Steve Chaparro
@stevechaparroco.bsky.social
Senior Design Lead, IDEO
Venture Partner, GoingVC Partners
Founder, Beyond Leadership™
I write about #LeadershipCapital at Beyond Leadership, https://beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/
Venture Partner, GoingVC Partners
Founder, Beyond Leadership™
I write about #LeadershipCapital at Beyond Leadership, https://beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/
Pinned
Beyond Leadership™ | Steve Chaparro | Substack
Beyond Leadership™ is Steve Chaparro's weekly Substack publication delivering AI-powered leadership intelligence, venture capital strategy insights, and executive excellence frameworks to help leaders...
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
What is Beyond Leadership?
It’s where I build in public—one insight at a time.
If you believe leadership is capital, and it should be measured, developed, and deployed with intent—this is for you.
Subscribe: beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
It’s where I build in public—one insight at a time.
If you believe leadership is capital, and it should be measured, developed, and deployed with intent—this is for you.
Subscribe: beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
What if return is the new infrastructure?
Read our founding essay on venture, diaspora, & systems change:
🔗 open.substack.com/pub/beyondca...
Read our founding essay on venture, diaspora, & systems change:
🔗 open.substack.com/pub/beyondca...
Returns From the Edge
Why We’re Building a New Kind of Venture Platform for Diaspora Founders and AI System Builders
open.substack.com
July 5, 2025 at 11:16 PM
What if return is the new infrastructure?
Read our founding essay on venture, diaspora, & systems change:
🔗 open.substack.com/pub/beyondca...
Read our founding essay on venture, diaspora, & systems change:
🔗 open.substack.com/pub/beyondca...
Culture forms whether you shape it or not.
If you don’t name it, you’re scaling default patterns—often the worst ones.
#BeyondLeadership
If you don’t name it, you’re scaling default patterns—often the worst ones.
#BeyondLeadership
June 25, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Culture forms whether you shape it or not.
If you don’t name it, you’re scaling default patterns—often the worst ones.
#BeyondLeadership
If you don’t name it, you’re scaling default patterns—often the worst ones.
#BeyondLeadership
June 25, 2025 at 1:24 AM
Your capital strategy is only as strong as your leadership rhythm.
Without that, funding becomes friction.
#BeyondVentures
Without that, funding becomes friction.
#BeyondVentures
June 24, 2025 at 11:03 PM
Your capital strategy is only as strong as your leadership rhythm.
Without that, funding becomes friction.
#BeyondVentures
Without that, funding becomes friction.
#BeyondVentures
Post-raise breakdowns don’t start in the balance sheet.
They start when the founder’s leadership system stops scaling with the capital.
#BeyondVentures
They start when the founder’s leadership system stops scaling with the capital.
#BeyondVentures
June 24, 2025 at 9:20 PM
Post-raise breakdowns don’t start in the balance sheet.
They start when the founder’s leadership system stops scaling with the capital.
#BeyondVentures
They start when the founder’s leadership system stops scaling with the capital.
#BeyondVentures
The best founders raise from alignment, not adrenaline.
Money should multiply your clarity—not your chaos.
#BeyondVentures
Money should multiply your clarity—not your chaos.
#BeyondVentures
June 24, 2025 at 7:24 PM
The best founders raise from alignment, not adrenaline.
Money should multiply your clarity—not your chaos.
#BeyondVentures
Money should multiply your clarity—not your chaos.
#BeyondVentures
The Beyond Briefing™ is coming.
What’s inside: tools to help founders + VCs build and evaluate real leadership capital.
Learn more here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
What’s inside: tools to help founders + VCs build and evaluate real leadership capital.
Learn more here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
What to Expect in The Beyond Briefing™ (Inaugural Quarterly Edition)
The inside look at the leadership intelligence, tools, and founder frameworks shaping our flagship report.
open.substack.com
June 24, 2025 at 5:02 PM
The Beyond Briefing™ is coming.
What’s inside: tools to help founders + VCs build and evaluate real leadership capital.
Learn more here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
What’s inside: tools to help founders + VCs build and evaluate real leadership capital.
Learn more here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
Every team mirrors its leader.
The tone, the urgency, the way feedback flows.
Culture is less about vision and more about vibe. You’re creating both—whether you meant to or not.
#BeyondLeadership
The tone, the urgency, the way feedback flows.
Culture is less about vision and more about vibe. You’re creating both—whether you meant to or not.
#BeyondLeadership
May 15, 2025 at 7:20 PM
Every team mirrors its leader.
The tone, the urgency, the way feedback flows.
Culture is less about vision and more about vibe. You’re creating both—whether you meant to or not.
#BeyondLeadership
The tone, the urgency, the way feedback flows.
Culture is less about vision and more about vibe. You’re creating both—whether you meant to or not.
#BeyondLeadership
Founder-first isn’t soft. It’s strategic.
The best capital sharpens founders, not just funds them.
Read: beyondcapitalvc.substack.com/p/founder-fi...
