Become the CEO of Your Own Life - Anil Thomas
One question keeps coming up in leadership workshops:
“I’m doing everything my role asks of me… why am I not getting promoted?”
It’s a frustration many high-performing professionals share. Meeting targets isn’t always enough. The real bottleneck isn’t effort – it’s mindset. Many tie their growth to a title rather than to impact.
In today’s fast-changing workplace, promotions aren’t just about how well you execute your current responsibilities -they’re about how ready you are for what’s next. Structured leadership coaching programs can help professionals develop this readiness by guiding them to act beyond their current role.
The Title Trap
Many professionals fall into this pattern:
“When I get the promotion, I’ll think strategically, I’ll take on more, I’ll be the leader I want to be.”
This seems logical – but it’s a trap. Waiting for a title to act like a leader means waiting for external validation. By the time it comes, the world may have moved on.
In today’s environment, leaders face:
Hybrid work challenges: Remote teams require influence without authority. Leadership coaching programs often teach techniques to influence effectively across locations.
Fast-changing market conditions: Decisions must be made quickly, often with incomplete information. Training programs prepare leaders to make faster, informed decisions.
Talent shortages and retention issues: Leaders must inspire, motivate, and retain top performers without relying solely on positional authority.
Digital disruption: Teams demand leaders who understand technology, data, and innovation beyond their formal role. Training programs can help bridge these skill gaps.
Flip the Script
The breakthrough mindset is simple:
“Act like the person you want to become now. Think, decide, and lead two levels above your current role. Then the title and recognition follow.”
It’s not about overreaching – it’s about taking ownership of your impact. You become the CEO of your own growth, proactively shaping outcomes rather than waiting for approval. Leadership coaching programs guide you to develop this mindset and the skills required for next-level impact.
Why Most Don’t Make the Leap
It’s easy to agree – but hard to implement consistently. Acting two levels up requires:
Courage: Leading initiatives that may not be in your job description. Leadership coaching programs often provide a safe space to practice this courage.
Discipline: Consistently stepping outside comfort zones.
Awareness: Recognizing where current responsibilities end and next-level contribution begins.
Adaptability: Responding to uncertainty in markets, teams, and technology.
Those who do this rarely stay at the same level long – they accelerate growth faster than effort alone ever could.
Practical Steps for Acting Two Levels Up
Think Like Your Future Self: Picture the challenges your next-level role faces – digital strategy, team engagement, revenue growth – and start applying that perspective today. Leadership coaching programs help you develop this forward-looking perspective.
Upskill Continuously: Develop leadership, technology, and strategic skills ahead of formal requirements.
Measure Impact, Not Activity: Focus on outcomes – how your work moves the business forward, influences teams, and solves real problems.
Communicate with Influence: Inspire your team even without formal authority. Build trust, share vision, and model desired behaviors. Training programs provide tools to communicate and influence effectively.
Final Thought
Titles are external. Growth is internal. Waiting for recognition is passive; acting today is active. Leaders who think and act beyond their current role create impact that can’t be ignored. Investing in leadership coaching programs can guide you on this journey, helping you act like the person you want to become now.
Stop waiting. Start owning. Act like the person you want to become now.
About the Author:
Anil Thomas is a certified Corporate Trainer and Founder of Mustardseed Training. He specializes in designing Leadership Development Programs, Culture Transformation Programs, and Team Building Training that help organizations build high-performing teams and strong workplace cultures. His insights on leadership, collaboration, and performance excellence have been featured in several corporate learning and development programs across India.
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