VISIONARY AND LEGACY FOUNDER TRAITS

Society often generalizes founders into a single character type: determined, relentless, and sometimes a bit domineering. While we may exhibit these traits, they barely scratch the surface of the diverse personalities that exist within the founder community.

Founders are complex — no two are the same. Each of us has a unique profile that shapes how we think, make decisions, and lead our teams. Understanding our strengths can allow us to do work that significantly impacts the organization’s trajectory.

To better understand the ways founders think and lead, I’ve studied four frameworks: TypeCoach, OCEAN (Big Five), Enneagram, and Kolbe. These tools reveal how traits like perception, conscientiousness, assertiveness, and intuition influence how we operate in different modes, from Visionary Mode to Builder Mode and beyond.

Read more in Understanding the Personalities of Visionary and Legacy Founders.

To build a damn good, if not great, company, it’s necessary to understand your specific psychological DNA and how it shapes your behavior, especially in the context of shifting modes.

PERSPECTIVES

“Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.” — Lao Tzu

“Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.” ― Dale Carnegie

MARK MY WORDS

I'm a forever advocate of frameworks. A good framework serves as a bridge between theory and practice, providing a way to interpret and navigate complex realities. From the Stages of Development to the 9 Core Competencies, frameworks are an integral part of Ninety’s DNA. And when applied to founders, they reveal insights into the traits that shape their behavior and success.

Personality frameworks offer insights into the Visionary and Legacy founder archetypes, helping us understand why certain traits make some founders more naturally suited to thrive in this environment.

 
TypeCoach is a great example of such a framework (head to the blog for more on similar frameworks like the Enneagram and Kolbe). Unlike traditional models, TypeCoach provides actionable insights — such as improving communication styles, enhancing team collaboration, and guiding leadership strategies — for understanding and leveraging personality dynamics.

 
Becoming familiar with your TypeCoach profile can help you identify as either a Visionary or a Legacy founder. For instance, Visionary founders often align with the Conceptualizer/Rational temperament, driven by future-focused strategic thinking and a passion for innovation. In contrast, Legacy founders typically align with the Traditional/Guardian temperament, emphasizing stability, structure, and sustainable systems. By mapping personality to founder behavior, these kinds of frameworks become valuable tools for understanding the nuances of different founder styles and their respective strengths.

 
Investing in this deeper level of self-awareness and emotional intelligence will help you look at Founder Mode in a completely different way. Once you understand the specifics of your unique leadership style, you'll be better equipped to consciously shift modes and make critical decisions through an entirely new lens.

TUNE IN

Dive into the key concepts of Stratified Systems Theory (SST), which describes how organizations create structured hierarchies as they grow more complex. I’m covering all the areas leaders in higher Strata should focus on: integration, system development, and long-term market foresight.