Key Differences Between A CEO + An Entrepreneur

Recently I was interviewed on James Wedmore’s podcast Mind Your Business three times (episodes 265, 266, and 267) for what he called “Jasmine Star Week.” (Great for my ego, I knowwww!)

In the first episode titled “Reprogramming Failure,” we touched on the differences between a CEO and an entrepreneur and I wanted to unpack it for you today.

>>Before we dive in to the key differences, let me deal it to you straight: I *LOVE* entrepreneurship.<<

I love being an entrepreneur because I can move fast, I don’t have to respond to people or ask permission, it’s full of passion and I can fly by the seat of my pants. *Oh, my poor husband!*

In my heart of hearts, I will always be an entrepreneur, just like I have been for 13 years. However, when I recently made the decision to scale Social Curator, I knew I needed to make changes in my mindset.

>>I realized that if I wanted my business to grow bigger than myself, I needed to think more like a CEO than an entrepreneur.<<

Let me tell you what I have learned are the key differences between a CEO and an entrepreneur.

An entrepreneur…

  • Starts with a passion
  • Tries a variety of approaches
  • Prefers to do things alone
  • Does more doing than thinking

A CEO…

  • Starts with a vision
  • Creates a strategy
  • Builds a team
  • Does more thinking than doing

CEO’s don’t think about having a business, they think about how many lives they want to impact, how a community will come together, to be a dream-caster and reverse-engineer the process.

*In other words, CEO’s see the future vision, take themselves out of the process and have a team that will execute on it.*

Now, I am thinking more like a CEO.

But before you compare your beginning to my middle, let me remind you that changing my mindset from entrepreneur to CEO has not happened overnight.

My 13 years of experience I have as a solo business owner has led me to this time in my career, and it will lead you to yours when it’s time.

Whether you are 1 year in business or a seasoned CEO, let me tell you baby boo: you are right on time.