Jake W Hayes

One of my favorite Abbott and Costello routines is from an episode of their TV show called The Army Story.  In it, Bud Abbot is trying to cheat the perpetually juvenile Lou Costello in a game of craps.  Lou admits to never having played the game before and Bud explains the game as they go along.  As Lou keeps winning, Bud begins changing the rules.  By the end, Bud falls afoul of his own modified rules and Lou ends up winning all the money.

As a business owner, this skit sounds all too familiar.  We have all been in this situation before, especially in the early years of business.  Either we get lured in with false flattery and kindness or we are forced to deal with an established competitor or business bureaucracy.  Soon we find out that they are changing the rules to protect their position.  As discouraging as this can be, how you react will determine whether you come out on top.

Here are a few things to remember next time you find yourself in a game where the rules keep changing:

1. If you know that someone is trying to cheat you, one thing is certain, they have already underestimated you. Nobody cheats unless they are sure that they will get away with it.  They never expected you would figure it out, but you have.  This provides you with a unique advantage.  Take a step back and consider how you can use this advantage to win.  Most people who change the rules do so because they feel threatened.  They are cheating because they do not want you to realize that you already have the upper hand.
2. The Law of Unintended Consequences. People who are desperate enough to change the rules rarely take the time to consider the full consequences of those changes.  Take notes, get the new rules in writing, pay attention.  Before long they will get caught by their own rules.  It is inevitable.
3. Karma. My friend Daniel Waldschmidt, author of The DEW View, often talks about investing in Karma.  What goes around truly does come back around.  Take some extra time to invest in your good Karma.  Your opponent will reap their bad Karma and there is nothing you have to do to make it happen.  The true irony of Karma is that the consequences of our bad Karma are usually received from our own hand.
4. “A Sad Little King of a Sad Little Hill” – River (Firefly).  Your opponent is trying to stay in the lead by blocking you rather than outrunning you.  In nearly every situation where I have found myself the supposed victim of changing rules, I end up feeling sorry for my opponent.  As an entrepreneur I cannot imagine anything more painful than realizing that you are at the pinnacle of your career, that you are as far as you will ever get.  It is the curse of bureaucrats and middle managers.  Trying to defend what little illusion of power they have.  Trying to justify their own existence.  Trying to impress people of power who will never see them as significant.  Truly, they are “a sad little king of a sad little hill.”
5. My Grandfather, who stormed the beaches of Normandy, once told me that no one who cheated at cards survived D-Day. You are not the only person that your opponent is trying to cheat.  Rest assured, there are plenty of other people out there just waiting for the perfect opportunity for revenge.  Make sure you are not one of them; revenge often destroys both parties involved.

Next time you find yourself in a game with changing rules, decide that you will come out the winner.  It will take a little discipline not to react out of anger or desperation, but it will be worth it.  There is nothing more satisfying than taking the high road and winning because you have the moral character to succeed.