The power of respect

Bill Caswell's Respect Revolution is one of my primary resources.

"Respect" is an interesting and challenging concept in defining relationships, both in business and personal life.  The concept advocates that you acknowledge and sometimes even honor indivudals whose views may diverge from yours and who might even be hostile to you.

In business, and in life, the respectful attitude has some rather major advantages, even though these may seem counter-intuitive at first impression.

With respect, you disarm the competition and diffuse anger.  Now anger isn't always a bad emotion but if you let it get to your head, you can do dumb things, especially in a competitive situation.  By respecting the competitor, you elevate yourself above the dog-fight and make it easier for neutral individuals (who might otherwise have to choose between you and the competitor when, otherwise, they could work with both of you) to take sides.

This respectful attitude is why we've made the Page 1 story of the upcoming issue of Ottawa Construction News into a highly positive article about a business owner who has expressed strong opinions against our primary business/selling model and has taken actions which certainly have not helped our interests.  (I'll post the link when we publish the paper, next week.)

The respectful attitude, combined with a second principle of mature thinking, accepting responsibility, are cornerstones of my personal value systems.  I consider "attacks" and hostility to me and my business to be important sign-posts and review whether I need to make changes in response. 

These values don't make me into a push-over.  For example, we continue to conduct business the way we think best even if some disagree.  As well, if someone tries to cause harm to me through underhanded, illegal or unethical practices, I'll fight back with all the skill and resources I can apply.  Guess what -- I generally win, without stress, these competitions,