Who’s representing your State?
To help us launch our inaugural year, The Executives Institute is giving away 50 free Memberships — one per State — to 50 U.S. business leaders willing to roll up their sleeves and help us lay the foundation.
This is a nationwide mentorship platform being built on the principles that have, for decades, guided the most-successful business minds and the most-enduring U.S. companies.
Here is an opportunity to share your experience and promote your organization on a stage destined to reach tens of thousands of executives and colleagues each coming year.
Build your legacy.
Share a story, a lesson or a hard-earned truth.
The insight you share might be the turning point someone else is waiting for.
Throughout the 2026 calendar year, The Executives Institute is releasing one Rule per week—50 timeless business principles delivered in a structured format and strategically designed for executives and entrepreneurs; to slow us down, sharpen our thinking and help us each stay the course.
Beginning mid-February and continuing throughout the 2026 release, one business leader per U.S. State will be selected as a founding contributor to The Executives’ Institute. One winner per state ensures nationwide representation — from Fargo to Ft. Lauderdale, Knoxville to Santa Cruz.
How to be selected:
- Choose a Rule released this year, that most resonates with you
- Read the Rule along with its summary (1-2 min)
- Add your insight: e.g. “This Rule helped me…” or “In our company, we…”
Promote your business: Record in front of your logo, wear company gear, add a logo overlay — whatever fits your style. Winners become permanent contributors: Your video lives indefinitely on the corresponding Week page (e.g., Week 1 for Rule No. 1), visible to every visitor exploring the free Weekly Edge program.
Select from the Rules released during Chapter 1, 2026. Scroll down to read each script.
Rule No. 1 —Solve a real problem.
SCRIPT:
If your product, service or strategy isn’t solving a real problem for a real person, it’s a vanity project – not a business. Painkillers outperform vitamins every time.
Rule No. 1 is “Solve a real problem.” Why? Because, without a problem worth solving, everything else is wasted effort.
Businesses don’t fail because their founders didn’t work hard enough. They fail because the work wasn’t aimed at something real. Something felt. Something worth paying for. Rule No. 1 is where every enduring business begins: Identify the problem your customers can’t ignore—and prove that your solution matters. If you can’t do that, nothing else you build will matter either.
My name is (your name), (title) of (your organization) and this Rule resonated with me because…
Rule No. 2 —Fall in love with the problem, not the solution.
SCRIPT:
Solutions come and go, but a deep understanding of the real problem creates lasting value.
Rule No. 2 is “Fall in love with the problem, not the solution.” Focus on the true needs and challenges of your customers—not your preconceived ideas. By anchoring yourself to the problem, you remain flexible, innovative, and better positioned to deliver meaningful solutions.
Why this Rule is so important: This rule keeps us customer-centered, not ego-driven. Too many businesses fail—not because they lacked passion or intelligence—but because they became emotionally attached to the wrong thing. They fell in love with their idea, their product, their pitch deck… and forgot to stay obsessed with the customer’s actual problem.
My name is (your name), (title) of (your organization) and this Rule resonated with me because…
Rule No. 6 —Your first idea is rarely your best.
SCRIPT:
Rule No. 6 —Your first idea is rarely your best. Why? Because most leadership mistakes don’t come from bad intent—they come from locking in too early.
Rule No. 6 is the moment where discipline matters: slowing down just enough to challenge the first answer before it hardens into strategy. Get this wrong, and every rule that follows is built on a weak foundation.
Great ideas emerge after rethinking and refining initial concepts, proving that persistence and revision often lead to better solutions. The most original thinkers don’t settle for their first solution—they generate many. Great ideas often show up later in the creative process, after initial concepts have been tested, challenged, or discarded.
Quantity breeds quality when you’re willing to rethink, revise, and persist beyond what’s obvious.
My name is (your name), (title) of (your organization) and this Rule resonated with me because…
Rule No. 10 —Never stop learning.
SCRIPT:
A growth-minded leader embraces learning as a lifelong process—not a phase to graduate from. Whether you’re in the boardroom or the breakroom, staying open to new ideas, skills, and feedback separates those who evolve from those who become irrelevant.
Fundamental business Rule No. 10 is “Never stop learning.” Why? Because a growth mindset fuels reinvention.
Success can have a strange way of making leaders stop doing the very things that got them there. Learning is often the first to go. Titles replace curiosity. Experience replaces exploration. But in a world that moves faster than comfort allows, those who stop learning start falling behind—quietly at first, then all at once.
The best leaders never graduate from growth. They seek feedback others avoid, explore ideas outside their domain, and view mistakes as tuition—not setbacks. If you’re not learning, you’re not leading. Not for long.
My name is (your name), (title) of (your organization) and this Rule resonated with me because…
Rule No. 15 —Work on your business, not just in it.
SCRIPT:
Most entrepreneurs don’t build businesses—they build traps. They start with a skill, launch into doing the work, and before long, they’re drowning in tasks, chained to the very thing they thought would give them freedom.
This is why fundamental Rule No. 15 is “Work on your business, not just in it.” This Rule draws a hard line: if you’re always working in your business, it will never grow beyond you. But if you step back, systematize, and lead strategically, you can build something that runs without your constant presence. This isn’t about working less—it’s about working on what matters most.
This rule is a wake-up call: if you’re stuck doing all the work yourself, you’re not building a business—you’ve only bought yourself a job. Successful businesses aren’t built by overworked operators—they’re built by owners who step back, see the big picture, and design systems that scale.
Working on the business means shifting from technician to architect, from doing the tasks, to designing the machine that gets them done. Build systems, not a self-employed prison.
My name is (your name), (title) of (your organization) and this Rule resonated with me because…
Prizes & Recognition
One winner per U.S. state receives:
- Free full annual membership ($100 value) — unlimited access to the complete 50-week archive, book summaries, leadership-team discussion prompts, guided workshops, and peer insights from executives across the country. (Your Free 1-year Membership is transferrable or giftable to a team member, colleague or family member by sending us their contact information)
- Nationwide feature: Your video embedded on the official Week page for that Rule, plus promotion on our LinkedIn page and other channels.
- Full credit: “Featured Leader: [Your Name], [Title] at [Company] – [Your Website Link]” displayed with the video.
- Ongoing visibility: Videos remain live indefinitely, reaching new leaders as the platform grows to serve tens of thousands annually.
Eligibility & Fine Print
- Open to business leaders (executives, owners, entrepreneurs) in the 50 U.S. states
- One entry per person. Must be 18+
- Videos must be original; fair use of our Rule text/summary allowed
- By entering, you consent to indefinite use of your video and provided details for promotion
- Questions? Email thedean@theexecutivesinstitute.com