Every time a founder emails me, “Schedule a meeting with my assistant,”
I hear: “You’ve already lost me.”
Early-stage founders love to look busy. They copy big CEOs — assistants, auto-replies, scheduling links — thinking it signals success. It doesn’t. It signals distance. At seed stage, every message is a chance to build trust. Hide behind someone else’s inbox, and you kill momentum before it starts.
Investors read between the lines. Speed shows priority. Personal touch shows respect. When an assistant replies, the message flips: arrogance, poor focus, wrong mindset. Relationships die between “check with my assistant” and “let’s talk.”
You can’t outsource hunger. Assistants can’t read urgency or sense opportunity. Only you can.
Early delegation isn’t efficiency — it’s early elimination. Handle your own calendar. Build your own network.
You’re building a startup, not running a corporation.
Be reachable. Be fast. Be human.
This resonates with where I am as a founder.
I started my project in March this year, and I was feeling like I was personally handling too much, setting the tone for all conversations with all our new stakeholders.
Thank you for sharing.