# Founders shouldn’t be hireable

By [Mickey Mellen](https://paragraph.com/@mickey-mellen) · 2024-08-06

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[**Founders shouldn’t be hireable**](https://www.mickmel.com/founders-shouldnt-be-hireable/)

As [GreenMellen](https://www.greenmellenmedia.com/) has grown over the years, one of the challenges that Ali and I have faced is figuring out what our roles should be at various stages. Early on it was easy; she was the designer and I was the developer. Once those roles were filled by others, where did that leave us?

It’s a question that has no simple answer, and we’ve done different things over the years. In [a recent episode of the “Founders” podcast](https://founders.simplecast.com/episodes/354-sam-walton-the-inside-story-of-americas-richest-man), host David Senra shared this regarding Thomas Edison:

> _“Really, the way I think about a founder is like you’re developing skills that you can’t hire for. You’re gonna hire for everything else, but you shouldn’t be hireable. And Edison wasn’t.”_

More specifically, Edison is quoted as saying:

> _“I can hire mathematicians, but they can’t hire me.”_

Over time, I’ve worked to build skills are more valuable for the company, but also trickier to define. My role now consists of a bit of CFO, some HR, some sales, and various things to keep the company running smoothly. Ali has a very similar (yet very different) list of her own. That list of items changes quite a bit for both of us, as we hire out the hireable skills, and work to develop the more challenging ones.

Becoming someone who “isn’t hireable” is a bit nerve-racking, but is likely the best way to lead a company.

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*Originally published on [Mickey Mellen](https://paragraph.com/@mickey-mellen/founders-shouldn-t-be-hireable)*