235. Plan Your 2025 Like a CEO: the Jeff Bezos approach
Jan 01, 2025
In a recent interview, Jeff Bezos shared that big leaders must "identify the big ideas, enforce tough execution, and grow the next generation of leaders."
In this episode, I'll show you exactly how to apply that CEO-level thinking to your own career in 2025.
You will learn:
- The four-step methodology to annual planning that works
- How simple plans get big results
- How develop and manage your relationships to have your best year yet
- Why your mum might want you to get a real job even when you're a successful innovator
Timestamps
02:43 – Part 1: Find Your Big Idea
05:07 – Questions to Help Define Your Big Idea
07:26 – Part 2: Turn Your Big Idea into Action
09:50 – Build Your Power Circle
12:10 – Managing Personal and Professional Relationships
14:36 – Part 4: Success Metrics & the Pareto Principle
16:56 – Recap of the Four Phases of Planning
19:15 – Free Course for Digital Leaders
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Transcript
Sophia Matveeva (00:00.652)
What if you could approach your career this year with the same strategic clarity as a top CEO? In this episode, I'll break down Jeff Bezos' leadership framework and show you exactly how to apply it to your most ambitious goals, whether you're a founder, a corporate innovator, or an investor.
Sophia Matveeva (00:20.942)
Welcome to the Tech for non-techies podcast. I'm your host, tech entrepreneur, executive coach at Chicago Booth MBA, Safiya Matheer. My aim here is to help you have a great career in the digital age. In a time when even your coffee shop has an app, you simply have to speak tech. On this podcast, I share core technology concepts, help you relate them to business outcomes, and most importantly, share practical advice on what you can do to become a digital leader today. If you want to have a great career in the digital age, this podcast is for you.
Happy New Year, let's do this. This is perfect for new year planning, but honestly, if you're listening to this in July or any other time, it is just as relevant because strategic planning is not about an arbitrary calendar date. It's about taking the time to step back and think like the CEO of you to think about your future. And that is valuable at any time of the year.
So let's think about this. What does a CEO actually have to do? Let's ask Jeff Bezos because he seems to have done a pretty good job. So in a recent interview that I heard him talk at Dealbook, and this interview was in December 2024, Jeff Bezos said, big leaders have to identify the big ideas, enforce tough execution against those big ideas, and grow the next generation of leaders.
I like this, it's nice and it's succinct, so let's use this framework to plan your 2025. And my advice is that you should listen to the previous episode first so you can reflect on the year that has passed and then move on to this one to do your planning. And no matter what your year was like before, your past does not have to determine your future. So let's plan your year like a CEO. And there are four paths to this method, which I'm about to go through. But first, I want to say...
Sophia Matveeva (02:43.205)
Thank you so much to the lovely listeners who have left the show ratings on Spotify. I've seen new ratings appear and I really appreciate the lovely Christmas present you've given me. So thank you so much. Okay, now let's move on to part one of this CEO method. Number one is find your big idea. This big idea is going to be your guiding light when you're not sure what actions to take. So I'll give you an example from my business so you can see how I apply theory to practice.
My big idea is that in our digital age, we all depend on software to get things done. But there is a growing divide between software developers and non-software developers, between the techies and the non-techies. And this split starts early. So, for example, in the UK, children begin choosing which subjects to study and what to drop at the age of 14. And this is insane. People begin to limit themselves when they barely know themselves and this creates a world where smart, educated, ambitious people who are not engineers often feel stupid and stunt their careers unnecessarily. And this isn't just about my personal frustration because it is about building a cohesive society that benefits from everybody's talent. Because I don't want a world dominated by any type of talent, whether it's engineers or artists. I think we need both. And by the way, Steve Jobs thought the same thing and it worked out for him.
We need people who do tech and we need people who speak tech. My aim is to help non-techies speak tech and thrive in the digital age and that's what we're doing here. And this big idea is the underlying thesis in my business and it drives all of our actions. This big idea shows up in major projects like working with governments on large education initiatives to smaller ones like making this podcast episode for you.
or making the free course that I made for you on the five tech concepts that every business leader has to know. Which by the way, you can and should get at tech.ontechies.co forward slash free course. And the link to that is in the show notes. So my dear smart person, what is your big idea for 2025? Figure that out and that will drive your actions. And here are some questions to help you figure out your big idea. If you're a founder, what customer problems could you solve?
Sophia Matveeva (05:07.047)
That would fundamentally change how your market operates. For corporate innovators, what transformation would actually change behavior in your organization? For investors, where could you create lasting value beyond the hype? Where could you find lasting value beyond the hype? So find your big idea because that's going to be your North Star for everything that follows.
And if you're listening to this and you're thinking, okay, that's great. I don't know what my big idea is, so I can't get to the next steps. That is not true. Literally just pick something and give it a go. Do not get stuck on this because big ideas develop with action and experimentation and not in a vacuum. So pick something that seems interesting to you, that seems relevant, that seems like something that you would want to work on and go with that.
