Pirates, Cowboys, and Knight's. You self-identify and one, but do you know which and why? Let's explore these archetypes, identify, and discuss how to maximize where we are or shift to our actual self.
You are likely one of these or a blend of two. You don't get to opt out. You have to eventually own it.
The Cowboy
The Cowboy rides alone. Self-reliant to a fault. Operates by a personal code that makes sense to nobody but them. Every problem is theirs to solve. Every decision runs through them. They're territorial about their work, their clients, their methods. They trust their instincts over systems because systems feel like surrender or borders.
The Cowboy builds a business that can't run without them. They're the best technician, the closer on every big job, the one who shows up at 11 PM because nobody else can handle it right.
They burn bright. They burn out.
The Pirate
The Pirate takes what they can get. Opportunistic. Operates outside the lines because the lines are for suckers. They chase the quick score, the big insurance check, the margin play, the angle nobody else saw. Rules are suggestions. Relationships are transactions. Tomorrow's problem is tomorrow's problem.
The Pirate often leaves wreckage. Clients who feel used. Employees who got the shaft. A reputation that eventually catches up. They might make money for a while, but they can't build anything that lasts because nobody trusts them long enough to see it through.
They plunder. They sink.
The Knight
The Knight serves something larger than themselves. They operate within a code. Because integrity is the foundation on which everything else is built. They think legacy. They build systems. They develop people. They protect their clients and their community with the same energy they protect their own reputation.
The Knight doesn't do everything alone because they're building something that outlasts them. They train. They delegate. They create structure so the mission continues when they just can't push as hard that day/ week. They play the long game because short-term wins at the cost of character aren't wins at all. They are scars.
They build. They endure.
Let's Self-Explore
Most people don't choose their path. They end up there or drift there. They react to circumstances, to pressure, to the examples around them. They end up as a Cowboy because nobody taught them how to let go. They slide into Pirate mode because everyone else is cutting corners and they've got bills to pay.
But drift is a choice too. Just a coward's version of one.
Identify Which Path You Are On NOW
Look at your business honestly. Look at how you make decisions. Look at what you optimize for. Look at the trail you're leaving behind you.
- If you can't take a vacation without everything falling apart, you might be a Cowboy.
- If your reputation in the market is built on being the cheapest or the fastest corner-cutter, you might be a Pirate.
- If you're building people, systems, and a name that means something beyond this quarter's revenue, you might be a Knight.
And if you don't like what you see—you can change paths.
It's not comfortable. At All. It requires different skills, different priorities, different sacrifices. The Cowboy has to learn to trust others. The Pirate has to learn that integrity pays compound interest. The Knight has to accept that the right path is often the hardest one.
But the path is there.
WTF Does This All Mean?
If you read my writing or content about THE 8%. This 8% is not a secret society (or maybe it is), and it's not overly difficult to be considered that. Maybe you already are.
The 8% know which path they're on. And they're ruthlessly intentional about staying on it.
The other 92%? They're just reacting.
Which one are you?
—KB
I would not be kind and generous if I did not invite you to join our Academy or to our Montana Business Retreat. If you do not know who you are or what to do next, these often clarify that for Restopreneurs™️