A first-time VC-backed founder raises €3M and realizes her investors are running her company. How does she reset the dynamic? Three guests, three perspectives.
The dilemma
A first-time VC-backed founder recently closed a €3M pre-seed round and no longer feels in charge of her own company.
Her lead investor gives a lot of advice – some of it useful – but she’s fallen into a pleasing mode and now it feels like her investors are driving the direction. Two recent examples: she hired two people she wasn’t sure about and her product roadmap has taken a different turn than she originally planned, all because her investor recommended it.
She has the customer data, product context and daily reality, but when she considers pushing back, two fears stop her: losing their backing and being seen as uncoachable.
She feels like the child and her investor the adult.
How does she get out of this?
The guests
In this episode of The Founder to Leader Podcast, host Yohanna Gustafsson is joined by:
- Founder Michael Karlsen: co-founded Onomondo in 2012, served as CEO for 8 years and stepped down in 2025
- Investor Sara Rywe: general partner at byFounders and investor in Lovable, Corti, Sumary, etc.
- Leadership coach Mia Jung: has coached more than 200 founders in leadership development and the psychology of startup organizations
What we unpack
- Why your investors bet on your judgment and what it means when you override it to please them
- The double-edged sword of being coachable
- How investor insecurity shapes the advice founders receive
- A practical tip: ask your investors to ask questions instead of giving advice
- How to build principles that anchor your decisions and stop getting pulled into the micro ones
Listen to the episode here:
