Tag: Strategic Thinking

CEO Coaching: Balancing Reaction and Anticipation

How was your day? If it was “average,” you probably put out some fires, fielded questions, responded to requests, and dealt with a few surprises. All necessary requirements of senior leadership. But did you also think about the future, develop plans, proactively eliminate some risks, and identify growth opportunities for the business, your people, and […]

CEO Coaching: Is Growth Necessary?

There are many business growth axioms and metaphors, mostly about trees, rivers, or children. But does a business really need to grow? Can it just tread water? Can it stay in childhood? Must it keep moving like a shark or die?  I’ve run into a few business leaders who aren’t interesting in growing, all in […]

CEO Coaching: Doing Without Knowing

My son recently left a job (perhaps torture chamber is a more apt description) and was fretting because he didn’t know what he wanted to do. We had a long chat, and he devised a plan, even though he still didn’t have clarity. Doing nothing isn’t an option. Several weeks later, a client referred a […]

CEO Coaching: Be of Two Minds

“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.” —Warren Buffett Sixty percent of CEOs surveyed by The Conference Board believe that economic conditions will worsen in the short term, and I suspect they’re correct. Warren Buffett, however, is on a buying spree. Over the short and medium term, emotions play a […]

CEO Coaching: The Vision Thing

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.” —Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, “The Little Prince”[1] “It sure would help if we knew where we were going!” the chief marketing officer said to me. I […]

CEO Coaching: How to Grow Revenue

Many years ago, I went to dinner in New York City with five colleagues. We found a small Italian restaurant on a quiet street. After we sat down, they poured us water but offered no menus. A few minutes later, the owner came out and said, “What would you like for dinner?” (He served mostly […]