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"If you go to your grave without painting your masterpiece, it will not get painted. No one else can paint it. Only you."
Gordon McKenzie

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I’ve been thinking about competition recently. I recall many years ago being part of an organization that had “sales competitions” ostensibly to motivate us to increase our sales revenues and productivity. What I learned was that I was not competitive in that sense. Simply getting the revenue was not compelling enough for me, even if we got to name our teams and we had a fun race course on the wall, I was hungry for something else to push my competition buttons. For example, competition that includes folks who might not be as good at a particular skill, but still included in the ‘game’. Or at another end of the spectrum, competition in an election where what I see as important issues are at stake, I’m engaged.

But that is just me. There are loads of people for whom increasing the revenues is goal enough and they really enjoy themselves in that world. One of our challenges as leaders is when we start to assume that simply because my idea of competition makes sense to me that it is the normative way of competing.

What is interesting though is that competition, even in small amounts, seems to be one of the drivers of human behaviour. The question is, given the wide dispersal of how we humans respond, how do leaders use ‘competition’ within the culture to increase productivity? First, you’ll need to be aware of the culture of the organization. There is an oft told story from Vancouver of how Jimmy Pattison runs his car businesses. Each month, the salesperson who has sold the least number of cars is fired. That is one way of using competition, and Pattison’s business success is not to be ignored. And it’s how the culture of the Pattison Group has evolved over the years. So, once you’re clear about the organization’s culture, where are you and where are your team? Are you inside the culture, or are you outliers? For example, if the culture is far more about looking after patients in a hospital or teaching primary school, perhaps there needs to be a more co-operative model than Pattison’s in place in that culture. If you and your group are more motivated by the Pattison model, and are therefore outliers in a more co-operative arena, are there some places where you can create a more competitive environment in that workplace?  Are there games that can be set up within your group?  The key is in knowing your culture and knowing your co-workers, one size does not fit all.

If there is one thing I have learned over the years, competition is great, but make sure the playing field is level and that everyone is enjoying the game!

May this week be a week for enjoying the game, for each of us.