I have often wondered the answer to the question – How to Slay a Dragon? After all, Dragons are amazing creatures with immense power and intelligence. Writers smarter than I have struggled with the same question – Anne McCaffrey, R.R. Martin, J. R. R. Tolkien, and others. So why do I think I can answer it myself. Well I am going to be honest – I have never stood eye to eye with a dragon and brought one down. But I have learned a few things in business that I think will help.

Remember that our strengths are our weaknesses and our weaknesses are our strengths. What? Think about it! Sight is a strength that comes at the cost of dulling your other senses. Talking is extremely powerful but comes at the cost of listening. Speed is often critical but patience can be even more powerful.

I got into father(hood) being very excited about all that I was going to teach my offspring – only to find out that they taught me just as much. How is that possible? Very simply, children can notice things I no longer notice, they see things that are invisible to me because I did not think them important. They ask WHY when adults would not bother to dig deeper and just move on, dismissing the opportunity to dig deeper into the understanding of things.

So how do you slay a dragon?

First ask yourself if it’s the right question – friendship, cooperation or coexistence can often be the preferred options. Once you piss off a Dragon there is often no going back.

But if slay you must then keep these in mind:

• Dragons are powerful and you need to use that against them – they will favor power over agility and the easy and straightforward solution over the well thought out plan
• Dragons are large so be nimble 
• Dragons are smart so be unpredictable
• Dragons are few so take advantage of your numbers. If your numbers are small find allies 

If it works in business, then it will work with dragons – If you find one you can’t befriend, then take it down together with others. 

Do you have a dragon story? Are you a dragon fending off the attacks? Share your thoughts with us.

Next Up: 02-Using SWOT to Slay a Dragon

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