If only I had a dollar for every time that I thought to myself, “How the hell do I get this guy to Think Like an Owner?”

Because “Owner-Think” is a very rare mindset in most businesses, and this is especially so in large corporations and academic and government institutions. The truth of the matter is that, on a day-to-day basis, not many employees operate with a mindset of “It’s My Money.”

Oh, I have tried to get my people to think like owners/entrepreneurs. I have tried both the carrot (stock options, bonuses, titles, and recognition) as well as the stick (threats, loss of bonuses, and even some pretty nasty “one-on-one’s” in the privacy of my office).

My conclusion? It’s a Bell Curve.  Maybe five percent of the people out there truly think and act like owners. The others are merely spear-carriers, and you are “fighting city hall” if you think that you can change their mindset.

And you shouldn’t try to change them anyway.  I often say to fellow entrepreneurs, “You’d hate it if everybody thought like you. Hell, who would do the work?”

So what exactly is “Owner Think?” And can it be “manufactured” by great entrepreneur/leaders?

To the first question, “Owner Think” is that condition whereby the welfare of the enterprise is far more important than the welfare of the individual. (And if the individual would only give it some thought, he or she would soon realize that a healthy enterprise means a healthy and prosperous individual.)

Consider: In most entrepreneurial companies I know, the sole concern is “growing the business”. But in most corporate environments I know, the big concern is “preservation of status quo”. Risk-taking is rewarded in start-ups but stunted in large institutions.

For example, it’s 7:00 in the evening and an owner is going home (early, I might add) when he hears a phone ringing.  This is after he has already: a.) set the alarm, b.) locked the inner door, and, c.) also locked the outer door.

An Olympic event begins. He must open both doors and disarm the alarm before the phone stops ringing.  He almost always succeeds, and entrepreneurs will testify to the fact that this call generally results in good news.

Put an employee is in this same situation and you’ll get, “Hey, I just worked a ten hour day. Let it ring”.

“Owner Think” is why the CEO grabs Windex and napkins and polishes the conference room table.  “Owner Think” is also why you’ll see so many CEO/Owners dialing different departments of their company --- “just to see how we respond”.

And then there is one, very significant feature about owners that truly differentiates them from everyone else in their organization:

“IT’S THEIR MONEY!”

Which is why I always hate to negotiate with CEO/Owners and in turn love to negotiate with their lieutenants. Because owners protect their pennies in the same way that mothers protect their newborn children. That is, with a passion that defies human capability.

Give me a “corporate” guy to negotiate with, and he will soon learn that the money he wants is MY money. Eventually, he gives up. Why? You know why. It’s not “his money.”

So, can you help your top people think like owners? Well, and believe it or not, there are some things that you can do:

•    Communicate – tell them as much as you can about your innermost business secrets. They’ll appreciate the openness and they’ll “see the big picture”, which can only help.

•    Reward – You are in it for the challenge, don’t kid yourself. Money never is a huge motivator with entrepreneurs and if you think it is, then you are likely not an entrepreneur. It’s the problem-solving baby! And it always has been! But money may well be the motivator to your people, and so also might be prestige. So, let them earn both of these elements. Fairly and frequently.

•    Teach – Lastly, go and do what you do best. Teach. For this is why so many of them joined you in the first place. They want to be just like you --- though they’ll likely never tell you this!