The Steve Sloan Rule (10X CEO)

My first and only time meeting Steve Sloan was on 10 September 2024 during a 10X CEO offsite in San Francisco. 

Steve was in the room that day as a guest alumnus, having been a 10X CEO member himself when he ran Contentful.

He made a comment to me that day that's stuck ever since. In fact, I coined a term that I readily share with my 10X CEO peers, the Steve Sloan Rule. 

This post is about what it is and how the Steve Sloan Rule came into being.

A need to level up

Selfie with Kal Patel

Several years ago, it was apparent to me I needed to continue leveling up as a CEO. As Paubox grows, so do its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Shouldn't I continuously improve my skills as CEO to keep up?

I began asking other CEOs what types of coaching programs they were doing. Thanks to a referral from Kal Patel (CEO, BrightInsight) at a tech CEO retreat, I applied for and got accepted to the 10X CEO program in 2024.

See related: Bridge Bank Tech CEO Retreat 2024

10X CEO

Selfie with Mark Helow

10X CEO is a peer-learning program for venture-backed tech CEOs. CEOs are placed into small peer groups, usually sorted by company stage or size. The groups meet quarterly to work through each other’s challenges. Its founder is Mark Helow.

In my experience, the 10X CEO quarterly offsites are more rigorous than my Paubox Board of Directors meetings. I'm not the only CEO in the program to feel this way. 

It's also been my experience that the more you put into 10X CEO, the more you get out.

The X-ray

Selfie with my 10X CEO coach, Scott Berg

Part of the 10X CEO program is the X-ray. Without divulging too much about it (each CEO signs an NDA), the X-ray is an in-depth analysis of the business, yourself, and your team.

The Steve Sloan Rule

Dinner with my 10X CEO group in Napa

When it was my turn to present my X-ray that September back in 2024, Steve Sloan politely smiled as I shared my homework.

In a section where I graded my own performance as CEO, I gave myself a subprime rating. I was feeling down that day, as I felt there were too many things in the business not working.

Being CEO is a lonely job. I'll leave it at that.

A few hours later, when it was his turn to give feedback to the room, Steve essentially said, "It’s tough enough being a CEO. Don’t be so hard on yourself."

There was something about the way he said it. The words stuck with me. 

Ever since, I have a special callout in my X-rays, the Steve Sloan Rule. It goes like this:

• No matter how badly you think you're doing as CEO, don't give yourself subprime ratings.

• The job is hard enough. You don't need to add more to the pile.

Mahalo Steve Sloan and the 10X CEO program.

As a highly successful graduate of my alma mater, McKinley High School, liked to say, okage sama de. 

Go burn some tokens, look that one up.