"I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single political argument left."
The importance of Thatcher's comment above, as it relates to business, is the way our competition may talk about and react to us.
Think of how she says the word "personal." When things are put out in the press or communicated about us that are personal, then you know they are on the run, they're in serious trouble.
It means they're running on empty and it is probably a great time to go on the offensive. A company or person that starts to make personal, irrelevant and unnecessary attacks, is a company or person that has run out of options, answers and ideas.
What it tells us is they're the ones that are vulnerable. They are making the attacks to hide their own glaring problems or weaknesses of their company or their position within it.
Rather than repond to the attacks, unless they're the type of lies that are slanderous to the point of damaging you and your business, it's best to go on the offensive, ignoring their darts, and market, sell and serve you customers stronger and more agressively than ever.
While we have to be careful not to go overboard here, the point is to understand these types of attacks are signs of weakness and a unsuccessful person and company. We can't spend too much time being concerned what other companies are saying or doing, but it is important to know where they're at through things they say and the actions they take.
This is vital, competitive information that can determine some of the actions we can take to take market share from them and solidfy our place in the hearts and minds of consumers.
It's definitely worth listening to how our competitors are communicating about us and other companies. It's one indicator of their corporate health.
Margaret Thatcher Resources:
The Best Quotes From Margaret Thatcher's 'Statecraft'
Margaret Thatcher & the Revival of the West
Interview with Margaret Thatcher
Magaret Thatcher's Life in the Shadows
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