We Can All Be Nice to One Another When We Do Business
Why does business need to a be cut-throat, ruthless, zero-sum game?
It doesn’t. You can still be successful by being nice – and in point of fact, I think that you can be even more successful if you unlearn some of the awful lessons that the corporate world teaches.
This is especially important to small business owners and others who are the face of their brand. The businesses we create are extensions of ourselves. Do you want to be seen as cold-blooded and heartless? I don’t. It’s not me – and if you’re a regular listener, I know it’s not you either.
We treat our customers differently – with compassion and respect. We don’t try to control them – we work every day to earn their trust. Consumer behavior has changed. Today, trust is the only path to a purchase.
This week, Episode 93 is about defying “conventional wisdom” about business. It feels good, and it works. Listen to it here or subscribe in your favorite podcast player.
Show Notes
Here are links to the articles I mentioned in the episode:
- Last week’s episode was the introduction to this series: What Content Strategy Teaches You About Business.
- Here’s the episode on comparing customer selection to a hiring to decision: Picking the Right Customers.
Next week’s episode will be called: The Service Disposition – We Exist to Serve Others. Subscribe here (and select podcast / every new post) if you’d like to be notified as soon when it’s published!
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I could not agree more, Michael. I wrote a post on this topic, and wanted to share it with you (if you’re interested): https://www.thedanmartinadventure.com/blog/is-there-a-difference-between-the-expertise-journey-and-being-the-best. The idea that, to step up, you need to step on someone else, is outdated, and is indicative of a larger problem in our society as a whole. I agree that, as you say, those who understand that not all of business needs to be a competition are those who are the most successful in the end.
Thank you Dan – I like your take on it, too. It starts with respect. And if you’re playing the long game, the results multiply. Trust is earned slowly alone, but when trust is transferred on your behalf – it shortens the cycle a great deal.