Align your team, develop your leadership, and build a winning culture. 

Leading a team , whether you’re the CEO or a manager, is tough, isolating work.

In small businesses, most leaders are thrown into the role without training — just a title and a ton of responsibility. Suddenly, you’re expected to know how to lead… without ever being taught how.

You’re probably excellent at delivering your product or service. But leading people? That’s a whole different skill set — and one you’re left to figure out on your own.

If you’ve ever felt unsure about a team decision, avoided a hard conversation, or second-guessed your ability to lead… you’re not alone.

And if you’ve ever wondered who you can ask for help without looking like an impostor — this is the place.

In fact, as a leader you:

  • Struggle to find the balance between being “the boss” and being a flexible and compassionate human…

  • Feel unqualified to train new leaders under you because you haven’t had any formal leadership training yourself…

  • Don’t have the time or skills to train your leaders…

  • Are unclear about how to organize your small team or show employees a growth trajectory when you’re such a small business…

  • Don’t know how to hire/retain people that really care about the business and stay motivated — or how to motivate the people you have…

But it doesn’t have to be that way. 

What if, instead, you had the support and training you need to become the leader you aspire to be? 

What if it wasn’t about having the “right answer” every time a challenge arises, but knowing you have the right tools to address it, no matter what? 

You’d feel:

✓ Confident as a leader with the self-awareness to continue to grow. 

✓ Connected and less alone with a safe space to have hard conversations as a leader.

✓ Empowered to have clear and direct conversations when needed. 

✓ Clear on how to make data-driven decisions that are in the company and vision’s best interest.  

✓ Spacious and able to connect to the bigger vision of the company.

Seems out of reach? I promise, it’s not.

Conrad Meertins’ win

“My biggest win so far is the mental shift to begin operating my business as a CEO.

Today I had an appraisal on a tough assignment and I was tempted to meet my trainee there, but after considering the fact that I have prepared him very well to handle these types of assignments, I let him fly while I stayed in and ‘Clockworked’!”

Ready to grow as a leader? 

In the early days of my career, I assumed I was advancing because of my hard work and dedication.

However, over time, I realized that the real driver of my success was something else: my ability to develop people, fuel their performance, and lead them in a way that moved the business forward.

Leading a team has been the most challenging thing I’ve ever done — and the most rewarding. It’s not a checklist you can follow or a system you can plug in. It takes practice, fumbles, and a lot of emotional energy.

When I started running my own company 10 years ago, I didn’t expect leadership to feel so lonely. I didn’t anticipate how heavy the responsibility would feel — even with a team around me.

And I know I’m not alone. Research shows up to 70% of organizational change efforts fail due to lack of leadership coaching.

Most leaders have never received formal training on how to coach. They’re figuring it out in real time — just like I was.

There were so many moments I wished someone would walk into the room and just… tell me what to do. What to say. How to lead through the mess.

But they never arrived. I had to figure it out.

I had to become the adult in the room. I had to figure out how to be the leader and CEO that my company needed me to be and figure things out, like:

What do you do when cash flow is tight and you’re not sure you’ll be able to make payroll? 

Do I need to let this person go because they’re not cutting it? Or is there something I can do to salvage this? 

How do I communicate with a team member who isn’t meeting my expectations? And how do I get them to meet them? 

How can I get my team members to care about the business as much as I do and take more ownership? 

Are we spending too much time on meetings each week? 

How do I get the team to be fired up about the vision I hold for the company? 

These are the conversations no one’s having in other programs.

You won’t see people posting about how they’re stuck with a team member’s attitude problem — or unsure how to handle it. There’s too much ego in entrepreneurship for that.

But behind the scenes? It’s happening.
I’ve seen the back end of thousands of 7- and 8-figure businesses — and here’s the truth:
They don’t have it all figured out.
They’re just not willing to say it out loud.

What I’ve learned is this:
When your skills finally match your title, everything changes.
Growth accelerates.
Culture improves.
People want to stay.

When I was stepping into my own leadership role, I searched everywhere for the training I needed. However, there was no one-stop shop, especially not for small business CEOs who don’t want to lead like those of Fortune 500 companies.

So I built the thing I wish I’d had.

That’s why I created How to CEO.

“A win I didn’t see coming - you really get to see your team shine! You give them the opportunity to step up that they’d never have if you didn’t leave the ship in their hands for a few weeks!”

Eden Houghtaling

“Watching the team from a distance manage the business and remove me out of it is very cool. The work I do see is really good! I’m proud of them!”

Jen Crandall

I’m ready to become the CEO!

How To CEO is a first-of-its kind leadership course for small business owners and team leaders.

It’s a self-paced leadership training program designed to help you understand and implement the 4S framework in your business:

  • Systems

  • Support

  • Strategy

  • Strengths

The program includes 6 pre-recorded modules that address each “S” in the 4S Framework, and how it applies to that piece of the leadership puzzle. 

