Pride and Marketing
Good or Bad
It depends on how you use it
Pride is a two edged sword, it can be both good and bad. It can be good, if it is associated with honesty and integrity. Although, I have seen an instance where being brutally honest caused some extreme hurt for others. Pride is a very fleeting thing, and can require a lot of time trying to maintain. Pride to the point of not asking questions or for help can cause some major set backs at times. Pride in your work and doing the very best you are capable of will go a long way and create a good reputation and is actually a marketable commodity.
I worked 30 years for a company that I think was founded upon pride. The founder had a saying, and I may not have it quite right. It goes like this: I will not put my name on any product; that doesn't have the best of me in it. The company still has his name associated with it, and has been in business for over 150 years. This type of pride can be used to push you into attaining the best you are capable of producing. This is the good type and should be allowed to grow and manifest itself in everything we do.
The other type of pride keeps you from asking for help, or asking questions; because you might be-little yourself (vanity). It is this type of pride that works against you and should be avoided at all costs. It can stop you from reaching your dreams and slow down your progress toward your goals and successful endeavors. I made this mistake some time ago, and it cost me about a year hand a half, and quite a lot of money. This type of pride is sometimes called vanity, and it has no place in business. I thought I had to do everything myself, and wouldn't ask for help, and I paid for it in the long run.
Don't let negative pride and vanity stop you from reaching your dreams. If you are on a shoestring budget, it can be especially costly both in time and money. It will slow down your pace, and cause you to burn energy, that could have been applied positively to build your business. Don't be afraid to ask for help, no one knows everything and successful people build support groups to help get through the tough times. Pride is OK in some instances, just make sure you keep it pointed in a positive direction; let it work for, instead of against you. You need to keep it working in your favor.
I have come to the conclusion, there is no such thing as a dumb question, only dumb answers. I have had a lot of success in getting answers to some difficult questions in the last year or so. The main reason, I started admitting I didn't know everything (negative pride) and started asking for help. Since that time, I have been asked to participate in some projects that should help me attain my goals. Pride is definitely good if it keeps you working at a superior level of competence and always protecting your integrity.
Pride can work both for and against you; so be careful how you allow it to impact you and your business. As long as it is a driving force keeping you working toward improving and integrity it is GREAT. Just remember, don't let it hold you back by thinking that it would be hurt by asking for help.
