Why you’re getting this: I’m Ayman Al-Abdullah and this is my CEO Newsletter. You probably signed up via one of my social links:

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Last time, I talked about thePlanstage of being a CEO. Remember that as the CEO, you are the primary driver of what your team’s plan is (and isn’t). Sure, you’ve been successful up to this point — but how do you stay focused on growth? How do you avoid becoming complacent?

If you know me, you know that I love metaphors and stories. Allow me to use football as a way to explain my point further.

Each NFL team has a General Manager, with one goal: make money for the owner. They’re in charge of both on- and off-the-field operations. For the actual product on the field, the president hires a Head Coach who demonstrates a supreme understanding of the game. The Head Coach is in charge of building out a staff that can build a Super Bowl winning team. This includes both Assistant Coaches (managers) and Star Players (employees).

For off-the-field work, the General Manager hires people to head the operations: marketing, public relations, sales, legal, accounting, IT, and security teams. Each of these department heads builds out their own staff and hires beneath them – from senior positions all the way down to interns.

The General Manager needs to make a plan for each leadership role, strategically hire for the position, and build a system that will allow the organization to be successful in both facets.The Head Coach needs very different skills than the Head of PR.

There’s a trickle-down effect in every organization. If the team’s General Manager doesn’t hire a qualified Head Coach, that Head Coach won’t build out the best staff, and that staff won’t field the best players they can find. The team loses games. If the head of marketing doesn’t put a plan together to sell out every game, the arena is empty, we lose home-field advantage, and the fans throw batteries at Santa (looking at you Philly fans).

Let’s apply this concept to you. Are you planning for your company’s five and ten year goals? What does the team need to look like for you to get there? Or are you complacent enough to revel in your success and forget about the sub-goals you still need to achieve to get there?

If you don’t put the right plan in place to grow from $5 million to $100 million in annual revenue, you might bring your company to stagnation — and eventually, a steep fall (A Players don’t like to play for C teams).

The CEO who is fine where they are and doesn’t plan effectively for growth will sink the company. A CEO who takes their foot off the gas will end up like the General Managers of the Cleveland Browns, Detroit Lions or Houston Texans.
Want to know why we don’t know their names? Exactly.
They’re all examples of what NOT to do as a CEO.

Enjoy the success you’ve built, but always plan your way to the next stage of growth. As the CEO, your attitude towards planning trickles down to the members of your team.
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Is 2023 a year where everything falls apart or is 2023 the year you bring home a championship?

You get to decide.

Talk soon,
Ayman

P.S. Below are a few ways I can help you grow your company from 7-to-9 figures:

​9 Figure CEO Notion Template + Course​

I’m also opening up a few CEO coaching spots for 2023. If you’re interested in learning more, fill out the form here. (Must be doing north of 7 figures).

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