Collaboration Is the Key to Super-fast Growth
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British scientist Sir Isaac Newton once said, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Newton knew his success was accelerated by the knowledge, support, and collaboration of others, and he was thoughtful enough to appreciate and communicate this.
Often entrepreneurs, as natural-born leaders, are control freaks — much like I am. We feel like we have to take charge of every element of our business in order to ensure its chances of success.
I personally find it incredibly helpful to know each area of my business well, as it’s difficult to provide good C-level management without experience (and hard graft) in the areas you are overseeing. But Sir Isaac Newton knew that working with others would provide him with much faster exponential growth. And so although it’s important to be in control of your business, it’s also fundamental to take advantage of changing market conditions and to jump up steps or growth hack whenever feasible.
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My businesses often find me innovating in areas of uncharted waters, and therefore the number of experienced players in the market is usually non-existent. This situation may leave you thinking that there aren’t any collaborators to join forces with, but there are always others who can get involved to help to boost your momentum and increase your exposure and connectivity.
Collaboration truly is the key to success
The legendary Abraham Accords was signed in 2020 with multiple middle eastern countries making peace treaties over collaboration in business and innovation. It was a momentous chapter in history — never has the region, or the world, frankly, seen such an alliance. According to The Abraham Accords Institute, the countries participating have already seen more than $3 billion in trade and revenue since its execution, and the setup of 17 new flight paths in the region.
As stated by the institute, “The Abraham Accords paves the way for limitless economic opportunity and represents a significant opportunity for increased economic prosperity for the participating countries.”
According to the Rand Foundation, the Abraham Accords, when fully realized, could create as many as 4 million new jobs and $1 trillion in new economic activity in its first decade, as well as aiding the regional recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Why fight with your competitor or neighbor when you can create a strategic alliance and both succeed together?
According to a recent report “Israel-United Arab Emirates trade grew by nearly 42% in the first five months of 2023 compared to the same period last year, and trade between Israel and Bahrain grew about 24%.”
I discussed this immense foreign relations feat with one of the pioneers of The Abraham Accords, Jared Kushner, earlier this year, who initially met much doubt in the initiative’s success before the joint partnerships were executed. We talked about how change can be scary, and believing in success with another party — who you may have once considered your enemy — can be hard to envisage and roll out. History has proved so differently, and now the desire for international collaboration is highly contagious internationally.
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Earlier this month, I was invited to speak as the Keynote Speaker at the Abrahamic Business Circle at The Royal Automobile Private Members Club in Pall Mall, in London, where government ministers and titans of business from across the world, meet and explore collaboration and strategic partnership, opportunities in innovation and business to advance their region commercially.
My keynote was entitled “Creating World Impact Through Collaboration, Unity & Opportunity” which much to my surprise, received a standing ovation. The impactful television productions created by our company Tech Talk Media spur immense connectivity and collaboration across the globe, earning us 25+ awards and stimulating more than a half billion dollars in deal flow for emerging technologies.
Positivity begets positivity
After some initial research on the Abraham Accords, I was shocked to find out the sheer level of business that is taking place in such a short time. Many international nations had been sitting next to each other regionally for decades but had not taken advantage of partnering up. Instead, they had been polarised politically mainly by negative media, political agenda, or propaganda.
By breaking that chain of negativity, they found far more benefit in working with each other in a positive way, which further reinforces the power and spirit of collaboration.
Collaboration is key. Competition takes strength, energy, and focus away from your business, but strategic partnerships bring resources, experience, and enhanced connectivity.
The team-up should always be…