October 28, 2009 47 Comments

Overnight Success 4 – The Competition

Step right up, kids. This is part 4 of the Overnight Success series. This one is about competition. If you can’t see the video, click here.

What do you think about competition? Does this resonate?

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  • http://www.mycultivatedlife.com/ Angela

    I've enjoyed the series and appreciate you talking about what's really involved in becoming an “overnight success.” The hard work and perseverance are the same online and offline, but this is definitely an important message online where the typically message is the exact opposite. Thing worth doing seldom come easily!

  • http://twitter.com/Brandon101 Brandon Sutton

    This really resonates with me Chris, and I appreciate you putting it out there and affirming it. I'm making it a point today to look forward, not sideways. Thanks for the inspiration!

  • http://freelancewritinggigs.com Deb Ng

    Nice. I always says “there's no competition, only colleagues or people to share ideas with.”

    We are our only competition.

  • http://www.lifewithoutpants.com Matt Cheuvront

    Well said Chris – we are always looking around us to measure our own success but as you said, it all comes down to the goals we set for ourselves. It shouldn't matter what everyone else is doing, what everyone else is saying. In the end, each of us has something special and unique to offer. Focus on what you bring to the table, and how you can improve your own approach.

  • http://twitter.com/communitygirl Angela Connor

    Nice! It's what we called your “PR” when I ran track in high school and college.
    Know your PR. It's your personal record. Always strive to beat it. You enter every race focused on your PR. That keeps the race inside. Love any analogy that relates to track and field. It's a very personal sport. Even on a relay team you want to beat your PR. It is always about your performance.

  • http://josephrooks.com Joseph Rooks

    In a lot of areas people just perceive the competition to be too tight and believe there's no room for them, which, as I've learned in starting my technology consulting business, is simply not the case at all.

  • http://www.inspir-it.com Charlotte

    This absolutely resonates.

    I think people use the competition with others thing as an excuse. They say “Aw, that guy's doing so much better. He must have gotten a leg up. He must have something I don't have” – and then that's their excuse for not trying as hard or getting out there every day and doing the thing (whatever their thing is) because, well, they don't have that mysterious advantage.

    The reality is that the only “advantage” successful people have is hard work. And anyone can work hard.

  • http://jennifervalerie.com Fruitfulvine2

    You are so right. There will always be those who are bigger and better than us and those who are not as big and good as we are. I read a book once that basically said the same thing. You have to strive to be better than your best. Compete with yourself and you won't have to worry about hurting someone else's feelings or feeling like you're a failure because you are not measuring up to whomever.

    I receive this message from you with all my heart because I am striving to grow and excel in building my blog and I need to have the right focus. There have been times this month when I've been tempted to look at someone else's stats and compare myself but I've firmly refused to do it and instead looked to where I was in the accomplishment of my goals for October. This helped me keep my focus and not get distracted.

    I'm learning from the best but not attempting to compete with anyone.

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  • http://elizabethpottsweinstein.com ElizabethPW

    The whole “overnight success” idea is awesome, nothing pisses me off more than when people describe someone as an overnight success when I know that the person has typically be working their butt off for 5-10+ years.

    Comparison to others is such poison to people! I can't tell you how many times I have thought (for a second), oh, I only have 11K followers, look at @unmarketing with 40K or @chrisbrogan with 100K or various celebrities with 1M, I'm so far behind. rflol & wtf!!

    As soon as I stopped worrying about where everyone else is, and just concentrated on being the most excellent I could be at what I uniquely do, that's when everything started happening for me. Overnight. Except it took 6 years.

  • http://twitter.com/KarlynM Karlyn Morissette

    “no one ever won a race looking sideways”…I love it :-)

  • http://twitter.com/RicNunez Ricardo Nunez

    Chris,
    you are right in the initial statement, I thought that everybody got it already. There's not overnight success at all, people need to work hard and hustle(@garyvee imitation). This series is great and I hope you continue doing it. by the way, cheers to your overnight success!!!

  • Carolynrhiggins

    Chris-
    Great series, I've enjoyed watching. This one really hit home, setting goals and getting out of your own way is key. We are our biggest roadblocks to success. With a postitive attitude, hard work and drive for success we can all be successes – maybe not overnight, but success nonetheless.

  • denvan

    Thanks Chris. Great thought. As a guy who helps companies analyze and “out-position” their competitors, you can imagine I deal with a lot of this “backward looking” kind of thinking. But as I tell clients. It's not about copying, it's not about beating yourself up, it's about learning to make yourself better / connect with yourt customers on a deeper level.

