Whether we realize it or not, we all operate in various modes throughout the day — leader mode, coach mode, problem-solver mode, and many more. Modes are mental frameworks that guide how we interact with the world around us, and for founders, our modes are especially important because the ability to shift between them with intention can make the difference between our companies growing or dying.
In the first part of the Founder Mode Series, we explored what “Founder Mode” really means and why the concept has gone viral. I made the case that Founder Mode isn’t an always-on thing — it’s a mode, a moment-in-time experience. And it’s not the only mode founders need to be aware of.
In this article, I’ll share at least 13 modes that are essential to founders (including Founder Mode) and make the case that being modal-aware and able to intentionally shift modes is vital. Let’s dive in.
The Modal Nature of Our Minds
Let’s start by acknowledging something fundamental: We’re all modal by nature. Whether we’re solving a problem, leading a team, or making a high-stakes decision, we operate from a specific mindset — or mode. This concept might sound simple, but it’s deceptively powerful once you fully grasp it.
Here’s the problem: Most people are unaware of the mode they’re operating in at any given moment. Worse, many try to operate in multiple modes at once, which almost never works very well. Being multi-modal may sound efficient, but it actually leads to confusion, inefficiency, and even burnout.
Our brains aren’t wired to handle multi-modal thinking over an extended period. This is particularly relevant for founders, who often feel the need to juggle several roles — visionary, leader, coach, magician, warrior, lover, executor, innovator — all at once.
The Power of Being Intentionally Modal
In the early days of my tenure as president of a multi-billion dollar lending and investment company, I found myself in meetings where people frequently came to me for advice on potential deals. They’d drop by my office to discuss the merits of a company, talk through the structure and pricing, and sometimes, inadvertently push for a premature green light from me well before our formal investment committee had weighed in.
This began to create friction. I noticed that without meaning to, my colleagues were asking me to shift between different modes — advisor, coach, analyst, writer, partner, and judge — without being clear about which role they wanted me to play in each conversation. They were looking for input, validation, or decisions from me without specifying what they really needed. This lack of clarity led to confusion and, more importantly, undermined our investment process by making it seem like I’d already signed off on certain deals. In reality, I hadn’t fully evaluated them yet and deeply valued the opinions of the other members of our investment committee.
Frustrated by the ambiguity, I chatted with our head of underwriting about the issue, and I came to the conclusion that I needed to write and share a memo (sounds so 1990s, right?) to the entire company outlining a new approach. I asked everyone to be explicit about which "hat" they needed me to wear when they came to me for discussions. Did they need me to judge the investment and provide a formal opinion? (And if so, were they willing to accept that I had the complete right to change my mind during the investment committee meeting if I felt the process provided me new information or a more informed understanding of the deal’s risk/reward?) Or, did they want me in an advisory role, offering guidance and suggestions on the completeness and/or quality of the case while leaving the final decision to the team?
I made it clear that these roles needed to be treated as separate and distinct, even if it meant scheduling different meetings to address each mode. In short, I would only wear one hat during our meetings.
By making these meetings singularly modal, I literally freed up over 10 hours of my week and dramatically improved the quality of our discussions. Talk about a win-win scenario. Being intentional about the mode we were operating in brought clarity and focus to every conversation, reduced misunderstandings that had previously complicated our decision-making process, and increased our collective productivity dramatically because it wasn’t just my time; three to five other people spent time preparing for and attending each of those meetings.
This experience demonstrated to me the importance and power of being modal-aware, especially for leaders. It’s not just about having multiple modes; it's about knowing when and how to switch between them intentionally.
Modal-Awareness as a Superpower
Here’s where modal-awareness comes in. Simply put, being modal-aware means understanding which mode you’re in and why, as well as being intentional about it. While being intentional with modality is super powerful for all of us, for founders, this self-awareness becomes a superpower.
Think about it like this: When you’re building a company, the ability to switch between modes consciously and deliberately is what separates effective founders from those who constantly feel overwhelmed. Successful founders don’t just stumble into different modes — they know when to operate as a visionary, when to be tactical, and when to focus on coaching or mentoring their team.
If you think about it, damn good, if not great, founders find themselves in a broad range of modes. I could probably write a whole series just on the various types of modes founders have to operate from, but for now I’ll share some of the modes that I think are important for most damn good or great founders, especially those who identify with the Visionary archetype:
- Visionary Mode: This is the foundational mode for most Visionary founders. Visionary Mode is all about seeing the bigger picture, crafting a long-term future for the company, and imagining possibilities others might not yet see. It involves making strategic decisions that shape the company’s direction and keeping the focus on the "why" behind everything the company does.
- Coach Mode: In Coach Mode, the founder nurtures their team. This involves mentoring, guiding, and supporting individuals to grow both personally and professionally. It’s about enabling others to make decisions and solve problems on their own while providing the feedback (or as we like to say at Ninety, feedforward) and tools needed to succeed.
- Leader Mode: In this mode, the founder is focused on building a team and guiding everyone toward the organization’s Compelling and Audacious Goals. It’s all about assembling a team, communicating the vision, and providing the necessary resources to get to where you’re going.
