Run the Business, Don’t Let It Run You: How CEOs Can Reclaim Control Without Losing Momentum
Whether you start your own company or work your way up to CEO, the BIG goal is the same: freedom.
Freedom to dream, build, innovate, grow, and give back. Freedom to run your business, your way, on your terms.
And yet freedom is often the very first thing that CEOs sacrifice as they wrestle with the demands of the job.
Instead of enforcing work-life boundaries, they accept 60-80 hour work weeks as a given.
Instead of spending an extra week on vacation with their families, they punt their time off into next year. And the year after that. And the year after that.
Instead of prioritizing self-care in their daily routines, they wear exhaustion like a badge of honor until it weighs down their vision, judgement, and leadership.
And, ultimately, instead of Making BIG Happen, they burn out.
If any of these scenarios ring a bell, you need to embrace five mindset shifts that can help you reclaim your time — and your sanity — before you grind down yourself and your business
Shift 1: Redefine Your Role from Operator to Architect
Architects design buildings. They don’t drive bulldozers.
Likewise, the best CEOs focus on just five responsibilities: Vision, Cash, Relationships, People, and Learning. They let go of anything that doesn’t fall under those categories as they rise up the ranks and the company scales. As Warren Buffett once said about his management of Berkshire Hathaway, “We delegate almost to the point of abdication.”
Maybe there was a time, early in your company’s history, when you had to pack boxes, fiddle with your website, or help customers. You might have even enjoyed doing some of those tasks. But that was then. Now, your company needs a visionary, not a micromanager.
To declutter your schedule, conduct a “Time Audit.” Track how you spend every hour at work for one week. If you’re not taking breaks, eating healthy meals, or giving yourself space to think about your business, make these blocks the cornerstones of your new schedule. Use the CEO Coaching International Stop-Doing List to highlight low-leverage tasks you can either delegate or eliminate so that you can spend an optimal amount of your day doing what only you can do: drive the business towards BIG.
Shift 2: Build a Leadership Team That Truly Owns Their Functions
Learning to let go of nonessential tasks will be much easier if you know you have the absolute best people in leadership positions.
That’s why top companies compete as hard for talent as they do for market share. Instead of handing off tasks, CEOs at the best companies hand off ownership, meaning not just responsibility for execution but authority over how objectives are reached.
If you don’t trust the people a level or two below you to manage essential tasks, then ask yourself: Am I micromanaging? Have I given the team leader everything they need to succeed? Or do I have a B or C player where I need a solid A?
No matter how good your COO or sales mangers are, delegation might be a little scary at first, especially if you’ve led the company since start-up days. Try to remember that the How is less important than the results. Define clear outcomes, establish dashboards, and empower your leaders to handle the day-to-day their way (within company culture and ethical guardrails) so you can stay out of the weeds.
Shift 3: Install Systems That Run the Business Without You
While empowered leaders will often come up with innovative paths from A to B, every business also has essential tasks that should be running on autopilot: prospect calls, meeting rhythms, shipping deadlines, cash flow management.
Document these processes, reinforce them with training, and integrate them into your company’s larger system for codifying standard operating procedures. EOS, OKR, and the Make BIG Happen System can help you establish that baseline structure. AI integration and talent upgrades can ensure that the machine keeps running smoothly whether you’re in the office or training for your next marathon.
And by establishing clear expectations for what needs to get done, high-performing leaders and employees will be able to see the wiggle room where innovation and creativity could transform your systems in the future.
Shift 4: Create a Culture of Accountability Without Being a Control Freak
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings didn’t want users to be able to download content for offline viewing. As the company finished shifting away from mailing DVDs and Blu-rays, Hastings was focused on optimizing the streaming experience.
A couple of Hastings’ subordinates researched offline viewing anyway. They determined that it was a feature customers wanted, especially overseas. They sent a report up the chain, and when it reached Hastings, the CEO changed his mind.
These kinds of innovations only happen at companies where employees feel accountability is about clarity rather than pressure. CEOs should utilize their systems — including regular one-on-ones between leaders and team members — to make sure that everyone understands their roles, responsibilities, and the metrics for success. As long as employees know they’re hitting their marks, they won’t be afraid to challenge assumptions and pursue innovative ideas.
A culture that finds this sweet spot between freedom and accountability has a way of raising the bar almost by itself. Employees who see their coworkers rewarded for speaking up and exceeding expectations start to raise their own games. Thinking outside the box becomes a habit. Fear of failure vanishes, as long as the company can learn something and move forward quickly.
All the CEO needs to do is keep an open mind and offer support and encouragement. Pop into a few weekly meetings. Celebrate wins and high-performing employees publicly. Give team leaders the resources they need. And then get back to your top-level responsibilities.
Shift 5: Protect Strategic Time Like It’s Sacred
When he was growing Microsoft, Bill Gates scheduled two “think weeks” every year where he went to a cabin and did nothing but read and strategize.
Coca-Cola CEO Robert Goizueta was so focused on raising shareholder value that he regularly met with business executives and world leaders who could broaden his perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing his company. Goizueta also left lots of flexibility in his daily schedule so that he had time for quick impromptu chats with employees.
Some CEOs think this kind of behavior is selfish, or that you have to reach the highest of heights as an executive to justify reading, thinking, or chatting, even for half an hour. But the best CEOs know that the time they spend thinking about the businesses and expanding their knowledge is among the most powerful investments they make in their companies. These periods of focused thought are where magic can happen: strategic breakthroughs, ideas for new products and services, new paths you can blaze towards BIG growth. You’ll also be giving yourself some essential space from the stress of running the business, which will help you return to your desk with more clarity and energy.
Coaching Corner
Working with a CEO coach can make the time you invest both inside and outside of your company more focused and effective. When one of our coaching clients is skirting burnout, we often start by establishing some baselines. Try asking yourself:
- If I left the business for 30 days, what would break?
- What decisions am I still making that someone else on my team should own?
- Where is ambiguity in my org chart creating hidden stress?
Your answers will create a useful rough draft of action items for reclaiming your time.
But that’s just step one.
As this tumultuous year continues to throw new challenges at your business, maintaining CEO mindsets will be an ongoing process. Time-blocking, CEO coaching, and honest conversations with your spouse can all be powerful tools for revamping your schedule and holding you accountable to better time management. Strengthen your own foundation and you’ll be able to lead better, live better, and Make BIG Happen.
If you don’t have a coach and want one to help you prepare your business during this quickly evolving landscape, fill out the form below to take us up on a complimentary 1:1 coaching call.
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About CEO Coaching International
CEO Coaching International works with CEOs and their leadership teams to achieve extraordinary results quarter after quarter, year after year. Known globally for its success in coaching growth-focused entrepreneurs to meaningful exits, the firm has coached more than 1,500+ CEOs and entrepreneurs across 100+ industries and 60 countries. Its coaches—former CEOs, presidents, and executives—have led businesses ranging from startups to over $10 billion, driving double-digit sales and profit growth, many culminating in eight, nine, or ten-figure exits.
Companies that have worked with CEO Coaching International for two years or more have achieved an average revenue CAGR of 25.9%, nearly 3X the U.S. average, and an average EBITDA CAGR of 39.2%, more than 4X the national benchmark.
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