When you treat your competitors with the courtesy and respect you
would like, most will respond in kind, and the result is a stable,
productive, profitable industry. On the other hand, an industry or
market that is composed of vicious, unethical competitors will soon
destroy itself. When you are asked how your products and services
compare with those of your competitors, speak respectfully and politely
about your rivals, but use the question to shift the discussion to your
company and your products.
Acknowledge others’ good points, and then move on. If you complain too
much about the competition, prospective customers may wonder what they
are missing and refuse to buy until they have compared your products and
services with those of others.
We are just beginning to understand the mysterious ways in which the
mind works, but successful people have long known how to use the power
of creative vision to their advantage. Many "new" ideas are really
nothing more than a new combination of two well-known products or ideas.
Nevertheless, great fortunes have been built upon such combinations
when they are supported by a clever name and marketing campaign.
There is a definite process that you can use to tap into your
imagination. In his book A Technique for Producing Ideas, James Webb
Young identified five steps:
1. Gather the appropriate information.
2. Work the information over in your mind.
3. Incubate the idea in your subconscious.
4. Recognize the "Eureka!" stage when the idea is born.
5. Shape and develop the idea for practical application.
The technique works. Give it a try the next time you’re searching for a
creative solution to an old problem.
