The View from the Balcony: Why CEOs Need Better Vantage Points
Are you seeing the whole picture?
When you’re deep in the middle of running your business, the view is narrow. You see what’s right in front of you…orders to fill, fires to put out, opportunities that need a quick “yes” or “no.”
It’s like being at a crowded concert on the floor. You hear the music, feel the energy, and watch what’s happening in your corner of the crowd. But you can’t see the whole stage. You don’t know what the light show looks like from above or how the performance is landing with the audience in the back.
The only way to get that bigger picture is to step up onto a balcony, a riser, a higher vantage point—where the noise quiets and the patterns become visible.
For CEOs, that balcony is often built through the right conversations, in the right space, with the right peers.
Why Perspective Beats Proximity
When you spend all day inside your own company, your assumptions harden without you noticing. A sales slowdown? Must be marketing. Turnover in operations? Must be a generational work ethic problem. These conclusions feel true because no one inside your bubble is challenging them.
But step into a conversation with other CEOs who’ve solved the exact problem you’re wrestling with, and the frame changes instantly.
What you thought was a marketing issue becomes a customer experience gap. What you thought was a “people problem” becomes a leadership development opportunity.
Perspective breaks the pattern. And you can’t get it from the floor.
The Power of Shared Vantage Points
When you bring together a group of high-performing, non-competing CEOs, you don’t just get more ideas, you get better angles.
Blind spots get illuminated. A peer points to something you’ve stopped noticing, like the proverbial tip of your own nose.
Patterns emerge faster. When three other leaders share eerily similar challenges, you realize it’s a market trend, not a personal failing.
Options multiply. A logistics CEO might offer a solution that works just as well for your manufacturing bottleneck.
It’s not theory—it’s lived experience. And it saves you from expensive trial and error.
Getting to Your Balcony
For many leaders, finding that vantage point doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built intentionally by:
Choosing the right room. Surround yourself with leaders who have no stake in your decisions except your success.
Bringing real issues. Share the problems that actually keep you up at night, not just the ones that look good in a case study.
Listening without defending. The goal isn’t to win the debate—it’s to widen the frame.
Why This Matters Now
Markets are shifting faster. Talent challenges aren’t going away. The pace of decision-making is only accelerating.
If you’re making calls from the floor, you’re reacting to the moment. From the balcony, you’re anticipating the next one.
If you’re ready to step up and see the bigger picture—with the benefit of other CEOs who’ve been where you are and know the moves ahead—I’d be glad to explore what that could look like in a Vistage peer advisory group.
If you're interested in experiencing Vistage for yourself, join us for an exclusive CEO peer advisory meeting in Spokane. Register here. Have questions? Connect with me on LinkedIn or email richard.johnson@vistagechair.com.