3 CEO mistakes that kill leadership (in my modest opinion)

I’ve worked with CEOs for over a decade. I coach them 1:1, I coach their leadership teams, I sit with them in moments of doubt and in moments of scale.
And there are 3 mistakes I see again and again:

• They are trying to be like "another CEO"
Reading yet another book by a Silicon Valley founder who has nothing in common with your company won’t make you a better leader. Imitating someone else’s playbook usually makes you lose sight of your own.
What works is clarity: 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 context, 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 culture, 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 vision.

• They want to be "loved"
So many CEOs crave approval. But here’s the paradox: while you’re seeking to be liked, your people are seeking something else entirely: security in your vision, consistency in your words, and stability in your decisions.
Your job is not to please, it’s to 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.
Respect > popularity, every time.

• Fearing your own self
The most common fear I see? CEOs scared of their own potential. They hold back instead of owning their vision. They forget leadership isn’t about being perfect, it’s about embracing the fact that your role evolves every single day as the company grows.

The strongest CEOs I’ve worked with are the ones who:
Own their vision
Push their potential
Accept their limits
And stay open to reinventing their job, again and again.

👉 You don’t need to be a copy.
👉 You don’t need to be loved.
👉 You don’t need to be perfect.

You need to be clear, respected, and unapologetically yourself.

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