Competition and that not good enough feeling

First Published 26 May 2022

When it comes to running a small business and sorting out business plans and the like, we are asked to list our competition.  This used to really frustrate me.
 
In fact, when I still ‘pitched’ my photography business at networking meetings, I was faced with other photographers that saw me as their competition and then gave me the cold shoulder – this puzzled me further when it was wedding photographers, as, that really isn’t a favourite of mine and so I would be more likely to pass over their card than mine if I was asked to shoot a wedding!

When it comes to business, I like to work in a collaborative way as I find that’s a much nicer world to be in. 

As you will have seen from the Therapists in Conversation recordings I take part in (don’t forget to like and subscribe 😉), we have conversations with the aim to highlight our skills, personalities and ways of working, and then market them all together. 

I talk to/collaborate with coaches and kinesiologists on an almost daily basis.  (And I go on monthly photo trips with fellow photographers – I network and socialise with some of them too.  Shockingly some of them are even nice people… and are maybe even reading this post 😘) 

The bottom line is – I’m not going to be the right coach for everyone, and so the best thing I can do, is to create relationships so that I can signpost people if I am not the right fit – and my fellow coaches will do the same in return.  The important thing is to work with people in a way to get the best results for them.

But let’s raise the topic of that annoying voice in our head from last week again… 

That voice is usually the one that triggers the desire to give the cold shoulder, the dislike/distrust and then the inevitable stream of ‘what if’s’:

• What if that person is better than me?
• What if that other person talks about me and sabotages me from doing x y or z?
• What if they think I am an amateur/pretender?
• What if I am not good enough?

Perhaps taking that pause again, and reframing all these questions is where we need to go:

• What if I am as good as that other person? 
• What if I talk to that other person and get to know them, maybe we can work together? 
• What if I am an expert?
• What if I am more than enough?

When it comes to competition, we are our own biggest competitor (occasionally, our own worst enemy too!). 

Perhaps focusing on being better than we were a year ago, a month ago, a week ago or maybe even an hour ago would be a healthier focus?

Rather than keeping up with the Jones’s we would be better to focus on keeping up with ourselves. 
Always striving to be the best version of ourselves.  And doing it with care, compassion, and love. 

We don’t have to beat ourselves up over not making an improvement every minute of every day.  We can even take a duvet day now and again too 😉