How To Beat Your Competition With This Framework

Do you want to increase your odds of success?
Would you like to avoid making a boneheaded error in your new business endeavor?

Professionals face new challenges daily. When tackling these new challenges there is a tendency to reinvent the wheel. To deal with the challenges you can use this framework to help clarify complexity.

The framework I share the most for becoming a top performer is the Counterintelligence framework.

“Analyze your industry norms…and then do the opposite.”

Michalowicz, Mike. The Pumpkin Plan: a Simple Strategy to Grow a Remarkable Business in Any Field. Portfolio/Penguin, 2012.

What is the CounterIntelligence Framework?

The Counterintelligence Framework (CIF) is a systematic method for gathering relevant information and using it to your advantage.

It’s a method for applying the 80/20 rule to your personal and professional efforts.

Why is it important?

It’s important to be able to show your uniqueness in a relevant, valuable way. This framework will help you:

  • Save time
  • Reduce risk
  • Develop relevant knowledge
  • Beat competitors
  • Quickly discover opportunities

If you have ever been faced with a new challenge and thought…

“I’m not sure”

“I don’t think”…

This framework will quickly move you from uncertainty to certainty with facts and experience.

How can you implement this Framework?

The biggest issue I’ve seen when people approach a new endeavor is simply doing what they have always done.

If you want to be someone who people say “Man, I wish I’d thought of that” then this framework will be for you.

Instead of making avoidable mistakes, you will have the advantage of experience even in situations where you’ve never participated before.

You can use this framework for a wide variety of results:

How did you discover it?

I discovered this technique years ago, from a site for online dating.

The material showed how to break through the noise of online dating profiles and send messages that get read, and responses.

How has it helped you?

It’s helped me by giving me clear, actionable steps to eliminate roadblocks as well as demonstrate excellence in an authentic way.

Using this framework I’ve been able to:

  • Get up to speed in new roles at work
  • Get access to VIP’s with no prior connections
  • Help friends write dating profiles that got them amazing dates
  • Get clients more customers and leads

What did you overcome to master it?

I can admit, I was a bit cautious when applying this framework to new efforts. What I’ve found is that the more I apply the framework, the better I get at it, and the more I learn.

How do you use it step by step?

To use the CI framework you can do the following. I will use the example goal of earning extra money driving with Uber.

Gather Intelligence

In this example, you want to learn as much about Uber from the driver’s perspective. Doing things like:

  • Take 3-5 Uber rides and capturing some measures on your experience as a passenger.
  • What do you like? What don’t you like?
  • Talking to drivers
  • Talking to passengers and asking them the same questions.

Use all this information to get a baseline of what an average ride is like, what an awful ride is like, and what an awesome ride is like.

Create a Plan

With the intelligence gathered above, you should be able to notice some trends.

Review this information and make a list of actions to:

  • Stop
  • Start
  • Continue

Execute Plan and Measure Results

In this final step, you put into practice what you’ve learned. In our example, you start driving, using the things you know you must do, and avoiding the things you identified above as what not to do.

Measure your results. What kind of feedback are you getting? Is there something you can adjust?

Can someone master it in 30 days or less?

This framework can scale to activities big and small.

You can use it in a day for small items or over a month. Decide how much time to dedicate to gathering intelligence and executing what you’ve found.

There you have it. My Counterintelligence Framework. If you liked this also see the framework for resilient communication.

What is your go-to framework for getting better results?