When I was in business school, I learned several different frameworks to support with running a business – frameworks on strategy, marketing, operations.
Many of these frameworks instilled the idea that to be a successful entrepreneur you either had to be first (or second) to market, or you had to take the biggest piece of the pie.
I remember when my friends and I came up with a business idea on building a coaching company to support women. My immediate focus went to – let’s scope out the competition – who is doing what already, and what can we do differently.
“What can we do differently”
Right away this set us up for failure because our anchor in creating value for the customer was on being “different” from the competition vs. creating value for our customer.
A lot has changed since then, and I know this isn’t the best approach to growth; however, no matter how many times we hear “what you offer is unique” I still see the fear of competition as a big barrier that exists not only among other founders but also in organizations.
Fear of competition is a mindset rooted in fear, and whatever your career path, it will show up in some way.
Maybe when you’re going for that promotion or maybe when you’re asking for a raise or maybe when you’re launching a side hustle…rather than focusing on your own value, you’ll be tempted to look outside yourself and measure yourself against others.
In today’s video, I share how this mindset and the fear of competition can hold you back and slow you down, and what to do instead.
WATCH OR LISTEN HERE.
Then I’d love to hear how this shows up for you in your life.
- Where does fear of competition show up for you? How are you comparing yourself to others?
- How do you see that it can potentially hold you back in being successful?
- And I want you to apply this question “If I had already achieved my goal, how would I approach this situation?” what comes up for you?
Share your questions and thoughts in the comments and I’ll coach you through it.
