhood to become a trailblazer in the recruitment industry, carving a significant niche in the international renewable energy sector.

He has embraced ADHD as a ‘superpower’ to drive him to the success he is achieving and talks frankly about how the condition impacts and influences his life, and entrepreneurial spirit.

Having left school with no qualifications and little idea of the direction he wanted to take, Steve opens up about the decisions he made and the opportunities that enabled him to set up, scale and grow his international business, including securing significant investment from private equity firm, Gresham House Ventures.

In this fascinating episode Steve reveals his ‘why’ and what drives him, balancing business with being a dad, and, and how despite having not gained a single GCSE, his latest achievement, which is an academic one, is one of his proudest.

Carl and Steve also delve into what makes an entrepreneur and how to overcome challenges to build businesses and achieve personal and professional success.

This insightful and engaging episode is a must listen for anyone that is scaling up their own business and shows how self-belief, resilience and challenging yourself can drive entrepreneurs to success.

Connect with Steve

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenrawlingson/

Website: https://www.samuel-knight.com/

Connect with Carl

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-swansbury-fca-33b21923/?originalSubdomain=uk

Website: https://ryecroftglenton.com/team/carl-swansbury/

This podcast is brought to you by Recognition PR.

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