When you first get into business for yourself, you’ll want to see what others are doing so that you can emulate that, and get ideas about what works. Before long, you may start to view the very people who you borrowed inspiration from as competition whom you should be wary of.
Some level of friendly competition can be fun if it gets you producing and performing. But remember that people who do what you do can help you make more money when you work together toward a common goal rather than against each other. It’s time to start viewing your competition as your collaboration. Here are some ways to make this happen.
- Team up for success. If the two of you are both good at producing for customers, why not combine efforts? You can decide to work together to crank out projects quicker and with a higher level of professionalism.
2. Become each other’s affiliate. Anyone who is familiar with affiliate sales will realize that when you share great things that other people are doing, you reap the benefit of that sharing. Many companies now have online affiliate programs that you can join which will automatically calculate commissions each time you bring a new sale of their product.
3. Share what you know with each other. Don’t become overly stingy about sharing your business secrets. Sure, some things might be proprietary, but most of what we all do is mainstream. If you opt to play it overly cagey in business, you will likely limit yourself in terms of growth. The small business world is a friendly and welcoming place, with people helping each other succeed. Adopt an abundance mindset to foster connection with professionals who do what you do. Be consistent about this, and you will see positive results over time.
4. As an entrepreneur, you certainly want to cultivate positive relationships in your community and in your business circle. One way to do that is to offer advice to people who want to know how you do what you do.
5. When someone comes to you looking for your expert guidance, view this as a great compliment –which, if you’re enthusiastic about having your own company, you no doubt will. Sharing what you know will help to others to take steps towards the success that you have already experienced. They may not have a way to pay you back at this present time, and that’s okay. Let the freebie go, and it will surely come back around to you in a very positive way, often when you least expect it.
6. Support families. Nowadays most families have two income earning households. This means a growing need for more flexible work environments. If there is a way for people who work for you to do it from home, set it up and it will be a win for everyone.
7. Offer benefits. If you have a few employees, look to offer them a benefits package. Health insurance is a headache that no one wants to deal with. You can retain loyalty in your business by offering a generous health insurance package and it is not that difficult to set up through the health insurance marketplace.
Take a moment to look around your business community, there may be an opportunity to step up and encourage another business, another entrepreneur. Success is not a zero-sum game, we can each succeed if we all succeed.