Why I Paid $200K to Be the Least Impressive Person in the Room
Ten years ago, I joined a Vistage CEO group where I was clearly the smallest fish in the pondâone member owned 100% of a $1B company. It was uncomfortableâbut transformative. Since then, Iâve spent ~$200K on coaches, consultants, masterminds, and elite certifications (Harvard, Stanford, MIT, etc.). Expensive? Yes. But easily the highest ROI investment of my career. Why? Because a single conversation with someone ahead of me often saved 6 months of spinningâor $100K in mistakes. Hereâs What Most CEOs Miss đ If you're the smartest person in the room, you're in the wrong room. Comfort is the enemy of growth. Surrounding yourself with people who donât challenge your assumptions keeps you solving $10K problems instead of $10M ones. I learned this the hard way. Early on, I stayed in a "Small Business" group. Nice people, but no one far enough ahead to challenge my thinking. When I leveled upâpaying 5x more to be around CEOs 10 years aheadâit changed everything. Even top founders seek out bigger thinkers. I saw it firsthand at events like the EY Strategic Growth Forumâwhere billion-dollar CEOs were still seeking mentorship from even bigger operators. How to Do This Intentionally đ Build Three Growth Networks: 1. 10 Years Ahead â People whose "normal" is your stretch goal. Get in paid, curated groups or invite-only events. 2. Shoulder-to-Shoulder â True peers. Share wins, losses, and real talk. 3. The Unrelated Genius â Outsiders from other industries. Theyâll help you see what youâre missing. Pro Tip: Give value first. Promote their wins. Introduce them to helpful people. Invest in the relationship before you need it. How to Build the Right Rooms đ 1. Audit Your Current Network â Who are your top 10 professional relationships? Who challenges you? Whoâs ahead of you? If >30% arenât above your level, youâve outgrown the room. 2. Identify Whatâs Missing â Do you lack mentors? Peers? Outside-industry thinkers? 3. Map It Out â For each gap: List 2â3 people to connect with â Choose 1 paid group to join â Pick 1 event in the next 90 days â Hire 1 fractional expert to solve a stalled âimportant but not urgentâ item in 30 days