The transition from a founder to CEO it's a delicate dance. On the one hand, founders have vision, passion and a deep understanding of their business – after all, they created it.

But the qualities that make a founder successful don't necessarily translate to the next stage. History is littered with examples of entrepreneurs who held on too tightly, unable or unwilling to relinquish control even after it became clear it was time. Some particularly dramatic examples from recent years include Uber's Travis Kalanick and WeWork's Adam Neumannboth of whom clung to power with misplaced ferocity and eventually fell.

What separates a successful founder-turned-CEO from a failed founder? As someone who remains the head of my company, Jotform, after founding it nearly 20 years ago, I have some insight into what it takes to make the leap.

Related: 8 CEO mindset quotes that keep me honest and inspired

Benefits of bootstrapping

The data shows that founder-CEOs can be extremely successful. Among unicorns founded in the last 15 years, 65% have retained their original founder as CEO, writes Ali Tamaseb in his book Super Founders: What the Data Shows About Billion Dollar Startups. Of those that were acquired or had an IPO valuation of more than $1 billion, 73% were founder-led at the time of acquisition.

But problems can arise for founders who find themselves unexpectedly in charge of VCs. Exponential growth and rapid scaling often don't give founders the time they need to learn to be a good CEO—and trust me, becoming a good CEO doesn't happen overnight. For evidence of this, look no further than the catastrophic demise of Groupon founder Andrew Mason, an undeniably smart guy whose product rose to popularity (and almost unprecedented levels of funding) faster than he was prepared to. afforded

Bootstrapped founders have the advantage of growing slowly, which gives you much more time to learn the CEO ropes. In many ways, bootstrapping can be seen as a master class in leadership. I was a coder when I started Jotform and had no skills in management, marketing, business, accounting, sales – the list goes on. But as my company grew, so did I. Having my hands in so many aspects of Jotform's operations helped me understand my weaknesses and what I needed in a team to help it thrive.

Related: How mindset plays a role in your entrepreneurial success

Standing in vs

Of course, any founder, incompetent or not, can fail to make a good CEO. In his book The hard thing about the hard thingsBen Horowitz EVIDENCE that effective CEOs must understand not only what to do, but also how to get their companies to do those things. The second part tends to be more challenging, especially as a business grows and its operations become more complex. After all, tasks like streamlining operations, reducing costs, and balancing the management of employees, products, and services have little in common with the skills needed to launch a successful startup.

In an analysis of the data for Harvard Business ReviewBradley Hendricks, Travis Howell and Christopher Bingham determined that while founder-CEO leadership is associated with about 10% higher company valuation at IPO, the value of having a founder at the helm deteriorates rapidly thereafter. Furthermore, they found that the value added by a founder-CEO “essentially declines to zero” three years from the time firms go public; after that, they actually take away value from the company.

The authors point out that these are just trends, and it's not hard to come up with a list of founder-CEOs who have excelled. But I believe there is value in simply being aware of the differences between the two roles. A caterpillar that emerges from a cocoon like a butterfly can't wait to continue living life as a caterpillar, crawling around plants and eating leaves. That's not what butterflies do. Accepting that your day-to-day as a CEO will look fundamentally different from your day-to-day as a founder is the first step.

Whether you should stay or retreat is a question only you can answer. What aspects of The role of the CEO really appeal to you? Are you staying because you have the drive and dedication to become a great CEO, or because you are convinced that no one else can lead the company successfully?

Related: 3 CEO-level thoughts that create financial freedom and independence

Set your priorities

Being CEO doesn't mean you can handle every aspect of operations. Nor should you want to – not only is it impractical and a poor use of your time, but obviously, there's someone else who can do it better.

Instead, evaluate which aspects of your business interest you most and where you can add the most value. Once you've established your high-level priorities and figured out what you—and only you—are best suited to do, it's time to delegate.

I agree with the position of Rich Barton, co-founder and CEO of Zillow Group, who said becoming a “leader of leaders,” rather than just a “leader of a team,” requires a growth mindset, humility, and hard work. In a fast-growth situation, responsibilities outstrip skills, and it's a CEO's job to understand that—even as it applies to the CEO role itself.

“Leaders will need to be top notch and supplemented with outside talent,” he says. “Founders/CEOs who are unable to do this will eventually rise to the top.”

It is also essential to be open to advice and feedback. Of course, your go-to resources should include other CEOs, books, and podcasts, but I think it's also valuable to talk to peers who can relate to your challenges, but also provide a different perspective to counterbalance your own. .

There is no one-size-fits-all approach becoming a great CEO. But you have to be honest with yourself if it's a job you really want, and what's more, if you want it for the right reasons. If you do, you should be prepared to set your priorities, adopt a growth mindset, and challenge yourself to do what's best for your business.