And if you need to change it, then change it. Number two of this method is you need to turn your big idea into action. So once you have your big idea, you need a system to make it happen. And this is not about creating a huge to-do list and then feeling guilty that you're not getting it done. It's about identifying the key actions that will bring your vision to life. So I'll show you how this works with my big idea. So I believe that societies will be better off when you have people who do tech and people who speak tech as I mentioned earlier. And so to make this happen, I focus on two main pillars in my company, spreading the word and making money. So spreading the word means doing lots and lots of free work. So for example, I just gave an interview on Sky News about how AI is changing tech entrepreneurship and going on live TV and actually making sense on live TV. Well, it took me work and preparation.
And I did all of that for free. I'm also creating this podcast that lots of people are learning from for free. And to do the free stuff, I have to somehow subsist, right? So I also have to make sure that the company makes money. And this means creating offers, speaking to clients and showing how my work can help clients. And both of these pillars require a team. So I have a communication strategist. I have people who help with operations and marketing.
Sophia Matveeva (07:26.929)
And to deliver high quality education, TechPlanet Techies also needs other tech and innovation experts, not just me. So my action plan has to be specific. So I figure out the targets for both pillars, and then I create a plan to achieve those targets. And so see what I'm doing here. I'm keeping it really simple. So you can even just kind of see it as a triangle. So there's one big idea at the top, which flows down into two main pillars, spreading the word and making money. That is it. Clarity of vision.
Means clarity of action, means big results. And also it just means that you're not getting confused because you can think, well, is this spreading the word? Is this going to help me make money? If it's neither of those things, you can think, you know what, I'm just going to watch Netflix. So what about you? For founders, which activities directly support your big idea? And don't spread yourself thin. Pick what matters most. Pick a couple of pillars at maximum and build your team around that. For corporate innovators.
How can you turn your big idea into a tangible change? What resources and support do you need? Those are going to be your pillars. And for investors, how does your big idea change what you look for in the startups you invest in? And how does your big idea change who you need to have in your network? By the way, I know that there's a lot of information in here, so I recommend you listen to this episode again, but also you can actually get the transcript at techful and techies.co. So there are transcripts for every episode. And you can just go through the transcript and answer these questions. So step number three in your CEO strategic planning. Number three is build your power circle. So now that your big idea is clear and you have your action plan, you've got your couple of pillars, my question is, who do you need to make this happen? So in my example,
Even with a clear focus, I cannot do it alone. I need a communication strategist for the spread the word pillar. I need operations and marketing support for the make money pillar. And I also need other experts to help deliver high quality education. So look at your big idea and your main pillars and think about who do you need in your circle to actually make this come to life? So for founders, do you need technical advisors maybe who understand your vision or do you need
Sophia Matveeva (09:50.599)
industry experts who can open doors and help you get commercial deals? For corporate innovators, do you need allies in different departments? Or do you need external experts who can validate your approach so you can get funding for the initiative that you want to carry out? And for investors, do you need experts in emerging fields, for example? Do you need connectors who can bring you deals that other people don't see?
Do you need friendly journalists who are going to write positively about you so then founders can find out about you and the press? So these are professional networks. This is what you need to do in your professional world. But I want you to know that this isn't just about your work team. Do the relationships you have in your life outside of work, do they nurture you and help you become the best version of you? Or do they drain you?
And here's a story that I keep on coming back to that is kind of horrific, but also gives me so much comfort. So, Kanye King is the lady who founded the MOBO Awards. And the MOBO Awards stand for Music of Black Origin. And that's something that started in the UK. And honestly, she really transformed the UK music industry and the MOBO Awards became a massive thing. At the height of her success,
Kanye King was invited to a reception with the UK prime minister, who at the time was Tony Blair. And, you know, she invited her mom. Isn't that nice? What a wonderful thing to do. And you know what her mom did? Her mother asked Tony Blair if he could give her daughter a job. Imagine the horror. And it is also something that my mother would totally do. I think this is why I keep on thinking about this story too, because, you know, here was Kanye.
A successful entrepreneur who created something really revolutionary and imaginative. And her mom was still asking if the government had any jobs going because her daughter's doing something crazy. So even if you're a successful innovator, the people closest to you might still wish that you had chosen a more conventional route and they'll worry about your prospects. No matter how successful you actually are. And I mean, this is quite sweet.
