Article October 18, 1999 Issue

Is your business at the mercy of competition?

Let God govern your business.

By Colleen Douglass

Closure. Playing the game. The art of the deal. The pure rush of it. Neck and neck to the finish line, then pulling it off at the last minute. Victory! Sounds very exciting ... until the tide turns. The proposal doesn't quite hit the mark. The boss has a friend to whom the account is given. You're overqualified for the position. Or not qualified enough.

Competition. At first blush it seems pretty attractive, even thrilling. But if you've ever been out of work for months, or worked around the clock to launch a fledgling company or to save a dwindling one, it can feel rather daunting.

A two-sided coin, competition can be both intoxicating and frightening. The cost of believing in it, of giving it power to govern a business or career, is dear. It is to resign oneself to a roller coaster ride—to the uncertainty that comes with believing that one's blessings and disappointments are subject to this elusive determinant called competition—instead of gaining dominion over the various facets of one's business experience. But we do have a choice about whether or not we're governed by competition.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Article

NO ONE ELSE CAN FILL YOUR NICHE