Are you an owner or an employee?
This question applies to you whether you are a founder of a business or a corporate executive.
So let me ask it again, are you an owner or an employee?
You may be thinking, “Katrina, I can only be an owner if I actually own a business.”
Not true.
Know this, “business ownership” is a state of mind, not just a title or tax classification.
Ownership is 100% about your attitude and approach.
That state of mind can be applied as an executive, as a founder, and even as a frontline employee if trained correctly.
Owner vs. Employee
What are owners?
Owners add the highest amount of value to an organization.
They intentionally look at the 30,000-foot view and ensure their actions (as well as the team’s actions) deliver the maximum amount of value.
While owners can work in the trenches, they know their true value lies in creating the vision and the strategy for the organization.
The unfortunate reality is that the majority of business leaders believe it’s safer to be an employee than an owner.
How many times have you heard the phrase “job security” when you have to do additional work?
I would challenge that job security doesn’t come from a position that can be backfilled in an hour.
Job security comes from the higher-level judgement, solid problem-solving skills, and organized processes that an owner brings to the table. These skills cannot be found and replaced easily if at all.
So what is an employee?
Someone who works in the trenches, does the day-to-day operations, and only looks one step in front of them. They put out daily fires, move widgets around, and solve basic problems that they have been trained to solve.
Now before we go any further, do we need employees?
Absolutely! A company cannot deliver a service or product without a frontline employee serving the client.
There is no challenge to the need of owners or employees. Don’t get caught up in that.
Instead, seek to understand why being an employee feels safer.
Is it truly because you think it adds the most value or is it because you think it’s the position where YOU add the most value?
Is it your comfort zone?
Because being an owner is hard.
It takes personal growth, daily learning, lots of missteps, and the ability to pivot quickly.
Being an employee is so much easier.
So what’s the point in all of this?
The point is you must stop living in the employee space when you’re meant to be an owner.
If you want to live life on your terms, if you want the Legend Life you are destined to live, it’s not on the other side of being an employee.
Having a life of business achievement and personal fulfillment doesn’t result from a person playing at 20% capacity.
You typically aren’t a “20%” kind of person, right?
Being an Owner Isn’t Risker
Know this, as humans, we tend to go to our safe spaces when we are hit with too much change at once or for an extended period of time.
As an owner, you are dealing with both: too much at once for extended periods of time.
It is mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually exhausting.
No one is saying otherwise.
But nothing amazing is ever earned the easy way.
The freedom you want in your life comes from 2 facets of life:
- Achieving at the highest level (being an owner)
- Living out a life of fulfillment on your terms
You cannot avoid being an owner if you want to live your best life.
You started on this path of executive leadership (either in someone else’s company or your own) because, in the critical moments, you were acting like an owner.
Don’t stop.
Keep adding the highest level of value.
Become an irreplaceable asset in your company/industry.
If you have veered off course recently, how do you get back on the owner track?
- Ask yourself why.
What is happening in your life or business causing you to believe that being an employee is the safest path for you? Find the root cause, acknowledge it, and know that being an employee isn’t safer. Squash the lie and get back on track.
- Schedule time on your calendar each week to think and act like an owner.
Be intentional. Block off your calendar and spend the time looking at the business holistically and determine how your organization is adding value to the client. Ask questions, review data, and make changes that only you can make.
Employees follow the crowd, owners lead the crowd.