When should a Founder find a CEO?

​When should a founder find a professional CEO to replace him as the head of the company?

Building a business is like raising a child. The best time to hand-over the child to the world is when the child is financially independent. Then, we continue to forever hold a nurturing space for our adult children for the rest of our lives, from far.

So, it is for businesses. The Business Growth Cycle has 5 milestones:
Mountain 1 - Mountain of Purpose - This is when we birth the business with our purpose-inspiration.

Mountain 2 - Mountain of Value - This is when we experience Toddler Tantrums. We won't know how to lead at this stage if we don't develop ourselves as Leaders. Every next mountain on the Business Growth Cycle requires us to be a different kind of a leader. The earlier leadership depth is no longer sufficient. The same way we face trouble in parenting our kids if we don't grow in Parenting Depth with every milestone of our Children's Growth Journey. On this Mountain, it is the founder's job to find a profitable business model. Getting a professional CEO at this time is like giving away your baby to a Nanny. Not a good idea because your business will learn values from the nanny, not from you, and will grow up to be someone not sourced in your values and purpose.

Mountain 3 - Mountain of Growth - This is when we will experience Teenage Tantrums. We need to grow to the next gear of Leadership Depth to lead effectively on this mountain. This is a mountain where we build in repeatability and scalability into our business model through Process Excellence. Hiring a Professional CEO at this stage is like getting a Child Counsellor for our child because we don't have the Parenting Depth to embrace our Teen to soothe her and her tantrums. 

Mountain 4 - Mountain of Scale - This is when we will experience our Young Adult child's Confusion hidden behind a false Bravado as he steps out into the world. On this Mountain, having built a purpose-inspired, values-sourced, profitable, repeatable, scalable business model, we are ready to step up the accelerator to scale our business if we have stepped up on to the next gear of Leadership Depth. On this Mountain, it is important to identify a Professional CEO and start coaching and training him to succeed you to create even bigger success than you. This stage is like sending your Young Adult Child to a college that will give her a foundation to create even greater success than you and requires even greater Parenting Depth than before. Otherwise, you will feel like a sad empty nester instead a deeply fulfilled parent.

Mountain 5 - Mountain of Mastery - This is when our Young Adult Child has become a Responsible, Confident Adult standing on his own feet, financially and emotionally. It is time to step up on your Leadership Depth to leave your business in the hands of the Professional CEO and your baby, now a full-grown adult, in the hands of the Universe. You will continue to hold nurturing space from far for your business and your Young Adult to fly high in the vast sky of their limitless possibilities, forever available to them for mentorship, guidance and support.

You are now ready to nurture another business to greatness 💜

Loving you,
j.