Business Athletes: Keilian Knudsen

Hello and welcome to Business Athletes everyone 👋 

Each week, we’ll explore the athlete-like habits behind a different business leader and provide you with practical tactics that you can quickly apply in your day-to-day.⚡️

This week in Business Athletes, I chatted with Keilian Knudsen, co-founder and co-CEO of Pangea.ai, a marketplace connecting vetted development agencies and elite fractional CTOs/CPOs with startups and enterprises.

Think of it as a precision hiring machine for tech and product leadership, already trusted by Nasdaq, IMAX, Intel, and Square.

But in our conversation, what stood out most wasn’t just what he’s building. It’s how he’s building it.

The way Pangea operates is deeply personal to both him and his co-founder, and I think that’s a great lesson to every founder out there.

We talked about designing a culture, tactics to build a team of 1%-ers, and how passing the ball - both in hiring and in operations - might just be the best play a founder can make to win.

Let’s get into it!⚡️

Pre-Game Preparation

Daily Performance Blueprint

I’ve tried the 5 hour sleep hustle before. It didn’t work. Now, I need 7–8 hours to think clearly and perform at my best.

My day starts the night before, with a winding-down ritual that includes:

• 25 minutes on a spike mat (acupressure-style) - it’s hardcore and painful, but very worth it

• Two drops of CBD to decompress

• No screens - I read something non-work related to wind down

Then my mornings start around 7 am.

• I check for anything urgent

• Review my calendar to get a clear mental map of the day

• Meditate for 10–15 minutes

• And finally grab a double espresso with a berocca multivitamin

I skip breakfast and train midday, usually fasted. It breaks the day in two.

Then I eat lunch and dive into some deep work for another 5–6 hours in the afternoon. When I follow this rhythm, my inputs match my outputs, and it all just works.

Lessons From The Field

Remote, But Never Disconnected

Pangea is remote-first company. I know, it’s not for everyone. That said, I also learned that if you don’t build real relationships, performance will suffer.

We believe that great cultures are intentional, even more so when the team’s distributed. So we’re always working to drive that depth of connection in this remote setup.

We’ve realised how critical it is to hold regular team off-sites. We hold at least two a year.

I also try to have a 1:1 with each team member every week. Not just about work, but about the holistic person.

We’re a small, close-knit team, so I have the time to be present to each and every one of them. You can’t shortcut this shared experiences.

Culture Is What You Tolerate

Our culture didn’t come from a slide deck. It reflects our own experience as bootstrapped founders, which meant long hours, hard choices, and doing whatever it took.

We’ve learned that grit and hunger matter more than CVs. Now, we hire only for two types, who share that same edge:

1. Hungry: they’re willing to outwork and outlearn everyone.

2. Experts: they’re best-in-class in something specific.

If you’re lazy or trying to coast, you won’t last. We’ve learned that the hard way.

But once we figured this out, everything changed. Now we see ourselves in our team, and that bond makes us stronger.

Finding The 1% Talent

Here’s something that changed the game: involving our team in the hiring process. Not just as observers, but as evaluators.

It’s not just about what my co-founder or I see. If our team doesn’t feel alignment, we pause. It's helped us detect red flags we would've missed, and also helped us find the right DNA faster.

We also hyper-consistent with cold outreach via LinkedIn. If we like someone, we reach out directly to them. If you want the best people, you have to get out there and sell them on your vision.

The Business Athlete Ethos

Making The Assist

I’ve had to learn how to play both roles: founder and front-line operator.

In our case, that meant carrying a lot of the revenue load for years, but also building the team, setting strategy, and making the hard calls.

Sometimes you’re celebrating because you scored the winning goal. Sometimes you’re the one under pressure, because everyone’s relying on you to keep the lights on.

But I’ve realised over time, the most rewarding part is letting others score. There’s nothing better than supporting your teammates and watching them hit their targets.

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