Do not be overwhelmed by the competition.

Competition exists everywhere. It exists in the work place while aiming for a promotion or in your business in trying to get your products to top the sales chart. Competition exists between siblings who are yet to understand that they are born unique. Even in blogging! There is the need to create relevant content. We can go on and on of different areas in life where competition exists. Competing, like change, is also a constant at different levels of progress. Let us look at the best way to take advantage of such situations:

 THE VIOLENT TAKE IT BY FORCE

This is one biblical phrase that people use often to mean if you want something you have to fight for it. It means fight to the finish. To use this strategy you have to be well aware of who the competition is; know their tactics and weaknesses. Use this information as a smart step to improve on your own strengths and networking strategies. 

 BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY

I never heard about the Blue Ocean strategy till a few days ago while speaking with a colleague of mine. This concept was introduced by W.Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne, both professors of strategy and management at INSAED. The strategy explains that rather than battling to dominate an already populated market or competing in an existing industry, you can explore the untapped waters of an uncontested market space or build a completely non-existing industry into what you want it to be.

 IGNORE THE COMPETITION

Ignore the competition and focus on your attractive advantage. What makes people attracted to you? What makes people seek for your services? Use this advantage in an innovative way to make sure your fans, audience and customers stick with you. With this strategy your character goes a long way in determining if people stick with you or not. You have to build good relationships and remain consistent to make this strategy work.

FORM AN ALLIANCE

I recently listened to an audio training of taking advantage of the man around. The man around is a person who shares a similar interest and goal with you. Rather than working at logger heads with your competitor it is better to work together. We would agree that two are better than one. “If you want to go fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go together.” Get to form good relationships with those in your professional, academic or social field.

You will be up against competition all your life and there is no doubt that healthy competition pushes you to do better but remember to "be so good they can't ignore you" - Steve Martin.