The Leadership Mindset: How to Think Like a CEO Before You Get There

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What if you could start thinking like a CEO today?

The truth is, you don’t have to wait until you reach the corner office to adopt a leadership mindset. By shifting how you approach your role, you can position yourself as a leader well before you get the title.

The Power of Visionary Thinking

CEOs don’t just manage the present—they envision the future. To start thinking like a CEO, cultivate the habit of looking ahead. This doesn’t mean you ignore the details, but rather that you always keep the big picture in mind. What are the long-term goals of your team or company? How can you contribute to achieving them?

Practical Tip: Set aside time each week to brainstorm and reflect on where your industry is heading and how you can align your work with that future. Ask questions around how your company is aligning with that future too.

Decision-Making with Confidence

Leaders are decisive. They gather the necessary information, weigh the options, and then make a call. It’s important to remember that not every decision will be perfect, but the ability to make decisions confidently and own them is key to thinking like a CEO.

Practical Tip: Practice making small decisions quickly and gradually increase the stakes. Reflect on the outcomes to learn and build confidence. All decisions don’t have to be taken alone - who do you have who can contribute to those decisions?

Taking Ownership of Your Role

CEOs take ownership of their actions and outcomes, good or bad. This mindset can transform how others perceive you at work. When you own your projects and their results, you demonstrate leadership qualities that won’t go unnoticed.

Practical Tip: When faced with challenges, approach them with a solution-oriented mindset. If a project falters, focus on what you can do to turn it around instead of placing blame. Own the good and less good results. It’s how we learn and grow.

Building Strong Relationships

Networking isn’t just about meeting people; it’s about building meaningful relationships. CEOs know that their success is deeply tied to the strength of their networks. Start building your network by fostering genuine connections with colleagues, mentors, and industry peers.

Practical Tip: Reach out to someone in your network each week, whether it’s for advice, collaboration, or simply to catch up. Nurture these relationships consistently.

Cultivating Resilience

The road to the top is rarely smooth. CEOs face setbacks regularly, but what sets them apart is their resilience. They bounce back, learn from failures, and keep moving forward. Developing a resilient mindset now will prepare you for the challenges that come with leadership.

Practical Tip: When you encounter a setback, focus on what you can learn from the experience. Resilience is also about seeing challenges as opportunities for growth.

Prioritise wellbeing

You won’t make it to the top if you burn out and a burnt out CEO is no good to anyone. Prioritise your wellbeing and that of those around you. Become a role model for getting things done AND ensuring that wellbeing is at the top of the agenda.

Practical Tip: Get into a routine now that maintains and enhances your physcial and mental health - a form of exercise you do daily and a meditation or journaling habit. Start now and make it non negotiable

So many managers and leaders in organisations fail to get the support they need in a timely way - you either have to be failing or identified as super talented to get the support. Put yourself first and get the support you need when you need it.

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? About Sonia Gavira ?

Sonia Gavira MBA, PCC is a leadership and executive coach, consultant and Certified Practitioner in Brain and Behaviour Change and Master Practitioner in NLP. Coming from a strong commercial background in marketing to Marketing Director level. Sonia has spent more than 20 years working with Executives, Directors and Managers in organisations helping them lead themselves, their teams and their organisations successfully.

Today Sonia’s interest lies in helping leaders embrace a new style of leadership that allows people to be themselves and embrace compassion, care and kindness as well as strength, power and decisiveness - polarities that too often drive leaders one way or the other. This has lead her to be involved in a number of programmes helping women ask for and progress to senior roles within organisations, and do so in a way that balances all aspects of their life.Sonia is also an expert in motivation, enabling individuals, teams and organisations to tap into what will drive them to peak performance.

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