9 Tips On How To Be A Successful CEO

There are certain differences between what made CEOs successful 10 years ago and what makes them successful today. The attributes of CEOs and the way leaders think about their firms, workers, communities, and even themselves have evolved.

1. Ask the right questions

At any one moment, a good CEO learns to have three key priorities. Sure, there will always be a backlog of little tasks. But don't let your to-do list control you. Develop everyday amnesia by periodically asking oneself what is most important.

2. Drive the Culture You Support

Invest in your company's culture to attract and retain the best employees. Many leaders talked about their teams ten years ago, especially when the economy was struggling, as if they had no other choice.

That is no longer true. Employees are self-employed. According to the latest Vistage CEO Confidence Index Survey, 56 percent of CEOs intend to employ in the coming year. Finding and keeping talent is a vital task, especially with unemployment at a decade low. Crafting a culture that appeals to the sort of person who will propel your company ahead is more critical than ever.

3. Assume the role of brand advocate

You are an ambassador for your business, company, or organization as a positive leader. That implies that who you are and what you do will always matter, so send the message you want others to believe in. People will not trust the message if they do not believe the messenger.

4. Serve as a gatekeeper

Delegation is not the same as gatekeeping. In your organization, the CEO must be the final gatekeeper; he must set and establish the norm. People will pressure you to lower your standards in order to go quicker or get more freedom. Stay loyal to yourself and don't be fooled.

5. Maintain your curiosity

You must foster inquisitiveness if you want to be a successful CEO. Remind yourself that no matter how knowledgeable you are about the industry, you are not an authority on everything. Keep an open mind and be eager to ask questions and seek out fresh information.

6. Stakeholder value should be prioritized.

It's easy to get caught up in your great love for what you do and lose sight of your role as CEO: to maximize stakeholder value. Create value for your consumers, for your employees, and for your shareholders.

7. Challenge Your Viewpoint

Surrounding yourself with individuals that challenge you to be more clear and provide other perspectives is a must for success. Internal teams as well as peers outside the workplace should provide this type of input.

It's critical to avoid confirmation bias, which occurs when we've made up our minds and begin asking people we know would agree with us. We must be courageous enough to consider completely diverse perspectives. When CEOs create a method to obtain fair input on a regular basis, they position themselves for greater success.

8. Proactive adaptation

Adaptable CEOs also understand that setbacks are a necessary element of shifting direction, and they view their errors as chances to learn and improve. CEOs who viewed losses as failures had a 50% lower likelihood of succeeding in our study.

Successful CEOs, on the other hand, would give candid explanations of where and why they fell short, as well as concrete instances of how they improved their strategy for the next time.

Similarly, prospective CEOs with this mentality (what Stanford's Carol Dweck refers to as a "growth mindset") were more likely to reach the top of the pyramid: over 90% of the strong CEO candidates we assessed scored well on dealing with setbacks.

Take away

What about honesty and other "table stakes" values, you might wonder? These are important for weeding out individuals who are plainly inappropriate, but they won't help you distinguish the finest from the rest. Consider that our sample of low-performing CEOs had a perfect score on honesty and a 97 percent perfect score on work ethic.