How I became the CEO of a Family of 25

“As a C.E.O. my entire life is taking care of crap. Putting out fires 24/7/365. My whole life is, “this is a problem, fix-it.” — Gary Vaynerchuk

The life of a CEO entails more than firing up the PJ (private jet), sitting on stages to engage in curated discussions, and collecting 6 figure bonuses.

The essence of the role is solving problems. Whether that internal (organization specific) or external (client or customer specific) problems.

Moreover, the approach a CEO takes to solving these internal and external problems will ultimately determine the culture of the organization.

Culture: The collective behavior of everyone in the organization. What your people do when left to their own devices. The organization’s way of doing things. — Andrew Horowitz

Similar to organizations, families also have their own distinct cultures. And being the second oldest of my grandma’s 25 grandchildren, I knew it was my responsibility to take the position as CEO of the family, not for the sake of the title but to cultivate a culture that embodied/sustained the qualities of our grandmother, our matriarch.