People may think that owning a business is like being in a 100 metre dash, in which the fastest runner wins, when in reality it is a marathon in which endurance is the key. It is cooperation between businesses, not fighting among them, that ensures mutual success.
By promoting a culture of community between entrepreneurs, we can increase successful business outcomes that will be of benefit to society.
The term ‘community’ originates from the Latin word "communĭtas", meaning the quality of that which is common. It relates to ideas of shared wealth and property, such as the “commonwealth” and the “commons”.
This shared sense of community has been one of the cornerstones of the evolution of our species, playing a very important role, not only for our own survival but for mutual survival, and above all for our individual and collective transformation. We have more to gain if we collaborate for mutual success than to engage in zero sum activities in which there are winners and losers.
In business, we must apply a sense of seeking the common good: collaborating rather than annihilating, making room for complementarity and reciprocity while improving quality and keeping prices low in order to ensure sustainability.
Just like a marathon runner needs to build up endurance and an ability to tolerate pain, an entrepreneur requires a lot of resilience and ability to take calculated risks and tolerate pain as well.
By coming together we can increase the likelihood of success and reduce the likelihood of failure.
If we look at our competitors as colleagues and create a space for mutual support, by aggregating resources in an open market, we will be closer to creating a dynamic and permanently expanding market, where each can win.
When we can put community and collaboration at the center of an economy of entrepreneurs, we can provide a space for them to take greater risks in identifying and fulfilling new business opportunities, and the spinoff benefit of this would be increased innovation and an increase in impact that would benefit both people and the planet.
In this idyllic place, we can create, innovate and be part of regenerative solutions and be supported by the community we have helped to create.
Associations and Business Networks still have a lot to teach to the Incubator, Startup and Co-Working Spaces, and vice-versa - these different worlds must communicate to model the communities that we need to have in the future. More than ideas, we need ideas that are needed and businesses that evolve and adapt in time.
In this community, companies and entrepreneurs create a marketplace with specific rules and its own means of exchange but also promotes the visibility of its members, ensures greater liquidity and safer trade.
By increasing security and generating greater profitability, barter creates a safe space for companies to complement the business done in the so-called cash economy and thus prosper in a sustained and effective way.
The next step for you to take is to see if there is a barter network in your community. If there is, great! If there isn’t, there are a number of options for you to consider.
If you are living in Europe, you can contact us for more information about Bartercard Continental Europe by email at franchise@bartercard-europe.com.
If you are outside of Europe, you can see the list of barter exchanges worldwide here: (https://www.irta.com/member-directory/)
Let’s work together!