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Marketplace Proverbs & Coffee With Ernie · Marketplace Proverbs and Coffee with Ernie-A Proverb Per Day Keeps Stinking Thinking At Bay

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SPEAKER_00: Have you ever been tempted to chase a competitor who bit into your business?
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SPEAKER_00: Well, before you run after them swinging a stick,
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SPEAKER_00: allow me to tell you a story that might just save your energy and your integrity.
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SPEAKER_00: Today, our focus is Proverbs 25 verses 21 through 22 because it's the 25th day of the month.
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[music]
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SPEAKER_00: Welcome to Marketplace Proverbs and Coffee with Ernie,
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SPEAKER_00: where a proverb a day keeps stinking thinking at bay.
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SPEAKER_00: Each day we open the book of proverbs that corresponds to the day of the month
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SPEAKER_00: and ask,
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SPEAKER_00: what is it saying to us as marketplace leaders,
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SPEAKER_00: as customer success masters,
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SPEAKER_00: coworkers, spouses, and occasionally influences of culture?
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SPEAKER_00: So grab your coffee.
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SPEAKER_00: And let's reflect on today's proverb.
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SPEAKER_00: Proverbs 25, verses 21 through 22 from the C-E-V.
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SPEAKER_00: If your enemies are hungry, give them something to eat.
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SPEAKER_00: If they're thirsty, give them something to drink.
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SPEAKER_00: This will be the same as piling burning coals on their heads, and the Lord will reward you.
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SPEAKER_00: That's Proverbs 25, verses 21 through 22 from the C-E-V.
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SPEAKER_00: In the marketplace, we're often taught to see competitors as enemies.
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SPEAKER_00: Someone beats us to a sale, we're supposed to fight back.
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SPEAKER_00: Someone undercuts our pricing, well, we have a tendency to match or undercut them.
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SPEAKER_00: It's a never-ending game of chess, or in some industries, dodgeballs.
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SPEAKER_00: However, Proverbs 25, 21 through 22 offers a radically different mindset.
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SPEAKER_00: Quote, feed your enemies.
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SPEAKER_00: In other words, serve them, bless them.
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SPEAKER_00: That's not just countercultural.
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SPEAKER_00: That's counterintuitive.
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SPEAKER_00: Yet it's the very heart of customer-centered relationship.
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SPEAKER_00: When I wrote my first book, The Poetics of Sales, I created some customer success codes.
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SPEAKER_00: And customer success code number three says competitors are not enemies.
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SPEAKER_00: They offer different solutions to mutual customers.
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SPEAKER_00: I know you may find this hard to believe, but competitors are God's other children too.
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SPEAKER_00: They're our spiritual siblings.
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SPEAKER_00: Allow me to paint a picture for you.
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SPEAKER_00: My dad...
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SPEAKER_00: Grew up on a farm in rural Alabama.
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SPEAKER_00: Now, one day,
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SPEAKER_00: he reached under a piece of equipment in the barn,
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SPEAKER_00: and bam, a snake bit him right between the thumb and the forefinger.
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SPEAKER_00: And as the venom set in,
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SPEAKER_00: his first instinct, he was telling me, was to chase that snake down and kill it.
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SPEAKER_00: But before he could take a step,
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SPEAKER_00: My grandfather grabbed my dad and wrapped a tourniquet around his arm.
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SPEAKER_00: My dad said his dad said to him, quote, leave the snake alone.
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SPEAKER_00: If you chase it now, you'll just pump that venom through your system.
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SPEAKER_00: We need to focus on you now, end quote.
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SPEAKER_00: That, my dear listener, is one of the best business lessons I've ever heard.
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SPEAKER_00: When we focus on chasing our competitor,
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SPEAKER_00: whether to one-up them,
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SPEAKER_00: expose them, or get even, we're not just wasting time, we're spreading venom.
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SPEAKER_00: It hurts our focus,
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SPEAKER_00: it clouds our decisions,
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SPEAKER_00: and it takes our eyes off what really matters, the customer.
