Leave Something For Others

Are you one of those people who tends to ignore wise advice from the older crowd? Perhaps you think that things have changed so dramatically that you don't have to take their coaching seriously. If so you may find that rejecting their ideas may be harming you more than you think.
One of the best pieces of business advice I ever received was from a 78-year old man who first heard it from his father over 60 years ago. This father and son team built a very successful rental business over the years. The valuable advice he gave me was this: "Don't take everything you can take; leave something for the other guy."

I know that this small piece of wisdom is very likely the last thing a budding entrepreneur or an aspiring executive wants to hear. At first glance, the contradictory message in this advice is also insulting to an aggressive salesperson who struggles daily to get all the business he or she can get. This message will probably not be well received by a savvy investor, because I don't think you'd want to ask him or her to leave some profits for the next in line.

The very concept of sharing, especially with competitors, flies in the face of all that is natural to the high achievers out there. As long as most of us can remember, we have been taught to compete for as much of the pie as we can get.

Just for a moment, though, let's step back and examine what happens when we leave something for the next person. First, the gesture will stand out as exceptional by its very nature, and it will prompt the beneficiary to remember the what you did for him or her.

Your competitors will feel less need to squeeze or pressure you if you communicate your desire to share with them. There will be less jealousy or envy, and in time everyone's job will become easier and more pleasant, but there is another important benefit to letter the other person get his or her share. You will sleep better.

Say for example you're hunting, (even if you don't hunt and I don't) you see a deer and you've got him lined up in the cross hairs. You feel the adrenaline pumping and then you consciously decide not to shoot. It's one of the great lessons of becoming successful.

There is a very powerful Universal Law, which is the Law of Compensation. This Law states that the more things you do for other people, the more things other people will want to do for you. What goes around comes around. Whatever you sow you will eventually reap.