- Warrior Mode: This is the mode that comes into play when grit and determination are needed to push through challenges. In Warrior Mode, the founder steps up to confront difficulties head-on, driving action during times of crisis or intense competition. It’s about resilience, determination, and fighting for the company’s survival or growth. For the best of the best, it's about antifragility: growing from every challenge, setback, and failure.
- Magician Mode: Magician Mode represents the founder’s ability to innovate and create something new from existing elements or solve problems in unconventional ways. In this mode, founders are making breakthroughs, spotting unique opportunities, or weaving together seemingly unrelated ideas to form groundbreaking solutions. Magician Mode isn’t just about the company’s products and/or services — it's about the very nature of the company. The company is their true innovation.
- Lover Mode: In Lover Mode, the founder focuses on relationships. It’s the times when they’re focusing on nurturing the company's culture by fostering meaningful relationships with team members, partners, customers, and investors and creating high-trust relationships with all of their Ideal Stakeholders.
- Storyteller Mode: Storyteller Mode is all about crafting and communicating the narrative of the company. Founders in this mode use stories to inspire their team, engage customers, and convey the company's vision in a compelling way. It’s about controlling the message, shaping perceptions, and building an emotional connection with stakeholders, creating and fortifying the brand.
- Judge Mode: In Judge Mode, the founder is decisive, making clear-cut choices based on available information, analysis, and instinct. This mode requires objectivity and the ability to evaluate options impartially without being swayed by emotions or external pressure.
- Builder Mode: This is the hands-on mode where founders focus on operational details, building systems, processes, and products that will scale. It involves understanding the nuts and bolts of the business and taking deliberate steps to ensure the foundation is strong for future growth.
- Caretaker Mode: Sometimes the founder must protect the company’s long-term stability, focusing on risk management, sustainability, and preserving core assets. In Caretaker Mode, the focus shifts to maintaining what's been built and ensuring the business can withstand external threats.
- Politician Mode: In Politician Mode, the founder navigates complex relationships with external stakeholders, including partners, investors, regulators, and the media. It’s about influence, diplomacy, and managing public relations to ensure the company maintains its reputation and strategic positioning.
- Servant Mode: Founders in Servant Mode lead by example, considering the needs of their team and customers first. It’s about humility, empathy, and making decisions that prioritize the well-being of others over personal gain, creating a supportive and inclusive environment.
Together with Founder Mode, each of these 13 modes represents a crucial skill set founders need to master in different contexts. Being modal-aware means recognizing when to engage each mode and shifting between them with intentionality. Each mode is necessary at different times, but if you’re not intentional about which mode you’re in — or worse, if you try to operate in more than one at a time — it’s a recipe for chaos.
Notice I didn’t include the definition of Founder Mode in that list. I defined both “founder” and “mode” in the first part of the series, and we’ll dive more deeply into what this mode entails later on. For now, let’s just say Founder Mode is the mode the founder enters into when they feel like something’s out of whack with how the company is living up to and/or respecting the elements the founder deeply believes are core to turning the vision of the company into reality.
The Hidden Power of Intention
Here’s the real takeaway: Being intentional about your mode unlocks the full potential of Founder Mode. When you’re in the right mode at the right time, everything becomes clearer. You’ll be more focused, more decisive, and more effective, and your team will feel more aligned. Those around you will understand that Founder Mode means you care and that you consistently do a huge range of things that are visibly making the company better.
But when you’re unaware of your modes — or worse, operating in multiple modes at once — you become fragmented. It’s like trying to run two computer programs simultaneously on one underpowered system. Everything slows down, errors occur, and eventually, the system crashes.
The goal is not just to be modal-aware but to operate intentionally in one mode at a time, maximizing the effectiveness of each mindset before moving to the next.
Most people — and I would argue most founders — don’t fully appreciate how often we operate in different modes throughout the day and how vital it is to be intentional about which one we’re in. The power of modal-awareness lies in our ability to focus our energy and attention, which is the key to being not just a good founder but a damn great one.
Up Next…
In the next part of the Founder Mode Series, we’ll dive into the personalities of entrepreneurs and founders and explore why certain personality traits naturally align with certain modes. Understanding this alignment will further illuminate why some founders thrive, even when in Founder Mode, while others struggle.
If you want to stay tuned, I encourage you to sign up to receive email updates with each new part of the Founder Mode Series. I’d also love you to share this with others who are grappling with “Founder Mode,” whether they’re a founder or working with one. I want this series to spark discussions and debates — after all, that’s how we learn and grow. As someone who knows he’s “guilty” of Founder Mode, I’m genuinely excited to explore these ideas with any and everyone who's interested in this topic.
So… I’m adding this link to my Google Docs draft of this series. I’d love to get your feedback and read stories from those who have experienced the good, the bad, or the ugly of working with one or more founders in Founder Mode. Who knows — maybe this will turn into a book that includes lots of great stories about founders around the world.
