The Myth of the Player-Manager
There’s a reason you rarely see a player-manager in professional sport anymore.
Because it’s bloody hard to do both roles well.
You’re on the pitch trying to perform at the highest level, while also leading, motivating, planning, and making tough calls. It’s chaos. It’s exhausting. And it rarely works long-term.
Yet in the startup world, it’s the default.
Most founders act like player-managers without even realising it.
They’re in the trenches, building, selling, hiring, and expected to lead strategically, delegate clearly, and keep the whole thing aligned.
It’s no wonder so many founders burn out, stall growth, or lose their team’s confidence.
Why Being a Player-Manager Fails in Business
Let’s break down the reasons:
1. You’re Too Deep in the Weeds
You can’t see the big picture when you're chasing deals or fixing product bugs. Strategy dies in your inbox.
2. Your Team Gets Confused
Are you the boss or their teammate? Are you supposed to delegate or do it yourself? That ambiguity kills clarity and accountability.
3. You Burn Out
You're holding the playbook and running the plays. You have no time to think, rest, or lead properly.
4. You Become the Bottleneck
Every decision needs your sign-off. Every task flows through you. Your team waits. The business slows.
What Great Coaches Do Instead
In sport, player-managers are rare. But great coaches? They’re everywhere and they win.
They:
Trust their team to execute
Design structure that enables consistency
Lead from the sidelines with clarity, rhythm, and focus
And in business, that’s exactly what you need to do.
How to Shift: From Player-Manager to Coach
Here’s the move:
Start Delegating With Structure
Use frameworks like MoSCoW to decide what must, should, could, and won’t be yours anymore.Build Real Trust in Your Team
Trust isn’t blind. It’s built through rhythm, retrospectives, and clarity of roles. (That’s where tools like Hashiru come in.)Create a Game Plan - Not Just To-Do Lists
Lead with structure. Think ahead. Set the rhythm. Use systems like 5D Agile to break strategy into weekly wins.
Final Word: You Can’t Play and Coach Forever
You were the player your business needed to start.
Now it needs you to coach it to the next level.
The sooner you let go of the player-manager mindset, the sooner you start winning long-term.
Want to see where you’re still acting like a player?
Take the Growing Pains Scorecard – and find out if you’re holding your team back without realising it.