Will your value 'expire' like carton of milk?

Hi friends!!! So we all are good with the fact that the results we get often start in the mind? OK - so we're done with that.

So now, how should we think? What should we think about? Recently I heard someone say that "whatever is your intention will shape your attention". Pretty clever.

So what should our intentions be? I say we should intentionally seek to win in our marketplace. And to do that, I believe we should think like a product manager and act like a product.

Come again? Yes!!! -- Just think - how might our outcomes change if we thought and acted more like a product/manager? I believe we have several things in common with products that we can learn from and win --lets explore a few.?

MARKETPLACE - products have a marketplace. and like a product (manager) we need to define and understand our target market. This means knowing what our market needs, doesn't need, what our market expects, who else offers what we do, etc. In the case of a business leader, your market is your CEO or immediate boss, your team, your peers, and your clients. They have expectations of you. Or your marketplace may be your patients, your family, your community, your health. Is your 'market' getting what it needs/wants/expects from you so they can win?

VALUE- Products often have a perceived value in their market. There's a reason we buy a Tesla electric vehicle, shop at Nordstroms, or buy a Viking stove -- there's a perceived value that sets them apart from the competition. What is your value? Your skill? Your experience? Diversity? Personality? Head/Heart/Guts? Are you Analytical? Strategic? Know your value and highlight it in the right way so you are clear on what sets you apart from competition. Your competition knows it's value--you should know yours.

Speaking of COMPETITION --yes, products have competition and so do you. There is someone that wants your seat at the table, that wants your territory, that wants to stop you from even getting to the table, that wishes they had your swagger, and wants your social media followers. Loews has Home Depot, Pepsi has Coke, Apple has Samsung. Who do you have? Many people are happy to be on your team, but some are rooting for the competition.

Products also have a PRICE - there's a price your boss/company/market is willing to pay you for what you bring to the table. That price is really our compensation - (salary + bonus + long term compensation like restricted stock/options, etc.) and we want our compensation to be based on both 1) the market and 2) on our value. Know your worth and don't settle for less. If you don't know your worth (in a compensation perspective), do some interviews and find out. If for any reason the 'value' you deliver is less than the 'price' you are getting, just like a product, you will get discontinued, moved to a lower shelf, or even worse-- taken off the shelf, and your brand will become what is known as "slow moving and obsolete products" (SLOB) in inventory management.

Finally - CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT - products must stay relevant if they want to stay in demand. Very few products stay at their initial launch version. Take IOS, for example, it is currently at 16.1.1. But where did IOS start? it started at version 1. Then it went to 2, then to 3, etc to where it is now at 16. It made itself valuable, it added new features, and continuously improved. As a product, when we know our market and its needs, we can stay ahead of competition by providing our market what it needs, what it doesn't know it needs and what it will appreciate. We never want to expire or have a 'use by' date like a carton of milk.

This is Your Call to Action: 1) Remember to define and know who your target market is, 2) identify your unique value proposition, 3) Know who your competition is, and what they are doing, 4) Understand your price and ensure it is aligned with your value--a price that's too high or too low relative to value is not good for a product, 5) Monitor and improve your performance, and ensure your product remains relevant and needed by your market.

With these product & product management strategies, you can apply them to your career to stay ahead of the competition and continually improve yourself to WIN--When They Say You Won't.