#BeyondVentures
The best capital sharpens founders, not just funds them.
Read: beyondcapitalvc.substack.com/p/founder-fi...
#BeyondVentures
Founder-First Investing Isn’t Soft. It’s Strategic.
Deepening the value proposition for early-stage founders and the LPs who back them.
beyondcapitalvc.substack.com
May 15, 2025 at 7:12 PM
Founder-first isn’t soft. It’s strategic.
The best capital sharpens founders, not just funds them.
Read: beyondcapitalvc.substack.com/p/founder-fi...
#BeyondVentures
The best capital sharpens founders, not just funds them.
Read: beyondcapitalvc.substack.com/p/founder-fi...
#BeyondVentures
Your culture is happening—with or without your direction.
If you don’t define it, you’re scaling dysfunction.
Every founder is a culture architect. The only question is whether the design is deliberate.
#BeyondLeadership
If you don’t define it, you’re scaling dysfunction.
Every founder is a culture architect. The only question is whether the design is deliberate.
#BeyondLeadership
May 15, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Your culture is happening—with or without your direction.
If you don’t define it, you’re scaling dysfunction.
Every founder is a culture architect. The only question is whether the design is deliberate.
#BeyondLeadership
If you don’t define it, you’re scaling dysfunction.
Every founder is a culture architect. The only question is whether the design is deliberate.
#BeyondLeadership
New from Beyond Leadership™:
What VCs really look for in founder maturity—and how they’re quietly scoring you.
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/p/how-vcs-ev...
#LeadershipCapital #FounderDNA
What VCs really look for in founder maturity—and how they’re quietly scoring you.
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/p/how-vcs-ev...
#LeadershipCapital #FounderDNA
How VCs Evaluate Founder Maturity: Patterns from the Inside
What seasoned investors are really looking for—and how they read beyond the pitch.
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
May 15, 2025 at 4:53 PM
New from Beyond Leadership™:
What VCs really look for in founder maturity—and how they’re quietly scoring you.
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/p/how-vcs-ev...
#LeadershipCapital #FounderDNA
What VCs really look for in founder maturity—and how they’re quietly scoring you.
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com/p/how-vcs-ev...
#LeadershipCapital #FounderDNA
Leadership readiness isn’t about confidence—it’s about capacity.
Investors want to know:
Can you scale yourself while scaling your strategy?
#BeyondVentures
Investors want to know:
Can you scale yourself while scaling your strategy?
#BeyondVentures
May 14, 2025 at 10:20 PM
Leadership readiness isn’t about confidence—it’s about capacity.
Investors want to know:
Can you scale yourself while scaling your strategy?
#BeyondVentures
Investors want to know:
Can you scale yourself while scaling your strategy?
#BeyondVentures
The best raises don’t create pressure.
They extend your pattern of momentum.
Raising from alignment is different than raising from urgency.
#BeyondVentures
They extend your pattern of momentum.
Raising from alignment is different than raising from urgency.
#BeyondVentures
May 14, 2025 at 7:13 PM
The best raises don’t create pressure.
They extend your pattern of momentum.
Raising from alignment is different than raising from urgency.
#BeyondVentures
They extend your pattern of momentum.
Raising from alignment is different than raising from urgency.
#BeyondVentures
Capital doesn’t create capacity.
It exposes it.
When founders raise before their leadership systems are ready, they scale noise—not clarity.
#BeyondVentures
It exposes it.
When founders raise before their leadership systems are ready, they scale noise—not clarity.
#BeyondVentures
May 14, 2025 at 3:11 PM
Capital doesn’t create capacity.
It exposes it.
When founders raise before their leadership systems are ready, they scale noise—not clarity.
#BeyondVentures
It exposes it.
When founders raise before their leadership systems are ready, they scale noise—not clarity.
#BeyondVentures
The best founders speak clearly.
But more importantly—they act consistently.
That consistency builds the trust that capital looks for when markets get messy.
#BeyondVentures
But more importantly—they act consistently.
That consistency builds the trust that capital looks for when markets get messy.
#BeyondVentures
May 13, 2025 at 11:59 PM
The best founders speak clearly.
But more importantly—they act consistently.
That consistency builds the trust that capital looks for when markets get messy.
#BeyondVentures
But more importantly—they act consistently.
That consistency builds the trust that capital looks for when markets get messy.
#BeyondVentures
The difference isn’t just the product.
It’s the pattern.
Fundable founders show signs they can adapt, decide, and lead under stress.
Great startups begin with signal clarity—not noise.
#BeyondVentures
It’s the pattern.
Fundable founders show signs they can adapt, decide, and lead under stress.
Great startups begin with signal clarity—not noise.
#BeyondVentures
May 13, 2025 at 7:23 PM
The difference isn’t just the product.
It’s the pattern.
Fundable founders show signs they can adapt, decide, and lead under stress.
Great startups begin with signal clarity—not noise.
#BeyondVentures
It’s the pattern.
Fundable founders show signs they can adapt, decide, and lead under stress.
