Taking a Stand

23rd November 2019

During the course of practising as a vet, I have seen all sorts of pet owners. Some keep dogs, some like cats. Some prefer reptiles and others prefer horses. Even simply for dog owners, some like Staffies and others love Dalmatians. All of them share the same undeniable love for animals and yet they all differently for the species they choose.

Yes, they choose… They have chosen what animals to love and take care of. They made choices that include some and exclude others. Is that not very similar to how we should be approaching people and approaching ourselves?

In life, there is a tendency to want to please everyone. We like to be known to be ‘friendly’ and ‘nice’ and try not to make others upset. Do you realise how difficult and superficial it is to do that?! Many people like to have many friends. They like to please everyone. They shift their beliefs and attitudes to suit others. They try to fit in. I understand. We went through that in school, trying to fit with friends. As we grow older, we try to fit into society. It was what everyone was doing and nobody likes to stick out like a sore thumb. Do you know someone who is like this?

Many businesses are similar. They want to obtain ‘market share’. They try to make their products and services suit everyone. They want to please all prospects. They want to be everything to everyone. They want to be as flexible as possible to make sure everyone is happy. Is that the right approach?

I believe in life, we should be listening to ourselves very carefully and understand what beliefs we have, what we stand for and what our core is. When we have found that, we should have the strength, the courage and the belief to live the way we want to. We make friends according to what serves us best and not to ‘fit in’. If everyone is your friend, no one is your friend.

In business, we should be very clear why our products and services exist and more specifically, who is it for. We should be asking ourselves very clearly, who is going to benefit the most out of my business and get busy serving those needs. It is by doing so, that we can focus on our strengths, not get distracted trying to serve everyone and bring the most value for our customers. If everyone is your customer, no one is your customer. We should not be afraid to tell those who do not fit into our customer profile that it may not be a good fit.

Just like pet owners who know specifically which pet to go for and bring the best value to that individual pet, we can learn to do the same in our life and business. Be brave to take a stand and be yourself. We do not realise that people spend a tremendous amount of energy trying to be ‘normal’.

I do not have the formula to happiness but I know the surest way to be unhappy is to make everyone else happy. If you do not believe me, try it.

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