Persist or pivot? (3 questions that cut through the noise)
Back in 2006, SpaceX's first three rockets failed spectacularly. By 2008, with the company nearly bankrupt, Elon had one rocket and enough money for a single launch.
But after the fourth rocket reached orbit, NASA called with a $1.6B contract — and today, SpaceX has completed over 250 launches and is valued at $350B.
Meanwhile, when Moderna faced challenges with mRNA delivery, they made the decision to pivot, from rare disease treatments to vaccines.
As a result, they were perfectly positioned for COVID-19 and it transformed them from a struggling biotech into a $50B household name.
So, persist or pivot: how do you know which path to follow? Especially when emotions are clouding your judgment?
There’s no definitive answer, of course: for founders, it’s a tricky balancing act between being persistent or pigheaded.
But emotional intelligence can help you separate clear-eyed assessment from ego-driven attachment. It’s not just about analyzing data—it's about managing your emotional response to that data.
Here’s a checklist you can use as your starting point:
The “Persistent vs. Pigheaded” Checklist
First, look at how you’re handling feedback and failure.
Persistent founders absorb information and iterate: "This failure was disappointing, but we gathered a lot of data that we can use to improve."
Pigheaded founders take things personally and minimize others’ opinions: "They just don't get how cutting-edge our solution is."
Second, track your metrics honestly. When you keep moving the goalposts because you’re missing your target KPIs, that's not being adaptable. That's avoiding reality.
Persistent founders say: "I believe in our vision, but let's test some of these assumptions again."
Pigheaded founders justify and make excuses: "Well, processing speed isn't competitive yet, but our architecture is more elegant."
Third, ask yourself: If I weren't already deep into this project, would I start it today? Check whether you’re falling for the “sunk cost fallacy” ("we've already spent so much") or confirmation bias (only seeing evidence that supports your existing beliefs).
Persistent founders say: "We have to admit this specific application isn’t going to work. Let's test some new approaches to get to the end goal.”
Pigheaded founders say: "We're in too deep to change direction, I need to make this work."
Of course, the "persist or pivot" decision isn't this neat and linear. It's messy, context-dependent and probably one of the most emotionally loaded decisions you'll face as a founder.
It's also exactly the kind of challenge I work through with clients. In our sessions, we dig into the metrics and uncover how emotional attachment is creating blind spots in judgment. Where ego is subtly driving the decision. Often, the high-IQ founder has the biggest blind spot of all—they're convinced they should know the answer, making it harder to admit when they're wrong.
Here's what founders don't realize: Having doubts doesn't make you weak. The most resilient founders I know regularly question themselves and their assumptions. It takes real emotional mastery to sit with the discomfort of uncertainty and not knowing.
And that ability to balance conviction with flexibility is what will give you a better chance of surviving.
That was the case with Nadine Cino, CEO of TygaSmart, who’s been walking this tightrope for 30 years. On the latest episode of The High-EQ Founder, she explains how they launched a cutting-edge product, but then had to pull back when it wasn't working as expected and wait until the market caught up with them:
Listen to the full episode here.
Love,
Renita
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