5 situations where entrepreneurs should not identify themselves as CEOs

Even when startups have had certain signs of success, entrepreneurs should not call themselves CEOs. Because this title can make you fall into "bad crying and laughing" situation.

Leonard Kim is Managing Partner (position of CEO equivalent in terms of responsibilities and obligations, responsible for all aspects of the operation, operation and management of small businesses, not the Group) of Build Your Influence (A company that provides building services and personal brand development). Leonard Kim is also one of the leading contributors on Quora, the author of many famous titles and speakers at events. Readers can visit the website LeonardKim.com to discover more interesting articles of this expert.

When startups have had certain success steps, many startups tend to call themselves a CEO. However, according to Leonard Kim, this title, in many situations, can give you unnecessary trouble.

CEO is the abbreviation for Chief Excutive Officer , which means CEO (also known as CEO), who has the highest executive position of a corporation, company or organization and is important account holders, conduct all operations according to the strategies and policies of the board of directors (BOD). In some countries, CEOs can take on other positions, positions such as chairman, board chairman .

Here are 5 situations that Leonard Kim advises startups to not consider themselves a CEO.

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1. When meeting with partners you will negotiate directly with them

In this situation, introduce yourself as the company owner and as a manufacturer.

If you are a CEO, you know all the information about the company and have full discretion. Therefore, you cannot say that you need to talk back to the CFO or do not know or cannot decide on the company's budget. You have no choice but to agree or not about this business, otherwise you can lose the reputation and reputation of an executive.

You can try saying: "we can't afford to pay" or "this number is too big for our budget" . However, this will put you at a disadvantage in the negotiation.

When you identify yourself as a CEO, if you show a skillful, indecisive job, you look like you are incompetent and bring doubts to your partner. So when you put yourself in the position of CEO - who holds all the power at a startup, you actually lose important power : the right to negotiate.

Conversely, if you are not a CEO, you have the right to be skeptical about your company's capabilities. You can tell your partner that you need to check the company situation, leave the negotiating room to call, consult the co-founders or the counselor, then return to the negotiating table and give making opinions of people who take initiative.

Expanded, this situation may apply when you are negotiating a salary with a candidate for an important position, find a contractor for the office, negotiate with customers, or a supplier of materials / solution / service .

2. When attending a commercial event or networking

When participating in networking events or trade shows, you will meet many people, including: potential customers, partners and competitors. At this point, you will want to show that you are the head of the company, but in some cases this will harm you.

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The purpose of fairs and exhibitions is to create cohesion between suppliers and customers. Being able to identify yourself as a CEO will make you create distance from the people you contact, because they realize you are trying to show power. The consequence of this is that you separate yourself from the majority instead of connecting with them.

Therefore, you should not introduce yourself as CEO, instead, introduce the company and what you are doing. For example, instead of saying, "Hello, I am the CEO of XYZ company." Please introduce: "Hello, my job is to guide people to build a brand."

Leonard Kim shared: "In fact, the successful CEOs I have met rarely see myself as a CEO."

3. When hiring the first employees

Building a business is a time-consuming job. When the company is newly established, you will only have a few employees or even just one person.

If you call yourself a CEO, you create a gap with your employees and show your "ego" outside. This will affect their working attitude and dedication to the company.

Do not call you a CEO! Think of yourself as a founder.

4. When there are few employees and low turnover

Since the start of the entrepreneurial movement, a 17-year-old boy can also try writing music applications. Therefore, it is very difficult to distinguish who will be a real startup and who are just starting out with a movement.

Leonard Kim has worked with a number of technology ecosystem companies in Silicon Beach. In about 2008, he often looked for people who called themselves CEOs - confident and potential to become Bill Gates or Steve Jobs.

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"Today, everyone wants to become a CEO. So if someone now introduces me to them as CEO, I will say" oh "and forget about it after that. I am the CEO who no longer possesses qualities like those I used to search for. "

So, when you want to introduce yourself as a CEO, prepare the data and evidence to prove the success of your company under your management.

5. When dealing with customers

The worst case scenario occurs when you consider yourself a CEO when you work directly with customers. Any customer wants to bid and if you are a CEO, you have to decide whether or not to agree with that low price.

However, if you're not a CEO, you're not the one who has the right to decide everything. This means, you can negotiate the price, take the initiative and allow you to make more profits for the company and not to be forced by customers.

No player denies that some situations claim to be CEO will have certain benefits, such as when negotiating with investors or in press conferences. However, for startups, it is better to limit the use of this title.