Take These 2 Steps to Begin Embracing a CEO Mindset

In your journey to adopt a CEO mindset, all seven principles are important and can make a profound impact on your career. But the first two are foundational to the entire mindset: Know Your Purpose and Be Passionate.

These steps are deeply personal and can take years to fully discover. They take self-reflection and honest evaluation about what drives you.?

Throughout my own career, embracing these principles meant that instead of focusing on how to earn the next promotion, I concentrated my efforts on making the most of my current situation and broadening my impact beyond what was listed in my job description. My goal was to paint something beautiful, while also finding ways to make the canvas I was given much larger.

It also meant making the jump to new positions—and at times, new countries—to follow my personal purpose and passion.?

Here are some of my learnings about these critical steps in the process to Be Your Own CEO.?

Know Your Purpose

Purpose is a very powerful thing. To find what truly inspires you, you must reach beyond simply making money or being successful. You must look at where you can make the biggest impact and fulfill a greater meaning in your life.

Over the years, I have discovered that my personal purpose centers around building vibrant businesses and vibrant communities. Ironically, before coming to Capital One, I wasn’t interested in working in financial services, because I thought of the industry as filled with only routine responsibilities. I wanted to build things!

As I learned more about the company, I discovered that it was massively entrepreneurial and that while I had zero experience in the industry, I could adapt and find new ways to use my skill set to achieve a larger purpose.?

But what captivated me most was that the values and mission were very aligned. The people at Capital One were using their talents to help their customers—not to just grow the bottom line, but to bring humanity to banking. This remains true today, as we work together to innovate and challenge the market for the sake of our customers. Our higher purpose intersects business and community, and thus aligns closely to my own.

Purpose is also incredibly important to staying motivated and focused on the big picture when you face challenges.?

For example, growing up in Kolkata, I often had the opportunity to work with Mother Teresa at her orphanage. Her purpose in life was to take care of those who were the least capable of taking care of themselves. Mother Teresa faced challenges all the time, but she refused to let anything get in the way of her purpose. When she wanted to get somewhere, she would simply walk out into the street, stop the first car driving by and insist that they give her a ride. She knew her purpose, and she wasn’t going to be stopped.

When you have a clear sense of purpose that is bigger than yourself, it becomes much easier to handle any situation that comes your way.?

Your purpose might relate to how you want to make a difference in your family, change society, influence your peers or build relationships. There are so many different ways you can achieve your purpose, and it all starts with being deeply introspective.

Be Passionate

Passion is more than just finding enjoyment or excitement in something. When you’re passionate, it becomes part of you—so much so that external demands and negativity won’t slow you down.?

People who adopt a CEO mindset have a passion that energizes themselves and everyone around them—whether it’s peers, direct reports or other teams. They make people excited about the work they are doing and motivate them to keep moving forward. Passionate CEOs also understand that they will face obstacles, but have the confidence and determination to overcome them.

For example, when met with a challenge, a person who has embraced this part of the CEO mindset will not dwell on what’s not working or what isn’t possible. Instead, they’ll look at challenges as an opportunity to get creative and problem-solve. They’ll engage their teams and use their influence to innovate within their constraints and create exceptional experiences for their customers. Passion gives them the power to propel their purpose—no matter the situation they are facing.

Regardless of the role you are in, if you are sincerely passionate about your work and allow that passion to come to the surface with your team, you will be amazed at how contagious it can be.

Continue Your Journey

As I mentioned, fully embracing and applying these steps may take time. However, if you make it a priority to regularly reflect on and evaluate your purpose and passion, you will make tremendous discoveries about yourself that will change the trajectory of your career.

How are you progressing in your journey to adopt a CEO mindset? I’d love to hear from you about the impact it has made so far.