All Freelance Work is a Community for Freelance Workers Including Free Portfolios, Job Search, Job Posting, Helpful Articles, Forums, & More for the Self Employed.
Is being competitive a virtue or a trap?
by David Solorzano
Get
ready to open your mind to uncommon common sense simple, practical,
and profound truths about yourself and others.
This article will help you to see if you are in bondage &
will show you how to free yourself so you’ll achieve
your life’s full potential
Are
you competitive ? All our lives we have been told
that competition is necessary and we must compete for everything.
We have accepted and taken the concept of competition for
granted as something good that will help us to succeed. We
have been told that in order to succeed, we must outsmart,
outwork, outsell, outrun, and outmaneuver others. Since we
were kids, we have been exposed to situations on a daily basis
where we find ourselves competing with others for everything
from activities like team tryouts, the attention of our first
love, college admission, a marriage partner, business clients,
to climbing the corporate latter.
Is competition actually good for you ? Competition
is the most destructive of all types of psychological dependence.
Competition places your life at the hands of others by enslaving
and degrading the mind. Competition is a mind degrading process
that starts early in childhood and progresses to becomes a
habit of the mind. It puts us in a situation where others
determine our standards, our goals, our values, and our rewards.
Competition traps us in imitation and left untreated will
eventually produce a dull, imitative, insensitive, mediocre,
burned-out, stereotyped individual who lacks initiative, originality,
imagination, and spontaneity.
Why do we become competitive ? Competition begins
during childhood out of our need to imitate others but it
becomes a sign of persistent infantilism and retarded psychological
development if it continues to persist and dominates us after
adolescence.
What is the result of competition ? It becomes
a habitual way of looking at our interpersonal relationships.
It becomes a way of relating to the world, to other people
and to confronting situations. Once it becomes a habit, it
blinds us and it kills our individual personal initiative
and responsibility. We place the responsibility for the race
to achieve our own goals on the pace maker.
Is competition natural ? Competition is so
widespread that most people believe that it is a law of nature.
It is frequently praised as a great virtue to be developed
by everyone. This is a costly misunderstanding, since human
skills develop adequately only in cooperation, a condition
of reinforcement. Competition is always at odds with cooperation
and thus frustrates individual human initiative.
Is competition similar to initiative ? Often
some people see a superficial similarity between competition
and initiative. Although competition tries in every way to
imitate initiative, they are total opposites. Initiative is
everything that competition is not. It has been said that
we compete with others only in those situations in which we
are afraid and defective in initiative. Those who can, do
! Those who can not or dare not, imitate.
Initiative is the most highly prized of virtues. It is a vital
necessity for everyone. No problem is ever solved without
personal initiative. We can not achieve our life’s full
potential without being emotionally and physically self reliant;
and we can not be self reliant without personal initiative.
Nothing can take the place of personal initiative in the life
of an individual.
Initiative is the opposite of competition and one is death
to the other. Initiative is a natural quality of a free mind.
It is wholly, spontaneous, and intuitive in response to confronting
situations as they arise. The free mind allows one to be an
inner directed person whose responses in action are automatic.
Competition, on the contrary, is merely an imitative response
that lags behind while it waits for it’s direction from
someone whose head appears to us to be taller than our own
and who has been chosen by us to set the pace and direction
of our activity.
Competition grows out of dependence The competitive individual
is only trained to out-run the pace maker. He depends on the
pace maker to set the pace. Even if he out-runs the pace maker,
he will immediately focus on the rear view mirror to see where
the pace maker is and how he can block the pace maker to keep
the lead. The worst case scenario for a competitive individual
would be if he actually wins and takes the lead. He will be
driving at full speed ahead while totally fixed on the rear
view mirror. Can you visualize that ? Competition eventually
destroys us by degrading us to imitation, conformity, and
mediocrity.
To free the mind from the habit of competition, you must increase
self reliance. Realize that just as out of 6.4 billion people
in the world, no one has your exact DNA and fingerprints,
that you have a unique purpose in life that only you can fill.
