What did I learn about running companies?

On the other side of management for 10+ years I struggle to communicate the same things executive leaders, presidents and CEOs. Same issues: Understand basic principles of sales, finance, leadership, management and especially IT as it pertains to marketing. The disciplines that we don't know from our experience. Everyone nods their heads and goes off and does what's familiar and not what works. It's the human condition. It's what we do. I remember being interviewed as a SVP and Managing Director/President. As an SVP of Sales and Business Development, I knew these consultants were great at running meetings but really thought (and I told them so-carefully) that they had little understanding of the nuts and bolts of running a $500 million division of a Billion Dollar public company.. But I do. Now. I hear the same things: "I get it". "I agree". "We're gonna do that" .. and then back to business as usual. Death. The slide down to mediocrity.. It takes time. There is no time to make all the mistakes ("You'll learn from your errors" is the name of a horror movie). We need to read and learn from the mistakes of others and go fast. No choice. And I can keep up now...
Here's where we are: Link to LVI