Founders Forge
Command your
business.
Don’t let it
command you.
You built the business you always wanted. Now it has your evenings, your attention, and your Sunday nights. Founders Forge is for founders who are ambitious AND unwilling to sacrifice their entire lives for their business.
Build success you can actually enjoy
January 4 through June 14, 2027 · Limited to 70 members
Former U.S. Marine Corps Officer·U.S. Naval Academy Graduate·Author of Be One of Zero·2026 Most Influential Woman of the Year Jacksonville, NC
IS THIS YOU? You built the business you always wanted.
You check Slack before you’re out of bed. You have a good team, but you’re still pulled into every decision. You answer the email during dinner because it will “only take a minute.”
And when you finally get a day off, part of your brain stays at work anyway.
You’re not struggling. That’s almost what makes it harder to explain.
You just don’t want success to require this much of you forever.
The goal was never less ambition.
It’s a life you have the capacity to enjoy.
Ways to work together
Choose the room that fits your next stage.
Founders Forge Cohort
A 24-week live cohort for high-growth founders and leaders who refuse to trade their health, family, or sanity for growth.
Join the Founders Forge CohortWork With Karla
Private coaching, focused 1:1 sessions, a Life Audit, and the five-day Founder Immersion for leaders who need direct support around the next stage.
Work with KarlaSpeaking & Media
Keynotes, leadership workshops, company retreats, podcasts, interviews, panels, and media conversations.
Bring Karla to Your TeamBe One of Zero
The book and the principles behind this work, for high-achieving people who want to build ambitious lives without self-sacrifice.
Get the BookThe system
The Founders Forge OS
A leadership and productivity operating system built on the six pillars of Be One of Zero. It is how the work gets built, held, and sustained at every stage.
Obsession
Get clear on what the finish line is and protect time for the work that actually moves it.
Standards
Define what good looks like, finish what you start, and stop accepting drift as normal.
Ownership
Take responsibility for the outcomes without carrying every task yourself.
Focus
Choose the work that matters, say no deliberately, and protect the one thing that changes the day.
Resilience
Build capacity that holds under pressure instead of relying on adrenaline to keep up.
Identity
Know who you are as a leader so the business cannot become the whole person.
Proof
Built for leaders carrying real responsibility.
“I came in with a prototype and a habit of hiding behind it. I’m leaving with a product that’s live, paying, and pedagogically airtight — and a founder who does the scary revenue work first instead of avoiding it.”
Workshops
Keynotes & Media
The Cohort
The Book: Be One of ZeroGoogle reviews
A few words from clients
“I am walking away with more knowledge to help run my business. I highly recommend her workshops and coaching. She is amazing!”
Tara Peterson · verified Google review
“Karla is incredibly knowledgeable and helpful! She understands the needs of businesses inside and out, and is fantastic at zeroing in to generate success!”
Aubrey Gray · verified Google review
“Karla Murphy is an elite, necessary force for any founder seeking true scale.”
Fernando Moran · verified Google review
“Amazing experience working with Karla!!!!!”
Hannah Gardner · verified Google review
About Karla
Meet Karla Murphy
Karla Murphy is a former U.S. Marine Corps Officer, U.S. Naval Academy graduate, founder of Founders Forge, author of Be One of Zero: Why the Obsessed Always Win, and the 2026 Most Influential Woman of Jacksonville, North Carolina.
She has worked with more than 1,400 entrepreneurs and supported 403+ high-growth founders and leaders.
Meet Karla