What is a CEO? Is it a Title, a designation or a way of life?

Each one of us aspires to become CEO of a company at some stage in life. Most of the employees keep fighting or aspiring for just designations. Does a designation speak about our work, our success? Most of us stay limited to 9 to 5 jobs and only perform with in our defined roles or not so well defined roles and assume that we cannot go beyond them and wait for someone to direct or lead us.

In our personal lives we behave and perform differently than in work situations. In our personal lives, we assume the role of a CEO and continuously strive to create value for our family. No one tells us to do this but we assume and start behaving like a CEO. There are no designations in personal life and in spite of this we behave in absolutely different way. No one tells us but we still assume the ownership, responsibility and authority to provide a better life to our families and continuously strive for the same. Similarly, if we start behaving like a CEO, an entrepreneur and assume a sense of ownership in all aspects of work life then that’s the road to success and there is no looking back.

The term CEO is one that you keep hearing all along in your career, so what is this CEO? CEO is one of the most coveted, and least understood, jobs in a company. Everyone believes that CEOs can do whatever they want, are all powerful, and are magically competent. By its very nature, the job description of a CEO means meeting the needs of employees, customers, investors, communities, and the law. The CEO of a company is the “Chief Executive Officer” and for every decision big or small the buck stops at him. His job is to design and shape the organization to continuously create value for its employees, customers, partners and society at large. Behaving like a CEO is not an easy task and so is the life of an actual CEO. You not only have your own problems and challenges but you also face challenges and problems of your team, your employees, society and community at large As people come from different parts of society, social , economic and educational background, they have different expectations and behave differently at work situations. As a leader and CEO one has to face mood swings, ups and downs, personal likes and dislikes of all subordinates and still maintain cool and balance with high degree of motivation. When you are behaving like a CEO in your role, all decisions big or small will impact not just you but complete team associated with you and the organization. CEOs usually have their act together more than the average guy (much more), and if you want to succeed in life, you should start thinking like the CEO way before you become one.

First Step on the road to success is start viewing you-self as a Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and not an employee. We all are CEO’s of the role and position we are in. So instead of considering you-self as an employee only, you need to assume the role of a CEO and to excel in that role. Instead of seeing yourself as a role player, view yourself as the head, coach or the director. Schedule time to think and plan. You must think deeply about important, strategic matters. Make time to get away from the day-to-day distractions and focus on deep thinking, planning, and decision-making. Isolate yourself to concentrate on big-picture issues. You have to think and behave like a CEO in order to succeed and become powerful. In order to become a powerful individual, I believe it is important to imitate those who are already on top.

So, how a CEO does really thinks and behaves. What are the traits of Success and how can we behave like a CEO to start running on the road to success.

If you aspire to achieve success in your career, and then check out many of the qualities you will need to acquire in order to make it to the top.

Think Big:

This is my favorite; always think bigger than what you desire. Most of us spend all out time and energy in managing crisis and transactions, improve efficiency, increase revenue but hardly spare time for thinking out of the box , seeing the bigger picture and strategizing. Most of us are afraid of thinking big or even thinking beyond our four walls and are scared of taking risks. For most people, being rich is a pleasant dream, and is happy dreaming about it and doing nothing about it. But truly successful and wealthy people take it to the next level – they are committed to being rich, to being successful, and they’re prepared to until the dream becomes reality. From sales perspective, Always look for very large enterprises to be acquired for business. The amount of time and energy spent on getting business from small or mid-sized organizations is same as large enterprises and the sales cycle is much better. Aspirations to do something big should always be on top of the leader and this comes through creative and disruptive thinking.

