When to Trust Your Gut: How Founders Lose (and Rebuild) Self-Trust as They Scale

Every founder starts with a spark. An idea that won’t leave you alone. A belief that you can build something that matters.

That drive is what gets a business off the ground. It fuels the long nights, the impossible decisions, the moments where no one else can see what you can. It’s passion, mixed with instinct, and it’s powerful.

But as the business grows, the noise grows too.

Suddenly there are board members, investors, mentors, advisors. All with experience, all with good intentions, all speaking from their own logic. And somewhere between their guidance, your spreadsheets and the weight of responsibility, you start to lose touch with that original clarity.

You still care. You’re still ambitious. But the voice that used to be so sure has gone quieter.

This happens to almost every founder I know. Not because you’ve lost confidence, but because they’ve stopped hearing themselves clearly.

They start asking for advice before they’ve formed their own view. Second-guess what they already know, over-explain decisions that once came easily. They start collecting perspectives instead of making decisions and start mistaking confidence for credibility.

If you walk out of a meeting feeling more confused than clear, that’s data.

That’s when it’s time to come back to yourself.

When to listen to others

There's a reason why we need those other voices to grow the business, and our own leadership.

When their insight brings focus instead of confusion. When it opens up new thinking rather than tightening the frame. When it challenges you to grow without pulling you off course.

Leadership is the balance between the two. Knowing how to draw from others while staying rooted in your own judgement.

When to listen to yourself

Once you've listened, and evaluated. When you've reminded yourself of your North Star, of the vision behind the business and the mission you are aiming towards. When the decision feels grounded. When it might not please everyone, but you can stand behind it calmly. When you’ve weighed the risks and still feel steady.

How to reconnect with your gut

1. Start by creating space. Before you seek anyone’s opinion, take time to think for yourself. Step back from the noise. Write, walk, breathe. Let your own thoughts have room before the world piles on theirs.

2. Notice your reactions. Your body will tell you before your head catches up. If something feels heavy or tight, it’s rarely your truth. If you feel clear, calm, ready to act, that’s alignment.

3. Listen for the agenda. Every advisor sees the world through their own lens. Investors want returns. Mentors want safety (or sometimes to polish their own ego). Boards want predictability. That doesn’t make them wrong, it just means their advice serves their responsibilities. Filter it through what you’re building.

4. Remember what you set out to do. The vision that started this is still there. The reason you began, the problem you wanted to solve, the difference you wanted to make. That early energy wasn’t naïve. It was pure. Reconnect to it.

The founders who stay steady as they scale don’t have superhuman confidence. They’ve built a rhythm of listening to themselves before the world. They still value wise counsel, but they know that their clarity is the compass.

When you lead from that place, everything around you strengthens. Decisions get faster. Teams relax. The culture steadies.

Because when the founder is grounded, the business follows.

Commercial reflection: The work of leadership isn’t about adding more noise. It’s about staying connected to the conviction that started it all. Coaching helps you hold that line, to keep listening inward while leading outward.

If your instinct feels faint lately, it hasn’t gone anywhere. You just need the space to hear it again.

We regularly work as a coach and critical friend in these situations, giving founders the space to think, process out loud and provide both support and challenge - rather than yet another opinion. If we can help filter the noise for you please get in touch.