{"id":8674,"date":"2025-07-20T07:00:29","date_gmt":"2025-07-20T04:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/20\/why-startup-founders-struggle-with-adaptability-and-how-to-overcome-the-challenge\/"},"modified":"2025-07-20T07:00:29","modified_gmt":"2025-07-20T04:00:29","slug":"why-startup-founders-struggle-with-adaptability-and-how-to-overcome-the-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/20\/why-startup-founders-struggle-with-adaptability-and-how-to-overcome-the-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Startup Founders Struggle With Adaptability (And How To Overcome The Challenge)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor\u2019s note: The following is excerpted with permission from \u201cFounders, Keepers<\/a>,\u201d\u00a0copyright 2025, by Richard Hagberg, Tien Tzuo and Gabe Weisert. Reprinted with permission from Matt Holt Books, an imprint of BenBella Books Inc.<\/a> All rights reserved.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Richard Hagberg<\/a> and Tien Tzuo<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Founders tend to be a pretty adaptable bunch (and that\u2019s not just survivorship bias talking \u2014 we have the data). They have to navigate treacherous waters, switch strategies, and continuously innovate.<\/p>\n

So why, even within this inherently flexible group of humans, do so many of them struggle with adaptability? This is where personality data really gives us insights. When we combine founders\u2019 personality assessments (their own opinions of their needs, behavioral tendencies, emotional reactions, cognitive approach, social style, and general identity) with their behavioral 360 ratings, some clear patterns begin to emerge.<\/p>\n

\"Richard
Richard Hagberg of Hagberg Consulting Group<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s an ironic truth \u2014 founders, who are notoriously averse to bureaucracy and organizational inertia, tend to generate lots of it. They either pontificate and prevaricate, or they jump wildly at every opportunity, immolating their team members in the process. They don\u2019t allow themselves to be open to different experiences and perspectives, so they become the obstacle instead of the accelerant. They slow everything down.<\/p>\n

These founders might appear adaptable (chasing after the latest trends, obsessing over the competition, etc.), but their personality scores reveal that they\u2019re actually incredibly rigid. They talk the talk, but they don\u2019t walk the walk. They struggle to let go. They prefer to stick to familiar methods that have worked in the past. They tend to anchor around past successes.<\/p>\n

\"Tien
Tien Tzuo of Zuora<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In short, their general cognitive posture is closed, not open: \u201cDoes not appear that he has developed as a leader. Instead, he tends to avoid leading by locking himself in the back room.\u201d They consider themselves completed projects, so they can\u2019t be bothered to ask for advice: \u201cHe seems completely unable to change his behavior. He keeps approaching problems the same way, hoping for a different result.\u201d<\/p>\n

They admit they hate ambiguity, so they perceive change as a threat. They much prefer clearly defined situations. They desperately seek black-and-white answers in a world of shades of gray: \u201cHas very little tolerance for ambiguity \u2014 most discussions and worldviews are presented as black and white without nuance.\u201d As a result, they struggle to make decisions based on incomplete information (i.e., practically every single one): \u201cHe has a real problem with analysis paralysis.\u201d<\/p>\n

They\u2019re exceptionally mistrustful. They\u2019re much more likely to believe overly optimistic people have a naive view of the world. They also describe themselves as being incredibly selective about who they choose to open up to. Here\u2019s another jaw-dropper: \u201cHe defers communication, and you often learn about things through an accidental path. You might be uninvited to a meeting or become aware of a new reporting structure by reading it in a new presentation. At the end of the day, we are all people and want to be treated like we matter. The least you could do is look us in the eye when you deliver your decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

These founders are seen as profoundly dictatorial \u2014 when you don\u2019t listen, it\u2019s difficult to recognize the need to change. They self-report that people find it very hard to convince them that they are wrong on a point(!).<\/p>\n

To the surprise of no one but themselves, there\u2019s a marked difference between their own perceived capabilities in their self-reported personality tests and the frank assessments of their coworkers: \u201cHe needs to feel like you know exactly what you are doing, and he does not adjust his behavior. He is who he is, and gets passionate and loud, thinking that it is going to yield the result he wants.\u201d<\/p>\n

So they come across as headstrong assholes, pushing for their own views, resisting disagreement, and generally ruining everyone\u2019s lives: \u201cHe assumes the original model will work, or that the new model recommended to him was what he was thinking all along. He does not seem to be able to keep all interdependencies in mind when recommending solutions.\u201d They are momentum killers: \u201cHe creates the ambiguity and then becomes the obstacle. He gets very upset and negative when he doesn\u2019t get his way or gets pushback on a project.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their self-reported personality scores also reveal that they are profoundly anxious, insecure, and secretive. They tend to see other people as antagonists, so they hold their decisions tight to their chests. Instead of seeking change and opportunity, they build walls and silos: \u201cI often worry that he has Machiavellian tendencies when it comes to getting things done. He has explicitly told me not to tell people what I\u2019m really doing or tell them something else instead of what is actually happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

The result is a vicious circle. They are aware their job performance is negatively impacted by their behavior and admit to getting upset when criticized, but that only reinforces their rigid approach. They suffer from high anxiety, pessimism about the future, and low energy levels, but they have zero ability to recognize that they are the cause of all this consternation. Unsurprisingly, their 360 comments show that they plainly suck at team building and inspiring people. They often share this awareness, but the tragedy is that their response is to circle the wagons.<\/p>\n

