78 Competitive Advantage Honesty
b'Everybody is always wondering how to get a competitive advantage. In this episode, I discuss how to use honesty and integrity as a competitive edge.\\n\\n\\n\\nAn interesting dilemma it\\u2019s actually pointed out that almost everyone thinks of themselves as honest. But when I ask how many people do you know that are honest, I usually get an answer like very few. So while everybody thinks of themselves as honest, they generally don\\u2019t think other people are. This means that people have differing opinions of what honesty is.\\n\\nWell, this just means it\\u2019s a lot harder to be perceived as honest then you might think. You will not only have to achieve honesty based on your own criteria, but I\\u2019m more global criteria as well.\\n\\nIn the episode, I gave several examples of how the perception of honesty can lead to much stronger and bigger and better relationships.\\n\\nWhile this seems like a difficult maybe even very hard process be perceived as honest and with high integrity, by its very nature that makes it a huge competitive advantage.\\n\\nNow, confidence in your honesty can also lead to problems. It is important to combine it with humility.\\n\\nWhat this means if you are building trust with customers, workers and other colleagues.\\xa0 This gives you the ability to become a true confidant to others. I give some examples how this helps me tremendously. I also give a couple of examples of people who said things of me or to me including Lee Iacocca.\\n\\nJust think of how you feel went somebody makes unrealistic statements of promises to you. I\\u2019m always very disappointed when I hear people promising that they can help people get to 6 to 7 figures very quickly. Most of those people, I happen to know are not making very much money themselves.\\xa0 Now, there are some that are doing quite well. But something like seven figures is an extreme rarity.\\n\\nSo, set your own competitive advantage by not making unrealistic promises and building trust that leads to long-term relationships. I will make you one promise. With most people trying to reach a goal with the quick fix, you may take a little longer but will have a tremendous competitive advantage and longer-term relationships. Check out my new website ThomasOGradyPhD.com and my new book \\u201cThe Mechanics for Breakthrough Success.\\u201d\\xa0 Let me know what you think. Thank you!'