The Elevated CEO Mindset: 3 Keys To Shifting Your Identity and Ideas To Become A Leading Entrepreneur

There’s no such thing as someone who wasn’t born to lead. 

Leadership is a learned skill set that depends on an elevated mindset!

Suppose you’re finding it difficult to shift into an Elevated CEO Mindset. In that case, that means you don’t quite understand what it is, haven’t grasped why it’s essential, or just haven’t identified what exactly you need to shift to have an Elevated CEO Mindset that works for you. 

CEO is More Than a Job Title

According to investopedia.com, “CEOs are responsible for managing a company’s overall operations. This may include delegating and directing agendas, driving profitability, managing company organizational structure, strategy, and communicating with the board.”

Seems pretty straightforward, right? 

While it’s easy enough to check off a list and fulfill a role, being a CEO is more than just a job title, tasks, or what a CEO does. That’s because everything a CEO delegates, directs, drives, or decides comes from…drumroll, please…

THEIR MIND!

Why a CEO Mindset is Key

An Elevated CEO Mindset creates a foundation for leadership, ease, and launching into the next level of your business. I’d say it even makes being a CEO way more fun! When your default setting is confidence, you’re willing to protect your time and energy so you can do what you genuinely love and enjoy — not just what keeps you busy. 

Running a business that runs you down is not a CEO move.

What Mindset Are You Operating In Right Now?

Take a good look at your mindset and ask yourself:

Do I react to problems, or am I proactive about preparing for what might come my way? 

Does it feel like my business is flying at me from all directions, or do things feel simple, strategic, and streamlined?

Am I in worker bee mode 24/7, or do I have time for organization and delegation built into my weeks? 

You can tell a lot about your mindset from your answers to these questions. To dive a little deeper, let’s explore the difference between Employee, Entrepreneur, and CEO Mindsets. 

Employee Mindset vs. Entrepreneur Mindset

The employee mindset is all about getting the job done. Since employees work for a paycheck in exchange for a certain amount of labor, time, or achievement, this totally makes sense! Their only responsibility is to complete their tasks and ensure the quality of their work. 

Employees think:

• When do I get to clock out? (They fulfill their requirements, and that’s it)
• Not my responsibility! (They don’t have to take on the business as a whole)
• I did my job. (They only need to do what is asked of them to get paid)

Of course, there are exceptions, and some employees go above and beyond or feel more personally invested in the company they work for. However, these people still have limited buy-in because their primary concern is keeping their job and doing it well. When you shift from being an employee to being an entrepreneur, you must embrace a new level of courage, risk, and responsibility.

Entrepreneurs think…

• I decide when I work. (They work on their own schedule or no schedule!)
• The success of my business depends on me.
• How can I better serve my clients? 
• What can I do to grow my business?

Entrepreneur Mindset vs. Elevated CEO Mindset

What differentiates a CEO from an entrepreneur is how they deliberately elevate their mindset and see an even bigger picture. 

While entrepreneurs:

…indulge in freedom and flow (often to their detriment).

…experience a lot of revenue roller coasters that keep them in feast and famine cycles.

…are reactive to most problems in their business, so they can never ‘catch up.’

CEOs choose to:

…invest in structure, stability, and high-level strategy that will allow them to scale

…take risks and let go of old ways when they no longer serve the business

…be proactive about managing their time and energy

…only do what only they can do 

While shifting from being a task-oriented employee to a responsible entrepreneur can be tricky, the leap to being a CEO can shake you to your core!

Three Key Shifts to Make in Your Mindset Today

Adopting an Elevated CEO Mindset means shifting your identity and your ideas. Don’t wait until you feel ready. Taking the next step just before you’re ready is essential to making each of these three shifts.

SHIFT #1: Treat your business like the business you want (not the one you have)

Look ahead and make moves in your business that will continue to support your growth in the future. Decide what structures and systems you need to implement and the team members you need to hire before you feel fully ‘ready.’ If you wait until you feel ‘ready,’ the problem will be so overwhelming that you’ll rush to do something about it. 

What is the business you want? What do you need to implement right now for that business?

SHIFT #2: Treat yourself like the business owner you will be (not the one you have been)

Making next-level decisions in your business starts with simple changes that aren’t always as glamorous or flashy as a new photoshoot, website, or funnel would feel.

One of the best ways to make next-level decisions and treat yourself like an Elevated CEO is to evaluate your time, streamline how you spend it and upgrade how you manage it. This can start with a time study to see how you use your time.

What’s one thing you can do to be a better leader for yourself right now?

SHIFT #3: Make your business decisions for where you’re going (not where you are)

Visionary CEOs learn how to keep tabs on essential metrics in their business to anticipate what’s coming and create more than just reactive solutions. Having a vision, mission, and values in your business helps you align every decision and creation with the future evolution of your business.

Do you know where you’re going? Is it easy to communicate with your team?

Grab my FREE Guide to Creating Your Mission, Vision, and Values HERE.