They also struggle to empower and delegate, so they can\u2019t enable change: \u201cHe doesn\u2019t have to get better at working on the product himself. He just has to learn to empower the great team he put together.\u201d As a result, their stakeholders feel unheard and undervalued, resulting in a quiet reluctance to support decisions made in such a blatantly dictatorial manner: \u201cHe defaults to telling you your commitments, as opposed to leading you there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Their impatience and instability prevent them from thoughtfully considering feedback or adapting their strategies, contributing to their lack of adaptability. They score low on patience and high on time urgency. They strongly agree with a statement that says they get frustrated by people who can\u2019t make quick decisions.<\/p>\n

As a result, they are perpetually stressed. They\u2019re completely strung out. They confess that they find it difficult to concentrate, and sometimes they don\u2019t even have the energy to think. They also self-report that their job performance is affected because they are frequently upset. So they make more impulsive decisions, they make more dictatorial statements, and the doom loop rolls on.<\/p>\n

So, what concrete steps can you take to increase your adaptability?<\/p>\n

Moving forward<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re struggling with adaptability, your ego is probably clouding your ability to listen, respond, and bring people along.<\/p>\n

Stop playing the tyrant. Be aware of your own warping effect when it comes to group dynamics. Here\u2019s a suggestion from Tien: Head into your next meeting telling yourself that you\u2019re only allowed to ask questions, not make declarative statements of any kind. This will feel like pulling teeth at first, but it will open up new insights.<\/p>\n

Develop a relationship with ambiguity. Many things are beyond your control. Focus on what is tangible and achievable \u2014 and don\u2019t worry about the rest. Look at unseen challenges and curveballs as opportunities to learn something new. Want a Benioff-approved reading suggestion? Try Zen Mind, Beginner\u2019s Mind<\/a> by Shunryu Suzuki.<\/p>\n

Stop spreading yourself thin. Address your inability to let go of things. Your job is simply to find the biggest problem (there\u2019s always one), fix it, then move on to the next one \u2014 that\u2019s it. Prioritize. Pick your battles, and delegate everything else. Protect your focus and avoid the death of a thousand cuts.<\/p>\n

Interrogate your decision-making. Encourage other people to question your assumptions and push you to consider what might go wrong: \u201cWhat am I missing? Why might my approach fail?\u201d<\/p>\n

Consider yourself a perpetual learning project. Make a habit of reading, taking courses or attending workshops that push you out of your comfort zone and help you develop new perspectives.<\/p>\n

Trust your people. Give them challenges. Start with small tasks and gradually increase the level of delegation. Provide support and guidance when needed, but allow them to come up with their own solutions.<\/p>\n

Be proactive about addressing your stress. Find out what works for you: meditation, exercise, a hobby that preferably has nothing to do with technology. Learn how to take a break. Tien likes to take a couple of weeks off every year in order to \u201clet the company run itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ask yourself: Is there anything else going on internally that\u2019s affecting your ability to iterate? Is your relationship suffering because of work? Any unresolved grief or trauma issues? It might be time to think about consulting a shrink. Walking through that door for the first time will be painful, but it\u2019s invariably worth the effort.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, the data doesn\u2019t lie: Adaptability isn\u2019t just a competency that\u2019s \u201cnice to have.\u201d It\u2019s an imperative. It\u2019s not only a pathway to personal growth but a key driver of business success.<\/p>\n

\n

Richard Hagberg<\/a> and Tien Tzuo<\/a> are the authors of \u201cFounders, Keepers: Why Founders Are Built to Fail, and What it Takes to Succeed.\u201d<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Often referred to as \u201cSilicon Valley\u2019s CEO Whisperer,\u201d Hagberg is a trained psychologist who has spent the past 40 years of his career as an executive management coach for more than 6,000 executives. Since 2009, he has worked with companies like Tinder<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, Dropbox<\/a>, Mixpanel<\/a>, Zendesk<\/a>, Quora<\/a>, Asana<\/a>, Pinterest<\/a>, Salesforce<\/a> 1<\/a>, Munchery<\/a>, Reddit<\/a>, Gusto<\/a>, Cruise<\/a>, Optimizely<\/a>, Instacart<\/a>, Patreon<\/a>, Nerdwallet<\/a> and Super Evil Megacorp<\/a> (it\u2019s a gaming company).<\/em><\/p>\n

Tzuo, founder and CEO of Zuora<\/a>, evangelized the shift to subscription and service-based business models, coining the phrase \u201csubscription economy.\u201d In an effort to empower this new economy, he created what became an award-winning monetization suite capable of powering any recurring revenue model. Before Zuora, Tzuo was one of the \u201coriginal forces\u201d at Salesforce, joining as employee No. 11. In his nine years at Salesforce, he built its original billing system, later serving as chief marketing officer and chief strategy officer.<\/em><\/p>\n

Illustration: Dom Guzman<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

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    Salesforce Ventures is an investor in Crunchbase. They have no say in our editorial process. For more, <a href=\u201dhttps:\/\/news.crunchbase.com\/about-news\/<\/a>\u201c>head here<\/a>.\u21a9<\/a><\/p>\n<\/li>\n

    <\/p><\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

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    Editor\u2019s note: The following is excerpted with permission from \u201cFounders, Keepers,\u201d\u00a0copyright 2025, by Richard Hagberg, Tien Tzuo and Gabe Weisert. Reprinted with permission from Matt Holt Books, an imprint of BenBella Books Inc. All rights reserved. By Richard Hagberg and Tien Tzuo Founders tend to be a pretty adaptable bunch (and that\u2019s not just survivorship […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8675,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[1,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8674","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-explore","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8674","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8674"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8674\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8674"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8674"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/handoli.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8674"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}