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Becoming the CEO of a young, growing company is an exciting opportunity, but it also comes with unique challenges. Many first-time CEOs underestimate the demands of the role and make mistakes that stunt their company’s growth. However, with some guidance and preparation, early stage CEOs can avoid the most common pitfalls.
Focus on Building the Right Team
One of the biggest mistakes inexperienced CEOs make is failing to prioritize recruiting a strong leadership team. As CEO, you cannot scale the company alone. You need a talented team to share the workload and provide strategic guidance. Take time early on to define the key roles you need to fill, and don’t rush to hire people just to fill seats. Be thoughtful and patient to recruit leaders who complement your skills and fit the company culture. Also, empower your team by clearly defining roles and expectations while giving them autonomy to make decisions. With the right team in place, you can confidently focus on high-level strategy.
Learn to Delegate
New CEOs often micromanage because they want to control every detail. However, effective delegation is essential to leading a growing company. Learn to delegate responsibility to your capable team while providing high-level direction and support. Let go of the mindset that no one can do tasks as well as you. Trust your team to handle the details so you can focus on CEO-level priorities. Delegation increases productivity, develops employees’ skills, and ensures the company doesn’t rely too heavily on you as the bottleneck.
Develop Strategic Thinking
As CEO, you need to operate at a strategic level to guide the company’s vision and direction. Many new CEOs get caught up in day-to-day operations and fail to allocate time for strategic thinking. Block time on your calendar for big picture planning and creative problem solving. Analyze wider industry trends and changes in the market to identify threats and opportunities. Define short-term and long-term goals to round out the company’s strategy. Also, learn to think strategically on the fly when new challenges arise. Strengthening strategic thinking skills is crucial to leading growth.
Control Your Calendar
The CEO’s time is a scarce and precious resource. However, many first-time CEOs fail to control their calendar and end up attending unnecessary meetings, getting bogged down in minutiae, and constantly reacting to other people’s agendas. Be proactive in scheduling time for your priorities first before agreeing to other meetings. Learn to say no to requests that don’t serve key objectives. Have your assistant help optimize your calendar and fend off time wasters. Managing your time effectively prevents you from getting distracted in the weeds.
Learn the Financial Side
While you may not have a finance background, taking time to understand the key financial levers of the business is crucial. Learn how to read basic financial statements, and have your CFO regularly review financials with you. Meet with stakeholders to learn how to best evaluate success and leverage financial data to guide decisions. Gaining financial acumen makes you a well-rounded leader and manager. Consider working with Hoola Hoop CEO coaching to quickly develop this skillset.
Becoming CEO is a challenging yet rewarding journey. With discipline and commitment, you can excel as an early stage CEO and lead your company to new heights.
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