08/13/2026
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐
๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐.
Not because other people shouldn't succeed.
Quite the opposite.
๐ ๐๐จ๐งโ๐ญ ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฆ๐๐จ๐ง๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฌ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฅ๐จ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐ฆ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฐ๐ข๐ง.
If your entire strategy is built around watching competitors, you're already playing someone else's game.
What are they selling?
What are they posting?
Where are they advertising?
How much are they charging?
And then you try to do the same thing a little better.
I don't want to compete that way.
๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐.
I learned this firsthand building in the CBD industry.
When major advertising platforms restrict CBD, the obvious reaction is frustration:
How can we compete if we can't advertise like everyone else?
But perhaps that's the wrong question.
The better question is:
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ฅ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐๐ฒ๐๐จ๐จ๐ค ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ๐ฌ ๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ?
Create new ways of educating customers.
Create new systems for acquiring them.
Create content people actually want to consume.
Create communities instead of just audiences.
Create partnerships instead of buying every click.
Create new ways of using YouTube, podcasts, e-commerce, email, direct outreach and AI.
And AI is making this philosophy more powerful than ever.
For the first time, relatively small companies can build capabilities that once required large teams, agencies and enormous budgets.
๐๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐๐ฒ ๐ ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐จ๐ซ๐ญ๐ฎ๐ง๐ข๐ญ๐ฒ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ข๐ง๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ข๐ซ๐๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ง๐๐ฐ ๐ฐ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐จ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฌ.
So yes, understand your market.
But don't spend your life staring at your competitors.
๐๐จ ๐ง๐จ๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐. ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐.
Because the most interesting companies of the next decade won't necessarily be the ones that play the existing game better.
๐๐ก๐๐ฒ'๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ง๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ ๐ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ ๐๐ฆ๐.
