Have you ever heard the sports saying, You have to run your own race?

I interpret it this way, and I believe it pertains even more to selling.

(1) You cant focus on two things at once.

(2) You can only control your performance.

(3) The grass is greener on the other side, and from a distance our competitors look like giants, instead of the ants they probably are.

(4) Competitive advantages like a lower price are misleading and usually temporary.

(5) When they make you concentrate on them, theyve won!

Our greatest fear, as salespeople and as businesspeople is that we are, fundamentally the same as our competitors, but this is patently false.

Even if you sell a commodity, such as steel or coal, or computer memory, there are dozens of things that distinguish you from your competition. These include your delivery and financing terms, your personality, your customer service attitudes, capabilities, and practices, your reputation, your experience with similar clients, your expertise, your availability, and even your good cheer and humor.

I could go on.

Although prospects like to tease us and to grind down our prices by shopping the competition, they still want to deal with us.

If we even come close on price, if they have sense theyll grab the deal because they know were far and away the best choice available.

Keep that in mind, instead of worrying about your competition!