Is It Time to Fire Yourself? 5 Signs You're Holding Your Company Back CEOs often have to make hard decisions on which employees need to be cut to help improve the business. Sometimes, that same scalpel may need to be applied to yourself as CEO.
By George Deeb Edited by Micah Zimmerman
Key Takeaways
- Founders must assess if their skills match the company’s growth phase.
- Lack of passion or ideas may signal it's time to step down.
- The right leader ensures company momentum, even if it’s not you.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Most CEOs don't usually think about putting themselves up on the firing block, but there are many instances where you, as the CEO of the business, may be holding your business back. You need to be honest in your assessment of yourself as CEO, to make sure you are, in fact, the right person for the job.
This article will help you identify certain scenarios where a CEO change may be necessary, even if it means you firing yourself from the job.
Related: How to Develop a 'C-Suite Mindset' for Success, From 5 Leaders Who Have Done It
You no longer have the right skillsets
Most entrepreneurs are very good at taking a "piece of paper" idea, productizing it, taking it to market and getting initial traction for the business up to the first $10MM in revenues of the company's growth curve.
That is not an easy feat, and you should be very proud of that accomplishment. But, as the company then needs to scale from $10M to $50M in revenues for the next phase of its growth, that typically requires a very different skillset. Now you are talking about launching new products, new markets, international expansion, mergers and acquisitions, and other techniques that may be unfamiliar to you.
If you suddenly find yourself drowning with the new challenges of your later-stage growth, it may be the right time to find a replacement who already has those proven skills. And you shouldn't feel embarrassed about admitting this — you should feel empowered that you were actually smart enough to assess the situation and how best to resolve it.
You still have your equity ownership, and wouldn't you want your stock price growth to have the highest chance for success as a shareholder? Sometimes, that could be in the hands of somebody other than yourself.
You have run out of ideas
If your business is struggling and you have tried everything you possibly could to "right the ship", it may simply be a function of "you don't know what you don't know". You are only as smart as your own education and experience have made you.
But sometimes a "fresh set of eyes" is exactly what the business needs to turn it around. That new CEO may see an easy fix, based on their past education and experiences, that was simply in your blind spot. So, if you often find yourself scratching your head without the right answers to your business's challenges, maybe it is time for a new CEO.
Related: 6 Ways You Are Holding Your Business Back
You no longer have the passion for the business
An equally important part of being successful as a CEO is having the right "fire in your belly" to succeed at all costs, no matter what challenges get thrown your way.
If you find yourself losing that passion or getting bored with the business (which can easily happen the longer you are there), it is very easy to lose focus and basically "go through the motions", with the business "coasting" based on historical efforts and not "accelerating" with new ideas and efforts.
You are not doing your shareholders (including yourself) any favors by sticking around in this scenario. Be smart enough to know when you have "mentally checked out" and find your replacement that is as excited about your business and its potential as you were when you first started.
You are not getting along with your team
Being a successful CEO requires building a great team that is gelling well with each other. Just like in any marriage, sometimes relationships can sour over time. Maybe it is your fault, and you are ruffling everyone's feathers. Maybe it's your colleague's fault, and every word out of their mouths drives you crazy.
Whatever the situation is, a business won't thrive if the team cannot get along with each other. Either they need to go, or you need to go, to find team members that will actually respect each other and enjoy each other's company when "slogging through the mud" together.
You have lost the confidence of your colleagues
Maybe you feel you are doing a good job as CEO, but if your fellow employees, partners or investors don't think you are doing a good job. In this scenario, maybe it is time for you to go. This can be a really bitter pill to swallow. You look in the mirror and see success, and your colleagues look at you and see shortcomings.
But if the team has lost confidence in you, it is time to show yourself to the exit, as the team will not follow a leader that they do not think is leading them in the right direction. And it could be better for you to step down on your own terms, than wait to get fired by your board when they have seen enough (which will be a lot harder to explain to your new employers).
After reading this, do you still think you are the right person for the job? If so, great, it's full steam ahead. But if anything in this post resonated with you as "striking a chord", it may be time to have that very difficult conversation with yourself. Your business, team and shareholders (including yourself) will thank you!!
