The lifestyle of an entrepreneur reminds me so very much of my time as a competitive martial artist.  I often look back at those wonderful years of my life.  This happens more often than one might suspect.  The lessons picked up during a martial arts career are life-long and they pertain to every fine thing we do in our lives.  It is vital to keep the mind and spirit part of the training as close to our hearts as we can.  It needs to be in constant motion and it needs to be a forefront of our livelihood.

The two things I recall coming face-to-face with time after time were humility and adversity.  I know that may sound negative at first.  But really it is not.  Humility, alone, is a lesson that we can’t live without.  It is vital to suffer humility and adversity.  You should not be afraid of either.  If you’re afraid of these than your afraid to take risks, and taking risks in an entrepreneur’s business is our business.  Suffering humility is what allows us to adjust, make changes and advance.  We can then better ourselves and through that experience come out stronger and more disciplined.  Adversity plays the same role.  It all comes down to what a martial artist calls indomitable spirit:  a refusal to be beaten. So you might be wondering how all this applies to an entrepreneur?  I know, bear with me here for a moment.  It’s quite simple.  I recall the times when I got into the ring at a tournament and stood face-to-face with my opponent.  Is she stronger than I am, faster, more flexible, or more skillful?  It literally became a mind-over-matter issue.  I could either work myself up with the negative thoughts, or I could focus on what I did best and psyche myself up with that positivity.  And then follow through with it and bring that to the table.  And to this very day, I apply this to my professional career.  I look adversity right in the face, and think: “Bring it on!  You may be stronger, or you may be tougher than I am, but you will not outdo me.  You will not be capable to have it all, and where you come short is where I come in.”

Adversity can be met in many different ways.  And the first rule is:  Think ahead!

You should always strive to think outside the box and to run circles around your competitors.  To do this you need to think faster, and look ahead of them.  Don’t think like they’re thinking.  Don’t do what they’re expecting.  Think different and think eccentric.  You must want it more than they do.

A good example comes to mind when I recall a short story from a book I recently read, titled Inbound Marketing.  The authors compare a business marketing strategy related to monkey wrenches.  Instead of trying to sell monkey wrenches on the internet – something with such a hot keyword in that industry – the sellers created left-handed monkey wrenches and market it that way.  They realized that no one else was selling left-handed monkey wrenches and there are a lot of left-handed people out there.  They may not have been big enough to market it the more traditional way, but they discovered an eccentric way that made them bigger.  (I know you’re not into selling tools!  But just consider the principle.) And that is what you need to realize when you face adversity and competition within your business.  Your clients probably aren’t looking so much at just one particular aspect of you or your business.  They’re looking at everything as a whole.  So stop worry and stop comparing yourself to your competition.

And the second rule:  Cognitive self-therapy!

If the anxiety becomes too much, simply stop and take a deep breath, and follow these simple 3 steps to overcome this sign of adversity.

Stop

Question

Answer

It’s so basic yet we all forget to do it.  We get so tangled up in our work and let the stress take over.  But if you stop what you’re doing, and take in a few deep breaths and take on a cognitive self-therapeutic approach to the adverse situation you will find an outcome of focus and much less anxiety.  And you will find answers. What is a cognitive self-therapeutic approach?  Quickly answer these questions when the feeling of adversity (or anxiety) hits you.  Initiating a series of simple questions and answers like this will work through that mind-over-matter issue.

Why am I feeling this anxiety?  An example answer might be:  Because her rates are lower than mine.

What does her rates lower than yours mean?  She provides services cheaper than me and therefore may be more successful than me and may be taking my potential clients.

If she takes those clients at those lower rates, what does this really mean for me?  That those clients weren’t willing to pay my rates to begin with.

Do I want clientele that aren’t willing to pay my rates?  No, I’m not willing to take on clientele that won’t meet me at what I require to meet my overhead and make a profit.

Result 1:  They’re not really my target clientele to begin with.

Is she going to make a profit at those rates?  No she is not going to make a substantial profit, and therefore she may not be around in another 6-12 months.

Result 2:  So she really is not a competitor to begin with.  She’s a traffic bump.

Now breathe, and get back to doing what you do best!

Author:  Jaimie VanSickle, J VanSickle Virtual Assistant - enabling entrepreneurs with super powers!