High‑performing chief executives make smart, disciplined decisions for their organizations every day, yet frequently manage their own careers in a surprisingly ad hoc way. As one senior tech executive we know puts it, “It’s phenomenal how intelligent people can make the oddest career decisions!”
If you’re thinking about making a big career move, you’d do well to avoid four all-too-common pitfalls. Here, we offer some practical ways to navigate your way to a sound decision.
1. When success leads to unrealistic self-assessment
If you’ve been in a senior role for years, you may have grown out of touch with the current talent market. The world changes, sectors consolidate, ownership structures shift, but your view of your own strengths, and any risks hiring you could bring to a new company, may remain anchored in the past.
This can lead to overconfidence when you decide to branch out. Avoiding this trap starts with being open to conversations with people in your broader industry network—not always, but often enough to stay current, meet new people or learn more about innovative companies. The time cost of a half‑hour meeting is small compared to the value of understanding your own attractiveness.
2. When winning makes it hard to pause
The competitiveness and drive that fuel many CEOs’ success can also make it hard for them to pause and reflect. When a promising opportunity surfaces, they go “all guns blazing to get to the next deal,” as one seasoned partner at a major private-equity firm notes, not allowing time for “a soul‑searching career choice process.” But this haste can result in ill-considered and damaging mistakes that are very costly to unravel.
A more effective approach when considering a consequential career decision is to slow down and turn inward: Consider what is really important, what drives you and how you create value. One CEO we know advises people to apply a simple test: Define the two things that matter most in your career and use those as a filter for every potential opportunity. Also take the time to process and learn from any missteps you’ve made. This introspective work will allow you to show up in interviews with humility and clarity about what you really want and have to offer.
3. When you can’t trust anyone to give frank feedback
In many organizations, it’s hard for a sitting CEO to get open, high‑quality feedback—but that’s what you need when you’re considering big changes. There are very few resources to help executives at this level understand their value in the market or negotiate the subtler steps of a transition.
By building a diverse circle of trusted advisers, you can create opportunities for candid, even uncomfortable feedback. The select group might include a spouse or partner, a good friend, a senior industry leader, a mentor and perhaps a coach, recruiter, talent partner or industry analyst. If you ask direct questions and stay receptive to the answers, no matter how much they sting, these exchanges can be incredibly useful for navigating next steps.
4. When a need for discretion complicates the process
In high-profile roles, discretion and confidentiality are extremely important. This can create complexity when mapping out potential moves—moves you might not want the market, competitors or even your own assistant to know about just yet. A sitting CEO may be juggling weeks or months of high‑stakes conversations while still running their business day to day. This added complication of secrecy can make the process emotionally isolating and logistically fraught.
Simple strategies can help: meeting in neutral, discreet venues, interviewing on weekends or after hours, taking personal days when necessary, and keeping separate calendars or phones dedicated to the search. These maintain discretion without undermining performance.
Even highly accomplished CEOs can struggle with their next big move, not least because the stakes are high. The leaders who navigate these pitfalls best are intentional, disciplined and reflective about their decisions, just as they are in the day-to-day business operations that have brought them success.
