3 Reasons Why You Must Ignore Your Competition

We all tell the story we want other people to hear. When we write the “about us” page, we talk about the things that will promote our business and showcase our credibility. But even if the “about us” story is totally authentic, it’s never the full story.

I talk to individual entrepreneurs every day. Everyone knows that entrepreneurship is hard, but we’re out there every day trying to show the world that we’ve got it handled.

Then other entrepreneurs read the advice and stories of others and it seems like everyone else is further along. We compare ourselves to other entrepreneurs so then we feel bad that we’re not doing all of those things that others are. And then, to put the pin in the cushion of our already precarious egos, someone comes along with unsolicited advice.

Sure, sometimes we speak on panels or write articles about the struggle. We share memes like this one that I reshared the other day, but then we go back to trying to show our clients, our employees, and our investors that we’ve got it all under control. We know what we’re doing, we’re gaining traction, making money, and everything is fine. But even if all of those things are true, there are always more truths than just one.

For every entrepreneur’s success story, there are thousands of other parts to it that we don’t know. We want to put everything together in a shiny package because we want it to make sense. But, like life, business is messy.

We read the “about us” stuff and we started wishing we were better. That we were further along. That we had more of what we wanted.

So stop! Stop judging yourself and your competition. And stop comparing your entrepreneurial journey to anyone else’s.

Here are 3 reasons why you must stop comparing yourself to them and start ignoring your competition.

Comparing doesn’t get you far

I wish we could stop comparing ourselves to other entrepreneurs. We hear the advice to stop comparing ourselves to others in life but then we’re taught that in business we need to learn the competition.

I disagree.

When entrepreneurs compare their business to other peoples’ businesses, it doesn’t help. Instead, it makes them anxious and worried. It makes them doubt themselves and it doesn’t make their business better.

I’ve literally seen entrepreneurs stop to a screeching halt when they started worrying about their competition.

You’ll lose sight of yourself and your company

Entrepreneurship is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do but it’s fun and that’s why we do it. No one is telling you to risk everything to start a business. You’re likely doing this because you want to. So do it the way you want. Learn from others when you can but be yourself!

Entrepreneurship is a true expression of creativity and individuality. When we compare ourselves to other entrepreneurs, we forget why we went into business. We hop on their journey and that makes us lose sight of our own unique value proposition. There is no way that you can be interesting and unique by trying to be like someone else. So say no to blandness and build your company according to you.

You’re starting from scratch

Honestly, if you want to do something just like somebody else then maybe you should open a franchise. You’d have everything laid out for you and maybe then you could directly compare yourself to other franchise owners because you’re building the same exact thing. There’s nothing wrong with owning a franchise, by the way, but I imagine it’s very different from founding your very own business from scratch.

Don’t stress over the competition

There is ample money and opportunity in the world. There are enough clients. The world will not run out of adopters, users, and customers. There will (almost) always be companies that are bigger than yours and companies that are smaller. As an entrepreneur, you get to build the business that you want and that fits who you are.

I realize that for some competitive people, competition is motivating. Some people like to get out of bed in the morning with the idea of crushing their competitors. If that’s you, then you do you. But if you’re like me and a lot of the entrepreneurs who I talk to, the benefits of comparison don’t outweigh the costs.

Here’s something to try: for one week, try to make no judgments — good or bad — about other people. When you find yourself judging, take note of it by writing down your thoughts. By doing this exercise, you will learn a lot about yourself, your habits, and how often you compare yourself to others.