Weekly Spark #184: You are the CEO
You are the CEO of your life. The buck stops with you. If your life is your company, what kind of company are you building? This company has its own culture, brand, team members, goals, visions, missions, core values, and processes. YOU are solely responsible for establishing this and ensuring alignment so that the company achieves all that it’s capable of (getting the most out of life and living the life that you are capable of living). For the remainder of the piece, you will be established as CEO of your life, and your life is the company that you are building.
As you think about building your company, first let’s discuss what makes a quality CEO and leader:
Communicators - Naturally, they have to be good communicators. This includes communication both internally and externally. This is where the self-talk, journaling, and getting to know yourself comes into play on the internal side. Externally, you have to be able to communicate well with friends, family, and people that are important to you (and anyone really).
Extreme ownership - Quality leaders have extreme ownership. They recognize that the buck stops with them. Sure, there are external circumstances that impact how the company is performing, but ultimately, they are responsible for their own success. In a world where blame is easily outsourced to others or external circumstances, leaders who recognize that the buck stops with them are differentiated and build unique, and far more successful companies. Successful people believe and know that they are always in control. There are obviously things that are outside of their locus of control, and they are certainly factoring those things in, but they aren’t going to blame them as reasons that things don’t go well.
Discipline and focus - Quality leaders have unparalleled levels of focus and discipline. They are focused on the tasks and initiatives that will legitimately move the ball downfield and advance them towards their goals. They don’t get caught up in what’s sexy, flashy, or distracting; they focus on the fundamentals and execute them far better than those around them, and experience higher levels of success. They are willing to do things that others aren’t willing to do in order to contribute to their success. They recognize that what’s right might not always be what’s popular.
Bold - They aren’t afraid to be bold and bet big on themselves. They recognize that in order to be successful, there will be some “risks” to take- educated risk taken in the right areas. “A ship in a harbor is safe but that is not what ships are built for.” They aren’t afraid to fail, because they know that leads to more learning, and more learning = more success.
As you establish your company, let’s think critically about the infrastructure:
What kind of company are you trying to build? What is the overarching goal of your life?
Is the company heading in the direction that you’d like? If not, what changes need to be made?
If you were to evaluate the CEOs performance (your own), critically and honestly, how are you performing? What can you improve on and what action plans can you implement to foster this improvement?
Are the right people on the bus? Who needs to be promoted, added, or fired from your company?
What are the core values of your company?
What is the mission of your company?
What are the short, medium, and long-term goals for your companies? What action plans can you implement to foster achievement of these goals, and thus contribute to the long-term success and growth of the company?
Think about the key functional supporting areas of your company: your physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional well-being. How are these areas doing? What can be improved to lay the right foundation to scale this company for growth?
Are you investing in the right areas of growth for this company?
In going from the current state to the ideal future state, what is going to stand in the way of success for this business? Are you prepared to eradicate all barriers to success?
Given that you are CEO of the company and that’s the one position that will never change, are you prepared to take extreme ownership and responsibility for how this business ultimately performs?
Rent will be due at the end of your life, and your ultimate evaluation will come then. Make it something you will feel you put your best effort into building, that you will be proud of, and that will leave you with the least amount of regret.
Mental Diet
Quote of the Week:
“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day-in and day-out.” - Robert Collier
I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing. Until next time… Take care of yourself and take care of each other. 🙏
Nathan