Creator of US$400 million company uses hypnosis to combat fear of failure

Everyone deals with work stress differently: some clear their minds with 5 a.m. runs or venting to their therapists, while others let so-called “retail therapy” work its magic. Joanna Griffiths has spent years working with executive coaches to help her navigate the challenges of leading Knix, a $400 million underwear company. Now, however, she is finding new momentum by entering a meditative, trance-like state.

“I love hypnotherapy, which has been really helpful,” Griffiths tells Fortune. “(My hypnotherapist) works with a lot of high-profile entrepreneurs, athletes and creatives in very senior positions. We’re really working on rewiring my brain and the way I react in different situations.”

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For the past five years, she has been working with US hypnotherapist Grace Smith, introduced to her by another successful founder. Smith, co-founder of Grace Hypnotherapy, has already attracted 78,000 users to her app and a roster of celebrity clients — ranging from CEOs of Fortune 500 companies and A-list celebrities to Olympic athletes and White House staffers.

Griffiths says the main focus of the work has been her fear of failure, facing big business decisions like taking Knix public and potentially being put under a microscope as a female founder. In biweekly one-hour sessions, she has been learning to make smarter decisions “from a place of optimism, not fear.”

“We put too much emphasis on the fear of failure,” he continues. “We often don’t allow ourselves to think this through and say, ‘Okay, if this really goes wrong, what’s going to happen? Do I still have my family? Do I still have my health? Do I still have my inner knowing?'”

An inside look at hypnotherapy sessions with successful founders

The concept of hypnotherapy evokes many pop culture clichés: a willing participant falling into a trance to the sound of a swinging pendulum and a metronome keeping time, unconsciously doing whatever is asked of them. But Griffiths’ sessions with Smith are goal-oriented and meditative in nature, helping her deal with burnout and intense decisions.

The president of Knix states that hypnotherapy eliminates the noise and brings clarity on how to address what is most urgent. Griffiths and Smith meet over Zoom, spending the first 15 to 20 minutes talking about current challenges, followed by a 30 to 40 minute hypnotherapy session to specifically address the most pressing issues.

Topics range from a big decision on the horizon to how to deal with difficult dynamics within the team; and, one to three times a year, the two meet in person for full-day sessions, delving into the Knix founder’s childhood, as well as her future professional goals.

Over the past five years, Griffiths says Smith has helped her “deal with my fears and insecurities and move through them, rather than letting them hold me back.”

“I gained a lot of clarity about things… like the fact that I didn’t want to run a publicly traded company, where I got meaning from, all these big questions,” he explains. “I often leave with a very clear visual understanding and representation of what to do next. Like other meditative states, it’s also great for brain health and ‘resetting’ the nervous system.”

Diagnosing extreme burnout and learning how to recharge your energy

With more than a decade of experience as a founder, at 42, Griffiths knows firsthand the social complexities and emotional toll of entrepreneurship.

The Canadian launched the menstrual product brand in Toronto in 2012, shortly after completing her MBA at Insead, in France. To get Knix off the ground, friends, family and former co-workers came in as angel investors, with contributions ranging from US$15,000 to US$100,000.

She served as CEO for a decade before closing a $320 million sale that valued Knix at $400 million, when Essity bought 80% of the business. Griffiths remembers the difficulties in the years leading up to the acquisition in 2022.

According to her, there was a lot of criticism directed at female founders — and being placed under a “different set of expectations” only added to her mental pressure.

She even remembers an episode in which a well-known venture capital manager from San Francisco called her “lazy” because she hadn’t posted the look of the day that morning.

Going public would have only compounded the stress she was already facing, and Griffiths says she didn’t want to “disappear,” as other female founders do after their IPOs.

When Covid-19 swept the world, Griffiths’ life seemed to keep changing. Every six months since 2020, there has been some kind of decisive turning point that has thrown it off its axis.

She weathered the pandemic, had three children, raised a $50 billion round of capital, and sold the company for $320 million — all in just two and a half years.

After the sale, he remained president, but he continued to accumulate too many roles, and the pressure only increased. It was only in 2024 that everything changed: Griffiths took seven night flights in 21 days and says his “brain collapsed”.

“I was diagnosed with extreme burnout (in 2024) for the first time in my life, and that was really eye-opening for me. You need to take care of yourself and find time to recharge,” recalls the millennial founder.

“The culture of hustle and the use of constant occupation as a badge of honor are things that have been imposed on us as a sign of success.”

Hypnotherapy is helping to combat this deeply ingrained American “work until you drop” mentality. While dealing with chronic burnout, she finally accepts that she can’t say yes to everything. Taking time for yourself and setting boundaries have also become bigger priorities after more than a decade in the game.

Although Griffiths is no longer at the helm of the company as CEO, she remains the face and mind behind the multi-million pound underwear business. As founder and president, she continues to take the company to new heights — and, just last December, Knix reached the milestone of 1 billion Canadian dollars (US$732 million) in net sales. From now on, however, she learned to move away from the rush culture of entrepreneurship.

“I’ve been very firm in saying no,” says Griffiths, adding that she wishes she had learned sooner to “value quieter moments, free time and creating boundaries.”