Working longer does not necessarily make founders feel worse. In fact, some of the founders putting in the most hours report feeling healthier than their peers.

Itxaso del Palacio, General Partner at Notion Capital, explores this founder health paradox and why feeling capable of pushing harder may not be the same as performing sustainably.

Using lessons from endurance sport and findings from Notion Capital’s Negative Split research, she explains why founders need to pace themselves for a journey that can last five, eight or ten years.

She also looks at the role of intrinsic motivation, teams, coaches and peer networks in helping founders maintain performance over time.

The talk ultimately challenges investors and board members to look beyond growth metrics and consider whether the people building the company have what they need to finish the race strongly.

Highlights

Why founders can learn from endurance athletes
What the negative split reveals about sustainable performance
Why long working hours can distort how healthy founders feel
What startup culture misunderstands about recovery
Why intrinsic motivation matters over the long term
How strong support networks help founders keep performing
Why boards should look beyond financial and operating metrics
Why the way a founder finishes matters more than how they start

This session was recorded at the Love Tomorrow Summit, where EUVC curated the investor-focused programme.

Timestamps

(00:00) Intro
(01:20) What happens when founders have to keep going for years
(03:00) Why elite athletes pace for the second half
(04:35) Why investors treat founders like machines
(05:30) What the Negative Split research found
(06:40) The perception gap around founder health
(08:05) What startup culture gets wrong about recovery
(09:10) Intrinsic motivation and support networks
(10:00) Why founder health is a business issue
(10:40) What investors should ask in the boardroom
(11:15) Why performance is about how you finish

Itxaso del Palacio (Notion Capital): The founder health paradox

EUVC

Itxaso del Palacio (Notion Capital): The founder health paradox