The founder's challenge: vision vs coachability

As someone who's working in the startup space for +5 years now, I’ve had the privilege of meeting and talking to dozens of startup-savvy folks.

From like-minded quirky visioneers to Excel-obsessed investors, I’ve had so many people share their thoughts on what it takes to be a “successful” founder. It’s been inspiring and eye-opening, but also a bit overwhelming. There are so many conflicting ideas and approaches that attempt to articulate why some companies fold and others become AirBNB. Spoiler alert: There is no one-size-fits-all plan, hack or shortcut. I’ve looked.

However, a common theme that pops up again and again in these meetings with other founders, advisors and potential investors is the importance of being “coachable.” After all, believing in the founding team is just as important (if not MORE important) as believing in a product, brand or market if you’re an investor, possible co-founder or first employee.

What does "being coachable" mean?

It means being curious, self-reflective and open to new ideas. Good at receiving feedback. Thoughtful. Humble. Founders who are coachable are good listeners, willing to try new things and most importantly know they don’t know everything. Sounds easy enough, right?

Not quite.

For me, the tension between being coachable and being a visioneer is clear. Founders are founders because they are strong-minded, passionate people who have buttloads (the official measurement) of vision.

As someone who has to believe in the company and its future, sometimes it’s tough to walk that line between confidence and humility. Because in order to create your own company in the first place, you need a startling lack of humility (or “chutzpah,” as my peeps say).

You need to believe that only you and your team can adequately solve this particular problem. If you didn’t, why bother? Starting a company is a ton of work, so why exert countless hours and energy into a project if you think anyone with a WiFi connection could just copy and paste it? A healthy mix of arrogance and denial is downright necessary when starting a company (or come to think of it, starting anything, really).

Then there's the whole "being a woman" thing

Walking this blurred line between having a strong opinion and being coachable isn’t foreign to me; I have tightroped across it every day of my career. Somehow society insists my female colleagues and myself be both confident but deferential. Strong but not argumentative. Passionate but not emotional. I can share my ideas and even disagree, but only when asked and only with a smile and preferably some lip gloss.

Women are oftentimes socially penalized in professional environments when we appear too arrogant, staunch, passionate, strong-willed or “emotional,” while countless male founders are not only known for being brash and overly forward they are revered for it (Steve Jobs, anyone?).

So what is a founder supposed to do?

When do you speak up + fight for your vision? When do you shut up + listen to your advisors, investors, and team?

This, of course, is a trick question…because it is absolutely possible to do both: to build your vision AND also listen to and learn from people who know a lot. Being coachable isn’t being a doormat or an order taker. It simply means being open-minded to other ideas, actively listening, trying new things and staying curious about ways to improve your company and yourself.

You do not have to sacrifice your vision or knowledge about your product, company or market to be coachable.

There are times and places to listen to others who may know more than you and there are times and places to listen to your own knowledge, experiences, and intuition. The best founders can toggle between these two mindsets like browser tabs. It’s possible to listen to other ideas, be open-minded and curious while also having a strong, confident vision for your company’s future.

Like most things in life and business, it’s all about balance.

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‍This article was originally published to Elyse Ash's Medium account on May 7, 2019.

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