Helping leaders motivate their people to a higher level of performance through strong human relations, team building, and goalajiving. This is the seven minute Leadership podcast with your host Paul Fellovaledo.
Hello everyone, and welcome to this seven minute leadership podcast. It's episode three twenty four. Do you Know your Competitor's Next move? This episode isn't just about business competition. It's about leadership awareness, strategic thinking, and never letting yourself get too comfortable at the top. Whether you're running an EMS service, managing a tech startup, or leading a team in a corporate office, one truth always holds there's always someone watching you,
trying to outperform you and preparing their next move. The question is are you doing the same, So let's talk straight for a second. Too many leaders operate in a bubble. They focus inward, polish internal processes, and assume their reputation or longevity will protect their position in the market. That's a dangerous mindset. Leadership isn't just about leading your team. It's also about staying sharp and anticipating what's coming next, especially when it's coming from the outside. You have to
be aware of the landscape beyond your organization. So Here's how I keep tabs on competitors and use that information to lead better. Number one, I observe patterns, not just posts. Don't just scroll your competitors' social media or skim their website. Watch for patterns. Are they hiring rapidly, launching new services, doubling down on video content, expanding geographically? Every move they make is a signal, and smart leaders know how to
read them. When I see another ambulance service hiring five new paramedics in a neighboring zip code, I don't ignore it. I ask why now? What do they know that I don't Is a new contract coming or they getting ready to submit for a bid that we haven't seen yet. In number two, I think like a chess player, not a Checkers player. Checkers is reactive, Chess is strategic. Leadership is chess. If you know your competitor just landed a new partnership or rolled out a new pricing model, what's
your next move? Do you adjust? Do you innovate or do you go silent and wait? The leaders who win are already thinking two steps ahead, asking what's next for them and what does that mean for us? And here's the secret. Most organizations telegraph their next move. You just have to be listening and watching. Number three. I don't copy. I counter. Too many leaders copy their competitors. That's not strategy,
that's lazy leadership. Real leadership means knowing the move your competitor is about to make, and having the guts and the insight to go a different direction that serves your mission better. And I'll give you a real world example. When a nearby EMS agency started pushing social media campaigns with polished videos, A few people asked me if we
should do the same. My answer was no. Instead, I built our internal media training so that every employee could be confident speaking to the camera, whether in uniform or in front of a news crew. That was our move. We didn't copy. We countered. Number four. I study the game film. Just like in sports, you have to watch the film. What did your competitor do during the last crisis, How did they respond to staffing shortages? What was their
customer satisfaction? Like after a big event, You can learn just as much from a competitor's failures as their successes, if.
Not more more.
I keep a literal folder in my notes app with observations and insights from other organizations I've watched over the years, patterns emerge, people repeat behaviors, and the writing is always on the wall and last competitor. Intelligence isn't paranoia, it's preparation. So let's just be clear. I'm not talking about spying. I'm talking about staying professionally aware. The best leaders read
the room, the market, and the industry. They don't just know their own numbers, they know the other guy's playbook, or at least the parts that are visible. That kind of awareness keeps you competitive, it keeps you sharp, and more importantly, it keeps your team prepared for what's coming next. So here's the bottom line. Great leaders don't just look inward. They look outward too. They don't obsess over competitors, but they don't ignore them either. If you don't know your
competitor's next move, you're not leading. You're reacting, and that's not a position that you want to be in. So start watching, start listening, and start anticipating, because the future belongs to the leader who shows up ready. This has been the seven Minute Leadership Podcast, and I thank you for listening.
For more, Paul fell of Alito Podcasts, visit paulfellowalito dot com