^{Writer’s note: I wish I could take credit for the title of this post, but alas, I can’t. My dear friend and mentor, Amy (Snook) Lovell, coined it while I was trying to describe to her what I was feeling in a voice note.}

Some of us join startups because we love the allure of working and moving fast. At beehiiv, velocity is an operating principle that guides how we build. And because we work so quickly, a lot can change in a quarter.

One of those things that can change is your actual job.

When we take on any role, our goal is to go beyond the scope and deliver something meaningful that has high impact and visibility. As a result of that visibility and influence, it often leads to the potential to scale your team. That can come in the form of a new team member who might report to you or be your peer, aka scaling. For all accounts, this is a good thing. Yes, we’re growing! Yes, I’m showcasing my skills and possibly mentoring the new person who will be joining! Yay, growth!

Then comes the slow, gripping feeling….of uncertainty. Doubt. The possibility of being exposed. It’s the pregnant pause that makes you wonder, “Oh shit, am I actually good at my job?”

When I joined beehiiv, we were only about 17 employees. We’re now at a whopping 110 in a little over a year. As you can imagine, your girl is overwhelmed. So, yes, I’m now hiring a People Ops manager to support me (pls don’t send me your resume, I have so many to review!!!).

I’m excited to welcome this person and work on deeper strategic people initiatives that I don’t often get to focus on because I’m so involved in operations. However, I met my excitement with insecurity.

While writing the job description for this role, I questioned my own ability and worried that this person might judge me harshly. I felt insecure about asking someone else to take on this responsibility, even though I was probably capable of doing it myself. I started to worry, what if this new person is better than me at this old/new job?

In other words, I got anxious, uncomfortable, and nervous fast. It’s imposter syndrome at its finest.

Molly Graham, known for scaling teams at Google and Facebook, wrote an article years ago on “giving away your Legos.” It’s excellent and does a fantastic job of describing what happens during a job change as your company scales and how you can work through those uncomfortable feelings.

She explains: “The best metaphor I have for scaling is building one of those huge, complex towers out of Legos,” she says. “At first, everyone’s excited. Scaling a team is a privilege. Being inside a company that’s a rocket ship is really cool. There are so many Legos! You could build anything. At the beginning, as you start to scale, everyone has so many Legos to choose from — they’re doing 10 jobs — and they’re all part of building something important.”

“Almost everything about scaling is counterintuitive,” says Graham. “And one of the foremost examples is that reacting to the emotions you’re having as your team adds more people is usually a bad idea.

Everyone’s first instinct is to grab back the Legos that the new kid took — to fight them for that part of the tower or to micromanage the way they’re building the tower. But the best way to manage scaling (and one of the secrets to succeeding in a rapidly growing company) is to ignore those instincts and go find a bigger and better Lego tower to build. Chances are, if you pick your head up and look around, there’s a brand new, exciting pile of Legos sitting right next to you.”

In reading this, I realize I have a tough pill to swallow. I have to let go of some of these People Legos, and honestly, I’m a little terrified. I’ve always known my anxiety to be both my motivator and my biggest hater.

Can I challenge that imposter syndrome actually to make me better? Can I make that hating ass voice in my head a motivator? Is this the upside to imposter syndrome? A challenger on the side?

As Graham mentioned, the worst thing is to let yourself fall into the trap of trying to “take back” your Legos. It’s futile, and it doesn’t map the trajectory of your growth or your company’s. It keeps you stuck. Basically, the job you have now isn’t going to be the same as you scale, and that’s okay.

I don’t mean to minimize it because I know it’s a lot more complex than using Legos as a metaphor, but if you can look at it as an opportunity for challenging yourself, then it might actually be okay. This is also being shared through a lens of slight ignorance in that I’m not taking into consideration the systemic oppression that occurs in workspaces, especially those who are often outliers in homogenous environments (can be about race, gender, disability, etc). There’s the reality for some: their existence is unfortunately considered when speaking of a false sense of meritocracy. Also, if you work with a shitty boss, then asking for a more optimistic view might be moot. So lots of asterisks here!

In other words, you/I don’t suck. All I can do is hope that my Legos are in decent shape so this new person can continue building these towers while I continue scouring for new horizons for us to own (the sexy stuff, like org design, comp design, lol).

So, to recap:

Maxed out training hours for clients? Here’s how to make 2026 the year you grow your business without burning out.

Kajabi has helped fitness professionals generate millions in online revenue by giving them the tools, strategy, and support to scale. That’s why we’re the go-to platform for instructors shifting into hybrid and online coaching.

Take advantage of our free ‘30 Days to Launch: Scale Your Fitness Business Online’ guide that will give you the step-by-step plan to combine in-person and online programs for more income, freedom, and flexibility.

Get the guide

Which “part” of you is telling yourself that you suck? What would you say to that part?