The Secret To Scaling Is A Handy Pair Of Scissors
Dhiren Bhatia
Founder, Part Time CEO
Oct 15, 2026
You’re holding onto a project you should’ve let go of a long time ago.
Why is cutting so hard?
Here’s what I’ve realized:
1. FOMO
Fear of Missing Out What if this is the one? What if I cut it right before it takes off? What if the audience is just about to show up and the thing finally works? So you keep it alive. Not because its working, but because you can’t stand the thought of it working without you, right after you let go.
2. SOS
Shiny Object Syndrome The new thing is fresh and exciting. Your real business is the hard grind. So you start something, because starting always feels like progress, even when it's just motion.
The tag team that keeps you stuck.
FOMO and SOS are a seasoned tag team. SOS gets you in. FOMO won't let you leave. Which is exactly why the hardest projects to cut are the ones you were excited to start and are afraid to quit. Knowing the exit and taking it are two different things.
The question to ask before you cut.
Before you pick up the scissors, ask this: If this disappeared tomorrow, would your real business grow? Every hour on that project is an hour taken from the business you've spent years building. It isn't harmless. It costs you the one thing you can't buy more of: Your Time.
Knowing where to cut vs closing the blades
You probably already know what needs to go. Knowing where to cut is the easy part. Closing the blades is the hard part. They hover there, and you find one more reason to wait.
Scaling was never about piling on more
The founders who make it aren't doing twenty things at 70%. They do one thing so well nobody can touch them, and they got there by cutting everything else. That includes the good stuff. Especially the good stuff. Bad projects are easy to drop. Good ones always come with a reason to hold on. So what's the one thing you already know you need to cut? That's the work we do inside the Council.