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Is there an alternative idiom with the same meaning as "skin in the game"?

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That depends: what does "skin in the game" mean? – Marthaª Dec 18 '10 at 0:04
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Having skin in the game means that you are making a personal investment in an endeavor, usually referring to money invested. – Ken Aspeslagh Dec 18 '10 at 1:45
Thanks for all the great answers! – Ken Aspeslagh Dec 21 '10 at 15:23

5 Answers

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You could also say "dog in the fight" as in "He doesn't have a dog in this fight."

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The idea of "skin in the game" as Buffet intended is more than just a stake in the outcome. One who has "skin in the game" not only has his own money invested, but he is part of the decision making process over his and other's investment. An investor has money on the line but he is at the mercy of the managers' business decisions. An executive who has no "skin in the game" makes the decisions for other's investment, but if it goes bad he does not lose any of his personal money and just walks away unharmed. In other words he gets to play the investment game without the same risk as those he is playing for.

An analogy might be the pilot of an airliner. His decisions in the cockpit will affect him just as surely as it will his passengers. He has "skin in the game". But if the pilot is on the ground flying the plane remotely from the airport bar, his decisions will still affect the health and well being of the passengers but not his own.

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up vote 6 down vote

"Skin in the game" is defined by Investopedia as

A term coined by renowned investor Warren Buffett referring to a situation in which high-ranking insiders use their own money to buy stock in the company they are running.

The idea behind creating this situation is to ensure that corporations are managed by like-minded individuals who share a stake in the company. Executives can talk all they want, but the best vote of confidence is putting one's own money on the line just like outside investors!

Buffett's original intention equated money with skin because losing either would be painful.

An alternative would be "stake in the result" where the stake is an investment of money, time, effort or even reputation.

Other alternatives include:

He has a piece of the action

He has money on the line

He has something to lose

He is a stakeholder

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up vote 2 down vote

He doesn't have a horse in the race? I think I've heard that somewhere.

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"Put your money where your mouth is", based on the skin in the game's definition at answers.com

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But they are not replacements as you can say "He has some skin in the game." – dmckee Dec 18 '10 at 1:31
The question is asking for alternatives, which I would think is something different from a replacement. – brainysmurf Dec 18 '10 at 2:45

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