Competition SUCKS! part 2 ........ why and what I believe we can do about it.
With a saturated marketplace and new competition getting in 'the game' every day in life, you often hear things like:
"Why should I buy your whatever when the XYZ company sells it for £50 less?"
"Why should I hire you to sell my house when the ABC company will sell it for 5% instead of 6% commission?"
"Why should I listen to you when say your products or service are the best value for money?"
Want to know what’s even worse about living in this state of competition?
In most cases, you’ll never even get a chance to respond to these objections because people won’t verbalize them to you… those objections often never make it past their subconscious evaluation phase. When you live in competition with others, prospects and customers will ELIMINATE you without a second thought… and they often won’t even know why they’ve eliminated you.
Competing against other people inevitably creates an internal struggle within you… Internal struggle leads to other negative feelings like anger, resentment, inferiority and worse!
If you try to win through competing with others … ultimately, your health and your bank balance will suffer!
You can’t win in this way (nobody can)!
Even if you succeed for a while by competing with others, ultimately you will lose because once you become #1, people naturally try to knock you off… pull you down… or otherwise climb over you in their quest to take the #1 spot.
Unless you possess an unlimited budget, incredible good looks, or psychic abilities that let you see into the future, competing with others is NOT the way to win in life or in business over the long haul! At this point, you probably have a question on your mind (or at least you should)…
"If better, faster, quicker competition isn’t the answer, then what’s the secret to winning?"
Simple! Don’t play the game everyone else is playing… Don’t compete.
Instead… you should "Create!"
Creation - not competition - is the secret to winning in everything you do!
As competition is not desirable ....what really matters is creativity.
Lead don't follow ....and have the greatest respect for anyone who has the courage to lead anything creative or constructive ....
Creation is the process of finding, inventing, discovering or originating something new. It’s doing things in a different, more creative, more beneficial way than others are currently delivering to them.
Creation means coming up with new solutions to existing problems and doing things in a way that immediately separates you from the competition in the minds of your prospects.
In fact, being a creator rather than a competitor, so much so, that they won’t even make a comparison… you stand alone in their minds.
Creation means being different… and people who are different stand apart from the crowd and don’t face the struggles that naturally come along with the inherent pressure from market competition.
Creation means being the only game in town if people want and trust what you offer… and that means a whole lot more sales, more satisfaction, better relationships… and more money!
Creation comes with a price… a price most people are mysteriously NOT willing to pay. But if you pay the price… the world will deliver anything you ask. That’s the price?
In order to create instead of compete you must cut yourself off from the mentality of the 'crowd' mindset and ..........
You must be willing to make mistakes.
You must be willing to take chances and be vulnerable.
You must be willing to open yourself up to criticism.
You must be willing to work through the doubts that will inevitably bubble up from your subconscious mind as you experiment with new and better ways to help others get the results they want.
How do you remove yourself from the crowded arena of competition and get into the fresh air of creation? Simple.
Here’s a 4-step formula for getting out of competition and in to creation…
# Step 1 – Decide
Make a positive decision that you will no longer do things the exact same way, sell the exact same things, just because everyone else does it that way doesn’t make it right… or better…
Earl Nightingale termed it best when he said most people play "Follow the follower." People blindly following the person in front of them… who follows the person in front them… and there’s no leader at the front, just an endless line of followers… doing the same old thing… the same old way… with the same old tools… creating needless competition.
And remember – dare to be different.
# Step 2 – Innovate
Innovation means finding a new use for an existing tool or technique and is simply the process of taking something old and creating something new by taking two seemingly unrelated things, putting them together in a slightly different way thus creating a new solution to a problem.
Innovation means sticking your head above the crowd, doing a complete about-face, and heading in a totally different direction looking for new answers to old problems.
Innovation means being different… it means trusting yourself and your abilities…
# Step 3 - Mix in the “magic” ingredient – YOU!
Decide to always look for ways to inject your individuality and unique talents into everything you do or say.
By embracing all of your your talents, developing yourself as a person, and valuing your contributions – you unleash the new way of creative thinking we ALL possess inside us. You simply create needless competition and struggle when you try to be like others without injecting your own uniqueness into what you do and how you do it.
# Step 4 - Trust
Trust that you do contribute exceptional value and always go the extra mile.
Trust that you can always improve in some small way over yesterday
Trust that everything that happens in your life happens with a purpose and it serves you.
Trust that creation, not competition holds the 'secret' for your eventual success and that, like anything, you’ll get better over time with practice and positive application.
Creativity makes you unique… uniqueness makes you almost indispensable… indispensable people have little or no immediate 'competition'!
John
Quote for the Day: "ImagiNATION is the greatest nation on earth......... you are invited to join that nation"
__________________
John Wylie MCIPR Director of Public Affairs
Translate Scotland Public Relations & Marketing
www.translatescotland.co.uk
"It's what we learn after we think we know it all.....that really counts!"
Friday 30 October 2009
Thursday 8 October 2009
When the Going Gets Tough ... the Tough Get Going! - part 1
Life is a journey ..... not a destination and what you have at the moment .... you've attracted to you by the person....you've become!
