WOOOOO! “To be the man, you gotta…”

There is a long-time professional wrestling star named Ric Flair. Now, I realize his philosophy has not been widely cited in business texts – and, probably, with good reason!

Richard Morgan Fliehr – long known by his stage name as Ric Flair — was born in February 1949. I mention that trivia factoid for this purpose: If someone can be (at this writing) almost sixty years old and still maintain significant success in his profession — by getting in the ring wearing nothing more than glorified Speedo trunks, while possessing a somewhat less-than-glorious physique, and STILL be cheered by thousands of adoring young fans (Are your kids cheering you at your age? Would they if you were wearing wrestling trunks?) – then, maybe…just maybe…he has something to say we should consider.

I discovered his “wisdom” in the title of his book that I noticed at a bookstore one day. It’s simple…and a profound statement of a philosophy that creates differentiation: “To be the man…you gotta beat the man!” (Ric Flair; Keith Elliot Greenberg, Mark Madden (ed.) “Ric Flair: To Be the Man”; Pocket Books (2005).)

Now, first off, let me apologize for the gender specific nature of the “Nature Boy’s” comment. And, please allow me to make my point before you believe that I need to apologize for quoting him at all…

Every professional I know wants to “be the man” – or the woman – who is highly successful. Yet, few want to “beat the man” – or the woman – to achieve that goal!

Instead, they want to TIE “the man”…or to EDGE OUT “the man”…or – in other words – execute the least, most simple, conforming activity they can to achieve the success they desire. They choose to walk the traditional path, instead of Robert Frost’s legendary “Road Not Taken” to get to where they want to go in life and work.

Let’s consider the examples of corporate innovators for a moment: Do you believe that Apple is even concerned at all about “tying” or merely having a “superior market share” of portable electronic music devices than Sony? I don’t. I believe they want to own the category. I think they want you to forget that the Walkman even existed, because the iPod is so superior.

What about you? Let’s face it…capitalism means competition. Combine that with the fact that because most folks seek either the “easy way out” – or, expending the minimum amount of effort to attain superior positioning – it means that they want to merely triumph by a trivial margin.

I am suggesting to you that true distinction comes by what my good friend, author and speaker Joe Calloway designates in the title of his excellent book: “Becoming A Category of One.” (Wiley; August 2003)

True differentiators aren’t satisfied with the incremental improvements that edge out the competition. They want to “BEAT the man” so soundly that the competitor is no longer considered one.