What's the difference between business leaders and people who own or run businesses?

The best business leaders approach the role of leadership as a career, rather than a necessary aspect of owning or running a business.

Most business leaders have heard the admonition: work on your business rather than in your business. I believe Michael Gerber first coined that phrase in his classic series of E-Myth books. That's great advice for entrepreneurs [the "E" in "E-Myth"]. That's also great advice for business leaders.

But, for business leaders that's not enough advice.

Put another way: if you aspire to be an entrepreneur that's one thing; if you aspire to be a business leader that's a different thing.

Entrepreneurs are driven to invent/innovate/create and deliver products and services of value. Entrepreneurs may or may not be excellent business leaders. In fact, often entrepreneurs are far more idea-driven than people-focused and that reduces their ability to be good leaders.

Business Leaders are driven by a vision of change of one sort or another...changing the world one way or another. Success at achieving the vision of change, depends on the leader's ability to inspire other people to join forces and work together in harmony toward shared goals.

What's the difference?

In summary, Leaders:

• Make learning a life-long practice: they recognize the importance of understanding self; they know one key to success rests in people's differences so they embrace and work to understand the differences in people

• Are able to attract strong and talented followers: their ability to show disciplined behaviour coupled with their ability to understand and relate to other people is a magnetic combination

• Are accountable for their actions and inspire accountability in followers: they show the wisdom captured in lead by example; they are able to provide clear instructions; they obtain buy-in from their followers

• Guide, teach, mentor, and coach: they know the differences between these approaches; they also know the differences between these leadership techniques and the techniques employed by talented managers

• Delegate so the work matches people strengths: they understand the importance of dealing from strength; they understand the importance of using one person's strength to offset another person's weakness...the essence of teamwork

• Communicate openly, with candour and a standard of care: they know how to deliver tough messages when necessary; they know how to read people and anticipate situations so tough messages are rarely required