How to Develop a Competitive Edge to Stand Apart from the Crowd

How do you find a competitive edge when the obstacles feel insurmountable? How do you get people to take you seriously when they're predisposed not to, and perhaps have already written you off? My next guest recommends creating your own edge by confronting the factors that seem like shortcomings and turning them into assets that make others take notice. She is Laura Huang, a Professor at the Harvard Business School and Author of Edge: Turning Adversity into Advantage. Key Points from this Episode: Laura on how hard work is critical but it is signals, perception, and stereotypes that often dictate success and outcomes [01:22] Hone that intuition around how others see you [06:38] Identify your basic goods [08:11] Be truly self-aware [09:49] Like a tree, you need to prune to grow [10:43] Delight and the power of starting a conversation [13:40] The importance of guiding people to your authentic self [17:41] There is no "self;" There are "selves" [18:44] Like a diamond [19:08] How to make your effort and hard work work harder for you [20:34] Why companies should teach employees to cultivate their own edge [23:38] Constraints empower us  [24:35] People saying No to you help hone your intuition around how they perceive you [27:26] Between fear of failure and embarrassment [29:38] Teaching kids to cultivate their own edge [32:13] Be the prom queen [34:56]