I have three active projects right now. Kasvu, the digital agency I co-lead with Mohamed Jihed Khikhia. moncgo.ca, my Fractional Chief Growth Officer practice for digital agency leaders. And Henosis, an integration community I cofounded with Jean-François Thibault. Three roles, three teams, three completely different cultures.
When people ask me how I do it, the honest answer isn't a magic system. It's a set of discipline decisions that, taken together, make the whole thing viable. Here's what 600 projects delivered since 2002 have taught me about not burning out while running multiple fronts.
First, the lie to avoid
Before I share my method, I want to break a belief that destroys a lot of entrepreneurs: the more you work, the more you accomplish.
That's false. Beyond a certain threshold, which is lower than people think, extra hours destroy more value than they create. Decisions get worse. Relationships erode. Physical health degrades. Creativity collapses.
I'm not a workaholic. I work intensely, but I don't need 80 hours a week to carry three projects. If you need 80 hours to carry a single project, you probably have a structural problem, not a capacity problem.
Principle 1: Choose projects that feed each other instead of competing
It's the most important rule, and the one most multiproject entrepreneurs violate. If your three projects demand the same intellectual and operational muscles, you're not running three projects, you're running the same project three times, with three times the friction. That's unsustainable.
My three current projects are deliberately complementary:
- Kasvu is operational: we deliver mandates, coordinate teams, sign contracts. It demands execution rigor.
- moncgo is strategic: I advise agency leaders, work on 18-month plans, take a step back. It demands depth of thinking.
- Henosis is human and creative: we build a community around integration practices. I focus on structure, brand, and tech, while Jean-François Thibault holds the guide posture. It uses completely different muscles than the other two.
Three different muscles. When one is tired, another takes over. It's the opposite of dispersion, it's rotation.
Principle 2: One project per 90-minute block
Multitasking is a productivity myth. The human brain doesn't do two serious things simultaneously, it alternates, and the alternation costs a lot in attention.
My rule: once I'm in a project, I stay there for a minimum of 90 minutes. No Slack from the other project. No call from the third one. No email from the second business. For 90 minutes, the universe shrinks to a single project.
Concretely, my days look like blocks: morning Kasvu, midday moncgo, end of day Henosis or the other way around, depending on the week's needs. No oscillation. The discipline of not giving in to notifications is harder than the discipline of working long.
Principle 3: Delegate leadership, not just execution
This is where many multiproject entrepreneurs fail. They delegate tasks but keep all the decisions. Result: they become a bottleneck in three places at once.
To carry several projects, you have to accept delegating operational leadership to competent leaders and giving them real authority to decide. My role in each project is different:
- In Kasvu: co-leader, long-term vision, major strategic decisions. The day-to-day is carried by the team.
- In moncgo: principal operator, because that's the very nature of the Fractional CGO — I'm the expert you hire. And I cap myself at two active mandates in parallel.
- In Henosis: cofounder on structure, strategy, tech and brand. Jean-François Thibault is the front-man, the guide who carries the community. I carry the infrastructure that allows that community to exist.
Three roles, three levels of involvement. If I wanted to be operational CEO of all three at the same time, it's mathematically impossible. The maturity is accepting to be CEO of just one.
The real skill of running multiple projects isn't doing more. It's accepting to do less in each, with confidence.
Principle 4: Know your personal vital indicators
The three projects matter, but none more than the operator's durability. If I collapse, all three collapse.
I've identified five personal indicators I monitor like an investor monitors their holdings:
- Sleep: 7 hours minimum, non-negotiable. Under 6 hours for 3 days, I shift everything.
- Physical activity: minimum 5-6 boxing & muay thai sessions per week. Without it, cognitive energy collapses in 10 days.
- Unstructured thinking time: minimum 3 hours per week with no agenda, no meeting, no screen.
- Meaningful relationships: at least one real conversation per day with someone who isn't in work.
- Sense of enthusiasm: if I get up in the morning without wanting to start the day for 5 days in a row, something has to change.
These five indicators are my real dashboard. If one is in the red, I know the projects will suffer before I even realize it myself.
Principle 5: Refuse more than you accept
The biggest trap of multiproject is the illusion that you can "add" a project. Each new project doesn't add, it subtracts. It subtracts attention, energy, available quality for existing projects.
To carry three projects calmly, you have to refuse between 8 and 15 interesting opportunities per month. Board seats. Investments. Collaborations. Conferences. Podcasts. Not everything can fit.
My rule: a new project only enters if I'm ready to drop an existing one. Not "reduce," not "delegate further." Drop. This brutal discipline is the only way to keep depth in what you carry.
Principle 6: Have a coherence system across projects
Working on three disparate projects requires a coherence infrastructure. Without it, you become a rumor of yourself in each project, seen too little, never fully present, never aligned. A few simple tools that make a big difference:
- A fixed weekly review: 2 hours per week where I go through each project, identify decisions to make, note attention points for the following week.
- A personal quarterly objectives document: 3 priorities per project, maximum 9 total priorities over 90 days. If I can't articulate that on one page, it means I'm not clear.
- Communication discipline: each team knows when I'm available, how to reach me urgently, and when to wait.
Without this infrastructure, with complexity multiplied by three, it implodes. With it, it becomes manageable.
The real price to pay
I won't pretend: carrying three projects has a cost. I go out less. I have fewer spontaneous leisure activities. My vacations are more rigorously planned. I say no to many professional events.
But it's not a painful sacrifice, it's a conscious trade. I trade a certain social variety for the depth of working on three projects I find fascinating. For me, it's an excellent deal. For someone else, it might be a bad one.
The real question isn't "how to carry three projects." It's "what am I willing to trade to carry three projects." If you can't answer that, you shouldn't be running three.
Frequently asked questions
How many businesses or projects does François Painchaud run in parallel?
Three active projects: Kasvu (digital agency cofounded in November 2023, co-led with Mohamed Jihed Khikhia), moncgo.ca (Fractional Chief Growth Officer practice for digital agency leaders, maximum two active mandates in parallel), and Henosis (integration community cofounded in November 2024 with Jean-François Thibault). Over 600 projects delivered in total since 2002.
How do you know if you're capable of running multiple projects at the same time?
Three conditions must be met: the projects use complementary rather than redundant skills, you've already effectively delegated operational leadership of at least one project, and you have solid personal recovery discipline. Without these three elements, multiproject becomes a recipe for burnout.
What's the main mistake of entrepreneurs who launch multiple projects?
Wanting to stay operational in all projects at once. It's mathematically impossible and creates three bottlenecks simultaneously. You have to accept being strategic in some projects and operational in others, never everything at the same time. That acceptance is the entry condition for healthy multiproject.
How many hours per week do you need to work to run three projects?
Less than people think, if the structure is good. Between 45 and 55 hours of focused work can be enough if delegation is mature and processes are solid. Beyond 60 sustained hours, it's generally a sign of a structural problem — insufficient delegation, poor prioritization, or too many projects, not a legitimate workload.
How do you avoid burnout when running multiple businesses?
Actively monitor five personal indicators: sleep (7 hours minimum), physical activity (5+ sessions per week), unstructured thinking time (3 hours per week with no agenda), quality of meaningful relationships, and morning enthusiasm level. When one is in the red for more than three days, adjust before it contaminates the projects themselves.
Want to talk?
If you're running multiple projects and want to talk to someone who is too, I take these conversations gladly. No pitch, no miracle methodology.
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