C-Suite Leadership: How Growth Will Set You Free
There’s no question as to the pressures that those of us in C-Suite Leadership face today. Whether you’re the CEO, CIO, CFO or some other member of top management at your organization, the expectations are high.
Among many things, you’re expected to drive growth and deliver results quickly, satisfy stakeholders’ needs, know the answers to tough questions—and be right. You’re expected to lead through crises and tough times with strategic smarts and emotional intelligence. You probably put in long hours, and the work-life balance can feel or easily become out of whack.
No doubt, these high-level positions can promise exciting career experiences, yet the pressure to perform can take its toll on your physical and mental health, not to mention your performance and productivity as a leader. Relentlessly striving to be your best, you can actually find yourself undermining your own potential—a scenario that feels almost like a trap. So in a C-Suite leadership position, how can you lead, perform effectively and set yourself “free”?
Choose a growth mindset. The pressures of executive responsibilities can cause us to create fixed, rigid rules for ourselves. And yet our brains are designed to recognize our limitations, be curious, explore possibilities and innovate. Shifting your superhuman perspective from “I must be perfect” to a productive one of “I must accept some failures and choose to grow” will set you on a more sustainable path to success, even if there are some curves or bumps in the road.
Seek out, embrace feedback. The most effective leaders don’t sit behind closed doors, thinking they alone know best how to manage themselves and their people. They’re seeking input about what they can do to improve themselves and adjust leadership and management strategies. They pay attention to gut feelings when something about their leadership is off the mark and collect candid input on their behaviors, getting feedback from direct reports, colleagues, other C-Suite team members, mentors, and professional development tools and coaching.
Be open to hard truths. And when you get some, don’t react. Reign in the temptation to be defensive because these facts are gifts, guiding corrective action for addressing challenges and issues. Even the hardest news can become a valuable lesson learned that spins your leadership compass in the right direction. Don’t fight the truth and don’t shoot the messenger, as this is a sure sign your emotions, not your rational, growth-minded brain, are driving your behaviors.
Prioritize your professional growth. Once you know what needs to change, own it along with your vulnerability. It’s ok not to be perfect. Equally true, it’s smart to ask for help as you navigate professional leadership growth, particularly on the C-Suite level, because it comes with unique pressures, demands and dynamics. Asking for the right kind of professional development, plus putting coaching, customized plans and systems in place to succeed, will bring vital accountability to the table. This accountability, along with the right goals and strategies, will give you more freedom to lead authentically, getting you out of those common traps and bringing greater definition and direction to your professional growth.
Ready to bring real growth to your C-Suite Leadership team? Contact MAP today!
