KEEP YOUR ‘A’ PLAYERS Knowing the difference between confidence and ego will go a long way toward employee retention.
BY BRIGHAM DICKINSON
C
onfidence and self-assuredness draw people towards you while being egotistical drives others away. As a business owner, knowing the difference between the two will have a long and lasting effect on “A Player” retention. We all have an ego or what we consider our sense of self. It can be spot-on as long as you keep it in check or grossly inaccurate when you let yourself get puffed up over a few successes. Failure can negatively affect your ego as well. Whether tipped out of balance through failure or success, ego can make us lose meaningful moments through self-doubt
12
That thing that you want to accomplish may not come as easy to you as it does for others, but you can still do it as long as you’re willing to pay the price. or self-aggrandizement. So, what is ego and how can learning to control it help us win meaningful moments, make real connections with customers and most importantly, help us keep our A Players? Years ago, when my business was in a state of transition, I knew I had to make a change. I started living by some of
HVACR BUSINESS AUGUST 2020
CONFIDENCE VS. EGO
the principles we were teaching our clients and distilled the lessons we learned through this process into my second book, “Patterned After Excellence.”
First, ego and confidence are radically different. Ego is driven by your successes and failures and it’s how you map those onto your understanding of who you are. It’s taking a string of successes and, instead of assuming that you must be great to have done such great things, learning from your successes and delivering credit where it’s due — whether it be on the circumstances, on your team or even just a lucky break.
Learning how to confront my own ego was difficult, but it helped me take control of my life and work and start delivering better experiences for my team as well as every one of my clients.
Confidence comes from hard work and dedication. It is taking a step back and assessing a situation on its merits. It’s understanding that you only get out of a moment what you put in, which means if you
www.hvacrbusiness.com
