From such a young age we learn about competitiveness, and how the more competitive you are, the greater the opportunity to springboard yourself forward. This doesn’t end when you become an adult, in fact, it can heighten. You compete for: better marks, for a job, for the next role in a business, for attention from your boss, for your friend’s attention, your children’s attention… the list goes on.
Competition is healthy. It makes you tougher. it makes you strive further. It keeps you from becoming complacent. That all sounds good. But there are limitations.
The risk with being competitive is that your own performance and outcomes are based on the results of others. Which can result in:
- Missing bigger, more encompassing opportunities that can only come from the magic of collaborating.
- Keeping your growth limited to a ceiling above that of others versus exploring the enormity of your potential capacity can hold you back without you even realising.
- Living a life where it’s all about you. From my experience, when more people can enjoy in the fruits of success and not just one person, it makes for a greater sense of fulfilment. I also believe that finding purpose in your life, which centres around others in one-way shape or form, is far more enriching than having a competitive mindset.
More reasons to share your knowledge:
- When you share you teach which is a great way of practicing your craft.
- Other people bring opinions and thoughts that you haven’t considered, creating a think tank dynamic, resulting in two minds becoming three. The third being the mind of the combined minds.
- You build a community of value minded not competitive minded – and this makes for more openness, more sharing, more expertise, and more support.
Worth Noting: Be mindful that if you are sharing and collaborating with others, always paint a precise picture of both the benefits and risks involved. If you are not the best person to provide the full story than connect someone else that can. And if you are on the receiver end, ask questions, do your own due diligence, don’t just rely on one person’s experience, talk to a variety of people.