Nobody Talks About How Lonely Building a Business Can Be

But there’s another side.

You become the person who has to make the decision, even when you don't know the answer. Even when the decision affects other people's jobs, someone's mortgage, your own savings or the future of something you've spent years building. And who do you talk to about that?

You can't always tell your team. You don't necessarily want to tell your investors. Your friends might not understand. Your partner can listen, but they don't necessarily understand the business. So you carry it. And then you get good at carrying it. That's probably the dangerous bit.

Because eventually being able to carry everything starts to look like strength. You convince yourself that this is what being a founder is. You figure it out. You keep going. You don't bother people. You solve your own problems. Until one day you realise you've built a business surrounded by people, while somehow building it completely alone.

I don't think founders need more people telling them what to do. I think they need a few people they trust enough to think out loud with. People who understand the pressure. People who can challenge you without trying to take over. People who can tell you when you're being an idiot. And people who are still there when things aren't going well.

Maybe that's what a village really is. Not people doing the work for you. Just people making sure you don't have to carry all of it by yourself.