Did you know you are a StartUp Founder?
Recently been speaking with a few start up founders in my course of coaching executives and Founders. I love being around Founders because the are usually very clear about what they are tackling in the world.
My go to question when meeting Founders, "How many Start Ups have you lead before?". For almost all, the response is "My first". The conversation usually starts off with all the positive aspects of being a Founder. The go after your dreams mentality, the change the world mantras, and how their team is the best and will outwork everyone.
I then turn the conversation and ask, "What is not working?" The pause follows the question. The response tends to be...Well, the product is not working just like we thought, it is taking way longer than we modeled, customers are not responding the way we planned, money is going fast, hard to find the right team, and feeling burned at both ends. All wrapped in the feeling of Doubt. These are the things we should expect when you are trying to change the world.
Lets take a few minutes to talk about Doubt for this article. Doubt is defined as a feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction. Let us focus on that feeling of uncertainty. The uncertainty comes from not understanding that this is not their FIRST START UP.
In CEO For Life, I propose that we are all born with our first job description and title as our own CEO and we should guide our lives as such. With vision, values, goals, execution, measuring, and shareholders. I would also offer that we are all Start Up Founders in a sense.
We are born as an unproven product into a market that has a need for us. It is then up to us to build that Start Up into a functioning force to change the world. Think about it for a moment. When we are born:
1. We are a new product that has never been seen or tested before
2. Have a chance to define and meet a market opportunity
3. Need to build a team
4. We need to go through rounds of finances
5. Will face incredible obstacles
6. We will change and grow over time
7. We will encounter competition
This article is not mean to unpack all of these, but plant a seed. If you are a "Founder" and in the throws of all that will come at you and doubt begins to creep into more than a fleeting feeling, recall you have done this before.
In fact, you have likely overcome more incredible obstacles than you will ever face in the business realm. You may have already faced in your Life Start Up journey: object poverty, divorced parents, abusive home, bullying in school, devastating heart break, or dream crashing disappointment. Regardless of the label for what you have overcome so far, you have done it. And You can do this.
So burn the boats, only in the sense of do not give yourself a Plan B, but allow for reflection. You have overcome so much already to get to today. You have already been a successful Start Up Founder of YOU. Go with confidence.