    DenVan (Beg to Differ)

  • leahtremain

    Thanks Chris – everything on my to do list today? That's my benchmark. I'm gettin' it done. Thanks for telling it straight and short.

  • http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

    Excellent way to say it, DenVan. Thanks for your perspective. : )

  • http://smobot.com smobot

    But in a race by himself, only Jesus is the first and the last.

  • http://twitter.com/BeckyBlanton_ Becky Blanton

    I equate competition with “being better than,” so yeah – makes sense to only compete with yourself and to be better than you were. Success? Varies from person to person. If I'm doing what I love and making a living at it – that's success!

  • crbrowning

    Love the running analogy Chris – as a former high school and college XC runner – that hits home!

  • http://twitter.com/gillestheriault Gilles Theriault

    Very well said and very good analogy used! Love the series and actually using it with my students. It is a great class starter, and great conversation, arguments.

    Chris we know you are a very busy man. But if you have time, a lot of students are saying it is easy for you to say those things when you are up there. Like no excuse!, looking straight ahead, reach your goal, but when you are like us, meaning, young, no money, hardly what we can call a computer! How and where to start? Or, how did you start? Your Time line before having success? The idea that trigger you thinking process of using the web for your success? A little background for those questions, they are referring to example like Micheal Jordan, Donald Trump, Thomas Edison…

    Mind you that I will by your book and probably will be able to answer those questions after reading it :)

    Keep it up, because I and my students really like your approach and as mention before, great conversation revolving around you videos!

    Cheers,
    GT

  • Vijay

    Great video Chris – I think your “looking sideways” comment is absolutely spot on from a big picture perspective. However, I do have to say that in planning your goals, your strategy, and your “plan of attack” for any situation (especially in a business sense), it's important to take inventory of what's going on around you and strategize accordingly. At the end, it's all about being aware. Keep it up, looking forward to hearing more.

  • http://wingsofwax.ca Ian M Rountree

    The look on your face when you say “No one ever won a race looking… SIDEWAYS” is just awesome. The phrase is very true as well – probably one of the biggest “don't miss this one folks” ideas in the video. Awesome.

  • http://onestopebookshop.blinkweb.com nthomas00

    Yeah, it resonates with me. It makes a lot of sense. If a runner keeps looking sideways at his or her competition, they will just pass him or her right by. Focusing on being unique and being ahead of the competition is what counts.

  • http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

    Difference is between looking once and looking so often that you fall down. : )

  • http://chrisbrogan.com Chris Brogan

    My book's not about me. Julien and I wrote it about you, actually.

    Everyone starts somewhere. It took me 8 years to get 100 readers. It costs no money to get this kind of success. It costs no money to talk on these services (or really cheap). And yet, it takes time, nurturing, thinking, and lots of effort. That's what people don't really do.

  • Vijay

    Couldn't have said it better myself!

  • http://arttrap.com Louis Trapani

    I love the running analogy. No one ever wins a race looking sideways or backwards.

    It reminds me a little of what I tell my friends and colleagues about those that try to drag you down and feel the need to engage with those that do. Don't fight your way down, fight your way up. In other words, stay focus doing what you do and doing it the best you can.

    It's true the real competition is within ourselves. Sometimes taking the form of self-sabotage in achieving the goals. That and fear (which is part of it) are probably the fiercest competition we face within ourselves.

  • thomsinger

    You are making good points in this series. I especially like this one. It is interesting how many people feel that if someone else “wins” — that somehow they have “lost”. I think it is best to celebrate the victories of others. When one person has a big success it is proof that the next guy can also have success. This life is NOT a zero sum game.

  • http://www.lookwhatmomfound.com Rob Babiak

    Chris – Love the “Overnight Success” series so far. Todays piece on competition was great. People are always looking to benchmark themselves against their competition to measure their success. I like the runner analagy. It is so true if you are looking around at your competition they are going to blow your doors off. Look ahead and run your own race. That is how you are successful.

  • http://nateriggs.com nateriggs

    Yeah dude. This post reminded me of my high school swim coach. He taught us the same lessons. Sure, you had team mates, and in the end, one team beat the other team. But once you hit the starting block, the only person you were really racing was yourself and your time.

