Founders: thinking big from day one

When you start a business, everyone seems to have advice. Some of it is useful, but a lot of it can distract you from your true vision. One thing I’ve learned over the years as a founder is this: it’s your idea, your passion, and your vision that will drive the success of your business. Yet, for so long, I was told that “being the visionary” wasn’t a proper role for a founder.

I remember being at a networking event, speaking with a well-known investor and startup mentor. He asked me about my product, knowing I was the founder. Then came the infamous question: “So what is your role in the business? Just don’t tell me you do the vision! Because that isn’t a proper role.”

I was floored. Not because I didn’t expect some pushback - startup culture can be brutal - but because I’d heard this same sentiment time and time again. For years, I struggled with this. I was the visionary. I had the idea, and I was deeply passionate about solving a problem, but executing that vision wasn’t my strength. Was I less of a founder because of that? Should I conform to what others expected a founder to be? Or worse still - just give up?

Trusting Your Vision

Many people told me to focus on other roles - to get into the nitty-gritty of execution and operations. But no matter how much I tried, it never felt right and I couldn't do it. I wasn’t the person to build out the product myself; my strength was seeing the big picture, solving a meaningful problem, and finding the right people to bring that vision to life.

It wasn’t until I stumbled upon some of the words of Steve Jobs that I found peace in my role. Jobs once said, “It doesn’t make sense to hire smart people and then tell them what to do. We hire smart people so they can tell us what to do.” That’s when it clicked: my role wasn’t to control every piece - it was to see the bigger picture, gather the right people, and trust them to co-create it with me. Being the visionary didn’t mean ignoring input. It meant holding the torch, setting the direction, and letting others shine in their areas of genius.

You see, a founder’s vision is the heart of the company. It’s what keeps everything moving forward, and without it, businesses lose focus. My role wasn’t “just the vision” - it was being the person who could look at the big picture and steer the ship.

Blocking Out the Noise

But how do you stay true to that vision when everyone else is telling you to conform? When the “experts” tell you to fall in line and do what everyone else does?

You have to block out the noise.

One of the hardest things to do as a founder is to filter out the voices that don’t align with your vision. It’s easy to doubt yourself when seasoned investors or mentors offer their opinions. It’s easy to feel small when someone dismisses your role. But remember, every successful business starts with a dreamer who saw things differently, who refused to fit into a mould.

As Simon Sinek said, “Vision is the ability to talk about the future with such clarity it is as if we are talking about the past."  Your vision as a founder is the cornerstone of your business. If you let other people shake it or distort it, you’ll lose the very thing that sets you apart.

But What If Your Idea Sucks?

Now, let’s be honest. What if your idea isn’t great? What if it’s one of those times where the people telling you to conform are right?

This is where self-awareness and feedback come into play. As a founder, you have to trust your gut—but you also need to be open to refining your vision. The key is to distinguish between valuable feedback that helps shape your idea and the noise that just tries to push you into someone else’s box.

If your idea genuinely isn’t resonating with the market, pivot. But don’t give up on the vision entirely. Sometimes, all it takes is a tweak - a new angle, a different approach - to make it work. Every great founder has had to refine their vision at some point.

Remember what Steve Jobs said, “I’m convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.” It’s not about abandoning your idea at the first sign of struggle. It’s about adjusting, learning, and continuing to push forward with the core of your vision intact.

The Power of Perspective

In the early stages of your startup, you’re going to get advice from all angles. People will try to pigeonhole you, telling you what a founder should or shouldn’t be. But everyone’s perspective is shaped by their own experiences. Just because they say something doesn’t mean it applies to you or your journey.

Being a founder - especially a creative entrepreneur - requires that you learn to trust your instincts. You need to develop a strong connection with your gut, because ultimately, you know your vision better than anyone else. You’re the one who has lived and breathed this idea, and no one can see it the way you do.

“The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do,” Jobs once said. And he’s right. Founders who think big, who trust their instincts and stay true to their vision, are the ones who make the biggest impact.

A New Way Forward

After years of struggling with the idea that being “the visionary” wasn’t enough, I finally realised something: stuff 'em. Being a founder is about being the person with the idea, the one who’s passionate about solving a problem, the one with the vision. But more than that, it’s about being a leader or torch bearer - gathering the right people around you, guiding them, and cheering them on as they execute your vision with all the skills that you don't have.

That’s my role. And I’m embracing it (it only took me 10+ years to realise this, but that's another story :). I’ve learned that it’s not about the timeframe, or following someone else’s advice based on their limited knowledge of me or my journey. It’s about the learning and the journey itself .

As a founder, you are not bound by anyone else’s expectations. You have the power to shape your business in your way, at your pace. So if you’re in this position - where people are telling you what you should be doing - remember this: your instincts, your vision, and your gut are your most powerful tools. Trust them. Stay the course. You’ve got this.

B x

Just a note: What I’ve shared here comes from my own lived experience as a founder – the wins, the failures, and everything in between. It’s simply my perspective, shared in the hope it sparks reflection, conversation, and maybe even a little courage for anyone on their own path.