Teamwork Makes the Dream Work – At Least for Me

I talk to a lot of solo GPs and the solo founders, and I always think about how my experiences are so different.

My first company had four founders. My second company had five. That’s not to say that solo founding or GP can’t work – it does in many cases.

For a certain type of investor or founder, collaboration feels like friction – time wasted in meetings when they could be executing or generating IRR.

I’ve been reflecting on this because in my career has been the exact opposite. I guess I’ve always enjoyed teamwork.

At FC we have a large, collaborative partnership for a small fund.

I don’t know if this is just how my risk tolerance is wired, or if I just got lucky with the people, but I’ve always bet that the team beats the individual.

I get that teams dilute your ownership. In my startup days, splitting equity four or five ways meant my slice of the pie was significantly smaller from Day 1. That is rare to see these days. In venture, being a Solo GP is the fastest path to personal wealth if you win. You keep the management fees; you keep the carry. At a collaborative firm, those economics get split.

But I’ve never viewed that split as a “tax.” I view it as the price of admission for building something that can endure.

I’ve found that the “Team Dividend” vastly outweighs the dilution, specifically in two ways:

Friction Sharpening the Sword

In a solo model, you have a clear point of view and you act. It’s efficient. But in a team, you have to “get to yes.” Some see that as wasted energy but I see it as quality control. Whether it’s debating a product roadmap or a Series A investment, having partners who challenge your biases forces you to sharpen your thinking. The friction prevents you from believing your own hype.

The “Bad Day” Buffer

Startups and venture are rollercoasters. When you are solo, a bad day is an existential crisis. When you have partners, one person can be down while the other is up.

I always try divide and conquer. Five founders meant we could swarm problems and a founder could touch all functions.

In Venture, I have blind spots. When I miss something, a partner catches it. When I’m burned out, the firm keeps moving.

There is immense pride in the solo journey, and for some, the internal dialogue is sharper than any group discussion. Their superpower is singular vision.

But for me, the joy of this business isn’t just in the winning – it’s in the shared experience of the build. I’ve found that while I might own a smaller piece of the pie, the team makes the pie bigger, the probability of success higher, and the journey a hell of a lot more fun.