When I think of an executive I think of powerful looking man in a sharp suit making large business deals with international big-wigs. I think of bank accounts in the Carribean and 2nd homes in Italy. I think about the dark limousines and the power ties and golfing with the president or a powerful person in Congress. I think of Martini's and big cigars and lawyers and secret memos.

Why do I think all these things about being an executive? Well the movies of course and why not believe the movies? They are real right? Well as usual that statement couldn't be further from the truth. Being an executive involves way more than all of this and often doesn't involve those things mentioned above. So what does being an executive really involve? Well I want to talk about that and do some realistic guessing (I have never been one myself) about what it takes to be an executive.

The life of an executive is actually a life that is filled with sacrifice. Often times people have sacrificed many, many hours working hard in a cubicle, burning the midnight oil just to get ahead in the rat race. Once they are ahead there work doesn't slow down it is increased because you are constantly on the go in order to maintain you place of power.

Power is an interesting word too. You have power as an executive but it is the power to move a company in the right direction. You don't really have the power to move the company in the wrong direction as an executive because as soon as the boat begins to lean the board of directors or whatever you want to call the governing body of a company will be on your heels hounding you until you either get the company going back in the right direction or resign.

The vacations in the Caribbean and the golf outings with important people are kind of misleading as well because you are not doing those things as often as a normal employee may have the opportunity because you don't have time. You are such a slave to work as an executive that vacations and time spent with family are wishful thinking.

It is these two last things that are perhaps the biggest argument against becoming a big-shot executive in a large company. That is being a slave to your watch/day planner and being a stranger to your family. Life after all isn't worth living if you can't enjoy the fruit of your labor and form meaningful relationships with people that love you.