3 Questions You Need to Be Asking In Order to Stand?Out

To say the world, and just about every industry, feels a bit over-saturated is probably a mild understandment. It doesn’t matter what market you play in, it seems the traffic and noise are, at times, a bit overwhelming.?

I think about Roger Wayne and W. Chan Kim’s book, Blue Ocean Strategy and how many people are still swimming in bloody waters. Not enough people are venturing out into wide open blue spaces.

Messaging, marketing, and communications seem to be carbon copies of each other, with a word tweaked here, and an image tweaked there. People seem to be clamoring for top billing in murky, dim, and diluted waters.?

We call it the “rat race”?… though, I think it resembles more of a nonstop hamster wheel. We run and run and run, wind and grind, hustle for the muscle, and burn and churn. Yet, very few seem to be getting anywhere.?

The focus tends to be on who can outdo whom, or one-up the competition.?

“Your widget is red, then I’ll make mine blue. Your using ChatGPT, then we are using Jasper. Your logo has a square over the “i”?… ours, then, will have a diamond.” And, so on and so on.

Writing it out this even seems ridiculous. But, this is what we subscribe to. “I have to create a funnel like Bob,” or “We need to have in-house accounting just like Company ABC does.”

We never to stop to ask ourselves if this makes sense for us, for our business, and for our organization. We just watched, and we copy. And, they watch, and they copy. And, it’s an endless loop?… aka, hamster wheel.

The problem is you keep playing in the pool of competition, the bloody waters. where everyone and their brother (or sister) is also playing, instead of finding your own lane, your own pool, your own ocean, and your own niche (or point of view).?

When you focus solely on what your competition is doing, you lose sight of how you can stand out. And, in the noisy sea of social media, marketing, advertisements, and reality TV, isn’t it time to shift your focus?

“Value innovation is the cornerstone of blue ocean strategy. We call it value innovation because instead of focusing on beating the competition, you focus on making the competition irrelevant by creating a leap in value for buyers and your company, thereby opening up new and uncontested market space.” (W. Chan Kim, Blue Ocean Strategy, Expanded Edition: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant)

In order to create that leap into the sparkling blue waters of value innovation, there are three questions that every business, organization, leader, and entrepreneur needs to answer first:

QUESTION #1: What do you love about your industry, and think is working well, that you feel we need more?of?

When we ask ourselves this question, we shine a light on those things we feel are moving the industry forward. These are areas we believe would be served well if we were to invest more time and energy in them.?

From that belief, you also then can explore what you might add that could be a differentiator in that space. Even if it’s something currently being done in the industry, it isn’t being done by you. When we bring out own “flavor” to something rather than just trying to mimic or copy someone else, we can elevate the very aspects of what we love most in the industry.?

Often times, this can be connected to your passion and drive for wanting to play in this space in the first place. Maybe it’s innovative technology or how AI is being used, as an example. Whatever it is, you have an opportunity to put your unique spin on it, and illuminate it in a new way.?

QUESTION #2: What pisses you off about the industry, that you think needs to change or that we need to stop doing altogether?

This one is the money question, for sure, as it often drives your compelling why. Some of the best innovation and creativity comes from those things that make our blood boil or make us want to jump out of our own skin.?

I’ll give you an example, let’s look at the coaching industry, for one. It absolutely appalls me that “shame selling” is still a thing. I cannot stand emotionally manipulative selling that comes from a fear-based narrative. And, it’s still way too prevalent in the industry. I’ve actually walked out of events when this energy shows up. It literally makes me gag.?

That being said, it also provides a perfect opportunity to change the game. I love seeing opportunity for more heart-based selling, where people get that sales is a love language, and that your offer and services are a love letter to your people. It’s based on a soul-level invitation, one that allows people to decide without the icky shaming in the process.?

I love to look at sales as the love letter, and marketing is simply the way the letter gets in the hands of the people who need and want you most. It’s definitely a shift from what is standard in the coaching, speaking, and training industries. So, let what pisses you off drive meaningful change.?

QUESTION #3: What is missing in the industry, or where are the gaps, that are huge opportunities to be?filled?

I love this question the most, as it opens up brand new space for creativity and innovation. You get to explore all the ways in which you can add value to close the gaps, or fill in the missing pieces.?

This is a huge opportunity to differentiate yourself and start to carve out a blue ocean strategy and niche. This is where your point of view and the realm of infinite potential becomes electric.?

We spend a lot of time worrying about what everyone else is doing, and missing the opportunity to bring new possibilities to the forefront. I mean, why would you want to be like everyone anyway. That seems so boring. I would much rather get to know your point-of-view and perspective. I love to see what Authentic & Aligned AF YOU could bring to the table.?

What, if given the chance, or better yet?… you just decided to stop running on the perpetual hamster wheel chasing other people, and chasing your tail, would happen if you took a big, brave leap and stepped into those ideas and dreams that keep pushing at you?

We have enough of the same?… what about creating space for different? For new? For innovative? For way outside the freakin’ box and the bloody waters? For an opportunity to step fully into what you are here to create?

You are a magical unicorn, a once-in-a-lifetime cosmic event.?

There is no one else like you on the planet. Why would you want to be anyone else? What would you not celebrate that you are a piece of the overall Universal Puzzle and Cosmic Plan. You have a specific role to play.

There would be no reason for you to be here right now if you were just supposed to be another copycat, another version of the same thing.?

Think about it, what would be the point? The point is you are here to do something that hasn’t been done. Even if it’s just to do the thing YOUR way.

So, I urge you to sit down with these three questions. Get really honest with yourself. Dig deep. What keeps pushing against you? What lights you up? What gets under your skin? What’s missing? What do you dream about?

Because, more than ever, we need leaders?… real leaders?… to step up. We need to raise the level of leadership in every capacity, and we night as well shift the level of consciousness, as well.?

Leadership is a pathway to inspire, influence, and impact. It requires vulnerability, emotional intelligence, and the courage to show up and serve from a place of authenticity and integrity. And, it requires a sense of personal ownership and accountability to do the damn thing.?

Leadership is ultimately a choice. It’s a function of how you choose to show up, how you choose to serve, and you choose to take personal responsibility inside those two spaces. And, it starts with recognizing the opportunity to lead yourself first?… into blue ocean spaces.

The world needs what you have to offer. Period. Hard stop.?

“Go the extra mile as it’s never crowded.” (Wayne Dyer)

So, the biggest question is this: Will you do the work (and ask yourself the hard questions) required to express the fullness of who you are and share your gifts, in all their glory, with the world? Will you lead it forward?

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