Not everything in your business is broken. But something is. The hardest part, you often don’t notice until it’s already cost you: - Time - Money - Your team’s energy - Your own mental bandwidth I learned this the hard way.

Founders don’t burn out from work. They burn out from systems that don’t work without them. There’s a dangerous myth floating around founder circles: That hustle is the path. That being “always on” means you’re in control. That if things go wrong — you just need to work harder.

I had a call with a founder recently. Smart, talented, ambitious. Drowning. She manages projects, leads designers, runs delivery, all herself. From the outside, it looks like she’s crushing it. But inside it’s a different story.

I used to think growth came from planning. From the right strategy. The right product. The right offer. But when I look back at every leap in my business — none of them started from a spreadsheet. They all started from a collapse. Not the kind that looks poetic in hindsight. The kind where your gut sinks. You can’t sleep. You think it’s over.

About ten years ago, I made a mistake I’ve seen many founders still repeat. I tried to implement a system in my business the way you implement a new app: Install it. Plug it in. Expect results. The system looked perfect on paper. The logic made sense. It even borrowed ideas from companies like Toyota and McDonald’s — “the greats,” right? But it didn’t work.

When I opened my first office, I thought I made it. I had a team. I had a business address. I had a car — okay, it was on credit, but still. And for the first time in my life, I flew abroad. It felt like success. It looked like success. And I believed it was success. But it wasn’t.

I’m a visual thinker. Maybe it comes from starting out as a designer, but visual and spatial thinking is second nature to me. I process diagrams, charts, and maps way faster than text. Even when my wife asks how a dress looks on her, I tell her honestly: *“I’ll let you know when I see it.”* (Of course, she looks great in everything.) But the point is — visuals work faster. That’s not an opinion. It’s science.

If you’re a painter, sculptor, or writer — maybe that’s true. Talent is personal. Though let’s be honest, even writers have ghostwriters. But if you’re a business owner, that mantra is lethal.

When I started my business, I didn’t even think I was starting a business. I just didn’t want to work for morons — and I needed to support my family. All I really wanted was a comfortable space where I could do something meaningful, surrounded by interesting people. I was always ready to work hard — especially on things that lit me up.

When I started my business, I didn’t even think I was starting a business. I just didn’t want to work for morons — and I needed to support my family. All I really wanted was a comfortable space where I could do something meaningful, surrounded by interesting people. I was always ready to work hard — especially on things that lit me up.

One of the most valuable skills I’ve gained throughout my entrepreneurial journey is the ability to look at a business from a distance — to zoom out and see the big picture.

This is the final letter in my series on the power of setting the right goals as an entrepreneur. Initially, I planned to fit it all into a single message. But as I got deeper into the topic, I realized: goals are too important, too layered, too foundational for a quick overview. They determine everything.