Both my coaching and consulting business is laser-focused on being involved at the executive/C-Suite level, and it got me thinking this week: How did I land on this particular target audience?
Part of the reason is my experience as a COO and a VP, but there’s something else there.
I think I’ve always been a little bit in awe of CEOs.
Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to be president of a company. I have no idea where that came from, but it’s something that’s stuck with me ever since I was a kid. I’ve always been comfortable taking chances, and that, combined with a healthy dose of common sense, has always helped me balance the visionary and pragmatic elements of being a leader.
But there’s more to this.
Great CEOs are always looking through their windshield, not their rear-view mirrors. They’re trying to see the possibilities before anyone else does, and it’s so exciting to work with someone who seeks out the new.
Great CEOs believe their role is to deliver work through others, not deliver the work themselves. They step aside and focus on the business so others can focus in the business. They don't get involved in the day to day because they know that takes them out of the "strategic."
Great CEOs know that in order to fully understand what it’s like to work at their company, they have to ask questions and understand — not just say they understand.
Great CEOs have this heady mix of confidence and humility. They don’t know what they don’t know, but they still know they need to make decisions in the middle of all that ambiguity — and make them with conviction.
Great CEOs understand that purpose is everything. Yes, they need to make money, and they need to grow. But the real potential they see in their organization is to make its purpose something that everyone can be a part of.
Great CEOs want to be challenged—they don’t want a leadership team filled with “yes people.” And they challenge themselves — their own ideas, their own perceptions and biases.
Consultants and coaches, I’d love to know — what gets you amped about working with your target audience?
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