    This is a good series, Chris. I'm getting fired up…

  • http://www.donmartelli.com Don Martelli

    This is spot on Chris. The funny thing these days is that there are so many social media “gurus” out there and they are all clawing at each other for the stage. As you astutely pointed out, if you keep driving yourself towards goals, keep pushing yourself to do better and do good work (as you say), then you don't have to worry about the competition. As long as you are driving business, keeping client programs moving and doing your job to your best of your ability, everything else will work out. Those that worry about the competition just get stuck in the he said she said game and don't really progress.

    Simple thinking, yet very, very smart Chris. Nice work.

  • elliebecker

    This is so true. Many times I've heard PR colleagues say, “Oh we never put our ideas in a proposal. why should we give them away. They'll hire someone else and they'll just steal our ideas.” I have always believed in giving prospects and 'competitors' ideas. First it's the only way they can fairly judge my ability to think on their behalf. And second, an idea is only an idea. Success is tied up with getting from the idea to great implementation. Giving an idea is not giving a road map to success. There are other companies who are doing a better job than I am in certain regards and I choose to use their successes as learning opportunities as I'm sure companies also use my successes. So yes, I'm totally on board with the idea that we are our own and only competition! Chris, you're one mentally healthy guy! Refreshing!!!

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  • http://xeesm.com/carlosrhernandez CarlosHernandez

    The inner competition could be a lack of self-confidence or the other extreme, hubris.

    All to often, in my 28 year corporate life, I ranged from one end to the other and it usually was a function of my achieving (or not) my monthly sales and profit quota.

    Today, I am absent the quota but still wrestle with the definition of “success”. Is it my own? How my friends see me? My spouse's?

  • http://www.targetstarsblog.com latoshajohnson

    I am thoroughly enjoying this series! I agree 100% that if you're too busy looking at everyone else and wondering what they think about you then who is left running your business? No one. If you spend your time focusing on your strengths you will achieve success. Thanks for the inspiration!

  • http://wpnicheground.com/ Cjniche

    That is so true…
    Competition coming from inside is the most effective motivation for developing and creativity.

  • http://envisionGood.tv/ katrinah

    I love this series, it's really inspirational, thank you Chris. It's so true: “the only competition is with yourself”. And I'll add, with “TIme”. Especially if you're starting a new venture as I am, it is the race w/ time that I keep focusing on: Time to get all the tasks done needed to close a deal before the bank closes me. Haha! I wish everyone success : )

  • http://www.rerockstar.com Matt Stigliano – @rerockstar

    One of the first things I noted when I got into real estate and became involved with the blogging/social media side of things was an incredible willingness of top agents to share with me. Everything from hints and ideas to flat out sending me their best listing presentations and newsletters.

    What I noticed was that those people all viewed the real estate world as one without competition. Essentially, they all strived to be their best, not better than the “other guy.” In many ways, this made them better than the others in their local markets in terms of traditional benchmarks of success.

    In my own market, I spend a lot of time sharing with other agents. I don't mind as I know that if a consumer elects to use them over me, they probably wouldn't have been a good fit for me. I want clients who want to work with me, not just mass number of clients.

    Great series Chris. You said a lot of things at BlogWorld that hit home with me and I'm glad I had a chance to speak with you briefly while I was there.

  • http://www.rerockstar.com Matt Stigliano – @rerockstar

    One of the first things I noted when I got into real estate and became involved with the blogging/social media side of things was an incredible willingness of top agents to share with me. Everything from hints and ideas to flat out sending me their best listing presentations and newsletters.

    What I noticed was that those people all viewed the real estate world as one without competition. Essentially, they all strived to be their best, not better than the “other guy.” In many ways, this made them better than the others in their local markets in terms of traditional benchmarks of success.

    In my own market, I spend a lot of time sharing with other agents. I don't mind as I know that if a consumer elects to use them over me, they probably wouldn't have been a good fit for me. I want clients who want to work with me, not just mass number of clients.

    Great series Chris. You said a lot of things at BlogWorld that hit home with me and I'm glad I had a chance to speak with you briefly while I was there.

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  • marryroy01

    I think it is best to celebrate the victories of others. When one person has a big success it is proof that the next guy can also have success. This life is NOT a zero sum game.I appreciate you putting it out there and affirming it. I'm making it a point today to look forward, not sideways.

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    But today was great competition piece. People are always against your competition looking to benchmark themselves measure their success. I like analagy runner. That's true if you look around your competition are they going to blow your doors are. Look ahead and run your own race. That is, how successful you are.

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