breaking up with "founder"
everyone wants the title. loves the romance: the deck, the raise, the vision. most founders i meet in sf can tell you their round size or which vc they know down to the partner's dog's name. ask them about churn drivers or customer feedback themes? silence. maybe a pivot to "market education."
it's not that they're stupid. it's that they fell for the wrong idea. they wanted the outcomes – respect, money, building something cool, maybe even friends. those are real goals. but they got sold the idea of "founder."
the idea of "founder" isn't really about product or customers. it's about status markers: the round, the network, the conference circuit, the 'visionary' tweet. those are the idea's side effects, totally disconnected from building value.
you chase the idea, you inherit its priorities. you focus on the wrong metrics because the idea rewards optics, not outcomes.
quit being a "founder." be a founder. build the thing. talk to the customers. the other stuff? there are easier, faster, less soul-sucking ways to get status and money than pretending to build something while optimizing for the "founder" scorecard.
break up with the bullshit idea.