The many hats you wear in life can get overwhelming. In fact, it can get to the point that your momentum plateaus, and your goals become out of reach.
Keeping up with demanding professional and personal matters is a source of constant struggle. The great news is that it is possible to create a balance and stabilize your pace to success.
Look no further than mega-successful CEOs. They have such extremely crucial roles that determine the entire fate of their businesses. With all the weight on their shoulders, not to mention the critical decision makings that they have to face, it seems like the use wizardry to get it all done.
However, thanks to Harvard Business Review (HBR)’s latest findings, we can get a sense of how CEOs manage to juggle it all, and apply those findings to our own lives. They shared research that studied over a thousand CEOs across six countries, which shed light on which habits and rituals enabled such success among their respective businesses.
Here are the surprising practices of CEOs that you can apply to your life as you work hard to achieve your long-term goals:
- CEOs always find ‘me-time’
As expected, more than half of successful CEOs’ days (56%) are spent in business matters like meetings, (which are most of the time scheduled). The next chunk is surprising, because 25% of their day is spent doing various tasks alone.
The takeaway here is that you need to squeeze in time for yourself, no matter how much is going on during the day. Allocating time for yourself is important as it gives you the opportunity to gain focus and establish your priorities before you actually get lost in a sea of other important things you have on your plate.
As a bonus: If your personal space is consumed wisely by thoughts and activities that boost your confidence, the rest of your day will surely become more productive.
- CEOs always ensure a healthy work-life balance
Following these major items on their to-do lists, the next one is even more shocking. According to the study, they spend at least 10% of their day dealing with personal matters. Striking as it is, this finding is a solid proof that no matter how busy we could get, giving importance to your personal businesses is still vital to ensure your holistic approach to success.
Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi once wisely said that the million other non-work related things are still as important for your overall success. She said that despite everything, we should not lose sight of who we are as human beings. Your health and sanity are just as (if not more) important than your career tasks. So, you should always make time for your responsibilities outside of work and ensure your health and well-being.
- Most CEOs succeed through an inclusive, high-level leadership style
Based from the study, CEOs whose approach are geared towards more on direction-setting and planning rather the micromanaging type yield more productivity as seen on their businesses’ performances. This fact is a great reminder to always step back and take a look at the larger picture.
Ultimately, successful CEOs are concerned about the future of the company and its long term goals. Although they are also on top of the execution, they make sure to hire experts who are hands-on with the operations.
Ultra-successful Chinese entrepreneur and Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma believes that a good boss is better than a good company, for they will not only lead the entire business into success, but also provide mentorship. Whether you’re leading an entire team or just working for someone, you should definitely also aim to find a mentor while mentoring others.
Final Thoughts
CEOs are just like the rest of us: hardworking, persistent, and determined. However, they manage to work more efficiently than most of us through their actions and practices, which are simple and feasible.
Rather than worrying about every small detail, they are more focused on what it takes to reach their long-term business goals. They invest in people who will face the hurdles along the way and ensure that the company’s directions stay in place despite inevitable uncertainties. Their forward-looking mindset paves the way for opportunities that will eventually lead him/her and the entire company to greater heights.
Do you have any CEO life hacks to add to the roster? Please be to share them with me on Twitter!
