As a CEO, you will deal with many struggles. Underlying some of these struggles are the very way you deal with the challenges you face. These challenges are harder to overcome when they impact your mental health. It’s common for CEOs to struggle with mental health issues. You are not alone.
Why Mental Health Matters for CEOs
While mental health is a personal issue, it can have a massive impact on your ability to successfully lead a company.
There are many reasons why mental health matters for CEOs. For one, you are under tremendous pressure to perform. This pressure can take a toll, leading to burnout and greatly reduced performance. CEO burnout is particularly prevalent when the macroeconomic environment is not helpful.
Your performance is impacted by your mental health in many ways, including your decision-making, your leadership abilities, your energy levels and many more. For example, if you struggle with a mental health issue, making good decisions is almost impossible. You may panic or worry about the wrong issues.
Also, your role is very demanding and requires significant energy, which is often significantly drained from a mental health challenge. Instead of relying only on yourself for your energy, a coach can help you find more balance and design your role to create more energy, rather than drain energy.
You are responsible for setting the tone for your entire company. If you’re struggling with their mental health, it can create a negative tone that permeates the organization; when the CEO’s constituents feel a negative tone, that usually has a negative effect on how they view the company and the CEO. The CEO is always in the spotlight. Investors, customers, and employees expect the CEO to be performing at their best. This only adds to the pressure to manage any mental health challenges.
For some CEOs, one of the scariest situations is with their board. Most CEOs want to hide any mental health issues from the board. While the board may not notice what is creating below-par performance, they will be very concerned when the company isn’t meeting its targets.
Fortunately, you can get help to improve your mental health. One of the most effective is coaching. A coach will identify your strengths and weaknesses so you will learn how to better cope when you find yourself in situations where you feel you’re in over your head. They can also provide guidance on developing a support network and creating a plan for dealing with difficult situations.
Benefits of Coaching and Mentoring for CEOs & Executives
Mental health coaching is a process of partnering with a coach to achieve specific mental health goals. The coach provides support, guidance, and accountability to help the CEO stay on track. Their coaching processes can have many benefits, including:
Improved Mental Health
Coaching will enable you to feel better about yourself and the business. Not only does this create better results, but it also helps the CEO actually enjoy the journey they are on. Any improvement in a CEO’s mental health will help the CEO perform better for the company and for themselves.
Increased Productivity
By improving their mental health, CEOs can increase their productivity and performance. When a CEO feels better about their personal and professional situation, they perform at a higher level. Employees will notice increased productivity and are more likely to perform at a higher level themselves.
Better Leadership Skills
Coaching can also help CEOs improve their leadership skills. They’ll learn how to set a positive tone for their company and create a culture of wellness. How the CEO acts is part of the culture of the company. If a CEO feels enormous pressure, they can safely assume others in the organization feel it as well, and they can lead from that understanding.
How Your Mental Health Can Affect Your Entire Company
As a CEO, everything you do has a ripple effect throughout the entire company. What you say and how you say it is noticed by everyone. If you’re struggling, it can set a negative tone that permeates the organization. This will lead to increased absenteeism, lower productivity, and even legal problems.
It’s important to be honest with yourself (and your CEO coach) and get the help you need. Here are a few ways your mental health can affect your entire company:
- absenteeism
- lower productivity
- legal problems
- higher turnover rates
- difficulty attracting and retaining talent
- decreased customer satisfaction
- reputational damage
Fortunately, one highly-effective way to address your mental health issue is through coaching. An experienced CEO coach will put themselves in your shoes and empathize with what is happening in your life right now. They will help you get through it because they’ve been there before.
How Executive & CEO Coaching Can Boost Your Mental Health
A CEO coach can help you when you are dealing with your biggest challenges. You may feel down. You may be worried about yourself. You may feel the weight of the entire company upon your shoulders. It is no doubt tough being a CEO or executive, but it is also one of the most rewarding jobs around. An executive or CEO coach can help you find balance in your life and improve your performance in your job.
A good CEO coach will have experience with both performance and leadership coaching. They will create a specific plan for what you need right now. This plan will help you manage stress, anxiety, and depression. The coach will also help you develop coping mechanisms for when times are tough.
Further, a great CEO coach will be there for you when you need it most. Sometimes you just need someone to talk to at the moment. A CEO coach can help you when you are struggling the most.
A CEO coach can make a big difference in your life. If you’re struggling to cope with the challenges of being a CEO, consider seeking out a coach who can help you find balance and improve your performance in your business and your life.
Contact an Experienced CEO Coach
My name is Glenn Gow, CEO Coach. I love coaching CEOs and want to help make you an even better CEO. Let’s decide if we are a fit for each other. Schedule a time to talk with me at calendly.com/glenngow. I look forward to speaking with you soon.
