One of the biggest differences between employees and entrepreneurs isn’t the amount of money they make, their business hours or their working conditions. Although it’s true those can all vary, the most significant difference is something you can’t see: their mindset.
Ownership of problems
Employees often don’t take ownership of problems, i.e., don’t see themselves as responsible for the end result. Often, they’re in a certain place in an organization and are only responsible for the end result of that segment. But entrepreneurs know that, at the end of the day, they’re accountable for every result in their organization.
Goal-orientation
Similarly to ownership of problems, entrepreneurs have a goal-orientation. Employees, on the other hand, often have a process orientation. They put in only enough effort as is necessary to get the job done – not necessarily enough to get the job done well.
Taking risks
Employees are often risk-averse, and for good reason. To an employee, taking risks does not necessarily bring rewards. In fact, the opposite is often true. Taking risks may endanger the status quo, and depending on the company atmosphere, could get the former fired. Entrepreneurs, on the other hand, empower themselves to take risks and know that sometimes, failure is just another cost of doing business.
