I've launched a few (failed) projects alone in the past.

Until I solemnly promised never to do it again.

Launching alone is not all bad though.

Here's how I ponder.

6 reasons to launch a project alone

However, reasons to launch alone exist and should be mentioned. Thus, anyone currently pondering will launch with a team despite all the good reasons to launch alone.

1. You take the whole cake

Pretty obvious, but still true. Whether it's a cupcake or a piece montée, you'll take it all in the end.

2. Less engaging

Still obvious. You don't have to run decisions by another party. So decisions—good or bad—are less engaging.

3. Faster decision-making

Which is different from operational throughput. If you're two, it'll be faster to deliver, but longer to take decisions.

Semi-mathematical justification:

Nb of discussions grows like the square of the nb of members in the team.

4. It requires less courage

You subject yourself to honest feedback when asking someone to marry you on a project.

They can't lie about not liking your idea. They may say "it's a nice one!", but in the end won't join.

The latter is the feedback.

5. Undiluted vision

Working as a team often means "consensus" and "middle-ground". Therefore, when building a team, you're taking a bet.

The bet that the tempered vision of a team will be more convincing than the undiluted vision of a solo-founder.

6. Less variables to adjust

A company is a system with a feedback loop (the market). That loop helps optimise company variables to maximise profits.

With more people in the company, there are more variables to adjust. Hence, the system's trickier to optimise.

6 reasons not to

Now, even if I found 6 good reasons to launch alone, I've found 6 convincing counter-arguments.

They're the reason why I pledged never to launch anything alone again.

1. Trial by fire

The courage required to ask a cofounder to join your project is a trial by fire.

It's the first person to convince in a long series of investors, clients and employees.

If you can't find such courage: time to ask if you believe in your idea.

2. Shared emotions

3. Accelerated learning

A cofounder with at least 20% of foreign skills seems optimal.

Sure, it's someone you could learn from anyway.

But it'll be much faster heads-deep in a project, under his tutorship.

4. NASA's game

NASA came up with a game that empirically proves that a team takes better decisions than a single individual.

5. Meta-skill

Collaboration is not the sum of the skills from every member of the team.

People can be competent and still fail at joining their efforts.

For ambitious projects that require a team, effective collaboration isn't nice-to-have.

It's a vital "meta-skill".

6. The long game

If you're in entrepreneurship for a long time, it's crucial to know who you can effectively work with.

And there's nothing better than hands-on project to assess future co-founding potential.

It's nothing more than advanced network screening.

Start early.