The Conversation
I was talking with a CEO of a good-sized company – roughly $400M in yearly revenue – about joining my CEO Peer Advisory Board.
He asked about the financial investment required, which I shared, and he said something to the effect of, “That’s not insignificant.”
Surprised, I laughed and said, “Really? You’d spend that in a heartbeat on someone in your executive team. Why is it an issue to spend money on your own leadership development?”
Agreeing, he said, “Yeah, well, I was appointed by the Board to run this company, and they expect me to be capable of running it without me needing ‘development’.”
Reflection
I reflected on that surprising scenario and later shared it with my Vistage group. One of my peers said, “Wow! Is that a subtle form of Imposter Syndrome?” It hadn’t hit me that way until asked, but I think the answer is YES.
Definition: Imposter syndrome is a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts their skills, talents, or accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a “fraud”.
Now, I didn’t get the feeling from this CEO that he doubted his own skills or accomplishments. To the contrary, he came across as a confident and comfortable leader who only mentioned his background and accomplishments when I asked. He didn’t act like someone who had something to prove. But the fact that he was reluctant to expose to the Board of Directors who had appointed him that he might benefit from a leadership development program definitely says he’s not completely secure in his position, or at the very least still concerned with appearances. And, I do think that’s a subtle form of Imposter Syndrome.
Food for Thought
So, I ask you this question: If you’re an appointed CEO, President, MD, or COO running a company, are you always concerned about appearances and what your superiors might think of your interest in improving your leadership abilities? Is this a common malady?
I do find that it’s easier for founders and majority owner CEOs to join my Executive Peer Advisory Board than for appointed and minority owners. You might think that the time and financial investment impacts them more directly and they’d be reluctant, but the flip side is that they can do the math and know that it will pay back an ROI well worth it – and that impacts them more.
Now here’s the irony: Most company owners and board members have experienced their own leadership journeys. They know that having outside advisors and coaches can make a world of difference. In most cases, if a CEO asks a board or majority shareholder for permission to invest in themselves, the board will be all for it. I know this because I was a board member when a CEO asked, and we unanimously approved the investment. And that CEO turned around and pushed most of what he learned through coaching back into his executive leadership team and throughout the organization. In fact, that’s why I’m here today doing what I’m doing – helping leaders grow without learning everything the hard way.
Afterward
The CEO in my story didn’t join my group. But, one of his biggest competitors did.
This article was first published on LinkedIn. Read the original.