The 3Cs to Competition-Proof Yourself in this New World
Indeed, change is inevitable; change is constant. With the pace at which society progresses, business owners strive to find new strategies and ways to dominate their markets and they have to do whatever it takes to survive no matter how bleak the future might look for the economy especially these days.
Yes, times do get tough and always, we need to equip ourselves and our businesses to get ready with what the future has in store for us. Let me share with you here, the 3 Cs to Competition-Proof yourself in this new world.
Competition is a Myth
Survival of the fittest is a widely used and accepted term in business and everywhere else. To survive is to compete against others fighting for the same resources. Almost always, it’s not healthy. See, the gist here is that, for you to achieve your goals and flourish, someone else must not succeed in achieving their goals. And you are seen as superior only when you beat your competition, it’s the ultimate triumph! But do we always have to see each other as competitors? Is being better have to mean bringing someone else down?
The idea of having to compete and needing to win against another entity is ingrained in every business and culture, so how do you protect yourself and your business from falling prey and just simply survive in this so-called competition?
Expand! Why fish in a small pond when you can go to the ocean and catch more and even bigger fishes? When you expand your business to different locations, areas, and different sets of people, you expose your products and services to a broader audience. Be open to all and increase your customer base. In this way, you will be able to convert more customers and improve your sales.
Always, remember that competition is a myth! Because the world is vast, you can expand your business and expand your mind!
Collaborate
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. A holistic, diversified approach can help – Collaboration. See, when you put all your eggs in one basket and for whatever reason, the basket gets knocked over, all your eggs will break and you will lose them all in one shot. However, if you put your eggs in several different baskets, the chances of losing them all in one go will be avoided.
Successful businesses are huge because usually, they operate across markets so that even if one market is not performing well they can rely on other markets to average returns.
Now, to be truly successful in expanding your business and achieve greater geographical spread, collaborate and team up with other businesses. Advertise together, share marketing efforts, co-author presentations, co-brand products, and redirect business to each other’s websites. Increase learning possibilities when you partner up with others or share your services and skills with other businesses. Be a mentor to one another. When you foster collaboration, you deepen ties and assure longevity which, in return, will benefit everyone: business, employees, and customers.
Create
Creativity is the key to survival. In today’s highly competitive global environment, companies who can think outside of the box are able to sell more of their services and more of their products. Creativity is what fuels big ideas and challenges our way of thinking. But then, how do you keep your mind to be more creative and innovative? Continuous learning!
Be a life-long learner. Extend your learning and increase your knowledge about society, the economy, and the world. Successful business owners don’t stop with what they already know, successful business owners continue to attend seminars, earn certificates, and attend workshops. When your knowledge and skills are basic your creative confidence is not enough for you to collaborate and share innovative ideas. Continuous learning supports the improvement of knowledge, skills, and tools to support organizational goals. Cultivate a thirst for knowledge and let your imagination run wild. As your mind grows, ideas flow and the need to collaborate becomes an exciting journey to deepen ties and better business relations. A creatively innovative mind opens the door to new business opportunities and better business relationships.
So don’t forget! Understand that competition is a myth, instead, look at the world as your clients. Remember to avoid seeing other businesses as competitors, assuming they want you to fail. Again, competing is not the be-all-end-all to survive, rather, survive by being constantly in the mode of creation. And with your creativity, collaborate and learn from other businesses so that you may grow successful together. It is possible!
3S to Effectively Work From Home
If you just started to work from home, you’ll find it’s not always easy. It’s nice to be able to lounge on your sofa and relax in your bed with your laptop, just typing away, or to be able to prep some snacks and eat it while working at the same time in your dining area. Sure! But then you begin to notice that you’re unable to finish your work on time. At one point, you’re happily typing up a report to present at the meeting tomorrow and the next thing you know, you are staring straight at your TV getting all hyped up with the soap opera only your mother was so excited about. You have practically jumped from one area of your home to another but for some reason, your attention keeps getting diverted to somewhere else that your mind finds more entertaining. You soon realize that it is more chaotic working at home than it did when you were working in the office.
So let me share with you what worked for me before and up to now, as I, too, have had some difficulties working from home.
1. Space
Society has a fixed and oversimplified image or idea of how a person working from home looks like. Work from home advertisements would picture somebody drinking coffee on her favorite sofa chair fiddling on a Tablet. In reality, it’s more complicated than that. As much as you’d like to move from the living room to the dining room and vice versa, you’ll always find it hard to concentrate on your work.
Give yourself some space, a dedicated workspace. It can be a small separate room in your home or a small area inside your bedroom. Ensure its cleanliness and orderliness. Just as Marie Kondo would say it, “Discard everything that does not spark joy.” Declutter and then organize. Keep it minimal by only having the stuff that you think is required in your office. To list down your goals, create a scoreboard, and To-do List by getting yourself a Writing Board. Don’t forget to add a table, chair and other useful fixtures such as a stand-up desk or a cabinet to keep your files and book in order.
Another thing to consider when working from home is a High-speed Internet. You’d need good quality internet to connect with your clients and managers. Avoid using pocket or mobile Wi-Fi connections that’ll cause any latency problem and will only add to your worry. Pocket and mobile Wi-Fi connections are best as back up connections in case of any downtime in your high-speed internet connection.
Lastly, you’d need to invest in good quality hardware and software. Get a laptop with a webcam and a good quality microphone. Download the latest updates for your software and other tools required to execute your work properly. You’d need these during meetings, transferring files online from one person to another, and sending out information to clients and other work staff.
2. Schedule
Follow a schedule. Dedicate time for play and work. Depending on you and your family’s lifestyle, work according to what is most convenient to you and your family. You can split your hours or work straight on a set schedule.
Once you have established your working hours, stick to it as much as you can. It is essential to follow a routine. Start your day by checking daily goals and comparing your yesterday’s tasks from today. This way, you’ll be able to map out your work hours and follow through easily.
When the day is done, make sure to quit working. Have a method to break your work hours when the time is up. Some people would change their clothes, others would drink tea to relax, and I’d turn off my work apps on my phone and simply shut my laptop off.
Another way to start your day right is to get dressed for work. Wake up, take a bath and dress for work. It doesn’t need to be formal, just as long as you’re not in your pajamas and you’re feeling fresh.
Most of all, turn off all phones, unnecessary apps, the television, and close the door if you think it will add a distraction to you and your work routine.
3. Support
Seek the support of your family and friends by making them understand the importance of your time when working and the value of work you need to put in. Explain that you have a special time for your work just as you do when you are spending quality time with them and that during those work hours, you request not to be bothered by anyone unless it’s an emergency.
And there you have it, the 3S to effectively work from home.
With the right space, schedule set in place, and support from family and friends, you will find working from home is as beneficial as others would say it to be.