The subject of this particular 2 part post arose out of a discussion with the members of the 'Table of Eight' which is an informal group (strategic or psuedo mastermind alliance) of my ex-Shetland business colleagues and friends .... many of whom are based or spend some of their 'off the island' time in and around Edinburgh and we meet up at irregular intervals for an occasional meal and associated 'social refreshments'
Why is that relevant ......well it's not directly - but it gave me an introduction/background link for the post which I thought I should clarify and which could well have been entitled 'once upon a time....there was'.
It was my turn on the soapbox as the general topic for the discussion was the difference between personal and business development.
Well ..... is there a difference ? and the answer is (in my opinion) a resounding NO! because if you are a one man/woman band or small business then 'you are your business' and what you do or say affects the impression people have of you and/or your business image/identity.
I mean if you get negative or lazy or careless or impolite or are always late for meetings or provide dodgy products or unprofessional services or do anything which affects the impression people have of you, as an individual, would that affect your business dealings with prospective customers or business colleagues and the answer is ...... Of Course!
You started your business with a dream .....your dream and it is almost impossible to seperate the two ....in fact if you reverse the above underlined statements and become ........ professional, careful and always deliver on promises would that have a positive impact on how you and your business activities were perceived and the answer is ...... OF Course (this is another of these 'of course' moments)
Is there any 'secret' to how we should address the 'of course' moments ..... NO!...... Very few things really rate as “secrets” in our personal or business lives anymore.
In fact, more often than not the word “secret” gets used in false, confusing, or even misleading ways. It seems dozens of books (more like 10,000 books) exist to explain the “secrets” for everything from how to crush the competition in business, make more money, have a better life, create better relationships… but do any of them really contain any “secrets” or are they just rehashing the same old stuff?
It makes you wonder…
Are there really any secrets that, if you learned them, would truly enable you to separate yourself from the competition and WIN virtually every single time you stepped into any arena of life?
No! but there is a way… and it’s so simple you’ll wonder why you never saw it or thought of it before!
I’m not talking about some lame theory of “winning” where you “win” just by showing up and feeling good by contributing and then count on everyone else to pay you back through some mystical, unexpected ways.
NOPE! NO way… that takes way too long and most people quit before that approach ever kicks in… let alone puts money in your bank account!
A major problem most people face in business (online or offline) or in their personal life comes down to answering the question “What am I selling?” whether it be for financial gain or simply an exchange of anything ....I am ......we are ........you are...... involved in selling!
What are you selling in exchange for the money or results or friendship you seek from others?
Now some (maybe even you) might say “I don’t sell anything. I’m a _____________ (service provider,teacher, mother, fireman, cook, fill-in-the-blank)”
But if you want to market yourself offline/online, give yourself a running chance in any form of business, or be happy in other areas of your personal life, you must accept that fact that you ARE a salesperson.
You constantly “sell” people on why they should:
• Accept your business ideas
• Accept your point of view/change theirs
• Keep paying you as an employee
• Respect you as a father/mother or significant other
• Hire you for a new job/contract
• Pay you money for any type of service
• … and much, much more!
But there’s a problem… … and the problem is ........You’re probably doing whatever you’re doing the same way everybody else does it!
There’s a certain way most employees act…
a certain way most people sell offline/online…
a certain way most people behave with their kids…
a certain way most people treat their customers ....
a certain way most people decide what to sell (usually based on what they see others doing)…
Here’s the root of the problem… by doing things the same way others do them, selling the same things others sell, behaving the same way others behave, you create for yourself a little problem we call – competition!
FACT: A state of competition exists when customers (or family members) look at you, then look at other people, and compare the two of you against each other. As soon as others think they can make a comparison between you and someone (or some thing) else – you LOSE!
It doesn’t matter if it’s a fair or even comparison – “apples are apples” be damned! In fact, it doesn’t even matter if the comparison made has absolutely NO basis in reality. None of that matters!
As soon as your prospects, customers, or family members look at you and someone else and, in their minds, see you as equal -- you have LOST! GAME OVER!
Why? Because no matter how good you are, if you choose to compete directly or indirectly with others in any arena of business or personal life, there will ALWAYS be someone who is .......
• bigger
• better
• faster
• richer
• smarter
• nicer
• more fun
• better looking
• earlier
• flashier
• or cheaper than you are!
It’s a fact… if you live in the world of competition, you WILL (not might or maybe)… you WILL eventually lose out to someone else.
In an earlier post I mentioned Wallace D Wattles. In the early 1920's Wallace D Wattles wrote that 'we don't get rich by doing certain things .....we get rich by doing things in a CERTAIN way'
Competition and competing SUCKS! and in part two of this I'll explain why I think so and in what 'certain way' I think we can do something about it.
John
Quote for the day: "If you do the things you need to do, when you need to do them ...... then someday you will be able to do the things you WANT to do ..... when you want to do them" Zig Ziglar.
__________________
John Wylie MCIPR Director of Public Affairs
Translate Scotland Public Relations & Marketing
www.translatescotland.co.uk
"It's what we learn after we think we know it all.....that really counts!"
