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As a CEO, you face tough decisions every day. The path is often uncertain, and even the best leaders can falter. Some of the most costly missteps, however, are entirely avoidable. Here are five mistakes you don’t want to make:
Your demeanor, attitude, and words carry immense weight. The best CEOs exude what we call egoless confidence—self-assurance without arrogance. People don’t just look to you for business direction; they take cues from you on tone, energy, and culture. If you’re frenzied, your organization will be chaotic. If you’re disciplined, the company will follow suit. If you prioritize culture, the organization will reflect that. Like a parent-child dynamic, employees mirror the leadership they see.
Great CEOs build stellar leadership teams and value their input—but they also know their role is to set direction. Walking into a strategic planning meeting without a clear vision creates inefficiency. Your leadership team spends most of their time running the business; they need a solid starting point for strategy discussions, not a blank slate. Providing a well-defined direction ensures more productive conversations and better alignment. CEOs oversee every functional area, making them uniquely positioned to guide strategy.
The best CEOs step back from daily operations to focus on long-term growth. Strategic planning isn’t a luxury—it’s a necessity. No CEO has ever said, “Developing my plan was a waste of time,” but many have admitted, “I need to take a step back and align my team around a plan.” To avoid getting lost in the weeds, schedule time away from the business for offsite planning, and establish regular strategy meetings. One of your most critical responsibilities is ensuring a clear and actionable strategic plan.
Every year, we ask CEOs, “What’s the biggest mistake you made this year?” The top response—year after year—is, “I held on to the wrong person for too long.” Strong CEOs care deeply about people, which is why they attract great teams. But that same strength can become a weakness when they hesitate to make tough personnel decisions. Keeping the wrong people—or the right people in the wrong roles—can cause long-term damage that is difficult to undo. The best leaders make these hard calls sooner rather than later.
Recently, in a CEO Collective peer group, a CEO was debating the pace of growth—should they accelerate aggressively or take a more controlled approach? The group provided insights tailored to their specific business, industry, and leadership style, ultimately helping them make a confident decision. This is the power of collaboration. Running a business in isolation is a surefire way to fail. Seeking input from other CEOs who understand your challenges ensures smarter, more informed decisions.
Mistakes are inevitable—you’re human, after all. But what separates great CEOs from the rest is their ability to recognize missteps quickly, pivot decisively, and use past experiences to guide their next move. More importantly, they create a culture where their team learns, adapts, and grows alongside them.
