Competition is a must, deal with it

Competition at work can get nasty, but one can also be sacked for not being competitive enough. Employers appreciate excellent employees, and being competitive could be concealed or a blatantly open maxim of colleagues at the workplace.

Competition is thus inevitable, meaning that all one can do is learn to cope with both its positive and negative aspects. It centres on, among others, results, pay hikes, perks and upward mobility. Employers generally encourage these aspects.

After all, it makes all the difference to the balance sheets through increased productivity.
Competition has disadvantages too. They include mental and physical stress, corrosion of team spirit, and conflicts that arise from the occasional vicious battles to outperform one another. To cope with competition and to manage its various effects at the workplace, the following ideas could help:

Focus on abundance
Cultivate the mentality and attitude of abundance, which dictates that “there is something for everyone.” This assertion also features in Geneva Masau’s “The Lost Laws of Success”, published in 2009. A focus on abundance allows you to chart new opportunities, develop skills and test your capabilities.A focus on scarcity can lead to missed learning opportunities out of the imagination that all the chances could be gone.

Cooperate
Focus on cooperation. Competitive situations can easily result in the undermining of each other, while cooperative situations promote mutual gain. Cooperation includes finding ways of working with your so called competitor, allowing each party to compensate for one another’s weaknesses.

Professionalism pays
If you must compete, do it without dragging others down or exposing their incompetence. This often backfires and reduces productivity. Learn to simply outdo your competitor based on fair professional competition, so that the contest is on grounds of factors like innovation, resourcefulness, drive and sheer productivity and similar attributes.

No resentment
Accept your colleagues as a challenge, but don’t resent or attempt to eliminate them, as it might create life-long resentment. You don’t need that.

Know the limits
Know your limitations and weaknesses so that you don’t bite more than you can chew and swallow without a deadly constipation. At the same time do not underestimate yourself to the extent of being afraid of challenges.

While at it, be careful not to be too open in outsmarting your boss. He or she might slot you in the big black mental book of juniors to ‘deal with’ when crap hits the fan. Occasionally allow him or her to own some of your great ideas, but ensure that your input is not lost when a project you initiated catches the CEOs eye.

Take advantage
But as for colleagues who engage in mental competition, like dressing specifically for you just so that they feel superior... well, you can take advantage of their ‘competitive mental complex’ in a few ways. For example, milk their brains in areas they are more knowledgeable. You do this by playing the novice on the matter of interest. Since theirs is more of an ego thing, nothing makes their day more than feeling they helped some needy case. In the meantime you can use this association to gain access to their contact list.