Compete with Yourself

Over the years people have asked me if I am concerned that someone will copy what I am doing without paying me for my content. The truth is, of course I am!

Here and there someone might have actually copied word for word what I said or how I said it. What I’ve observed in myself is that it’s humbling, it’s exciting, it’s also rewarding to see that someone cares enough to think that what I’m doing is worth copying. But more important I discovered that by the time they finish copying the work that I’ve been doing, I’ve already recognized that it was becoming obsolete and created new improved versions.

EXAMPLE:

We run entrepreneurship education training programs and we always improve our curriculum. In one instance, some individuals may have copied our curriculum or even copied what I said during the sessions and basically presented it exactly how I did. I know this because someone asked questions about it, which caused me to improve the content to enhance or address the challenges — especially if I see a trend.

Those improvements and trends allow me to compete with myself — so the lessons learned may help others. We see this with many other entrepreneurs — you want to create your own competition, create your own new set of rules, create the next level for yourself.

The phrase I like to use is “Catch me if you can!” because we are going to keep moving forward and if you’re only thinking about the past, you may be stuck in it. I encourage you to rethink the future and how can compete with yourself.

If you don’t create your own competition others will — so think about how you can create your own pathway and continue to compete with yourself.

BEFORE YOU GO

We see our blogs as opportunities for dialogue. Please share your thoughts as comments.

1. What do you do to keep competing with yourself?

2. What other tools or resources have you used to compete with others?

3. How do you cooperate with others for healthy competition?