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SPEAKER_00: The antidote?
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SPEAKER_00: Relationship stewardship.
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SPEAKER_00: Instead of watching what the competition is doing,
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SPEAKER_00: invest in building celebrated relationships with mutual customers.
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SPEAKER_00: And when those relationships are deep,
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SPEAKER_00: trusted,
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SPEAKER_00: and consistent, and significance is added, competition becomes background noise.
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SPEAKER_00: The truth is,
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SPEAKER_00: Most of us are offering different solutions to different people in different ways,
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SPEAKER_00: and that's okay.
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SPEAKER_00: We don't need to bash, mimic, or monitor.
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SPEAKER_00: Let's serve through versus selling to.
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SPEAKER_00: The Apostle Peter said it beautifully in 1 Peter 3,
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SPEAKER_00: 8 through 9, quote,
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SPEAKER_00: Be of one mind,
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SPEAKER_00: having compassion,
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SPEAKER_00: not returning evil for evil or insult for insult, But blessing instead.
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SPEAKER_00: I see that as even in the marketplace.
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SPEAKER_00: We're called to be a blessing.
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SPEAKER_00: Even to the ones who bite us.
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SPEAKER_00: Think about that.
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SPEAKER_00: Here are today's action points.
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SPEAKER_00: Number one.
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SPEAKER_00: Name your top three competitors.
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SPEAKER_00: Not to obsess over them.
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SPEAKER_00: Just to understand the landscape.
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SPEAKER_00: Action point number two.
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SPEAKER_00: What are they doing well from your customer's perspective?
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SPEAKER_00: This isn't about flattery.
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SPEAKER_00: It's about insight.
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SPEAKER_00: Action point number three.
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SPEAKER_00: What are you doing well?
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SPEAKER_00: Again, from your customer's point of view.
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SPEAKER_00: Action point number four.
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SPEAKER_00: Where do your competitors fall short in your customer's eyes?
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SPEAKER_00: Action point number five, where might you fall short in your customers' eyes?
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SPEAKER_00: Be honest, this is where growth starts.
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SPEAKER_00: In action point number six, use this knowledge wisely.
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SPEAKER_00: How can you highlight your value without ever talking negatively about someone else?
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SPEAKER_00: In action point number seven, stay gracious.
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SPEAKER_00: When a customer mentions your competitor, respond with integrity.
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SPEAKER_00: Never gossip, never bash, just build trust.
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SPEAKER_00: Lord, hallowed be your name.
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SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
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SPEAKER_00: For entrusting us with the opportunity to represent you in the marketplace.
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SPEAKER_00: Thank you for our client list, our territories, and the excellent products and services.
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SPEAKER_00: Help us focus on building relationships versus chasing transactions.
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SPEAKER_00: And by your Holy Spirit,
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SPEAKER_00: Remind us that relationships trump transactions and the wellspring of success comes
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SPEAKER_00: from you.
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SPEAKER_00: Help us to see competitors as your other children,
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SPEAKER_00: entrusted with influencing others for your kingdom.
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SPEAKER_00: Thank you for the blessings you rain down on us and our households.
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SPEAKER_00: In Jesus' name, amen.
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SPEAKER_00: Amen.
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SPEAKER_00: Well, thank you for joining me today for today's episode of Marketplace Proverbs
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SPEAKER_00: and Coffee with Ernie.
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SPEAKER_00: I'm here to share real-life marketplace leadership gained from six decades
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SPEAKER_00: of experience,
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SPEAKER_00: what I call customer success mastery,
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SPEAKER_00: using the book of Proverbs as our guiding compass.
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SPEAKER_00: And as always, I bless you every day with every episode from number 6, 24 through 26.
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SPEAKER_00: May the Lord bless you and protect you.
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SPEAKER_00: May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you.
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SPEAKER_00: May the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.
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SPEAKER_00: Remember, success is temporal, but adding significance to others is infinite.
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SPEAKER_00: I'll see you next time on Marketplace Proverbs and Coffee Weekend.