The subject of this particular 2 part post arose out of a discussion with the members of the 'Table of Eight' which is an informal group (strategic or psuedo mastermind alliance) of my ex-Shetland business colleagues and friends .... many of whom are based or spend some of their 'off the island' time in and around Edinburgh and we meet up at irregular intervals for an occasional meal and associated 'social refreshments'
Why is that relevant ......well it's not directly - but it gave me an introduction/background link for the post which I thought I should clarify and which could well have been entitled 'once upon a time....there was'.
It was my turn on the soapbox as the general topic for the discussion was the difference between personal and business development.
Well ..... is there a difference ? and the answer is (in my opinion) a resounding NO! because if you are a one man/woman band or small business then 'you are your business' and what you do or say affects the impression people have of you and/or your business image/identity.
I mean if you get negative or lazy or careless or impolite or are always late for meetings or provide dodgy products or unprofessional services or do anything which affects the impression people have of you, as an individual, would that affect your business dealings with prospective customers or business colleagues and the answer is ...... Of Course!
You started your business with a dream .....your dream and it is almost impossible to seperate the two ....in fact if you reverse the above underlined statements and become ........ professional, careful and always deliver on promises would that have a positive impact on how you and your business activities were perceived and the answer is ...... OF Course (this is another of these 'of course' moments)
Is there any 'secret' to how we should address the 'of course' moments ..... NO!...... Very few things really rate as “secrets” in our personal or business lives anymore.
In fact, more often than not the word “secret” gets used in false, confusing, or even misleading ways. It seems dozens of books (more like 10,000 books) exist to explain the “secrets” for everything from how to crush the competition in business, make more money, have a better life, create better relationships… but do any of them really contain any “secrets” or are they just rehashing the same old stuff?
It makes you wonder…
Are there really any secrets that, if you learned them, would truly enable you to separate yourself from the competition and WIN virtually every single time you stepped into any arena of life?
No! but there is a way… and it’s so simple you’ll wonder why you never saw it or thought of it before!
I’m not talking about some lame theory of “winning” where you “win” just by showing up and feeling good by contributing and then count on everyone else to pay you back through some mystical, unexpected ways.
NOPE! NO way… that takes way too long and most people quit before that approach ever kicks in… let alone puts money in your bank account!
A major problem most people face in business (online or offline) or in their personal life comes down to answering the question “What am I selling?” whether it be for financial gain or simply an exchange of anything ....I am ......we are ........you are...... involved in selling!
What are you selling in exchange for the money or results or friendship you seek from others?
Now some (maybe even you) might say “I don’t sell anything. I’m a _____________ (service provider,teacher, mother, fireman, cook, fill-in-the-blank)”
But if you want to market yourself offline/online, give yourself a running chance in any form of business, or be happy in other areas of your personal life, you must accept that fact that you ARE a salesperson.
You constantly “sell” people on why they should:
• Accept your business ideas
• Accept your point of view/change theirs
• Keep paying you as an employee
• Respect you as a father/mother or significant other
• Hire you for a new job/contract
• Pay you money for any type of service
• … and much, much more!
But there’s a problem… … and the problem is ........You’re probably doing whatever you’re doing the same way everybody else does it!
There’s a certain way most employees act…
a certain way most people sell offline/online…
a certain way most people behave with their kids…
a certain way most people treat their customers ....
a certain way most people decide what to sell (usually based on what they see others doing)…
Here’s the root of the problem… by doing things the same way others do them, selling the same things others sell, behaving the same way others behave, you create for yourself a little problem we call – competition!
FACT: A state of competition exists when customers (or family members) look at you, then look at other people, and compare the two of you against each other. As soon as others think they can make a comparison between you and someone (or some thing) else – you LOSE!
It doesn’t matter if it’s a fair or even comparison – “apples are apples” be damned! In fact, it doesn’t even matter if the comparison made has absolutely NO basis in reality. None of that matters!
As soon as your prospects, customers, or family members look at you and someone else and, in their minds, see you as equal -- you have LOST! GAME OVER!
Why? Because no matter how good you are, if you choose to compete directly or indirectly with others in any arena of business or personal life, there will ALWAYS be someone who is .......
• bigger
• better
• faster
• richer
• smarter
• nicer
• more fun
• better looking
• earlier
• flashier
• or cheaper than you are!
It’s a fact… if you live in the world of competition, you WILL (not might or maybe)… you WILL eventually lose out to someone else.
In an earlier post I mentioned Wallace D Wattles. In the early 1920's Wallace D Wattles wrote that 'we don't get rich by doing certain things .....we get rich by doing things in a CERTAIN way'
Competition and competing SUCKS! and in part two of this I'll explain why I think so and in what 'certain way' I think we can do something about it.
John
Quote for the day: "If you do the things you need to do, when you need to do them ...... then someday you will be able to do the things you WANT to do ..... when you want to do them" Zig Ziglar.
__________________
John Wylie MCIPR Director of Public Affairs
Translate Scotland Public Relations & Marketing
www.translatescotland.co.uk
"It's what we learn after we think we know it all.....that really counts!"
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