It feels like everyone is talking about risk, but nobody is saying anything new. Here's my take on how to actually think about risk when you're building a company.
I’ve been in Silicon Valley for a while now. I’ve seen the ups and downs, the bubbles and the bursts. I’ve had two successful exits, RemoteTeam to Gusto and MovieLaLa to Gfycat, and I’ve invested in over 200 companies, including some you might have heard of like Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI. I’m not saying this to brag, but to give you some context for what I’m about to say.
The Illusion of Risk
Everyone is obsessed with risk. VCs, founders, the tech press – they all talk about it. But most of the time, they’re talking about it in a way that’s completely detached from reality. They talk about “market risk” and “technology risk” and “execution risk” in these abstract, academic terms. It’s all a bunch of nonsense.
Here’s the truth: the biggest risk you face as a founder is not that your idea is bad, or that your tech is flawed, or that you can’t execute. The biggest risk is that you’ll give up. That’s it. Everything else is secondary.
I’ve seen so many talented founders with great ideas fail because they just couldn’t handle the psychological toll of building a company. They got burned out, they got lonely, they lost faith in themselves. And then they quit. And once you quit, it’s over. Game over.
My Journey with Founder Mental Health
I’m not just saying this as an investor. I’m saying this as a founder who has been through the wringer. When I was building RemoteTeam, there were times when I was so stressed out that I couldn’t sleep. I was constantly worried about making payroll, about losing our biggest customer, about a new competitor that had just raised a huge round. It was brutal.
I remember one time, we were about to close a big deal with a major enterprise customer. It was a game-changer for us. And then, at the last minute, they pulled out. No explanation, no apology. Just a one-sentence email. I was devastated. I felt like I had let my team down, like I had failed.
I spent the whole weekend in a funk. I didn’t want to talk to anyone. I just sat on my couch and stared at the wall. I seriously considered just shutting the whole thing down. What was the point? It was all just a stupid game anyway.
But then, on Monday morning, I went back to the office. And my team was there, ready to go. They were disappointed, sure, but they weren’t defeated. They were already brainstorming new ideas, new strategies. They still believed in what we were doing. And that’s what pulled me out of it. I realized that I wasn’t in this alone. I had a team that was counting on me, and I couldn’t let them down.
The Real Founder Superpower: Resilience
That’s when I realized that the most important quality for a founder is not intelligence, or vision, or charisma. It’s resilience. It’s the ability to get knocked down, over and over again, and to keep getting back up. It’s the ability to face rejection and failure and disappointment, and to not let it break you.
And the only way to build that resilience is to take care of your mental health. You have to make it a priority. You have to be intentional about it. You can’t just hope that it will take care of itself.
Here are a few things that have helped me:
- Find your tribe. You need a support system of other founders who get what you’re going through. People you can be honest with, who you can vent to, who won’t judge you. I’m part of a few different founder groups, and they’ve been a lifesaver for me.
- Get a coach or a therapist. There’s no shame in asking for help. A good coach or therapist can give you the tools and the perspective you need to navigate the emotional rollercoaster of startup life.
- Take care of your body. This is so basic, but it’s so important. Eat healthy, exercise regularly, get enough sleep. When your body is in a good place, your mind will follow.
- Have a life outside of your startup. This is a big one. It’s so easy to let your company consume your entire life. But you need to have other things that you’re passionate about, that bring you joy. For me, it’s angel investing and writing. For you, it might be something else. But you need to have something.
The Bottom Line
Building a company is a marathon, not a sprint. And the only way to finish the race is to take care of yourself along the way. So, stop worrying so much about “risk” in the abstract, and start focusing on the one thing that you can actually control: your own mental and emotional well-being. That’s the real secret to success in this industry. It’s not about having the best idea, or the best tech, or the most funding. It’s about having the resilience to keep going when everyone else has given up.
I’ve seen it time and time again. The founders who succeed are the ones who are in it for the long haul, the ones who have the mental fortitude to withstand the inevitable storms. So, if you’re a founder, I urge you to make your mental health your number one priority. It’s the best investment you’ll ever make. And who knows, you might just build the next great company in the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do all experts agree with this view?
No, and that's fine. The best ideas in business are often contrarian. I share my perspective based on my experience and data, but I encourage you to seek out opposing viewpoints and form your own conclusions.
What's the most common pushback you get on this?
People often push back by citing exceptions or edge cases. And they're usually right that exceptions exist. But building a strategy around exceptions rather than patterns is a losing game for most founders.
What experience informs this perspective?
This perspective comes from over a decade of building companies in Silicon Valley, two successful exits (RemoteTeam to Gusto, MovieLaLa to Gfycat), and investing in 200+ startups including Anthropic, OpenAI, and Scale AI. I write about what I've lived.