Introduction: The Journey to Becoming a CEO
I get asked the same question by many: “How did you manage to become a CEO?” Personally, I like to think it’s a pretty interesting question. But it’s one that’s deceptively simple. For most people, the role of a CEO is perceived as being the final authority in a company; making decisions, heading the team, and enjoying all the perks that come with it.
Well, that is not even close to where the truth lies. Being a CEO requires you to literally wear all those hats and then some. 🤯
Back when I started my company in 2020, it was just my co-founder and myself. We needed to multitask.
There was no large team, assistants, or anything of that sort. Everything was done at a fundamental level. From sales to customer service to marketing and even IT support, content creation and teaching – I was all of those things. If you want to become a CEO, you don’t simply take on a title and start delegating. In the early days, everything is hands-on.
Wearing Every Hat: The Early Days of Entrepreneurship
Most people would say that starting a new company or venture is typically difficult or extremely challenging.
I personally believe that they are rewarding as well. To put it simply, I can state that from the very beginning, my co-founder and I were responsible for handling marketing, customer service, SMM, graphic designing, content writing, editing videos, and even serving as instructors. Every single task was bestowed upon us.
In my opinion, there are no hacks. In addition to this, we were not in a financial position to hire or outsource any of this work.
From my own experience, I have learned that doing everything on your own can be worthwhile in the early stages of a venture because it allows you to master every single operation in the business. It is a skill, but also an understanding of how your company functions.
That’s the thing. If we want to build a real and successful company, we need to be ready to perform precisely all non-core business activities.
When running a startup, there are many things that can be done by you personally. In my own specific situation, I can clearly say that the vast experience I get with my hands is what assisted me in understanding how to truly lead the diverse teams I have had to interact with.
The Turning Point: Growing and Delegating
We began to expand after some time, which is great news. With more clients coming in, it was obvious that we needed to bring in a team as there was no way we could do it everything ourselves. The shift from being the person doing everything towards being a leader who delegates is what facilitated the growth of the company.
In due course, we scaled our team and hired more people which further allowed us to shift our focus towards managing the tasks at hand and developing more opportunities to sustain business growth.
Now, the company has over 30 employees working towards the company’s success. Building a business from the ground up is no easy endeavor, but that has always been the case.
Hustle, Learn, and Take On Every Role
In today’s world of becoming a CEO, the true work lies in the hustling and learning steps, of which taking on every role in the company is critical. Rather than delegating work, spend sufficient time understanding how the business operates at its core and everything will fall into place.
Understanding every role one’s business has to offer makes one resilient. It teaches you to face problems head on, manage your time, and work in a high pressure environment. Most importantly, it helps you understand how to make the right judgments when choosing to delegate duties later on.
Always lead only when you understand the ins and outs of the company. When dealing with all the parts of the business, your motivation levels soar, which helps you streamline operations.
The Real Journey of Becoming a CEO
If I have to list the few things sitting in that lofty chair comes with, it surely wouldn’t be the real work. For me, I have to continue juggling tackling responsibilities as an entire team at times and drive sales.
The work is challenging, but for me, it is incredibly satisfying. Everything that posed a challenge had accompanying lessons, enabling us to grow. The value of all those long hours comes when you finally, after much struggle, are able to step away, give instructions, and sit back to observe while your team flourishes.
It is not an easy path to take to become a CEO. It has multiple paths, includes learning from failures, improving and, gaining new skills continuously. All actions, accomplishments, and challenges prepare you to be the leader meant for you.
The Importance of Team Building
An area that became clearer to me with time is the need for having the right people in your team to fully maximize and compliment your business.
Few can operate completely without aid. As a CEO, constructing a great and strong team is the bottom line. Even the best CEOs appreciate that without an equally great support team, achieving success is impossible.
Hiring is challenging; however, for me, finding the perfect candidates who embody passion, drive and are synchronized with company values cures it all. The business has great potential to progress and prosper when the right individuals are hired, well trained, and given a reasonable amount of trust to perform their tasks.
Besides aiding in the everyday tasks, a great team integrates fresh ideas, new perspectives, and energy into the business.
As a leader, trusting your team and allowing them to freely make decisions is crucial. When you empower your team, they will propel your company into the next stage of growth.
Delegating for Growth
Mastering the art of delegation remains one of the greatest challenges for an entrepreneur, while also proving to be the most rewarding. Personally, I found that a business cannot successfully scale without some form of delegation. At its core, this is not about losing control. Instead, delegation encompasses allowing others to carry out their responsibilities, while you concentrate on the larger business strategy as its guide.
Giving people the opportunity to make decisions also leads to solving challenges in innovative ways. In turn, this increases responsibility and drives the business forward.
My Opinion The CEO Journey Is Tough, but It’s Worth It
Becoming a CEO isn’t a walk in the park, but it’s most definitely worth the lift. It requires a lot of strategic hustle, a lot of learning, and doing each and every function of the business; because only then can you truly understand how the business operates.
Eventually, it culminates to form building a great team, strong and strategic handing over tasks, determined and calm in the face of choppy waters guidance and overall good leadership.
It’s perfectly okay not to be perfect from day one, but if you set your eyes on becoming a CEO, then think long-term.
What you really need is discipline, growth, consistent effort, and persistence. Each and every challenge, every task you volunteer for, and every movement in your career path will eventually translate to becoming a powerful leader.You prepared for the quest? With resolve and an open watertax, anything is possible. It will not be simple.
