Being the executive assistant to the CEO of a unicorn startup means living in the margins of decisions that move markets. I don’t sign the deals or pitch the investors, but I’m there when the room changes. When a conversation shifts from “maybe” to “we’re doing this.” My job exists in those moments—quiet, precise, and invisible by design.
My day starts before the calendar does. I read between meetings, not just what’s scheduled but what’s implied. A 15-minute call before a board meeting isn’t about time; it’s about reassurance. A rescheduled dinner isn’t logistics—it’s pressure. I’ve learned that calendars are emotional documents disguised as planning tools.
People think this role is about saying “no” politely. It’s more about saying “yes” strategically. Yes to the right interruptions. Yes to conversations that don’t look urgent but actually are. Protecting the CEO’s time doesn’t mean building walls; it means creating focus in a company that moves faster than its own processes.
What surprises most people is how much trust lives here. I see unfinished thoughts, private doubts, decisions made without certainty. The CEO everyone knows is confident and articulate. The one I work with is human—tired, curious, occasionally unsure. My role isn’t to fix that. It’s to create enough structure that uncertainty doesn’t slow momentum.
I’ve also become a translator. Between leadership and teams. Between urgency and reality. Between vision and execution. I phrase messages carefully because tone travels faster than intent in a growing company. One poorly framed update can ripple through hundreds of people.
The hardest part is staying invisible while being essential. When things go well, no one notices. When something slips, it’s obvious. You learn not to seek validation from outcomes but from preparedness. From knowing that when the unexpected happens—and it always does—you’re ready.
Working this close to the top teaches you something important: scale doesn’t remove chaos, it amplifies it. And behind every confident decision is a network of people making sure the right questions were asked first.
I don’t sit at the head of the table. But I help decide who gets invited—and that perspective changes how you see leadership forever.