Mindfulness for Female Founders: Prioritize, Delegate, and Lead Like a CEO

Why You’re Still Doing Too Much, and How to Actually Fix It

If your to-do list is starting to look like a CVS receipt, this one’s for you.

Whether you’re a solo founder, running a lean team, or hiring your first assistant while wondering if “delegating” is just a fancy word for setting yourself up for disappointment… I see you. I am you. And I’ve been in the trenches with this exact dilemma.

This week’s mindfulness moment is short, actionable, and very necessary: You can’t do everything, and pretending you can is what’s burning you out.

Let’s talk about why clear roles, ruthless prioritization, and one legendary old-school tool (remixed just for female founders) might just be the thing that saves your sanity and your business.

The Solopreneur Mistake You’re Probably Making

I’ve spent the last few months mentoring a team of undergraduate entrepreneurs as part of the Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Houston (yes, with two F’s and a lot of chaos). They’re building and running a pop-up food business—everything from pitching sponsors to marketing and ops. It’s been…a journey.

But here’s the thing: no one knew who was doing what. Fancy job titles? Sure. Actual responsibility ownership? Not so much.

And guess what? That isn’t just a student problem. It’s a female founder problem. It’s a solopreneur problem. It’s a you and me at 2AM problem.

The Truth About Roles & Responsibilities

Let’s be real—how many of us call ourselves CEO but also answer every email, write every caption, reconcile every bank statement, and design our own damn social media graphics?

Exactly.

Delegation only works when you know what you're doing, why you’re doing it, and who else could be doing it instead. But too often we skip that step because:

• We think it'll take too long to train someone.

• We’re scared they won’t do it “right.”

• We’re not even sure what we do all day.

That’s why I’m bringing back one of my favorite tools—with a remix.

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The Built on YES Prioritization Grid (AKA Erin’s Eisenhower Remix, for Female Founders Who Do Too Much)

Also known as: The Reality Inventory That Will Save Your Brain.

HANDLE IT LIKE A CEO

Important + Urgent = DO THIS FIRST What will actually move your business forward today? What sets off alarms if you don’t do it?

Ask yourself: Is it urgent… or just loud?

DREAM + DESIGN TIME

Important + Not Urgent = PLAN IT This is your strategy, vision, future-planning energy. Give it real calendar space.

Ask yourself: When am I actually going to do this? Put it in writing.

DELEGATE THAT DRAMA

Not Important + Urgent = DELEGATE IT This is the busywork you’re clinging to because you think it’s faster to do it yourself. (It’s not.)

Ask yourself: Why am I still doing this?

BYE, FELICIA

Not Important + Not Urgent = DELETE IT This is the sh*t you think you have to do but actually don’t. Unsubscribe from the obligation.

Ask yourself: Who or what can I lovingly say “no thanks” to today?

Click the button below to download your Built on YES Prioritization Worksheet

Start assigning those tasks like the CEO you are—not the unpaid intern you’ve accidentally become.

Download The Worksheet

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Mindful Takeaways for Solopreneurs & Small Teams

Define your roles before you expect results.Create clarity before you delegate.Use the grid. Make it a ritual.Don’t let perfectionism pretend to be productivity.Act like the CEO you are.

Final Reminder:

You are not meant to do it all. You are courageous. You are capable. You are strong. Now go be Built on YES. 

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For more details about how to use the Built on YES Prioritization Grid (AKA Erin's Eisenhower Remix) read her full blog on Substack here.

Be sure to listen to The Built on YES Podcast with Andrea Seymour about how she uses The Eisenhower Matrix.