Being a parent and being a CEO can require very similar skill sets, as both require a very high level of responsibility, along with multi-tasking. As the founder of Product2Market, it’s my responsibility to ensure success, not only for myself but for our teams too.
Running a business is something that goes beyond the 9-5 day, it’s working late nights, early mornings with extensive. As a CEO and a father, my day revolves around other people. I am kept on my toes by the expectations (and sometimes demands) of others.
Another thing is that children are dreamers; they believe the impossible is possible and they don’t over analyse. Every good business starts as an idea, and a lot of the most successful businesses started off as those people, people thought were ‘crazy’. A perfect example is the aeroplane: no one thought it would work and airline companies are some of the largest in the world.
Staying creative is the only way to stay on top of your game, innovating and inventing new ways of doings things. Believing in yourself and others is huge; you can’t run a successful business without taking a risk.
However, while it can seem like there’s nothing to your work than endless emails and meetings and phone calls, it’s important to say no. You don’t have to answer every request or adhere to every demand. You need to prioritise things, and that means having a better work-life “blend”.
Having a better work-life blend also means allowing yourself some downtime, and rewarding yourself. Rewarding yourself for your successes is important, and it’s not something to be ashamed of doing. To embrace our success is beneficial to our business because it encourages us to do more.
The reality is that being a CEO requires being switched on, attentive, multi-skilled and responsive. We need to maintain our sense of self while representing the business and ensuring it works for other people. Transferable skills can be transferred across so many different aspects of our lives, and those aspects ultimately make us better CEOs.