In this blog article I’d like to share with you some thoughts on the relevance of cheering for others.
In my model of the world, authentic and well-meant encouragement is a gift and means a lot to other people. It usually makes a big difference, is a strong form of appreciation, and can cause extraordinary results. It assists in strengthening relationships and building trust. Often, it’s also the case that the more we support and cheer on the success of others, the more success we enjoy ourselves. It’s an amazing reciprocal process.
So far, so good. But what if the other person is our competitor? Someone we’re supposed to outpace, outsmart, and outrun? Why would we encourage them, and cheer on them? Would that not be counter-productive and reduce our own chances for success?
Well, that certainly can be a point of view. On the other side, and assuming that our “competitor” (whatever that word means) has also good intentions, there can also exist the perspective that it’s a good thing to even cheer on them. Why?
The notion of “Competing”: It’s okay to have different opinions, ambitions, and goals. It’s also fine to agree to disagree. Fair enough. The way we approach and manage those situations and ourselves, however, makes the difference. Why not handling them more in the form of “collaboration” with a win-win outcome in mind instead of playing zero-sum games?
Mindset: It feels great and is great wanting the best for other people and not only for us. It makes us think big and overcome our limitations.
Collective Benefits: If there’s a benefit for someone, then often everyone wins in a certain way. It’s said that a Rising Tide Raises All Ships.
Shared Success: If someone else is successful, it doesn’t take anything away from us. It doesn’t diminish our own worth; neither does it define us. Rather what we make out of it builds our character and who we are. Giving and receiving praise and compliments is exciting for all of us. The more there is coming from all sides and for everyone, the better. Why not spreading sunshine to all the people we can?
One very effective form of supporting and cheering on others is to coach them. If you’d like to learn more about coaching and how to do it systemically at work, you might enjoy my new book “Building A Coaching Culture”.
What do you think?
Best,
Andreas (https://andreasvonderheydt.com)
My new Twitter account: @avonderheydt