Stop Asking How. Start Asking Who.
One of the biggest shifts a founder has to make is deceptively small. Stop asking, "How do I solve this?" Start asking, "Who should own this?"
The "how" trap
"How do I solve this?" feels responsible. It's the reflex that built the company in the first place - see a problem, solve it, move on. Early on, that reflex is a superpower. Later, it's the thing quietly capping your growth.
Every time you personally solve something, you get a little faster at that task and your company gets a little more dependent on you doing it. You're not building capacity; you're becoming the capacity.
The "who" shift
"Who should own this?" changes the unit of progress from a task completed to a person developed. It's slower the first time - you have to teach, set the standard, and tolerate an imperfect first attempt. But it compounds. Next time, that problem never reaches you at all.
- Every time you become the permanent solution, the company becomes more dependent on you.
- Every time you build an owner, the company becomes stronger.
- The first path feels productive; the second path is what actually scales.
In practice
The next time a problem lands on your desk, pause before you fix it. Ask whether this is genuinely yours to solve, or whether solving it yourself is just the fastest way to keep it yours forever. More often than you'd think, the best move is to hand it - with context and authority - to the person who should own it from now on.