Sophia Matveeva (12:10.505)
but it's also really easy to forget when you're on the receiving end. And so with some relationships like family, you aren't going to get rid of them. You love them, even though they drive you crazy. So you have to manage yourself in these relationships. So for example, if your parents are super negative about you pursuing an innovative path, then stop trying to prove to them that it's going to work out. Just get on with making it work out and don't dwell on discussing it with them. And you don't have to cut your family out of your life.
but you can steer conversations away from topics that lead to conflict. But with other relationships, you can and should be more forthright. So if you have friends or partners who undermine you or leave you feeling drained or uninspired or just negative after you spend time with them, why do you need these relationships? If it's just out of guilt or out of habit, really rethink that because if you're listening to the show, you want to achieve great things in your career,
And honestly, not everybody wants that because, you know, ambition also comes with a lot of pain, a lot of fear, a lot of trying, a lot of failing, right? And so a lot of people basically would just rather be comfortable and kind of mediocre. And that's okay. We don't need everybody to be an A player. But the thing is, your ambition might make some people feel insecure. And that's going to make them to try to bring you down.
probably don't even really realize that they're doing it. And that's their problem. That's not your problem. But the thing is, if this is what's happening, then you don't have to drag these people with you into 2025. And I know that this might be the hardest bit of the whole methodology so far, so I totally feel it. So I totally understand you. Okay, now let's get to the final part of planning your year like a CEO. Number four is all about your success metrics.
So the 20 % of effort that creates the 80 % of impact. So now that we've covered your big idea and your action plan and your power circle, let's talk about how you measure success in 2025 and the actions that you will take for that success. And this is where I want you to remember the Pareto principle. 20 % of your efforts will create 80 % of your results. So first of all, you need to
Sophia Matveeva (14:36.484)
figure out where your results are coming from and then track those actions. Don't worry about the other stuff. So for example, I've noticed that the best clients tend to reach out because of my high profile media appearances. for example, they might read something I wrote for Forbes or for the Harvard Business Review. And then they think, yes, I am curious. I want more of that. So either they start listening to this podcast or they just reach out straight away and say, we would like to hire your firm. What's going on?
What kind of offers do you have? And so this is why I'm going to focus on more high profile media in 2025. And this is why I just gave an interview on Sky News. And I now know that just one article or just a five minute TV appearance can lead to something massive and really interesting. And so that's what I'm choosing to focus on. And that's where I'm choosing to measure my metrics.
And this means that I can ignore busy work and I can ignore measuring the irrelevant. So for example, I'm not going to invest large amounts of money in advertising because I know that's not where the majority of my company's results are going to come from. And that's what real impact looks like. And that's a strategic approach to impact. If you know where most of your results come from, you can stop doing all the other stuff and have a much more efficient workday and a more restful experience of life. So for founders.
Instead of tracking different metrics, what is the number one source of good customers? Which of your customers have the biggest lifetime value and how did they find out about you? Figure that out and just do that. Track that. Study that, but forget the rest. For corporate innovators, rather than just counting the innovation initiatives that you're going to work on, I'm curious, in the past,
What shows that you are actually changing how your company operates? Find that because I bet it's only a small amount of what you're actually doing and then just double down on that. For investors, instead of just tracking how many deals you see, what indicates that you're building the relationships that are going to bring the best opportunities to you? Remember, you are not looking for what is
Sophia Matveeva (16:56.233)
easiest to measure because revenue is a lagging indicator. Look instead for transformative actions that will create big results in the future. And now let's recap the four phases of planning your 2025 like the CEO that your career deserves. And number one, find your big idea. This is your North Star that guides everything else. For me, that's my mission to help non-techies thrive in the digital age and keep your big idea really clear.
If it becomes many sentences, it's too confusing. Okay, then number two, turn your idea into action. Break it down into simple pillars. For me, it's two pillars, spreading the word and making money. Keep it simple. Again, there's a theme here, Clarity of vision means clarity of action, which means big results. And then number three, build your power circle. Build the right team around those pillars.
Surround yourself with people who can help you grow. Manage relationships that realistically are not going to change like those with your family. And be selective and ruthless about who you bring with you into 2025. And number four, focus on the 20 % of effort that creates 80 % of your impact. So focus on what brings you results and get rid of busy work and track what matters.
not what's easy to measure. Often the stuff that's easiest to measure actually doesn't really matter that much, so don't fall into that trap. So let's check again what Jeff Bezos said in December 2024. He said, big leaders have to identify the big ideas, enforce tough execution against those big ideas, and grow the next generation of leaders. Now you have a framework to do exactly that. You are welcome.
And if you want to start building your foundation as a digital leader and a tech innovator, I've created a free course on the top five tech concepts that all business leaders need to know. You'll get a free lesson every day for five days, focusing on key innovation concepts. And in these videos, I also show you graphs and visual aids, so the concepts really sink in.
Sophia Matveeva (19:15.713)
That is going to be a great way to start the new year. So to get it, go to the link in the show notes or go to techfinantechies.co forward slash free course. That's techfinantechies.co forward slash free course. And on that note, happy new year. I love you. And I shall be back in your delightful smart years next week. Ciao.
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