Selfless collaboration beats selfish competition every time

Aviation, for better or worse, is an incredibly small marketplace filled with people and products that are critical to the global economy. How small? The number of pilots in the U.S. has never come close to 1 million. More often it’s closer to half that value.

According to IBISWorld, an industry and market research group, there are 959 flight schools in the United States. That’s not a big number. Especially considering there are something like 6,000 driving schools in the U.S., more than 100,000 real estate brokerage firms, and in excess of 52,000 gun shops.

All these businesses have at least one thing in common. They have to compete in a market with others who do essentially the same work they do. They can compete successfully by providing more attractive pricing, or terms on purchases, or customer service that keeps their clients coming back.

These tools are available to every participant in the marketplace. They’re eminently fair. Each provider puts their best foot forward, hopefully resulting in increased sales, enhanced profitability, and at least a chance of growing the market overall.

As ironic as it may seem, being assertively competitive in a productive manner is actually a collaborative act. If each outlet, each salesperson, each front desk representative focuses on providing the best opportunity possible for their client, the entire industry benefits. Customers are happy, or at least satisfied, with their interactions with the provider of their choice. They tell of their positive experience to friends and co-workers. A percentage of those friends and co-workers will consider visiting those same shops and salespeople. A smaller but valuable subset of that group will actually follow through and stop in. Of that group, at least some will become customers.

That is how a business grows, giving support to the adage “a rising tide lifts all boats.”

That’s a scenario found only in a perfect world, however. Which is to say, this cooperative, collaborative manner of doing business does not often exist in the real world. Not nearly enough.

Those who blatantly compete with no regard for or understanding of the damage done by their negative positions do the entire industry a disservice. That’s true of any industry and any area or operation, local or global.

Perhaps I can illustrate this concept best with a glimpse into my own past. As a young man I was a professional musician, playing guitar and bass in a band that was on an upward trajectory. When we played in clubs it was common for two or even three bands to be on a bill. We took the stage in order of perceived popularity and value. For example, when playing with Katrina and the Waves or The Smithereens (it was the 1980s after all) my band was the opening act, Katrina or the boys from New Jersey were the headliners.

When playing on a bill with Jack Tragic and the Unfortunates, or The Cleavers, my band closed the show.

It wasn’t uncommon in those days, as I’m sure the practice continues today, for insecure talent to make efforts to sabotage acts higher up the bill in a misguided effort to compare more favorably in the big scheme of things. In truth, if your band sucks, it sucks. Killing another musician’s amp mid-set, or hiding the kick drum head with the other band’s name on it doesn’t do anything to improve your own performance.

Aside from making a physical effort to harm others, the use of rumor and innuendo was and remains a popular weapon. Regardless of industry, it’s a bad idea that just won’t go away. Whether implying the singer in this band slept with the wife of the guitar player in that band, or that you heard rumors about a popular flight school breaking rules and risking FAA enforcement, the result is the same. And it’s not good for anyone.

The customers of such a business lose respect for their provider. A few of them leave. When asked why they no longer frequent that particular business they’ll often respond in less than glowing terms. The plan backfires. Both the business making the claim and the business the claim is made about suffer. As does the industry they serve. Customers who no longer feel welcome or valued leave.

That is not good.

Aviation is a relatively small but absolutely vital industry. For many of us general aviation is the entry point to this remarkable business, and in some cases becomes the desired destination. Together we can grow the size of the pie we work within or shrink it. Our behavior, our attitude, the manner in which we work with our own customers, co-workers, and visitors will determine the outcome of our interactions.

As you run your business, or work with your clients, focus on the client and your own policies and practices. Running any business well with an eye toward constant improvement will far exceed any benefits we believe we might gain by downplaying the talents of others or disparaging a business we see as being in competition with our own.

There is a reason we don’t often see major corporations launching products or services with a marketing plan that claims, “We’re better than Brand X.” The big boys know that Brand X has loyal customers who will feel insulted by the slight. They will decide to never buy the new product or service. They’ll speak poorly of it, influencing other customers to steer clear.

We could learn a thing or two from the big guys. By focusing on our own work, serving our clients to the best of our ability, and working collaboratively within the industry we have chosen to compete in, we all win. And the pie grows.

As Momma so forcefully said, “Mind ya’ business.” She wasn’t wrong.