Great startups begin with signal clarity—not noise.
#BeyondVentures
Founders don’t burn out from work.
They burn out from roles they’ve outgrown.
From operator → visionary: here’s the model.
Read here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
They burn out from roles they’ve outgrown.
From operator → visionary: here’s the model.
Read here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
From Operator to Visionary: A Transition Model for Founders
Tactical execution gets your company off the ground. Visionary leadership ensures it survives the climb.
open.substack.com
May 13, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Founders don’t burn out from work.
They burn out from roles they’ve outgrown.
From operator → visionary: here’s the model.
Read here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
They burn out from roles they’ve outgrown.
From operator → visionary: here’s the model.
Read here: open.substack.com/pub/beyondle...
Recenter your leadership systems from the inside out:
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
Beyond Leadership™ | Steve Chaparro | Substack
Beyond Leadership™ is Steve Chaparro's weekly Substack publication delivering AI-powered leadership intelligence, venture capital strategy insights, and executive excellence frameworks to help leaders...
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
May 13, 2025 at 12:38 AM
Recenter your leadership systems from the inside out:
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
beyondleadershipvc.substack.com
#BeyondLeadership
Self-leadership is maintenance.
You either tune yourself as you go or break down later.
High-performance cultures start with highly self-aware leaders.
#BeyondLeadership
You either tune yourself as you go or break down later.
High-performance cultures start with highly self-aware leaders.
#BeyondLeadership
May 12, 2025 at 11:11 PM
Self-leadership is maintenance.
You either tune yourself as you go or break down later.
High-performance cultures start with highly self-aware leaders.
#BeyondLeadership
You either tune yourself as you go or break down later.
High-performance cultures start with highly self-aware leaders.
#BeyondLeadership
Leadership drift is subtle.
You’re still working hard, still showing up—but you’ve stopped pausing long enough to ask why you’re doing it the way you are.
#BeyondLeadership
You’re still working hard, still showing up—but you’ve stopped pausing long enough to ask why you’re doing it the way you are.
#BeyondLeadership
May 12, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Leadership drift is subtle.
You’re still working hard, still showing up—but you’ve stopped pausing long enough to ask why you’re doing it the way you are.
#BeyondLeadership
You’re still working hard, still showing up—but you’ve stopped pausing long enough to ask why you’re doing it the way you are.
#BeyondLeadership
When leaders lose alignment, it shows up in the culture first.
Teams can feel the drift before it hits the numbers.
Recalibration isn’t soft work—it’s core work.
#BeyondLeadership
Teams can feel the drift before it hits the numbers.
Recalibration isn’t soft work—it’s core work.
#BeyondLeadership
May 12, 2025 at 6:58 PM
When leaders lose alignment, it shows up in the culture first.
Teams can feel the drift before it hits the numbers.
Recalibration isn’t soft work—it’s core work.
#BeyondLeadership
Teams can feel the drift before it hits the numbers.
Recalibration isn’t soft work—it’s core work.
#BeyondLeadership
Alignment doesn’t stay fixed.
You have to revisit it.
When pressure rises, your habits kick in. Are they taking you where you want to go—or just where you’ve always gone?
#BeyondLeadership
You have to revisit it.
When pressure rises, your habits kick in. Are they taking you where you want to go—or just where you’ve always gone?
#BeyondLeadership
May 12, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Alignment doesn’t stay fixed.
You have to revisit it.
When pressure rises, your habits kick in. Are they taking you where you want to go—or just where you’ve always gone?
#BeyondLeadership
You have to revisit it.
When pressure rises, your habits kick in. Are they taking you where you want to go—or just where you’ve always gone?
#BeyondLeadership
You don’t fall off course all at once.
You drift.
One small compromise, one unclear decision, one boundary delayed.
Leaders don’t get lost loudly. They lose their center in silence—until results start reflecting the detour.
#BeyondLeadership
You drift.
One small compromise, one unclear decision, one boundary delayed.
Leaders don’t get lost loudly. They lose their center in silence—until results start reflecting the detour.
#BeyondLeadership
May 12, 2025 at 2:59 PM
You don’t fall off course all at once.
You drift.
One small compromise, one unclear decision, one boundary delayed.
Leaders don’t get lost loudly. They lose their center in silence—until results start reflecting the detour.
#BeyondLeadership
You drift.
One small compromise, one unclear decision, one boundary delayed.
Leaders don’t get lost loudly. They lose their center in silence—until results start reflecting the detour.
#BeyondLeadership
Recalibration isn’t retreat.
It’s refinement.
The future of your business depends on the future of your soul.
#BeyondLeadership #FounderSabbath
It’s refinement.
The future of your business depends on the future of your soul.
#BeyondLeadership #FounderSabbath
May 12, 2025 at 2:07 AM
Recalibration isn’t retreat.
It’s refinement.
The future of your business depends on the future of your soul.
#BeyondLeadership #FounderSabbath
It’s refinement.
The future of your business depends on the future of your soul.
#BeyondLeadership #FounderSabbath