Five reasons to choose collaboration over competition!
It’s no surprise that I’m a big collaboration fan. What about you? But why choose collaboration over competition?
Let’s start at the beginning…
What is collaboration?
The dictionary definition is ‘the action of working with someone to produce something’. That doesn’t sound very inspiring does it! So why am I a big fan?
Collaboration is so much more.
It’s about the possibilities that appear through the potential, ideas, and energy of the whole group.
It’s about creating a win-win rather than a win-lose.
It’s about curiosity, connections and working together to find a solution.
It’s about creating so much more than the sum of the parts.
The definition of competition isn’t surprising, it’s ‘the activity or condition of striving to gain or win something by defeating or establishing superiority over others’.
I’ll admit I’m not against competitive sport and I do play to win, but not at any cost. For me it’s about doing my best, preparing and training hard, to get the best result.
But in general, business or personal, the idea of ‘defeating or establishing superiority over others’ isn’t very appealing at all. I would much rather find a pathway that allows everyone to be at their best.
Imagine what we could create if everyone was able to work to their greatest potential!
Why choose collaboration over competition? These are just FIVE of many reasons:
Great way to create step-changes in your business. It’s simple really; if you want to be incrementally better, be competitive, but if you want to be exponentially better, collaborate! The creativity and innovation that is possible when a group of people get together is part of the power beneath a successful collaboration.
Collaboration is key to thriving in the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) world. When things are changing so quickly we have to work together to find solutions to create fast paced adaptability. It ‘s no longer one person or one business with the answers and control. Combining and harnessing the ideas from many is far more powerful.
Have some FUN! With a curious and open mindset it can be so much fun collaborating with others. You will learn new skills, build new connections, create new friendships, and so much more.
You’re NOT alone. As with most projects there’s often roadblocks and challenges along the way. But when you’re collaborating there’s more than one person to find the solutions. Remember a problem shared is a problem halved!
Have you thought about turning your competition into collaborators? What if the overlap was actually an opportunity to grow both businesses? Look for the bigger picture, see the possibilities and you never know what might happen!
Tips to help you create your own successful collaborations:
Bring Curious and Open mindset with you. It’s easy to fall into the trap of comparison and competition because that’s the way things often work. So consciously choose to be curious, choose to be open to new ways of doing things, choose to let go of control and allow everyone to take on leadership roles.
Why are you doing it? Are you clear about why you are choosing to collaborate. Are your goals aligned? Will this collaboration help all parties involved? What would you like to get out of it? What will make the collaboration a win-win for all?
Communicate, communicate, communicate. Be clear with your communications, if it’s not working raise the issue and find a solution. Equally as important is to clearly communicate who’s doing what and when.
Choose wisely! Although I love collaborations they are a potential time wasting trap. It’s easy to get caught up in the process and lose sight of why you started it.
I’m a sucker for a good collaboration!