I’m excited to announce that my new book will be available by July of this year!

I wrote The Successful New CEO because I saw that most leaders, especially CEO level leaders, don’t expect the initial challenges they faced. There are many reasons for this. Some of which have nothing to do with the skills or ability. More on that, and a link to a free excerpt, below.

But first: Announcing the winners of the book naming contest!

This January, I held a contest. I asked my readers to vote from a selection of possible book names. The winning name was sent to the publisher. If the publisher accepted that name – I’d send the people who chose it a free copy. The name that rose to the top was The Successful New CEO: Core Leadership Principles That Will Guide Your First Year.

The publisher accepted it and we are in the final stages of editing. It should be available in July, 2020!

The winners of the contest are (I included everyone who made it their first or second choice):

Praveen Puri, Sarah Gallt, Cindee Brown-Mills, Carol Austerman, Mark Dale Mazur, Rodney J. Sawyer, Troy Johnson, Julie Barnes, Timothy Chapuis, Ali Kinney, Omar Sanchez, Jakob Baller, Kathryn Harvey and Sheli Dodson

Congratulations!

The winners will receive a signed copy as soon as they are available. If you didn’t win – stay tuned! Over the next few months, I’ll run a number of promotions and opportunities that you’ll definitely want to take advantage of. I’m working with the publisher on the details.

What makes being a successful CEO a challenge?

Harvard Business Review states that between 50%-60% of new CEO’s leave or quit within 18 months of being promoted or hired. It’s not just that the job is harder than they thought. It’s usually different than thought.

Leadership development is personal development

I’ve worked with hundreds of executives and owners. When I came into this work, I thought I’d primarily address strategy and organizational design and teams. Instead, even though most are successful and oversee growth, I spend most of my time helping them work through intensely personal issues. Often related to self-image.

The answer to these key challenges is personal growth. Not more skills. Which is usually a surprise.

After all, personal growth is “fluffy bunny, soft and squishy stuff.”

What are the common challenges a CEO faces?

• Being handed a problem: Many CEOs inherit a problem. It’s not uncommon that the problem isn’t fully known (or known at all) before they take the position. Or they may just not know how to recognize it. Not only are they handed the problem, but also the responsibility.
• Not prepared for true leadership: Most leaders rise through the ranks of management or strong technical performance. At many executive levels, it is possible to focus on management or technical performance primarily. Both of which, in healthy organizations, have defined expectations or standards. Leadership doesn’t. The “right” answer isn’t always obvious. It may not even exist. Or all the “right” answers are hard. Leaders are asked to make decisions with insufficient information, too many distractions, and in an uncertain environment. When CEOs are confronted with this, and the attending responsibility, it can be overwhelming.
• Roles, responsibilities and relationships change: If promoted from within, your relationships with your peers just changed. Whether from the inside or outside, the role or responsibilities may not be well defined. Or they may be perfectly defined for the person who just left. Not for you. Regardless of your job description, you will be asked to be successful. Even in situations that neither you nor the company has experienced before.
• Less freedom than anticipated: New CEO’s often discover that the fantasy of “when I’m in charge I’ll…” is often just that. Yes, you have more power and autonomy as a CEO. But it comes with constraints. Sometimes powerful ones. Partners, family, a board, budget, internal (or external) politics, culture and more all become very interested in and shaping (or limiting) your decisions. Many owners of growing companies realize that disciplines such as following policies and procedures are neccesary to support growth. But it is hard for many owners to want to “have to” do anything.
• Not knowing how to make the complex simple – the right way: It doesn’t have to be large to be complex. It is often overwhelming for CEO’s to just make sense of what is going on and try to keep up. Over time, leaders will always simplify things. Some do this by not letting the organization grow, or causing it to shrink to a level that they find comfortable. Others orphan some departments and programs and focus on a favorite. Still others delegate out all of their authority and trust others to pay attention.
• Identity and Self-Image: Becoming the person at the pointy part of the pyramid can trigger surprising challenges someone’s sense of identity and self-worth. For some, it goes to their head. For many, there is an unexpected sense of inadequacy. It is common for senior leaders to tell me that they feel like they don’t belong in their role. I’ve met enormously successful leaders who’ve grown their companies by 10x tell me that they felt like frauds. Many leaders who seem enormously full of ego or self – are actually incredibly insecure. Not at all confident in themselves, scared of dissent or disagreement, avoidant of conflict.

How do I know if a CEO position is right for me? (Free excerpt)

An excerpt from my book, offers twelve questions you should ask if you are exploring a CEO (or equivalent) role. If you already have the role, these questions will help you identify areas of potential challenge – that you can now focus on addressing and resolving.

Download How Do I Know If A CEO Position Is Right For Me, an excerpt from The Successful New CEO published by BEP.

Keep well,

Christian

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THE LEADERSHIP COACH Podcast

In my podcast, THE LEADERSHIP COACH, we explore effective, high impact and enjoyable leadership. We talk about personal development and the attributes that all effective leaders possess. I interview other leadership experts who share their knowledge and tips to help you build the confidence to lead and learn the habits of good decision-making.

Now Available! – Ep.23 Humility and Success. The Surprising Relationship

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