29 Jun Scaling Requires a New CEO Skill: Letting Go of Perfect

For many CEOs, perfectionism isn’t just a personality trait—it’s what helped them succeed in the early stages.

When you’re building a company from scratch, attention to detail matters. You’ve likely been the final decision-maker, the editor-in-chief, the quality control, and the culture bearer. It’s what kept the vision sharp and the work exceptional.

But here’s the problem: The same perfectionism that fueled your success early on can quietly become the thing that holds your company back.

The Bottleneck of Perfectionism

Let’s call it what it is.

• Every decision runs through you
• Every process lives in your head
• Every deck needs your final review
• Every initiative is delayed because “it’s not quite ready yet”

Sound familiar?

This is what happens when a CEO doesn’t—or can’t—let go. It’s not because they don’t trust their team. It’s because they trust themselves just a little bit more. And it’s understandable. Your name is on the line.

But here’s the truth: You don’t scale by doing more. You scale by trusting more.

Progress Over Polish

Scaling a business isn’t about perfect execution—it’s about repeatable execution. It’s about empowering smart, capable people to carry your vision forward—even if they do it slightly differently than you would.

That means:

• Letting good people make good decisions
• Prioritizing momentum over microscopic tweaks
• Creating systems that protect quality without requiring you to oversee every detail

What Letting Go Actually Looks Like

In my role as a fractional COO, I’ve worked with CEOs who are brilliant, driven—and overwhelmed.

They’re stretched thin, exhausted, and feeling the pressure of being the “glue” holding it all together.

Here’s the shift: When we introduce operational systems and leadership structures that don’t rely on their daily involvement, something powerful happens.

• They finally breathe.
• They get back to strategy.
• They reclaim their role as visionary—not taskmaster.

And the business? It moves faster, more confidently, and with less friction. Because you’re not giving up control—you’re creating sustainability.

Letting Go Is a Leadership Skill

The hardest part of scaling isn’t market strategy, sales, or hiring. It’s the internal shift that leaders must make to evolve their role. Letting go of perfection doesn’t mean lowering the bar. It means raising the bar for others—and giving them the clarity, trust, and structure to rise to it.

What’s one thing you’ve learned to let go of as your company scaled? Are there still components you just can’t let go of? What would change if you did? I’m happy to weigh in, based on the changes I’ve witnessed among the business leaders I’ve worked alongside.

 Care to chat? You can contact me here via my website or email me directly at michael@consultstraza.com.