The hardest transition as a founder is going from working directly on the product to not. There’s this joy that comes from sitting down to solve a problem and standing up when it’s done and good. Building a company or managing people is never just done.
I stepped away from Heap last month, after nine fantastic years.
Here are some things I wish I could tell my 2013 self.
I was excited to write some code, and I had no idea what was in store on the path to 350+ people and a transformative product.
The company is an extension of my psychology as the founder. All my strengths and knowledge get amplified and extended, but so do my weaknesses and limitations.
Complicated problems have a solution, and the solution can often be found by breaking the complicated portions into smaller pieces.
And complicated problems often have an emotional component, because there are parts of the problem we don’t want to look at closely, or deal with personally.
If you’re lucky enough to be handed a complicated problem,... See more