Since no one is better qualified to be you than you, you can’t
put others to set the pace to achieve your own unique purpose
for your life. Once you free yourself from the tunnel vision
set by your self appointed pace maker, you’ll begin
to see what’s plainly visible all around you. You will
also free yourself from cravings for praise and recognition
from the pace maker by becoming self reliant. Also you will
free yourself from the inherent hostility that competition
demands and totally disrupts cooperation. Competition breeds
dependence and dependence breeds fear and fear always limits
and degrades us. Freedom only comes when we increase self
reliance and when we put no head higher than our own.
By
David Solorzano of www.happydavid.com.
Author of the nationally syndicated “Uncommon Common
Sense Questions Series”® Visit www.happydavid.com
to learn how many simple, practical, profound and powerful
uncommon common sense strategies and techniques will help
you to achieve your full potential so you’ll create
& enjoy the life that you and your loved ones desire &
deserve.
HOW TO SET YOUR FREELANCE RATES - A GUIDE FOR FREELANCERS & CONSULTANTSThere are many factors which business owners must consider on a daily basis as it relates to the running of their business. Things such as how to find good help, where to acquire supplies and how much to pay one’s employees are all pertinent matters which must be addressed. There are a few ways to go about figuring out your rates when it comes to how much to charge the customers.
BUSINESS PLANS: Business Plan Examples, Samples, Templates, Software and ToolsIn any type of the business including those people that perform freelance work, the proper tools are necessary to become a success. The following links consist of selected online tools for the freelancer to develop an effective business plan.
FREELANCING AND FINDING WORK AT HOME JOBSThe difficulty lies not in the fact that there aren’t plenty of work at home jobs available but rather in the fact that genuine, quality, money-earning work at home jobs are all mixed up with work at home scams. This makes finding a work at home job that’s legitimate a not-so-easy task for people who are just breaking in to the freelancing business. But don’t worry; once you learn the lingo and know the basics, finding a work at home job gets a lot easier!
Business plans are necessary in all types of businesses … and this also includes freelancers. Writing an effective business plan will help you plan out the success of your future business. Factors such as customer base, profit potential, as well as many other factors will be placed in this document. The business plan will help you, the freelancer, think through every aspect of your future successful business. We found the following business plan articles to be very helpful and we hope that you will find them to be useful too.
HOW FREELANCER WRITERS CAN DEFEAT WRITER'S BLOCKHelpful hints and tips to overcome the dreaded White Page Syndrome - There is probably nothing more dreadful and problematic for a writer than not being able to get going, being stuck on a menacingly white page. Read on for more ideas on how freelance writers can overcome Writer's Block.
WAYS TO GET MORE CUSTOMER REFERRALS FOR YOUR FREELANCE BUSINESSThe amount of customer referrals will often determine how successful one’s freelance business can really be. As word spreads quickly, having customers refer others to you and your services is a wonderful way of gaining new freelance business and making more money. There are a few distinct ways to get more client referrals for your business.
FREELANCE HOME OFFICE DISTRACTIONS VS DISTRACTIONS WHEN WORKING IN AN OFFICEOf course, distractions are different depending on whether you are freelancing from home or working in an office. Both kinds have their pros and cons so let’s take a look at some of the basic ones so that you can start getting a grasp on good vs. bad distraction behaviors for freelancers.
WORKING FULL TIME WHILE RUNNING YOUR FREELANCE BUSINESSThe key to being able to make the transition to full time freelancing is in setting goals that allow you to focus on moving away from working full time for someone else and towards putting more hours in to your freelance business.
60+ UNIQUE LOCAL & OFFLINE MARKETING IDEAS FOR YOUR CONSULTING BUSINESS Although online promotion is important for your freelance business, it’s crucial to remember to go back to your basics and do offline promoting as well locally, nationwide, and worldwide depending on who you are marketing to. Here are over 60 ideas to market your consulting services locally. Let Freelance work find you.
WHAT TO DO WHEN YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE GOOGLING INFORMATION ON YOUThis can be an issue for freelancers whose customers google them and try to find out information relating to them and their business. The following is a list of what to do when your customers are googling information on you.
26 THINGS TO DO WHEN BUSINESS IS SLOW AND IN DOWNTIME MODESome freelancers are anxious to work day in and day out which may present a problem for them when business is slow. However, there are many things which freelancers can do to bide their time while waiting for new freelance work to come in. Here are 26 ideas for staying productive during your consulting business downtime.
