By Jennifer Maggiore, CEO, Always This Good
“Founder mode” – It sounds like a secret level in a video game, doesn’t it? Like, if you can just unlock it, you’ll suddenly know all the right moves to scale your startup to unicorn status. Paul Graham’s recent article* talks about Brian Chesky’s journey at Airbnb and the distinction between founder mode and manager mode. According to Graham, founder mode is where the magic happens—you know, like Steve Jobs summoning his famous “reality distortion field” at Apple.**
But here’s the thing: Paul and his esteemed peers might have left out a few, shall we say, nuances. Don’t get me wrong, Brian Chesky is a legend, and there’s a lot to learn from his experiences. But can we all agree that the idea of a singular “right way” to run a startup just doesn’t exist? Spoiler alert: it’s way more complicated than just choosing founder mode over manager mode.
Emotional Intelligence: The Real Superpower
While I agree with Graham that founder mode means going deeper than the org chart, I’d argue that it’s not just about doing “skip-level” meetings or micromanaging the black boxes of your company. It’s about emotional intelligence and intuition—skills that many would agree, women often excel at. The unspoken side of great leadership is about drawing your people in close, not treating them like “professional fakers” who are will eventually let you down.
Scaling isn’t a matter of choosing between working as a founder or as a manager. The truth is, you need to switch hats or heels to flats and back again—probably five times before lunch. Sometimes you need to get out of the way and let your team work their magic, but other times you need to pull them back in for real guidance, feedback, and (this is the hard part) actual care. The best founders know how to walk that tightrope.
Great People Don’t Just Appear
Now, let’s address the elephant in the room: the idea that you can just “hire good people” and let them run the show. Graham talks about how disastrous this can be, calling those who fail at it “professional fakers.” And yeah, sure, there are some great fakers out there. But are we really ready to write off hiring great talent as a lost cause?
Here’s what’s missing: Great people exist, and good people can be coached to greatness. Those folks are out there. But—newsflash—it takes time to find them. Building a team of superheroes doesn’t happen overnight, and it definitely doesn’t happen by simply hiring the first C-suite exec with a sexy resume who says all the right things in an interview. This is when we’re looking for our intuition to kick in, that gut feeling that says, “this person gets it.” The problem is most founders (and VCs) aren’t willing to wait long enough to find the real gems while they’re moving fast and breaking things. And when they do, they don’t always invest in nurturing that talent once onboarded. So, instead of treating your direct reports like dispensable rocket boosters, how about building a team that actually buys into your mission and vision for the long haul? That’s when the magic really happens.
Founder Mode: Not an “A or B” Choice
The whole concept of founder mode vs. manager mode feels a little too binary, doesn’t it? Like you’re either one or the other. But real success as a founder is not about living in one role or the other. It’s about blending the two and knowing when to switch between them. It’s the difference between merely running a company and actually leading one.
Think about it—if Steve Jobs had only operated in founder mode, there’s no way Apple would have become what it is today. He had to delegate, sure. But he also knew when to step back in and coach or disrupt things. That’s where the real genius lies—in the ability to alternate between those roles based on what’s needed.
The Hard Work No One Wants to Talk About
Let’s be honest: the thing no one really talks about is the hard work behind this delicate balancing act. Founders scaling startups would love to believe there’s a formula, a “right way” to grow, because wouldn’t that just make life so much easier? But guess what? There isn’t. You’re going to have to roll up your sleeves and get into the emotional trenches with your team. You’re going to have to hire people with intuition, vision, and grit—and yes, you’re going to have to check in on them, offer guidance, and build genuine relationships. That’s the stuff no one wants to talk about, because it’s messy and it’s hard. But it’s also the reason some founders lead companies that thrive, while others just manage companies that survive.
It’s Not Just Founder Mode—It’s Founder and Manager and Superhuman Mode
In the end, Graham is right about one thing: founders do need to operate differently than managers. But it’s not just about choosing one “mode” over another. It’s about embracing all the roles—founder, manager, visionary, firefighter—and doing the emotional heavy lifting that comes with each. And hey, for those of us who’ve had to navigate the complexities of leadership as women entrepreneurs, we’ve always known that success requires more than just switching hats (or heels). It requires using our natural gifts of emotional intelligence and intuition to not just run a company, but to lead it in a way that draws people in, buys them into the vision, builds lasting relationships, and ultimately, drives success.
And yeah, it’s hard work. But if you ask me, that’s where the real magic is.