As a Second-In-Command, you're probably a high performer who wasn't allowed to make mistakes out loud throughout your career. Maybe you were labeled "gifted" as a kid and have been living up to that ever since. But here's the reframe: mistakes are a tax you pay on your way to growth. Entrepreneurs view failure completely differently than you do because trying and failing teaches what works.

When you make mistakes (and you will), the key is owning them immediately by answering two questions: can I fix this and how, and how did this happen? Not justification, but a practical postmortem leading with humility and vulnerability.

Entrepreneurs are anesthetized to bad news, and when you bring problems forward with ownership, they have the network and resources to help fix issues. The challenge is to be more open with your mistakes and more vulnerable with both your entrepreneur and your team. You'll grow, and it will inspire your team to take ownership without needing constant confirmation.

You'll hear all about:

00:51 - Today's topic: Mistakes as a second-in-command and why they're the fastest path to growth 01:06 - Origin story: Coaching client's manager outsourcing all thinking to ChatGPT and why that prevents promotability 01:43 - Developing strategic thinking comes down to reps, and those reps are really mistakes 02:02 - Mistakes are data, learning, and understanding - AI can't give you that decision tree to reflect on 02:21 - Training insight: How entrepreneurs view failure differently than the rest of us 02:37 - Many entrepreneurs depend on failure - trying and failing teaches what works and what doesn't 02:58 - Your job as second-in-command: Help CEO understand outcomes and consequences to make informed decisions 03:10 - Reality check: You didn't get to this role by failing - you weren't allowed to make mistakes out loud 03:26 - The "gifted kid" curse: Living up to high-performer expectations your whole life 03:34 - Personal story: Changing an A-minus to an A-plus with a pen, then immediately feeling guilty 04:08 - Reframe: Think of mistakes like a tax you pay on your way to growth 04:21 - Important caveat: Brand new to position or company = less margin for error while proving yourself 04:34 - If you're established or promoted from within, you have room to be riskier 04:35 - What Megan learned the hard way: Trying to be a "membrane" to keep bad news from the entrepreneur 04:57 - Cognitive dissonance: Making mistakes while watching others get terminated for theirs 05:04 - The confession: "I made mistakes I may have fired myself for, and I'd seen others fired for less" 05:14 - The key question: Why wasn't I fired? Why wasn't my CEO even really mad? 05:29 - The two critical elements: Learning from mistakes AND owning every mistake 05:40 - The immediate questions to answer when you cause a problem: Can I fix this and how? How did this happen? 06:00 - Not justification, but practical postmortem - leading with humility and vulnerability 06:20 - When you can't answer those questions, you might not have enough experience yet to analyze what happened 06:32 - Entrepreneurs are anesthetized to bad news - there was never a bad reaction directed at her 06:50 - "As an entrepreneur myself, I can tell you we don't know what we're doing either, but we have the network" 07:03 - Real example: Banking issue led to facilitated training with a banker connection 07:18 - When you present as perfect, you're setting the culture for those who report to you 07:42 - Being resistant to your own mistakes sets that expectation for your team and creates bottlenecks 07:54 - If your team is fearful of failure, they bring everything to you for confirmation 08:10 - High-detail personalities naturally do this, but if EVERYONE does it, work slows down 08:26 - The self-fulfilling stress cycle: Extra pressure on you to get everything right

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Links mentioned in the episode:

• • Second First Membership
  • Second First One-on-One Coaching
  • Second First on Instagram
  • Second First on LinkedIn
  • Megan Long on LinkedIn

For years, Megan Long told entrepreneurs that hiring a Second-In-Command wasn't a revenue-generating role, that it was a long game with slow ROI, and not to expect immediate financial benefits to the business. She was wrong.

New data from Second First's quarterly benchmarking reveals that companies investing in their operators and integrators are seeing an average of 28% revenue growth year over year, with a median growth of 10% and 25% reporting significant improvements in strategic alignment with their founder.

While she's not claiming causation, the correlation between investing in Seconds-In-Command and high growth is impossible to ignore. Together you'll break down the four reasons why Megan thinks this is true.

You'll hear all about:

00:29 - Introduction: The exciting data on what high-growth businesses (30%+ YoY) have in common 00:58 - The big reveal: Companies that invest in their second-in-command are growing significantly 01:27 - Important disclaimer: Not claiming causation, but the correlation is hard to ignore 01:33 - The actual numbers from Second First's quarterly benchmarking data 01:43 - Member company results: 28% average revenue growth, 10% median growth year over year 02:24 - Additional finding: 25% reported significant improvement in strategic alignment with their entrepreneur 02:43 - Why investment in operators has real business impact beyond just the programs themselves 02:59 - Megan's confession: "I used to get this so wrong" - the revenue-generating role misconception 03:28 - Why it's important for second-in-commands to know there's data backing up self-investment 03:53 - Reason #1: Leadership Alignment - How peer communities help operators align better with founders 04:38 - Things feel less personal, communication improves, and operators stop guessing what CEOs want 04:59 - The expensive friction that happens when CEO and COO are even slightly misaligned 05:23 - When alignment improves, speed and traction pick up (actual dollar value) 05:28 - Reason #2: Exposure to Better Ways of Doing Things - Why this is Megan's favorite 05:50 - Real hot seat example: Member manually entering data into separate systems 07:04 - Why smart people miss obvious inefficiencies: being "snow blind" to inherited processes 07:57 - The power of eight operators from non-competing industries questioning your normal 08:33 - A great peer group forces you to ask: "Is this actually the best way?" 08:45 - Reason #3: Confirmation - Second-in-command decisions live in gray areas 09:06 - When you operate in a vacuum, self-doubt and second-guessing creep in 09:22 - The incredible value of hearing "Yes, we would approach it the same way" 10:11 - Real example: 200%+ annualized turnover and trusting your gut that something's wrong 11:01 - How confidence creates a ripple effect: faster decisions, better leadership 11:08 - Reason #4: Reducing Risk of Entrepreneur Burnout - The opposite scenario without investment 11:39 - Growth ceiling when entrepreneur becomes the answer to every question 12:05 - Study findings: Weak partnerships lead to early exits; strong partnerships keep founders committed 12:19 - The shift: From "I don't know what to do" to "Here are three solutions from my peer group" 12:57 - When entrepreneurs start saying "Go ask your peer group" - that's a resourced operator 13:30 - Breaking the "selfish" narrative around investing in yourself as an executive 14:00 - Proven ROI on business growth by investing in your second-in-command role 14:22 - Final message: You deserve the same investment your CEO gets, and you deserve people who get it

Rate, review & follow on Apple Podcasts

If you haven't already done so, follow the podcast to make sure you never miss a value-packed episode.

Links mentioned in the episode:

• • Second First Membership
  • Second First One-on-One Coaching
  • Second First on Instagram
  • Second First on LinkedIn
  • Megan Long on LinkedIn