I’ve had conversations with leaders around the world — many of whom seem to be confused about two things:

1. You don’t have to own something to lead it.

2. You don’t need to lead something to own it.

I’ve seen this many times in small businesses — the person running or operating the business is not necessarily the owner.

The owner might not even lead any of the activities or the directions taken. I’ve seen that in places where business ownership is easy for the natives, residents, or citizens of a country, but not easily accepted by “other” people coming to work there.

You could own it but not lead it. At the same time, you could lead it but not own it.

Consider Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” statement. He didn’t really OWN the civil rights movement, but he led it in a way that allowed others to feel they owned it, and they could lead it themselves.

Understanding the difference between leadership and ownership allows you to expand your horizons and provide a window of opportunity for the people that work with you, for you, and interact with you.

In a global setting these things can become vital as cultures can also play a big role in what you can own versus what you can lead.

I encourage you to explore how you could own or lead — or neither — to support your group or the groups you choose to support.

BEFORE YOU GO

We see our blogs as opportunities for dialogue. Please share your thoughts as comments.

1. What can you do to differentiate leadership from ownership within your own path?

2. How have you leveraged the terminology of leadership or ownership to advance your goals or strategies?

3. What tools have you used to lead or own the work that you do?

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Faris Alami is Founder and CEO of International Strategic Management, Inc. (ISM). He works internationally, presenting Exploring Entrepreneurship Workshops and other entrepreneurial ecosystem — related ventures.