To be a CEO is to serve as the company’s central power source. This role demands not just stamina but a rare combination of physical endurance, mental acuity, emotional steadiness, and strategic clarity. In my recent Fortune profile of New York Times CEO Meredith Kopit Levien, one quality surfaced repeatedly: her energy. Described as “indefatigable” by colleagues and peers, Levien acknowledged that she may have been “given a little more energy,” but she also emphasized her ability to sustain it. That distinction—between having energy and managing it—is essential.
It mirrored a conversation I had with Courtney della Cava, who oversees CEO selection for Blackstone’s portfolio companies. She said stamina is among the most decisive traits in identifying leadership potential. But she defined it not in terms of hours worked but as the ability to deliver high performance consistently over time. It’s a mix of physical energy, mental resilience, and emotional bandwidth.
The demands on a CEO are relentless. Early mornings, constant travel, high-stakes decisions, and nonstop context-switching make physical energy the baseline for success. But what separates the most effective leaders isn’t just grit. It’s the discipline to direct their energy with precision. That means staying focused amid information overload, projecting steadiness in the face of conflict, making decisions under pressure, and carving out space to think clearly about the future.
Executive recruiters I interviewed agreed. Some leaders may be naturally wired for intensity, with fast recovery times and a high tolerance for stress, they said. But raw energy isn’t enough. The CEOs who last build systems to manage themselves. They limit distractions, rely on coaches or trusted advisors, and organize their time around what only they can do. They know that energy is a finite resource that must be replenished and deployed strategically.
Aflac CEO Dan Amos put it plainly in an interview with Fortune: “You can only take in so much to your brain. One of the hardest things to do is to stay focused. Don’t let people get you off track.”
So, is CEO-level energy innate or cultivated? Most say both. But what keeps it going isn’t adrenaline. It’s structure. One’s drive might get them to the corner office. But discipline, it appears, is what will keep corner office aspirants and occupants from burning out.
Ruth [email protected]
Today’s newsletter was curated by Lily Mae Lazarus.
The new Fortune 500 ranking is here
In total, Fortune 500 companies represent two-thirds of U.S. GDP with $19.9 trillion in revenues, and they employ 31 million people worldwide. Last year, they combined to earn $1.87 trillion in profits, up 10% from last year—and a record in dollar terms. View the full list, read a longer overview of how it shook out this year, and learn more about the companies via the stories below.
A passion for music brought Jennifer Witz to the top spot at satellite radio staple SiriusXM. Now she’s tasked with ushering it into a new era dominated by podcasts and subscription services. Read more IBM was once the face of technological innovation, but the company has struggled to keep up with the speed of Silicon Valley. Can a bold AI strategy and a fast-moving CEO change its trajectory? Read more This year, Alphabet became the first company on the Fortune 500 to surpass $100 billion in profits. Take an inside look at which industries, and companies, earned the most profits on this year’s list. Read more UnitedHealth Group abruptly brought back former CEO Stephen Hemsley in mid-May amid a wave of legal investigations and intense stock losses. How can the insurer get back on its feet? Read more Keurig Dr. Pepper CEO Tim Cofer has made Dr. Pepper cool again and brought a new generation of products to the company. Now, the little-known industry veteran has his eyes set on Coke-and-Pepsi levels of profitability. Read more NRG Energy is the top-performing stock in the S&P 500 this year, gaining 68% on the back of big acquisitions and a bet on data centers. In his own words, CEO Larry Coben explains the company’s success. Read moreThis story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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