Competition into Collaboration - A Formula for Success

It’s one thing to know our own strengths and weaknesses in business. It is also important to know the same about your competitors.

Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs don’t take the time to find out about their competitors until it is too late. Knowing your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses puts you in a better position to compete by marketing more effectively, and helps you find potential partnerships.

Often the very people who are your greatest competitors can make incredible partners. Such was the case with me and Lori Giovannoni. Though I considered her to be one of my biggest threats early on when it came to securing speaking contracts within specific markets, there came a day when we both realized we could bring more to some of our clients by collaborating on projects.

Lori and I gained a reputation for bringing incredible value and energy to events where we shared the platform. With the success we experienced by joining forces, we also secured a few consulting contracts together in the Salt Lake market. From there we partnered on some writing projects including the book 101 Ways to Get Your Foot in the Door: Success Strategies Guaranteed to Put You Miles Ahead of the Competition.

What started as a way to more fully serve our clients turned into a life-changing experience when Lori’s world turned upside down. It was this situation that solidified the belief that your greatest competitors can turn out to be your most amazing collaborators. It allowed us to collaborate on the book The Law of Achievement: Discover Your Purpose, Possibility and Potential.

The following is from the foreword of The Law of Achievement:

The idea for this book began many years ago as a result of numerous conversations. Having both achieved multiple levels of success, we wanted to share with others what achievement meant to us. Although we knew someday we would write the book we were continually sidetracked with never-ending professional endeavors.

We went from thinking about writing the book to being guided to write the book through one event that changed the course of many lives. It is through this event our belief that the only point of power is in the now was reinforced like never before.

At 6:19 pm on September 2, 2005, our world stopped. Troy Roper Jr., Lori’s husband and Kathleen’s dear friend, was in a severe motorcycle accident. The pursuit of business, joint ventures and material concerns came to a screaming halt.

For 102 days our lives revolved around the shock trauma unit, surgery, intensive care, doctors, nurses and an endless stream of visitors and well-wishers. Lori slept in Troy’s room every night and Kathleen relieved Lori every day.

There was no word or conce
about business issues. Priorities were rearranged and the world had shifted on its axis. When the crisis subsided it was evident we all had changed. Our beliefs and values had been tempered and some of them changed completely. Our greatest lesson and realization is that far too often we had lived in “someday.” Troy’s accident reminded us to live in today, cherishing each moment. After over eight months of recovery, Troy continues to inspire us.

People tend to put off until “someday” what they really would like to do today. The delays come for many reasons. Time, money, laziness, no sense of urgency or just plain not getting around to it.

Starting as a someday project that we dabbled with for years, Troy’s accident transformed this book into a today project. When we sat down to write The Law of Achievement, we knew it was destined to be a book that impacted many and made a difference not only to its readers but to people outside of the traditional business market.

This definitely shows that even our greatest competitors can become our most valued partners.

Think of your own competitors. Who among them could be fabulous collaborators?