StartUp Founders: Beast (Founder) Mode
Contrary to conventional wisdom, successful startup founders are redefining leadership by embracing 'Founder Mode'. This hands-on approach, championed by industry titans like Brian Chesky and Steve Jobs, challenges the notion that scaling requires founders to step back from day-to-day operations.
Dear Reader,
The entire journey of trying to get your StartUp off the ground is so you can delegate something to someone else. Right? That’s scalability.
Wrong. Dead wrong.(đ)
That thinking often comes from smart, experienced people who think they understand what it takes to manifest something from nothing, but they don’t get that founders are a different breed.
TL;DR Brian Chesky of AirBnB argues that most scaling advice he received was wrong. Instead of stepping back, he fired middle management and took direct control of product.
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LETS GET INTO IT:
Paul Graham had a fire piece last week calling it âFounder Modeâ thatâs making the rounds, giving a lot of founders the confidence to finally say it: manager mode is damaging, they want to stay in control.
The experience of one top performer with a billion-dollar company doesnât always translate to the rest of us. This isnât a âcopy Cheskyâ playbook. Itâs about aligning some of his thinking with your reality, finding ways to run faster, stronger, better…on your own terms.
Most founders are already in âFounder Modeâ relentlessly revising five words on the website, obsessing over every detail, in the absolute weeds of your product and battling doubts because youâre staying true to your vision.
Chesky is not alone. Jobs returning to Apple, Musk sleeping on the Tesla factory floor and countless founders you have never heard of already doing whatever it takes to make magic happen.
Founder Mode means being deep in the weeds of everything, bringing your eyes (vision) and heart (passion) into every single decision. Yes, ITB vs. RTB, yes, allocating your time where it has the most impact, yes to relentless focus. But above all, it’s about absolute ownership of your sport.
Itâs about being the force of nature that only a true founder can be.
Itâs not as simple as âFounder Mode good, delegation bad.â
Itâs also not Founder Mode = Megalomaniac Dictatorship
The Conventional Wisdom: As you scale, hire good people and get out of their way. Build a ârealâ company.
The “Founder Mode” Approach: Maintain direct control. Fewer things, done better. Leverage founder superpowers longer.
The Reality: Itâs not black and white. Thereâs a spectrum, and where you fall depends on you, your capabilities and circumstances.
What does Founder Mode really mean?
- Being so involved that your team thinks youâre crazyâŠuntil it works.
- Bringing your vision and passion into every single decision.
- Breaking âgood managementâ rules to get your vision across.
Your deep involvement isnât a weakness. Your speed to decision making, your clarity of the market, your fight for velocity. Itâs your superpower. Your obsession with details isnât micromanagement. Itâs how you build something truly great. And non-founders can rarely deliver that on your behalf.
Is it scalable? No.
Is it exhausting? Absolutely.
Is it the only way to build something that changes a market? Probably.
But only if you can pull it off.
Founder Mode isnât for everyone. It works for exceptional founders, true pirates.
Founder Mode is not an excuse for your bullshit…
– Needlessly micromanaging every detail
– Creating a revolving door of talent
– Expecting founder-level dedication without founder-level compensation
– Getting angry when things donât go exactly your way
You’re doing it wrong.
Founder Mode is about vision, passion, and execution. It’s not a free pass for bad leadership. If you’re using it as an excuse for toxic behavior, you’re not in Founder Mode â you’re just being terrible.
Real Founder Mode means taking responsibility, not shirking it. It’s about elevating your team, not crushing it. It’s about making hard decisions, not throwing tantrums.
If you can’t tell the difference, you might not be cut out for this. Harsh, but true.
So, what does this mean for you?
- Know Yourself: Are you a visionary or do you need to build systems that empower others to act like founders?
- Align, Align, Align: Whether youâre hands-on or hands-off, your primary job is alignment, everyone pulling in the same direction.
- Culture Is Real: If you canât (or shouldnât) micromanage everything, build a culture that makes the right decisions without you.
- Play To Your Strengths: If youâre great at vision, do that. If youâre better at brute force alignment, do that. But you must drive alignment, speed, agility, and vision somehow.
Youâre not here to run a company. Youâre here to build a brilliant company.
Just be the best founder you can be – whatever that looks like for you and your startup.
Your investors might freak out. Your team might get uncomfortable. Itâs part of the journey.
As always, if I can be of service, feel free to grab time.
â James