Taking advantage of ‘unfair advantages’

In 2020, we were blindsided and attacked by almost an invisible enemy. The economy collapsed. Businesses bled. Relationships were tested. I remember sitting in my balcony just mindlessly staring at the view during the second month of lockdown. I was thinking then, “What now?”

Being in the events industry, we were hit hard. After a few months of not seeing any signs of reopening and normalcy, my partners and I had to do some deep thinking. We had much spare time, and I came across this book, “The Unfair Advantage: How You Already Have What It Takes to Succeed,” by Ash Ali and Hasan Kubba. What I would pick up from it was the hard truth that no matter how hard I work, especially in these challenging days, it wouldn’t be enough to even survive. That’s why it is important to understand my own “unfair advantages.” According to the authors, these unfair advantages, like having money, being in the right place at the right time, being math-savvy, or simply getting a good education, or better yet if they’re in combination, are the formula to success.

So, as we discussed the future of the company, we were forced to look beyond its internal and external characteristics. We reevaluated the company’s strengths and weaknesses especially in these trying times, but, more importantly, we also forced ourselves to look into our own personal characteristics and each other’s as well. We wanted to place ourselves under a microscope and assess what it is that we individually and collectively bring in to the table.

As an individual, one of my partners’ “unfair advantages” was her network gained through her status and good education. I, on the other hand, was blessed with a good education and insights on how to run the business. The other one, meanwhile, had gained access to certain industries. There was also an element of luck, because he happened to be friends with the son of one of our biggest customers today.

When we were able to learn about each other’s unfair advantages, then it was time for us to use this information. What we believed to be our weaknesses, we counteracted with each other’s strengths. What we thought we lacked individually, we filled up with each other’s advantages.

Before the pandemic, we wouldn’t probably have considered delving into each other’s personalities as deeply. If not for the pandemic, we wouldn’t have been forced to explore other opportunities, or learn how to take “advantage” of each other’s unfair advantages. So, what really did we do to cope with and try to survive this crisis? We celebrated our luck. We were lucky to be connected to a network of business people. Lucky to have maintained a good relationship with a friend-slash-client. And lucky to have complementing advantages that are helping the business thrive.

But in order to get “lucky,” we invested time and effort to get to know our company better in a pandemic setting, and also reevaluated ourselves individually. Many companies tend to forget the latter. They forget that as “business owners,” the individual self is one of the pillars and anchors supporting the company’s resilience.

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Koko Tamura is the sales and marketing director of Jenka Global, an importer and distributor of essential products in the Philippines, as well as the CEO of Tui and Tamura, Inc., a PR and events management agency. She is a member and director of Network for Enterprising Women (NEW), an organization dedicated to promoting and cultivating women entrepreneurship. NEW is a member organization of PhilWEN.

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Women Who Lead is an initiative of the Philippine Women’s Economic Network (PhilWEN)