Do you dream of one day being the CEO of your company?
While just about everyone wants to be hugely successful, very few people are actually prepared to do the work it takes to get there.
If you’re serious about making it to the top of your organization, take these four tips to heart.
Focus on the end result
First and foremost, if you’re looking to get ahead in your industry, you need to stop focusing on your technical skill and, instead, focus on the value that skill produces.
In our company, everybody is working so hard—from sales callers and marketing coaches to our creative and production teams. But guess what? Hard work alone does not get you (or a company) to the next level. The real marker of success is what that hard work produces.
A farmer judges their work on the fruits of their labor, not on how hard they tilled the land. Some sales callers make 300 dials and spend all day on the phone, while others outperform them by making a few calls in as many hours.
I think the idea of hard work being enough on its own is an issue that runs deep in our society. You need to be pragmatic and focus on the efforts that get the best results. Don’t waste good time and energy going after bad—take the right actions at the right time.
Build up the people around you
Great leaders are crucial to the success of any company, and great leaders are focused on far more than their own success.
You must help the people who work above you, below you, and alongside you before you can achieve what you want to achieve. This sounds easier said than done (and it is). But it’s something you need to take to heart.
If you’re in a leadership position, it’s in your best interest to make sure that everyone working underneath you is performing at the highest level. If those people aren’t hitting their numbers, you’re not hitting your numbers.
Even if you’re not yet in a management role, you should take an active interest in the success of everyone around you. When you get your coworkers to believe in this culture of success, you’ll naturally be promoted to a position of power.
Learn to communicate clearly
At ReminderMedia, I think we do a tremendous job caring about people, but we do a terrible job of communicating. We work hard to empower our employees and make life better for them, but, because of the way information is sometimes delivered, we don’t always make that clear to them.
If you want to be a CEO, you need to be a great communicator. This doesn’t mean you have to be an amazing public speaker, but it does mean you should be great at following up and at clarifying your points. When you let your communications get away from you, you risk the message being lost in the shuffle.
That’s why we end our executive meetings by going around the room and clarifying the messages we’re actually taking back to the team. In order for our organization to function at its best, we need to all be on the same page. The same is true for you and your company.
Be prepared to work the hardest
While hard work alone won’t bring you success, ultimately, you do need to work harder than everybody else. There is no way you’re going to be the CEO if you don’t work harder than the people around you.
Think about famous athletes. Lebron James is naturally gifted, but he also works harder than just about anyone else. The same is true of Tom Brady, who strictly regiments everything from his diet and exercise to when he goes to sleep. (If you don’t believe me, check out his book, The TB12 Method.)
When you don’t work harder than everyone else, you reap what you sow. But, as Stephen Covey says, “begin with the end in mind.” When you work hard with no focus, it’s a disaster waiting to happen.
Remember: there is no magic formula for getting to the top of any industry. But, in order to find success, you need to be willing to put in the effort. When you strive for perfection in all you do and dedicate yourself to the success of your organization, your reward will be great.
