Why Do people Discourage Others From Taking Opportunities They Benefited From?

[Somto9Light]

Lately I’ve been thinking about something I find interesting about competition. Why do some people become very supportive of an opportunity when they are the ones benefiting from it but suddenly become negative about it when other people discover the same opportunity?

I just remembered a story that was shared by a Facebook user some time ago, he lamented that a friend of his traveled abroad and he was begging his friend to also make way for him to join him over there but his friend said that life wasn't easy with him over there, that abroad is not as easy as the way they thought. Surprisingly, this same guy that discourage his friend from meeting him abroad starting picking his brothers to join him and when his friend got the knowledge of what the friend did, he was in disbelief because if life was tough for his friend over there he wouldn't send for his brothers to join him. It's not everyone that wants other people to succeed as they're succeeding, they just want to remain at the top while others will be paying loyalty to them.

Some people think that opportunities are theirs to exploit, not others, hence this. They might minimize the opportunity to discourage competition and use it for their own benefit. The story of a friend helping his brothers but not another person is a fine example of this. Jealousy insecurity or just the fear that someone else might be as successful. However not all cautions are misguided. Others are truly concerned about other people having problems that they had themselves. What matters is making a decision on the opportunity on your own. Rather than reacting to the hype or being overwhelmed by the negativity.

I'm not even against those who helps only their family members but it is very wrong to discourage someone on something you know that they can actually do well in it. Maybe he could have just told his friend that he can't help him instead of discouraging him and later took his brothers along. There are people or friends that won't even like other people to do the kind of job they are doing because they are very insecure and might be nursing the feeling that the other person can do better than them if he get that same opportunity. There are people that can even prefer to give you money instead of teaching you about what they are doing to make ends meet. The best way of helping someone is not by giving them money but by teaching them how to cast the net too.

[LUCKMCFLY]

Sharing opportunities is a choice, and while some choose not to, others want those around them to benefit from the opportunities they themselves have gained. The biggest factor determining these behaviors is again the behavior of their environment.

It's a fact that the environment greatly influences people. It's not the same to surround yourself with criminals as it is to surround yourself with entrepreneurs who own businesses, look for new ways to make money, and obviously have neither the intention nor the time to wish ill on others.

One thing that has a huge influence is envy towards others. Those who take advantage of opportunities that others missed and refuse to share them are not only selfish, but also envious. Those who share opportunities for improvement with others demonstrate not only that they are good people, but also that they truly want others to succeed.

Only by reducing the likelihood of failure in people does ill intention in human beings decrease, but how do we get there? It's difficult; humanity still has many shortcomings when it comes to social progress. It's a cultural problem; that's where it all stems from, because opportunities are often concentrated only within specific groups.

[DrBeer]

Let’s rephrase the question slightly without changing the essence: Why don’t successful businesses reveal all the secrets behind their success and share their models, patents, business logic, business plans, and so on with everyone? The answer is simple, why should they share all that with everyone? For them, this is a problem:
- the time, effort, and money spent to achieve such results, often with PROBLEMS along the path to success
- creating competitors for themselves with their own hands - that’s STUPID

Let me digress a little and while this might sound funny, we know it’s a reality for some;

Some of the many businesses we have there are just a cover for some illegal deals like, drug and human trafficking being on at the side. Having to expect such persons in those business to give you details on their dealings would mean jail time.

Then again,
There is such a thing called trade secret. Every thriving business and trade would always have one, it’s what makes a business unique and keeps a loyal customer. Give that off and you would find yourself competing for customers. No business would want that, they would rather like to monopolize what they could and make the most out of it. They rather expand than give out these trade secrets, it’s just normal.

To be honest, I didn't quite understand who you were referring to when you said that most of the businesses there are fronts for illegal activities.
But even illegal businesses will keep their secrets Revealing secrets doesn't just lead to increased competition - it can also result in criminal penalties
 

[Adiljutt156]

I think it depends on what kind of person you are. Although, at some point, it's normal to feel competitive when there's a competition. Just like what you've given as an example, a person may be happy to share the opportunities he discovered if it doesn't affect the income or profit he's acquiring. But if sharing that opportunity means being in a competition with each other and putting your business at risk, of course, your survival instinct would tell you not to share the same opportunities to other.

Competition will always be there in businesses and it's normal especially if you're in the same industry. But it can still be a friendly competition without dragging others just for you to rise to the top. That's a different story. It's like you found the "opportunity" or the idea to what will make your business thrive even more. Will you share it to others? No. You'll have to let other competitors find their own "opportunity".

Competition is a good thing it helps people grow and learn new thing to survive in competitive environment but it becomes a problem when people start hiding opportunities from others out of jealousy or fear. If you are running business, hiding a strategy that can give you competitive advantage is okay but if it is being shared, it can pose a direct threat to your income. It is not okay to mislead someone so that they may fail. It is human nature that sometimes people forget that they can compete with others without trying to destroy their chances. If I had idea that could give my business and advantage I would prefer not to share it with anyone but I don't lie to others or discourage them from trying.