“She copied me!”
This phrase was the worst phrase any kid could hear.
It has always had a negative undertone like copying someone was the worst possible thing in the world.
Some people swear by the fact that many successful people have something they personalize and have their own original product or service, but most of the time that is not the case.
After all, in order to be a great leader you must first be a great follower.
First, there are some things that you should know about copying someone else.
There is a right way and a wrong way to copy someone successful. The wrong way is to try to structure your image to be similar to theirs or to copy the words right off their paper.
The right way is to copy their methods.
Most people are surprised when I say that I worked in door-to-door sales for three years. I worked doing that full time for so long because I became great at it. I took something that seemed impossible and made it possible. How did I do this?
When I started this job, I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t know the first thing about sales or how to introduce myself at the door. My trainer told me to pay attention as he said his sales pitch to a door. I listened intently and noticed the exact way he phrased his pitch.
When I got out on my own, I used his sales pitch.
The introduction was generic and could work for anyone. Then as the conversation evolved into something different, I was able to add my own unique wording.
I was able to take his sales pitch and refine it into something that worked even better for me. I wrote it out and practiced it in the mirror until I was comfortable using it.
This sales pitch led into making several sales a day and excelling in sales completely.
The moral of the story is, you can’t change what your not comfortable with changing. It took the initial copying of what worked for my trainer in order for me to gain the confidence I needed to do the job and to create my own way of doing it.
Some people are afraid of copying others. You shouldn’t be.
Competition is key to any market.
Ask yourself…
- Can you do this better than this person?
- Are you interested in learning about this particular topic for a long time?
- Do you have a better marketing strategy?
You are looking at your competitors hands in poker. All you have to do is get the winning hand before you show your cards.
You must do several things…
1. Increase your education about a topic.There is no way you can talk about a topic that you have no idea about. You must first educate yourself as much as possible on that topic.
2. Add something new and different to the idea. Put your own spin on it. Make it unique to you.
3. Help others by analyzing the world and adding to the ongoing conversation. You must be able to reiterate what you have learned in a well structured, knowledgeable, and helpful blog post.
4. Use sources and recommendations that give you cash in your pocket. Pretty self explanatory.
5. Rinse and repeat.
Here’s a few ways that you can copy someone for improvement in your everyday life…
- Get a mentor – Ask someone in a superior position what they did to get there
- Read books – Read about someone’s journey to the position you want
- Listen to podcasts – Look for strategies and craft your own way of doing it
- Practice a skill – Try something new and practice it. See if it works out or teaches you something valuable
- Join a friend – Start a new skill or exercise with a friend so you can hold each other accountable
- Get out of your comfort zone – Just by doing something different and getting out of your daily habit to try something new will foster an attitude of curiousity and fearlessness.
- Go to conferences – Attending a conference of likeminded people will get you in the mood to connect
- Try out different methods – Not every method is going to work for every person, but you won’t know if it works for you until you try it.