7 Steps to the Inner Mastery of a Viable CEO

For elite CEO’s the first steps toward true success should be inward.  Proficient CEO’s understand that mastering who they are comes in harnessing their inner-power, instincts and intuition.  Knowing themselves and their emotional patterns indefinitely leads these CEO’s into to the right deals and business ventures. They are aware without self-awareness they will come up against the counterforce of their own out-of-control emotions which will lead to their downfall.  The more self-aware a leader, the better he or she can predict the power of relationships necessary for their success and most importantly, the powers within them to drive their company to achievement.

The Internal World of Successful Entrepreneurs:

1.  Inwardly Directed:  Successful leaders are inwardly motivated by a drive or force that propels and motivates them to work hard to master their skills and knowledge.  This inner force is not unique to the profoundly successful. Each individual has this capability and each has something distinctive to offer, as no individual is a repeatable phenomenon in this Universe. This inner direction is what guides successful CEO’s toward success because they are internally driven to express themselves through their work.

2.  Learning the Ropes:  In any novel situation in business, elite CEO’s understand they have to learn the ropes. Skilled leaders are not afraid to start at the beginning because the more they know the bottom-line business mechanics the more successful their business ventures will be long term.  The average person tends to enter new deals with a lot of excitement initially and then lose their drive as they give in to emotions such as boredom, impatience, fear or confusion.

Successful CEO’s master these emotions, follow the lead of others, learn the rules and observe how things fit together. Through this process they develop the confidence needed to master the leadership of their company. They are humble in knowing that with practice comes fluency.

3. Emotional Control: Great CEO’s have mastery over their emotions. They are aware of when to use their emotions to push for power and attainment, and when pull back and use self-control as strategy to secure the deals they want. Proficient CEO’s do not let fear or let anger take over and control their decision making capabilities. Fear and anger make it too difficult to reach mastery as these emotions disconnect them from their rational thought.  Great leaders understand that; composure and rational thought keep them connected with the bigger picture, which creates the space for good decision making.

4. Risk:  Accomplished CEO’s understand that self-awareness brings with it more certainty in tough decision making situations. Do they risk or not? This self-awareness enables them to make quicker and more efficient assessments in clinch moments. This type of self-knowledge clears space so they can cut through confusion making the commitment to decisions more fluid.  Revered leaders use observation and learning to become experts at knowing patterns of business and patterns of behavior which allows them to take more risk with less loss.

5. Patience: An efficient CEO has the maturity and experience to have patience. Sometimes getting certain deals is a combination of strategy, re-aligning, striking, losing and going back to the drawing board to start again. Patience helps leaders to look beyond what is in front of them, having the ability to wait as the chips fall into place, without acting out impulsively in a negative way and destroying the opportunity. Leading successfully sometimes means not doing something and that is when things get done.

6. Wisdom: Learning to master the inner world of 'reactivity' is what drives proficient leaders to make sound decisions, to learn from their mistakes and not to quit. Wisdom comes in being willing to lose little deals in order to secure the more lucrative opportunities. They are aware there is no path to success without them first having the ability to manage their own reactivity, fear and complacency. With wisdom inextricably comes persistence and proficient leaders recognize this as the key to success. Where others give up, passionate CEO’s keep going. Persistence generates success, inwardly and outwardly, in the world of observable results. Having this wisdom keeps leaders on the continual climb to the top.

7. Curiosity:  Passionate leaders are not satisfied with just a certain level of success.  Once one level has been secured and mastered, there will be another inward pull within the CEO to see what level of success is next for the company. This pull is inward, instinctual and driven by an emotional force of curiosity and passion. It is the curiosity within the CEO to see how much more can be created, achieved and expanded within their business.  Curiosity stimulates personal growth and when the desire to succeed is born of this inward curiosity, then success has no limits.  A lack of curiosity leads into contentment with status quo.  Great leaders are never content.

We can all be the master of our own destiny.  The counterforce that each desiring entrepreneur has to master is their reactive inner world.  Great results come from matrix of managing when to push and when to back off. This means you have to know yourself. Stay curious in your career.  Curiosity inspires creativity and creativity is where all new ideas stem from.  This is how leaders become mavericks. They pay no attention to fitting in. They know that their success has often come at the expense of not belonging. Belonging isn’t their concern.  Succeeding, expanding and creating is their concern.

About the Author

Sherrie Campbell, PhD is a veteran, licensed Psychologist with two decades of clinical training and experience providing counseling and psychotherapy services to residents of Yorba Linda, Irvine, Anaheim, Fullerton and Brea, California.  In her private practice, she currently specializes in psychotherapy with adults and teenagers, including marriage and family therapy, grief counselling, childhood trauma, sexual issues, personality disorders, illness and more. She has helped individuals manage their highest high and survive their lowest low—from winning the lottery to the death of a child.  Her interactive sessions are as unique and impactful as her new book, Loving Yourself : The Mastery of Being Your Own Person.

She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology in 2003 and has regularly contributes to numerous publications, including Intent.com, Beliefnet.com, DrLaura.com and Hitched.com.  She is also an inspirational speaker, avid writer and proud mother.  She can be reached at Sherriecampbellphd.com.

Loving Yourself: The Mastery of Being Your Own Person is available on Amazon.com and other fine booksellers.