In ancient times, the rules of nature were easy. If you didn’t compete for food, shelter or women, you would die. We still compete for those things, but the competition actually makes us weaker.
When we compete, two negative things can happen.
- We start imitating the competition
- We focus too much on our competitor, instead of our business
In our personal lives, we often imitate our competitors. We all compete on some level with colleagues, friends, and family. This will make you lose your identity and dignity. True power comes from within. Don’t compete with others. You don’t have to have a better car.
You can also apply this to business. When Microsoft and Google were focussing on each other, Apple became one of the biggest tech companies in the world. Microsoft dropped the ball because they only focused on Apple. In the meantime, Apple focused on innovation and creating value.
In life and business, it’s not a case of “best” so and so. That’s only true in sports. But in life, most things are subjective. Being different is what matters more. And in business, the ones who are first win.
Competition itself is bad because it’s not the point. Focus on the value that you add, not on how much better you are compared to someone else.
“Your competition is not other people but the time you kill, the ill will you create, the knowledge you neglect to learn, the connections you fail to build, the health you sacrifice along the path, your inability to generate ideas, the people around you who don’t support and love your efforts, and whatever god you curse for your bad luck.”
– James Altucher
