ASML boss says young people are always asking him how to become a CEO. Here’s why he calls it an ‘absurd’ question

The usual CEO spent their time to attend meetings, strategies of their board, and, in the case of the boss of semiconductor giant asml, which is referring to the questions about how he or she is.

This is a comprehensive question. As CEO at Fortune 500 Europe Lithography Group, Christophe Fouquet was in charge of one of the world’s most strategic companies. His € 3.5 million ($ 3.6 million) payket last year, and more than accumulated stock choices, at least anger.

But to tell Norges Bank Investment Management CEO Nicolai Tangen on his Of good company The podcast shows, the fouquet that the question stands as a steady lack of ambitious young people.

“How many do I see seeing me, and they wanted to be CEO, and asked me ‘How did we become CEO?’ And I tried to explain them in the best way it was almost an unreasonable question, “says the fouquet.

“This is not the correct question. The right question is what I do tomorrow makes me feel better, with the best from me?

“Because when you go and do that every day, you can have a chance you can CEO-Larger moment you don’t make your happiness, energy, and most importantly bring people around you.”

The fouquet, who says he never exploits ambitions for the C-suite in the first few years, saying it should continue to make a method you have been taking advantage of the career.

The ASML CEO says this career development method can help the development of the two parts, focusing on claiming influence before it is available.

“I think the first part of your career is about yourself, I truly believe that,” said the foquet, which increased that he had finished this part of ASML product more than a decade ago.

“And then you look, say, Okay, what’s next … what can I do to help and where I have something important?”

The role of the fouquet has changed its time to ASML. In the $ 230 billion, the group was worth the order of magnitude more than he participated in the company in 2008.

Group shares shed following Covid-19 pandemic, first of a wide increase in demand for tech parts and again during AI boom.

The company gave the lithography machines to the largest company in the world, including Nvidia, allowing to make advanced applications.

As an essential part of the global global supply chain, the factor of the foquest is likely to grow in importance.

Editor’s note: a version of this article first Displays Fortune.com on February 12, 2025.

This story originally shown Fortune.com

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