Niall Cleaver

Three guidelines to ensure success for a startup CEO:
 
 1. Craft a purpose-driven vision that explains to the world “why what you do matters.” Companies that understand their “why” rather than merely their “what” and their “how” will always be more successful. Products don’t exist in a vacuum.
 2. Create an operating culture that encourages risk-taking. If you don’t, and your team does their best to minimize mistakes, they’ll be motivated to do as little as possible. The less you do, the less mistakes you’re likely to make. Doing nothing is the only way to eliminate risks altogether.
 3. Hire people better than you. Don’t hire clones. Hire people different than you, smarter than you, more experienced than you, and don’t micro-manage them. Let them do their jobs. And the corollary to this: Know what you don’t know. It’s OK to not now everything. In fact, it’s even better.