After you complete How To CEO, you’ll have:

✓ Metrics and clarity in place for every role

✓ Agendas for every meeting

✓ Organizational structure that supports team members’ career growth

✓ A clear vision for the business and for each role

✓ Confidence to have the tough and challenging conversations when needed

✓ Clarity on when it’s time to let someone go

✓ An understanding of the strengths of your team 

✓ The right communication tools to improve engagement and efficiency

✓ A plan to hold people accountable

✓ And a culture people want to be a part of

  • If you want a team who cares as much as you do, you need a clearly articulated vision that inspires and motivates them every single day. Most leaders fail miserably at this and create a vision that team members struggle to connect with, and is only mentioned once or twice a year. In this class, we’ll show you how to create a clear and impactful vision that connects with everyone on the team. We’ll show you how to practically use the vision in your day to day operations so that it’s not a one and done, but rather a guiding force for company alignment and decision making.

  • What does it mean to build an ideal team that is aligned with your company's vision and values? We’ll explore methods for hiring, training, and managing a team that is motivated, engaged, and committed to the organization's goals. We’ll dive into creating a cohesive team culture, fostering collaboration, and empowering team members to take ownership of their roles. Onboarding and training new team members is time-consuming and requires a significant investment of resources, so you want to have a plan. We’ll talk about why effective communication is essential during the onboarding process to ensure that new team members understand their roles, responsibilities, and the company's expectations. You’ll walk away with actionable insights on when to hire, when to fire, and what to do in between.

  • Let’s fine-tune your team to maximize productivity, efficiency, and alignment with your company's vision — I promise, it can be easier than you think. We’ll explore methods for identifying and addressing team challenges, fostering a cohesive team culture, and leveraging individual strengths to improve overall team performance. Delegating tasks effectively involves understanding the strengths and limitations of each team member and assigning responsibilities that align with their abilities. We’ll talk about organizing your team; refining team structures, roles, and responsibilities; and effective leadership and communication strategies.

  • It’s one thing to hire great people; it’s another thing entirely to keep them (happy and motivated!) long-term. We’ll explore methods for creating a supportive and inclusive work environment, fostering a positive team culture, and addressing the needs and motivations of team members. It’s vital to encourage team members to take ownership of their roles and empowering them to make decisions within their areas of responsibility can foster a sense of ownership and accountability, leading to increased engagement, productivity, and retention. Let’s talk retention strategies, recognizing and rewarding team contributions, and fostering a sense of belonging and purpose within the team. Let’s go beyond empty platitudes and meaningless swag to create a culture where your best and brightest feel truly valued and appreciated.

  • Once you’ve found your dream team, you’ll need strategies for developing and growing them to adapt to changing business needs and opportunities. We’ll explore methods for identifying and nurturing leadership potential within the team, providing ongoing training and development opportunities, and fostering a culture of continuous learning and improvement. Tailoring training programs to the specific needs of individual team members is crucial, so we’ll go over how to identify the skills and knowledge gaps of employees and provide targeted training to address these areas, ensuring that everyone is equipped to succeed in their roles. This is also where we’ll talk about how to create pathways for career growth — no matter how small your business is today, empowering team members to take on new challenges, and aligning individual development with overall business goals.

  • Now, what about you?? In this class, we will focus on the essential skills and strategies for effectively leading and managing your team. We’ll explore methods for developing your own strong leadership abilities, fostering a cohesive team culture, and aligning team members with the company's vision and goals. We’ll explore how you can create a supportive environment where employees feel comfortable seeking guidance and feedback as they acclimate to their roles. And we’ll look at effective communication, conflict resolution, and decision-making, as well as strategies for motivating and empowering team members.

Here’s what we cover:

How To CEO is
designed to provide

A framework you can come back to time and time again to solve just about any challenge that arises

I’m ready to learn
How To CEO!

Investment: $1400

Process + People lead to profits.

You can hire great people, but without systems, they’ll struggle.
You can build great systems, but without strong leadership, they won’t work.
You need both.

That’s why we created How to CEO — the people-side of operations.

Here’s what I know for sure:

We have to redesign how we work.
Leadership and culture are inseparable.
Work isn’t working — and the change starts with us.

You don’t need a 100-person C-suite.
You need the tools to lead your small team with clarity and confidence.

  • Absolutely! In fact, we encourage it. A big benefit of going through the program together is that you’ll all be speaking “the same language” when it comes to the people side of your business, and having that shared experience and vocabulary can be invaluable.

  • We’ve put together a one-pager that you can print out and bring to your boss that explains what the program is and what all the benefits are. Click here to make a copy for yourself! And hey, maybe they’ll want to come, too!

  • Practically speaking, if you don't want to be the CEO, then yes, you should hire someone — but most small biz owners can't afford to hire someone! So you need to at least learn How to CEO long enough to get the company to a point where you can hire. I think for small business owners, and honestly corporations alike, the CEO also sets the tone for leadership style and models what they want the other leaders to emulate. But if you’re not really doing a great job at that, then how can you hire anyone else to do any better?

Frequently Asked Questions