The Culture of Dependency That’s Holding Founders Back

Why have so many founders and business leaders fallen into this culture of dependency? Why do they feel like they have to wait for some consultant, some expert, or some miracle before they can actually get things done?

The truth is, it wasn’t always like this. When someone starts a nonprofit organization, or when someone starts a business, they are ready to put in the work. They are ready to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals, whether it’s raising money, selling their products, or scaling their organization. But somewhere along the way, the world we’ve built has completely shifted.

Today, people want fast results. That’s understandable. Who doesn’t want things to happen quickly? But in the rush to get fast results, too many founders, business leaders, and nonprofit executives are short-changing themselves.

Here’s why: when you rely too much on professionals to “get it done,” you miss the opportunity to build the capacity, the muscle, you need to not just create results, but sustain them. And what’s worse, we’ve now created a culture where consultants almost thrive on this dependency. The more founders feel they can’t do it themselves, the more they reach out, and the more consultants can make it seem complicated, so that they can sell their services.

Let me give you an example. I was working with a founder who needed to develop his fundraising systems and file for his 501(c)(3) nonprofit status. I told him from the start: “You are going to do this yourself. I will guide you, but I’m not going to do it for you.”

At first, he didn’t have the confidence to follow the process himself. So we ended up bringing in a professional to help him. There was a lot of back and forth, and it was frustrating for him. But eventually, he realized something important: he could do it himself. The process had been set up for him all along, but he just hadn’t believed it.

The moment he realized he had the capability all along was exactly when we started having a real discussion about the culture of dependency. He saw how much of it is built into the system, how consultants sometimes make things sound harder than they are, and how founders fall into the trap of waiting for someone else to act.

Here’s the lesson for any founder, nonprofit executive, or business leader: Whatever you are trying to achieve, whether it’s transforming your board, raising money, building fundraising systems, or scaling your business, you don’t have to depend on anyone else. You need knowledge. You need tools. But you don’t need dependency.

Even if you bring someone in to help, the key is this: let them build the system for you, don’t let them do it for you. That’s how you grow. That’s how you build the muscle. That’s how you create results that last.

So stop waiting on someone else. Stop giving away your power. Take the steps yourself, and trust that you’re capable of more than you think.