ONLINE CUSTOMER SERVICE TIPS FOR FREELANCERS & THE SELF EMPLOYEDThere is a casual attitude about communication that takes place online and that creates an environment in which customers sometimes don’t take your work seriously, leading to problems with projects and payments. In order to avoid those problems, you need to make sure that you are conducting all of your online work in as professional a manner as possible. Here are some tips on how to do that.
TOP 150 PLACES TO TRAVEL WITH YOUR FAMILY WHEN YOU STILL NEED TO GET WORK DONEWhen you are self-employed, there is no vacation time to save up, and there is no one to cover for you when you’re away. For many that mean giving up on vacations altogether, and this is what I have been doing for awhile. Most of These All-Inclusive Family Resorts Have Kids Clubs in Which Your Child can enjoy supervised and fun activities while you and your spouse can have fun or get freelance work done. Take a look below and enjoy!
DECIDING WHETHER OR NOT TO FREELANCE OFFSITE OR ONSITE Deciding to work onsite or offsite sounds like a relatively simple decision, but it’s actually one which isn’t easy to make. Sure, when you’re lying in bed just after the alarm has gone off and you see that it’s raining outside and all you wish was that you could go back to bed for ten minutes and then do your freelance work from home, working offsite sounds ideal. But there are as many cons to the offsite work job as there are pros and you need to weigh them carefully when making the decision about whether to work onsite or offsite.
IS FREELANCING RIGHT FOR YOU? Freelancing, a term introduced by Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), is when you work without being committed to an employer. With development of internet and communication technology, there has been a dramatic rise in the number of people going their own way and leaving behind the cubicles. You are reading this book, so you must be contemplating becoming a freelancer, but before you make your move there are a few things to consider.
FREELANCER'S GUIDE TO TIME MANAGEMENT The most common problem that freelancers face is figuring out the balance between work and the rest of life. While there are a few freelancers out there who don’t work as much as they need to in order to pay their bills and improve their business, most freelancers have the opposite problem – they work ALL the time. And that’s why there are a great number of freelancers who “burn out” after a short (or if they’re lucky, a long) time. In order to make sure that you aren’t one of those people who “used to freelance but got burned out”, you need to set limits on how much you work. Then you need to stick to those limits.
SHOULD I TURN DOWN FREELANCE PROJECTS? As freelancers, we often feel as if we have to say ‘Yes’ to every single job out there. However, we as freelancers are in a position where we can choose to say ‘No’ if we want to. Believe it or not, there are certain projects that you probably shouldn’t accept. Turning down work is probably the hardest decision you will need to make when running your business, but sometimes turning down a gig is necessary. In this article I will explain to you the details that you need to consider when you aren’t sure which route to take. Consider the following:
COOL IDEAS FOR YOUR BUSINESS CARDS As freelancers, we need to promote ourselves with business cards. How about putting yourself ahead of the rest of them by designing and printing completely unique business cards? You are about to take a look at the coolest and most innovative business cards that you have ever seen.
LIST OF FREELANCE FORUMS & MESSAGE BOARDS Looking to get together with other freelancers? Want to network? Want to ask questions about freelancing that you can’t find the answer to anywhere else? Look no further than the freelance forums that we have listed below. Feel free to let us know about forums that we have missed.
The followup to Brendan Sinclairs successful Web Design Business kit is a comprehensive look at all the business aspects of working as a web designer. It's thorough and has some excellent advice in it.
A complete, secure, online billing application that maintains hourly service billing, flat fee billing and recurring charges. Integration with Authorize.Net and other leading payment gateways provides hands-free recurring billing with a sophisticated CRM system.
Browse through our extensive list of free Business, Computer, Engineering and Trade magazines, white papers, downloads and podcasts to find the titles that best match your skills and interests; topics include management, marketing, operations, sales, and technology. Simply complete the application form and submit it. All are absolutely free to freelance professionals who qualify.
All Freelance Work is a Community for Freelance Workers Including Free Portfolios, Job Search, Job Posting, Helpful Articles, Forums, & More for the Self Employed.
