“Founders are the problem” — I hear this often from VCs when a startup stalls and they’re trying to make sense of it.
It always stops me in my tracks because:
Yes, personality matters. Some founders get in their own way. Some hate change or over-identify with their product.
But I’ve been in too many rooms to know that’s not the whole story.
Here’s a different view on it:
Founders sell a big vision to raise capital. Investors buy into that version of the future.
Now that vision is more than just a plan. It becomes a contract — a mutual agreement about what “winning” is supposed to look like.
The logical result of this setup?
When things don’t work out anymore, nobody wants to be the first to admit it. Both sides feel emotionally and financially attached to the original version of “success”.
That’s when you see founders pushing harder. Working longer. Doubling down on a plan that’s already leaking.
I know this feeling well — burning through 60–70 hours a week. Trying to “brute-force” growth back into place. And yet, nothing compounds.
Here’s the deal.
What if… execution wasn’t the problem?
Not the team. Not the founder’s drive.
What if the problem was attachment?
Here’s what I’ve learned after years of building and repositioning tech companies:
- → Pressure to deliver the “original plan” blinds you to whether it still makes sense — especially when it got you here.
- → Sticking to “what worked before” often exhausts everyone and blocks the next growth stage.
- → Real breakthroughs happen when you step back — together with your board, investors, team — and ask: “Is it time for a reset?”
That conversation isn’t easy — to call time on a plan you spent years working on.
But it’s often the moment everything changes, for the better.
Take a hard look: “Does your company need a reset? Or are you just pushing harder on a plan that stopped working months ago?”
If you’re in that foggy middle space, you’re not alone. I spend a lot of time there with tech startups.
You’ll find more insights on how to think through resets + pivots at www.pivotal.ag.