Founder’s Disease

WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL BY PATRICE TSAGUE

Are you the founder of a business or an organization? 
Are you afraid of losing what you have built? 
How do you know if you are afflicted with Founder’s Disease?

Founder’s Disease

It was one of our regular breakfast meetings at one of our favorite restaurants in Lake Oswego, Oregon. I was with one of my mentors whom I meet with regularly, gaining insights from his experience and hearing stories about his days as an active entrepreneur and venture capitalist. While explaining some of the challenges he had faced with entrepreneurs as he worked to capitalize or finance their businesses and provide management advice, he introduced me to a term that I had never heard before but that made a lot of sense – Founder’s Disease.  

The term Founder’s Disease piqued my curiosity. I asked him what it meant, and he replied that Founder’s Disease occurs when the founders of a business or organization become consumed with themselves to the point that their sense of entitlement hinders their ability to receive input from others and to be held accountable.

As he continued to share, I began to reflect on the fact that I myself am a founder of an organization. Not only could I recognize some characteristics of Founder’s Disease in other organizational leaders who were known to me, but I had also been accused of some of them myself.  

I then began to wonder if there were biblical examples of the same thing, and immediately Saul, the first but also fallen king of Israel, came to mind. Saul had great promise but became consumed with himself. As a result, God rejected him and his descendants from continuing on the throne of Israel and gave the throne to his protégé David.  

Saul caught Founder’s Disease. He refused to yield to the priest’s counsel; disobeyed the commandments and direction of the Lord; took matters into his own hands; and went after those whom he felt were a threat to his kingdom in his own strength, without consulting God. His pride and ego not just cost him the throne, but also his life and the inheritance of his children and grandchildren.  

God’s original intent was that Saul and his descendants would rule over the throne of Israel forever, but due to his disobedience, the generations that followed him lost that privilege. Only Ishbosheth ruled Israel for a short time, and shortly afterward, the remainder of his male descendants were killed.

What are the symptoms of Founder’s Disease?  

1. Entitlement
2. Pride
3. Refusal to yield to counsel 
4. Rejection of accountability 
5. Self-righteousness 
6. Insecurity 
7. A disdain for dissent    

There are more, but the above list should paint the picture for you. While Founder’s Disease tends to afflict the originator of the business or organization, it is not limited to them. Leaders who may not have originated the business or organization can also manifest this behavior and can even manifest worse symptoms.  

Reflect on your own leadership and ensure that you have not been inflicted by this disease so that God’s grace and favor can continue upon your life, your children’s lives, and the lives of your children’s children. 

My prayer for you is that you will be a servant leader who is securely anchored in Christ and that your leadership will demonstrate humility, accountability, and the righteousness of Christ so that He may receive all the glory for your success and that others in your team may flourish.