Coach Pete discusses how to keep a competitive mindset in your family business.
In case you didn’t notice, it’s become an extremely competitive world. When stalwarts like GM go out of business or are on the brink of going out of business, you know anybody can be in trouble. In fact, I can’t think of any place where you don’t have to be competitive, except for maybe the federal government, post office, no delivery on Saturday. You get the picture.
You have to be competitive to stay in business. As I work with family businesses, it’s really interesting to hear their stories, because the younger generations tend to have been a little bit insulated from some of the tougher times. They’ve grown up with a bit of abundance, with a little sense of security, but when I talk to the older generations, they talk about the times where they really worked hard, scrapped together to survive. Successful long-standing family businesses know that they need to foster and build a competitive spirit in their company. This is an art in and of itself. You never want to rest on your laurels.
You want a competitive mindset throughout the organization. In this deliberate practice, the business results you’re going to produce are; an appreciation for the very nature of competition, an increased competitive spirit, an increased energy for producing higher results. So here is the steps. First, assess your own natural competitive state. Secondly, assess your company’s competitive mindset and competitive position in the marketplace. Next, really look and see how your company has performed against its competitors. And lastly, identify two new practices that would increase your competitive spirit.
Just so you know, I’m not talking about becoming a win-at-all-costs kind of guy, except for at Scrabble at the cabin. But truthfully, you want to have a good competitive spirit, and you want to engage in what I call, conscious capitalism. You want to be a great competitor, but yet you also want others in the marketplace to succeed. So email me, take me up on any free coaching, if you’d like, via email with questions about this or how you can proceed forward. And please, encourage your other family members to join us in these practices. Email me, and coach me, and tell me how I can even add more value and be more support to you and your family business.
And lastly, keep practicing, daily, monthly, weekly, over your whole career. That’s how you’ll get to the hall of fame. One of the guys I love to study is Vince Lombardi. And what he said was, “Nothing is more satisfying than to leave the field knowing you had given it your all, and you had done your best to compete.” So get out there, compete, and play to your potential. I’ll see you back here real soon.
