Why CEOs Must Embrace The Impossible

Every CEO I work with has a secret box under the desk filled with ambitious goals they’ve written off as virtually “impossible”.

They might be:

• Multiplying your sales by 50X.
• Hiring that world-famous functional leader.
• Managing your team in one day per week.

Once you believe something is impossible, you stop thinking about it.

You’ve probably seen this with a team member. You set an ambitious goal, and they respond:

“That’s completely impossible.”

Even you know full well it’s achievable.

What's happening here? They're holding a belief that stops them from asking the key question:

"How can we make this possible?"

I see this with my clients frequently. They believe something is "impossible" even though I just saw another CEO do it.

So why do we write things off as impossible?

There are typically three levels to this belief:

1. Level 1 Impossible: “It’s physically impossible.”

It defies some fundamental law of physics.
2. Level 2 Impossible: "It's impossible for everyone (I know).”

We assume it’s impossible because we haven’t seen anyone achieve it.
3. Level 3 Impossible: "It's impossible for me."

We acknowledge others might be able to do it, but we personally can’t.

It’s levels 2 and 3 that hide the biggest opportunities.

Overcoming Level 2 Impossible

It’s easiest to illustrate this with a concrete example about time.

When a venture-backed CEO joins my program, Founder Coach®, they often believe it’s impossible to manage their growing team in fewer than five days a week.

They haven’t seen anyone else do it, so they remain at level 2 impossible.

But when they see other CEOs using my systems to manage their teams in fewer days, they begin to question that belief and start thinking differently.

Within a month, how they spend their time changes radically—driven by that shift in belief.

I’ve seen CEOs come in maxed out, and within weeks, they’ve radically redesigned their calendars to make time for what truly matters.

Overcoming Level 3 Impossible

Let’s continue the example about time management.

Some CEOs still believe it’s impossible for them to streamline their time in ops—even when they see others doing it.

What holds them back?

One of the biggest drivers of level 3 impossible (it’s impossible for me) is the fear of what others might think.

Worrying about others' perceptions can fool you into believing something isn’t possible.

For example, when adjusting their calendar, they worry:

• "What if people think I'm not doing my job?"
• "What will my team, board, or co-founder think?"
• "What if people start slacking off?"

If you catch yourself worrying about others' opinions, recognise that it's your ego seeking approval.

It's not a reason to stop thinking about it, particularly if it’s a great result for your company and yourself.

Default Possible

For action to take place, you need to believe, it’s possible AND it's possible for you.

At all my companies, I've instilled the value of Default Possible—the mindset that something is possible because it opens the door to creative thinking.

And at Founder Coach®, I’ve spent nearly a decade identifying and dismantling the specific limiting beliefs that hold CEOs and their companies back.

So next time you catch yourself thinking something is impossible, pause and ask yourself:

• Is it truly impossible, or is it a belief holding me back?
• How can I make it possible?

Embrace the impossible. You'll be surprised at what you can achieve.