Alex Visotsky of Visotsky Consulting: Five Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became A CEO
An Interview With Doug Noll
Being a CEO is a 24/7 job: As the head of the company, you will be responsible for making decisions that impact the business, employees, and stakeholders.
As a part of our series called ‘Five Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became A CEO’ we had the pleasure of interviewing Alex Visotsky.
Alexander Visotsky is an author and the founder of an international EdTech-company. He has been a business consultant since 2004, and trained over 50,000 business owners and top managers.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
My story began with a real madness! I graduated from a military school in Ukraine. My friends graduated a year later and we decided to open a business. But everything ended badly.
We started with sales of Apple Computer (and we were not an official dealer). We supplied peripherals and devices for computers, repaired them. I found a supplier in America, DoctorMac. And then we sold computers to official dealers in Ukraine.
I failed to manage the business. I had an argument with partners and left the company. I had to open a new company alone without much money. At the same time, I began to improve in personnel management, discovered management tools. I wanted to share this experience with entrepreneurs. My new company became a leader for the production of awards in Ukraine. But I sold the company to my co-owner and decided to become a consultant.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?
It was my first business. When the margin fell, disagreements between me and my partners started. We were partners, managers, and experts — all in one. The business was divided equally: 33%, 33%, 33%.
We had a council of co-owners, where we made decisions and summed up the results. And I had a serious problem: all the decisions made at the council by my partners (and part-time hired top managers) were simply ignored. And when I tried to get them to complete the tasks, they said: “Alex, what are you doing? We are partners, we are equals!” I felt it was sabotage and I felt like a complete fool. I just didn’t know what to do with it.
I did not understand that the functions of managers and partners are different. I demanded from them as from managers. This was my first painful experience. I realized that it is really important to separate when we are partners and when we are employees. You need to know who you’re talking to.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
I flew to visit my mother for a week and said to my deputy: “You remain for me, now manage my company. Do everything right».
When I returned, I saw that the room in which my company was located was empty: there were no employees, no computers, no customers, they had left. I was shocked. During the few days that I was gone, my partners and my deputy directed the company in such a way that there was nothing left. The business in which I put my strength and soul has disappeared. I realized that delegation is the key to development and success, but on the other hand, if we do it wrong, it blows everything up.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I am grateful to my team — there are employees who have been working with me since the first day of the company’s foundation. At first they were ordinary employees in a small company, and now they are top managers of international EdTech-company.
Leadership often entails making difficult decisions or hard choices between two apparently good paths. Can you share a story with us about a hard decision or choice you had to make as a leader?
I started a consulting company in 2009. Later we opened branches in other countries. I understood that our technology could help people around the world. I knew that it could destroy everything we have, but we decided to become an American company. I moved to the USA and opened a New York office. It was a challenge: it was necessary to translate all the materials and books, adapt them. Then the same had to be done in Chinese (when we opened a branch in Taiwan). It was expensive and difficult. But it worked.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. Most of our readers — in fact, most people — think they have a pretty good idea of what a CEO or executive does. But in just a few words can you explain what an executive does that is different from the responsibilities of the other leaders?
Executive responsible for the company’s vision and direction. It’s not only about managing budgets and overseeing other leaders and departments within the organization. Executives have to make key decisions and make them clear for the team.
What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a CEO or executive? Can you explain what you mean?
Many people think that the CEO or executive always knows what to do. But it’s okay to make mistakes. If your plan doesn’t work, you need to quickly come up with another one — a good CEO understands that.
What is the most striking difference between your actual job and how you thought the job would be?
I thought that I would be able to work fewer hours. But while executives may have more flexible schedules, they often work longer and more intense hours, including evenings and weekends, to meet the demands of the role.
Do you think everyone is cut out to be an executive? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful executive and what type of person should avoid aspiring to be an executive? Can you explain what you mean?
The most important quality — communication skills. Good CEO understands that work can’t be done without a team. Executive needs to communicate effectively with employees, build relationships, and engage in teamwork to achieve shared goals. And of course the ability to inspire, motivate and guide others to achieve a common goal.
What advice would you give to other business leaders to help create a fantastic work culture? Can you share a story or an example?
To be a leader in your company you have to push people to do their best. Attempts at work-life balance won’t bring great results unless your team performs exceptionally well in your absence and consistently goes the extra mile. This is a reality for many great business leaders.
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
I helped more than 50 000 entrepreneurs and top-managers from 52 countries to organize their businesses, make management simple for them. And I’m very proud of it.
Fantastic. Here is the primary question of our interview. What are your “Five Things I Wish Someone Told Me Before I Became A CEO” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
1 . Being a CEO is a 24/7 job: As the head of the company, you will be responsible for making decisions that impact the business, employees, and stakeholders.
2. Time management is crucial: There are many tasks to be done, and limited time to do them.
3. Communication skills are critical: As a CEO, you will need to communicate effectively with employees, stakeholders, and the public.
4. Embrace change and be flexible: As a CEO, you need to be able to adapt to new challenges and opportunities.
5. Seek out mentors and advisors: These individuals can help you navigate difficult situations and provide valuable perspective on your challenges and decisions.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
I am passionate about providing opportunities for business owners around the world to succeed and implement their great ideas.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
I will give you my own quote. «If you want to get outstanding results, you need to live and act differently from other people. Appreciate your own point of view and defend it. Go your own way and don’t be tempted by other people».
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them
Elon Musk — I really want to discuss his point of view on management. And I admire his passion and energy.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
About the Interviewer: Douglas E. Noll, JD, MA was born nearly blind, crippled with club feet, partially deaf, and left-handed. He overcame all of these obstacles to become a successful civil trial lawyer. In 2000, he abandoned his law practice to become a peacemaker. His calling is to serve humanity, and he executes his calling at many levels. He is an award-winning author, teacher, and trainer. He is a highly experienced mediator. Doug’s work carries him from international work to helping people resolve deep interpersonal and ideological conflicts. Doug teaches his innovative de-escalation skill that calms any angry person in 90 seconds or less. With Laurel Kaufer, Doug founded Prison of Peace in 2009. The Prison of Peace project trains life and long terms incarcerated people to be powerful peacemakers and mediators. He has been deeply moved by inmates who have learned and applied deep, empathic listening skills, leadership skills, and problem-solving skills to reduce violence in their prison communities. Their dedication to learning, improving, and serving their communities motivates him to expand the principles of Prison of Peace so that every human wanting to learn the skills of peace may do so. Doug’s awards include California Lawyer Magazine Lawyer of the Year, Best Lawyers in America Lawyer of the Year, Purpose Prize Fellow, International Academy of Mediators Syd Leezak Award of Excellence, National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals Neutral of the Year. His four books have won a number of awards and commendations. Doug’s podcast, Listen With Leaders, is now accepting guests. Click on this link to learn more and apply.
