STEPPING DOWN evolution is when a company needs to rely more on repeatable systems and processes to grow the team and enter into new markets . In both of these situations , awareness is an important skill and perhaps the most invaluable skill to have as a CEO .
I had launched Tulip Media from the basement of my house in 2013 . It was my baby and took up a lot of my time , and I enjoyed every minute of it . At the time , it was a flashy new concept to be creating and publishing a custom magazine for Client-Partners , and no one knew if the idea would stick or not . But it stuck . Soon after starting publishing customized magazines , the company grew , got attention , and got an injection of capital . We were off . I started hiring people , and our sales were growing . I was having a lot of fun . I was doing what I did best : launching a new concept from scratch .
Over time , the company evolved . While the mission and purpose remained the same — to fuel our Client-Partners ’ revenue growth with marketing strategies that work — how we did that at Tulip Media changed as the company matured . We had found a mix of effective ways to promote our Client- Partners over the years leveraging both digital and print marketing .
As the company was evolving , my individual interests and motivations were shifting . I had recently completed an exercise that revealed my sweet spot — activities that I do well and bring me energy , and provide a lot of value .
WHEN SKILLS ALIGN WITH PASSION , WE FIND OURSELVES IN THE SWEET SPOT OF OUR ABILITIES .
In life , it is our responsibility to tap into those sweet spots . If an activity only brings you energy but provides no real commercial value , that would be a hobby . And if something provides real value but sucks energy and you probably don ’ t do well , that would be classified more as a chore . While hobbies and chores have their place , it is key to look at how we spend our time and optimize it by landing as much as possible within our sweet spots . My sweet spot was no longer aligning with my role at Tulip Media .
I love launching businesses from the ground up and getting things going , but operating a maturing business didn ’ t fall into my area of interest or expertise . We all have different strengths and sweet spots , and we truly need to hone those and become aware of the activities we do daily that we are simply muscling through , not excelling at . I realized that I could become the CEO that Tulip Media needed for a short time , but that I would ultimately fall back into who I innately was : the startup guy . It takes bravery and awareness to notice that the skills needed for operating and scaling the business aren ’ t the skills that took the business to its initial success . It ’ s okay to not be both of those things . However , it ’ s also okay to acknowledge that what originally created our success isn ’ t what will maintain it . In fact , that ’ s the best skill a CEO can have : awareness of when they need to hire someone .
When you notice you are limiting the growth of the company , you need to find the person with the skills and interest to take your business to the next level , someone who excels at the tasks you would rather not do . The key question in business oftentimes isn ’ t “ how ” to do something , it is “ who ” will do it . For example , rather than asking ; How we will continue to grow ?, It is better to ask ; Who will lead us to our growth objectives ? With this new awareness comes excitement about the future of our Client-Partners , to our employees and to our stakeholders at Tulip Media Group . We are excited to be revealing the next CEO in the coming months . We truly believe that with someone focused on growing the company full time with the single objective to make our Client-Partners more successful , we are going to be able to create a company that can accomplish incredible feats for everyone involved !
Andy Buyting ' s thought leadership journey started when he published his first business book in 2007 and first magazines in 2009 . Since that time , he has leveraged custom magazines and online digital content strategies to establish himself as a leading authority in content marketing and brand positioning . Through his company , Tulip Media , Andy and his team make these content marketing strategies and tools accessible to their Client-Partners .
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