You do not have to be a CEO to be an effective founder
Naval Ravikant • Naval Ravikant explains why you don't need to be CEO
I’m not better connected than everyone else. I don’t have a better work ethic. I don’t have an Ivy League education and my grades in college were average. The funniest part is, I still don’t know how to build a business. The only thing that I do that most people don’t is I learned how to start with WHY.
Simon Sinek • Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action
Although I am a believer in the wisdom of crowds, I think a leadership hire is a decision to be made by the CEO or a top executive rather than by a group hiring committee. If I had to boil down why, it’s because of the “faster horses” phenomenon. At this level, people at other levels often don’t know what kind of leadership they need.
Claire Hughes Johnson • Scaling People: Tactics for Management and Company Building
Entrepreneurs think they are better than their resumes show and realize they can make more money by going it alone.
steve blank • Steve Blank Why Entrepreneurs Start Companies Rather Than Join Them
The problem is that founders are almost never aware of what these characteristics actually are.