There’s a quiet contradiction in the world of startups. So many founders, who are clearly intelligent, nonetheless feel deeply frustrated. They understand markets. They think in systems. They see risks before others do. And yet. progress feels slow, and emotionally draining.This is usually the case when intelligence outpaces agency. When action does not keep up with thinking, intelligence ceases to be an asset and starts becoming a liability.High intelligence come with choices. Every idea begets another idea. Every decision gives rise to multiple possible outcomes. The mind runs constant simulations regarding timing, competition, and long-term consequences.What this produces more often is the tendency towards hesitation rather than clarity. Action is withheld in hopes of better information, better certainty, or a better version of the idea. Movement slows even though effort remains high.
At the same time, founders with less polish but more agency ship early. They test assumptions in public. Reality responds quickly. Learning accelerates.Agency is not loud confidence or blind risk-taking. It’s merely the humble belief that doing something imperfect is better than waiting for the optimal move. High-agency founders act before they feel ready and adjust after they learn. They deal with failures comprehensively – not as a confirmation of one’s incompetence, but rather as an integral part of the process. Solutions to problems are first handmade and then perfected. Success is achieved through direct contact with actuality, not through internal debates.
This approach rarely looks impressive at the start. In time, it compounds.
There is one pattern that recurs. A very analytical founder spends months refining a strategy or pitch or product vision. Everything makes sense on paper. Very little exists in the real world.Another founder launches something rough. Feedback comes fast. Assumptions break. The product changes. The second founder moved ahead, not because of superior insight, but because learning happens in motion.
This becomes all the more articulate in fast-moving ecosystems. Founders who progress tend to respond to obstacles instead of waiting for ideal conditions. They adjust publicly and move on. In this regard, building in public will wield its magic. Sharing one’s progress, decisions, and even mistakes invites response. It’s a way to be held accountable. It contracts feedback loops. It also removes the illusion that everything must be perfect before being seen.
When founders let others answer to their failures, something critical happens. Fear dilutes a little. Learning becomes social. Progress feels lighter.Silence and secrecy often protect ego but slow growth. Visibility accelerates both learning and resilience.
“Sometimes you gotta run before you can walk” ~ Anthony Stark
Low agency has an emotional cost in itself: what can be done and what gets done diverge. Frustration mounts. Comparison speaks louder. The pain does not emanate from failure but rather from the knowledge that action is possible yet is being shied away from. Clarity does not come before action; it comes because of action. Confidence works in exactly the same way. Neither can be achieved by thinking alone. Even small steps count. One customer conversation. One public update. One imperfect launch. These instances are what give intelligence something tangible to work with.
In the end, intelligence is potential. Agency is leverage. When the two move together, progress feels lighter and faster.
Startups do not reward perfect thinking. They reward fast learning. And learning only happens when something is done… and the world is allowed to respond.