I cannot imagine what it must be like to be a single child. My earliest memories of going to school and trying to “do my best” meant being as good, if not better, than my older sister. She was that “A student” getting great accolades from her teachers and making Mom feel proud during “Report Card time”. Living in the shadow of an older, successful sibling can expose you to being competitive early in life. Not necessarily in a bad way. It most definitely gives you something to shoot for, to strive for.
In every industry I have worked in, one of the major drivers for innovation was competition. Not only is “innovation” a great business buzz-word, it should be at the heart of every company. Without adapting and adjusting to changing markets and trends, a company can suffer a fate similar to that of any life form that did not adapt or change. Just ask the Dinosaurs. Here’s a great article that speaks to this.
I feel it is safe to say that healthy competition is not only good for a person as an individual, but for a group or team striving to “be #1”. In a corporate setting, not every company can be #1 in their respective industry. However, aiming for the top, companies can thrive in a competitive environment where employees, customers and end-users can benefit. Let’s say there was a sole provider of “widgets”, called “SPW”. I’m sure improvements in the design or manufacture can be justified through cost-reductions to improve their margins. However, if there was no one to compete against SPW – would there be a reason for them to strive when they already are “the best”? In a “widget monopoly”, widget buyers/distributors could be at the mercy of fluctuating prices, availability and quality. End-users would not have to go with the one and only product and price. Interestingly enough, as soon as a new provider of widgets comes onto the scene, the dynamics change. Let’s say NPW’s pricing, availability and quality is par with SPW. Now, what if NPW also offers un-paralleled customer service and the ability to create custom widgets? Shortly thereafter, another provider of widgets emerges, APW. This company also provides custom widgets, outstanding customer service, with the same availability and quality as SPW and NPW. Their competitive advantage? APW’s pricing is lower. NPW quickly adapts and creates a similar pricing scheme. If the original company, SPW, cannot adapt in time, they could start losing market share as customers turn to the lower-price sources with great customer service and custom options.
The past example is over-simplified, and just on the surface. To have the true “adaptability” in any market, a company must first look within itself – its culture. I found this great article on “the leadership hub”. Just like a person must look within himself if they want to change, so must a corporation. This is by no means something that can occur “overnight”. Although I have yet to read “Good to Great” by Jim Collins, I believe the premise of the book is that many companies do not make the “leap” to great because being good can “get in the way”. That is, being “good” means that you may remain complacent and not find the need to change. In addition, the fear of change may play a part in keeping things the way they have been. Here are two great books on change that I highly recommend: “Who Moved My Cheese” by Dr. Spencer Johnson and “Our Iceberg is Melting” by John Cotter. Both are great for business/corporate applications. I found "Who Moved My Cheese" to also apply at a personal level as some of us may find it difficult to adjust from our "routine".
In closing, I would’ve liked to have sited a Sci-Fi example. As I did, I started to imagine what our world would have been like if Earth did not have a “sibling” like the Moon. Not only did our Moon inspire generations to look up to the heavens, it was something to “aim for”. Great minds like Sir Isaac Newton realized the Moon was falling towards the Earth, spawning his theories on elliptical orbits, gravity and of course, Calculus. Without the Moon, the “Space Race” may not have happened (the way we’ve come to know it anyway). The types of technological feats that where achieved as a result of us aiming for the Moon pushed us forward in ways we may not have otherwise. See the U.S. Apollo Missions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_program) and the amazing, but not-so-popular Soviet Rover Missions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunokhod_programme). Therefore, not only did the Moon provide something to “aim for” – but created the type of competition amongst nations that brought out the best in us.