Be Role Model:

You may not be the CEO or some top official in your organization but it is successful people who set examples for others .Taking initiative to do something great , something creative and disruptive with out of the box thinking is the way leaders or role models are created. Great Leaders set examples by leading from the front by doing things themselves; they do not delegate heavyweight jobs to subordinates. They drive headfirst into the hard jobs. They make their hands dirty first and are not afraid of getting mud and blood on their clothes. Gandhiji led the entire country to freedom you can be a great salesperson, so long as you excel at your job and take initiative. So pick up the torch when you see fit and make things happen. Leading from the front is the most effective way to lead a family, a ministry or a company. Let’s not be afraid of heavy lifting. Let’s not delegate the calluses or splinters. Instead let us, like Jesus, fill our hands with both as we pick up our crosses and die to ourselves so that others can be victorious.

Determination:

To be self-determined is asserting confidence in one self and whatever one intends to do or has been doing. With determination you tend to deliver 100% with complete passion, energy and confidence while enjoying your work. If you are determined then success is guaranteed. Leaders exhibit and perform their actions with full confidence and determination, irrespective of hardships and problems. One constant factor that remains on top of leaders head is the end result which is success at any cost. As per Colin Powell “A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work”

“An invincible determination can accomplish almost anything and in this lies the great distinction between great men and little men.” -Thomas Fuller “The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination.” -Tommy Lasorda

Invest in Yourself:

Career cannot be developed without knowledge. Our career is in our hands. Always strive to be better than you are today. Don’t be afraid to take risks and make mistakes. Remember, failure is only a temporary setback on the road to success. Majority of us stop learning and improving our knowledge once we start working. We do invest in good clothes, Partying, and luxury items for ourselves but hardly invest on ourselves. We must ensure to invest on ourselves by continuously learning and enhancing our knowledge to be competent and better than others. You have to behave with confidence and demonstrate abilities to be better than others.

Take Risk

We always consider that risk taking is not good and often considered as dangerous. Opportunities do not come across all the time and if we just sit or leave them then there is absolutely no road to success. We must evaluate the opportunities that come across and take calculated risks as business leaders. Challenge yourself and move out of your comfort zone.

“The key enterprising skills I used when first starting out are the very same ones I use today: the art of delegation, risk-taking, surrounding yourself with a great team and working on projects you really believe in,” Charles Branson

Most Successful people have taken risks based on their gut feelings. No risks, no gains as when you take risks, there is a purpose and when there is a purpose, there is determination and passion which is the right recipe for success

Be Honest & Positive

As a CEO or business leader, you have to raise the levels of ethical behavior and being transparent and honest. Employees in any organization look up to their leaders and copy their behavior and values. A CEO is the reflection of the organization behavior. Honest business practices inspire staff and customers with respect for your mission. Honest business practices build foundations of trust with colleagues, competitors, staff, customers and society at large. When employers deal honestly with their staff, employees are motivated to drive the business forward. Investors willingly fund the company development and consumer confidence is positive. One of the most important lessons I have learned is that you must think differently to become a successful. My largest struggle, when developing and creating ideas, has been to maintain a positive attitude and to stay focused on my vision for the longevity of the project.

Be Team Player

Being a team player is no longer optional; it is mandatory. If you want to achieve anything of consequence, you will need the help and cooperation of lots of people. Your main objective is to structure everything you do in such a way that, because you are constantly cooperating and working well with others, they are continually open to helping you achieve your goals as well. Remember, in all your interactions with your team, your role is to be supportive and helpful. Your role is not to challenge, criticize or argue but to look for solutions and for opportunities to help other people make their maximum contributions as well. When you participate in a team meeting, you are “onstage.” Everyone is watching you. The best team players I have ever seen are those whose comments to the other members of the team are in the form of suggestions on how things can be done better. The best team members are always offering to help other people get on top of some aspect of their work after the meetings. This focus on collaboration and cooperation gets noticed and sends a signal that you are a person to be both liked and respected.

Admit Mistakes:

Be willing to admit your mistakes if you have made, this increases the respect of its leaders. Everyone makes mistakes and so do business leaders, however it is important that one admits and corrects the same. Poor decision making or denying to having made a mistake will erode the credibility of the leader amongst employees. When as business leaders, we have to take hard decisions, it is important to be honest and ethical.