Five Habits for Success from Top CEOs

If you want to be a success in business, you need to envision yourself being successful. You also need to act, as success is not just going to come along and bite you on the backside. Perseverance is also required and that means you need to have good habits. What habits? Look at CEOs in charge of businesses already having a measure of success and follow their example.

To give you a helping hand and a nudge in the right direction, we’ve put together a guide to 5 habits that all the top CEOS have that you should have too.

They Are Early Risers

The phrase “early bird gets the worm” is very applicable here. Think about any of the wealthiest and most successful CEOs and it’s very likely they are early risers. A prime example is Virgin boss, Richard Branson. Why is waking up early important? It gives you time to work out, read, write and reflect before starting your day. If you are not rushing out the door because you’ve slept through your alarm that you hit snooze on several times, then you have time to better ready yourself for the day ahead.

They Are Successful at Time Management

Another key habit that all the best CEOs keep is effective management of their time. Time is extremely valuable and what’s more, non-refundable or renewable. Therefore, you need to make wise use of it as you possibly can. The CEO of Renault and Nissan, Carlos Ghosn, is a great example of a CEO who protects his valuable time. He insists on having meetings regarding non-operational matters that last no longer than an hour and a half.

They Follow a Routine

This ties in with the above two habits. All successful CEOs have set routines that they rarely deviate from. They always wake at the same time, or at least a similar time, every day, and do the same things at the beginning of each day. Consistency is a key tool that helps to control their active and quite often noisy minds.

They Read as Much as They Can, as Often as They Can

One thing that most, if not all, CEOs have in common is that they are passionate about reading and learning. They are not stuck on just reading business books or those related to their field, however, as many read everything from non-fiction to fiction. You will also find that many of the biggest names in business share their current reading list on their website or blog. Bill Gates, for example, does this.

They Always Ask Questions

If you want to be a trailblazer and really lead the pack in business, you need to ask questions. That’s what all the top businessmen and women do. It’s not just about asking any old question; it’s about getting to the right questions. That is one of the fundamental challenges of running a business, finding the questions that your customers or clients need the answer to and then going out there and finding the answer.