At SuperbStrategy we have assimilated extremely useful learning lessons that have served to train us in a more efficient and innovative way in our career as "Business Strategists". The personal stories of our founders have been a source of inspiration and strategic direction that have fine-tuned our own methodologies with which we ultimately benefit our clients.
Our CEO and founder, Edgar Lamela, represents an ideal example of what we want to share on this blog. One of the most relevant chapters in his personal history has been his experience as a motorcycle competition champion. From his competitive spirit and his athlete's personality we have nurtured ourselves to adopt the best strategies and accurately and successfully outline solutions for our clients.
Contrary to what some may think, racing motorcycling requires great physical preparation, even above that of many other main sports that seem more intense. We know that during a race or in training, a pilot's heart exceeds 90% of maximum heart rate, so he must have a very good aerobic base and a high anaerobic tolerance capacity to maintain the rhythm throughout a race during more than 40 minutes. In addition, his physical condition must be excellent to keep muscles tension and apply force for extreme positions during most of the competition, exerting g-forces of up to 1.2g during cornering and as high as 2g during braking, making the bike (and rider) effectively weigh half a ton on the brakes.
Throughout the race, a rider must maintain an aerodynamic position that allows him to gain greater speed while maintaining control of his bike.
Finally, and most importantly, the pilot's brain has to be able to make appropriate decisions at 300 km/hr. Any mistake can be fatal, not only for him but also for other competitors as well, so ethics and good practices should be part of the competitive strategy.
Strategy Infused with Competitiveness
To Compete vs. To Combat/Fight
Keys to Competitiveness
Strategy Infused with Competitiveness
Commonly, when we hear the words Competitive Spirit we associate it directly with the sports world, however, when we speak in the field of business and entrepreneurship becomes a strategic issue.
Edgar, based on his experience and his high-competition athlete philosophy, sets a differentiating stamp on our consulting agency, promoting the adoption of key strategic principles and conceptualizing our own definition of competitiveness. From there, we define it as the ability to compete in the social and business environment to gain greater advantages over other players. To achieve these advantages, it was essential for SuperbStrategy to develop the necessary competencies, that is, the abilities and skills to function in the field, such as discipline, perseverance, analytical study, effort, focus, intentionality, and mastery of the strategy.
In our work sessions with clients, and during the initial stage of diagnosis, we evaluate, among other things, their competitive spirit and skills to succeed. We definitely believe that these, together with the desire to achieve higher goals, will directly influence the success of the business and serve to inspire the internal team, external collaborators and even the target market, making this a unique advantage.
Consequently, those who develop a competitive profile will not be afraid to try innovation, nor to push the boundaries of what is feasible (and ethical), which can lead to discovering interesting opportunities that other less competitive players do not identify.
Compete vs. Combat/Fight
COMPETE:
Competing is taught, trained, learned.
Invokes discipline and guides the search for excellence.
Allows you to understand and progressively master the processes, to overcome internal barriers, overcome difficulties and be better every day.
Faced with the approach of perceiving others as rivals, he becomes his own rival, competing with himself to learn, improve and move towards professional and personal excellence. Then the rival ceases to be and becomes just an adversary. The teammate also ceases to be a possible internal rival and is another ally in permanent learning.
Competing promotes integrity, values and ethics.
Competing is not about beating others, but about surpassing yourself.
COMBAT/FIGHT:
It is questioned and discredited, remember the political practices.
Fighting is associated with winning, mercilessly overcoming, achieving success, standing out, earning money, making your way through frenetic and ruthless competition.
It is also related to the absence of morality, being disloyal, dishonest, "climbing", achieving success at all costs. It is an approach associated with runaway, dehumanized capitalism.
Fighting is frowned upon by many in today's society.
It is an approach that seeks success or ego satisfaction by the quickest and shortest path.
Discourages learning, fair competition and excellence.
Keys to Competitiveness
Here we share fundamental concepts and recommendations to develop competitiveness in companies and their teams:
Practice resilience: manage your own demands, overcome difficulties, manage conflicts and frustrations
Emotional intelligence: social skills, empathy, assertive communication, managing corrections
Teamwork: align personal interests with collective objectives, assume and respect rules, establish commitment and complicity, accept and improve one's own role
Leadership: exert influence, conciliate, be exemplary
Be proactive: internalize values such as effort, humility, respect, generate work habits, take initiatives, be an entrepreneur, be creative
Healthy living habits: leisure and free time, personal agenda, rest, food, affective, family and friendship relationships.
Learning from mistakes: making mistakes helps in analysis, search for solutions, rectification, learning and evolving. It makes no sense to fear mistakes, to be afraid of being wrong or failing.
Demand to accelerate learning processes: the demand adapted to the level of competence puts them in a state of alert, takes them out of the comfort zone, encourages effort and materializes in learning and development.
Anticipate unforeseen events: stimulates reflexes, decision making, and adaptability. We have to be prepared even for the unforeseen, know how to manage any situation that arises by surprise.
Accept discrepancy: the debate opens up opportunities, such as reviewing one's own point of view, opening up to new opinions, enriching one's own thinking, reaching compromises, reinforcing the bond or complicity, seeing the personal or professional relationship strengthened. Disagreeing does not have to be the end of anything, but a step to move forward and consolidate learning and complicity.
Change or novelty stimulates learning: managing and adapting to changes is key in a society that is constantly advancing. What is worth today will change tomorrow. Living in a state of alert to manage changes is to understand that these are learning opportunities.
The rival or adversary in the competition is an accomplice in the learning and development process. In the competition, the rival evaluates your skills and portrays your level of preparation. Also, be mindful that they can counter your strategies too.
Víctor Manrique
COO SuperbStrategy
About SuperbStrategy
Located in Miami, the cradle of Latin American entrepreneurship, SuperbStrategy is the consultancy specialized in strategic growth that is evolving the way companies grow and positively impact the world. With a unique growth model, proprietary tools and methodologies, SuperbStrategy provides its clients with the strategy, solutions and support during implementation to unleash the maximum potential of businesses to make them grow to new levels and transcend.
For more information, please visit the website: www.superbstrategy.com