New competition is in town, here I said it. Many people don’t like competition, some people fear it, some people get motivated by it, and some people see it as an opportunity that helps them step up to the next level.
Personally, I get the same emotional reflex from new competition than I get from any change of weather, it doesn’t really faze me that much. Long time ago I’ve learned to open a new folder in my brain containing all the elements that I can’t control, and the emergence of new competition certainly qualifies for that folder.
And the reason I do that is because I think that the worst thing you possibly can do is to let your fear-based reactions make your decisions for you.
Although to be totally honest with you, I’d be an idiot if I told you to completely ignore competition and act as if doesn’t don’t exist.
Sometimes it’s well worth your attention because it may show you something you’ve missed, it may remind of why you do what you do in the first place, and depending on the competition, it can even help you improve and advance.
A few months ago a new disruptive technology came to the world. It allowed all sorts content creators to make some income doing what they love, all while bypassing the restrictive censorship of armies of gate keepers around the world. And since you’re reading this, then you’re probably using it too.
But here’s the thing, when what you do is truly amazing, you can’t really expect that no one else is going to try to replicate it. In fact, the strange thing would be that if no one was ever going to attempt to create “the new steemit”.
After all, competition is a part of life, and it’s almost here so maybe it’s time we talked about it.
Dancing with Mr. Ying and Miss Yang
On the positive side, competition can make us stronger and more connected. All those small debates and unnecessary dramas would suddenly take a back seat to more important matters.
It can motivate us to up our game and take it to the next level. It can encourage us to keep improving so we don’t get too comfortable. It can help us realize what we have, and not take it for granted.
But there's another way to approach competition, the Yang way, where you can go to that room where you archive all those things that you can’t control, head towards the door and kick it wide open. Just sit there and let fear invade you.
I know this sounds crazy, but believe it or not, the second most common thing people do in face of competition is to fear it and let them rush into making unnecessary decisions. Now, I don’t know about you but to me panic doesn’t precisely strike me as a solid strategy.
However, I do understand why some people might experience some concerns. "Look, there’s a new competition, they have a brand new website, their logo looks so professionally made, their name is so catchy. Hell, they even have shiny shoes…"
From that point on, it will be just a matter of time until this question starts circling around: What if people start pouring there?
I hate to break it to you, but these things can and will probably happen.
A few steemians will move there and that’s ok. In fact, that’s very understandable, they will have their reasons. Maybe they go on their own, or maybe they will have an offer to join.
So when that happens, there are two things that you can do:
You can worry that people are migrating elsewhere, or you can remember the “secret”: That they will never stop making people.
Plus, if that if the goal is expansion, then it’s a comfort knowing that the journey hasn’t changed and that we’re still on the same course.
Destination Moon
That are enough potential users in the planet for everyone, they will never stop making people, remember?
Plus, if the dream was grow and reach hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of people, then nothing has really changed in the grand scheme of things. right?
Maybe a few will leave and it’s ok, maybe they’ll come back quickly afterwards, maybe they won’t or maybe this is a good opportunity to remember:
That moon we all talked about, our moon, is still the goal.
Picture dedicated to @smooth. Thank you for the logo advice!
A View from the Future
So in the future if you read some open letters from some prominent writers explaining why they moved away to the competition, so maybe we don't need to give these things more importance than they deserve.
Sometimes diversification is a smart move, sometimes people need to look for what’s best for them, and sometimes they look for whatever they perceive as such. Whatever the case may be, it’s still their choice and they are free to change their minds.
And yes, we will probably read a few editorial posts about “Why I left steemit for X” and maybe a little worry might circle your train of thought.
Maybe their reasons are totally valid, or maybe they’re unconsciously making up a story with which they can justify it to themselves. So all of the sudden every small problem is magnified and the grass on the other side looks greener. It happens.
Either way, it’s not our place to judge them.
And yes, the preachers of doom will jump at the opportunity to parade their psychic abilities, See? People are leaving steemit already. I told you!, but when that happens please remember that we’re talking about people who never let a good crisis go to waste. So whatever they say should probably be taken with a fine pure grain of Himalayan salt.
These are things that we can’t control, here’s what we can do.
We can step up, we can up our game, we can show them what this platform has already proved, we can remember why we joined and that maybe, just maybe show them that we are still fighting for that fucking moon.
Because let’s not forget, steem is third behind Bitcoin and Ether.
And just as Bitcoin had so many new competing coins that were going to completely erase it from the map, we’ll probably hear the same song again.
There will be many death predictions too. Bitcoin had about a hundred of them, so don't be surprised when that happens.
But what if I’m wrong and the competition is very strong?
Well then we learn to compete better. Competition is a part of life, and it can make you better if you know how to approach it. In fact, I wrote about the subject in the past.
So this goes for those of us who experienced the life changing abilities of this platform, and especially for those who are crazy enough to still believe in the same dream that we are at the beginning stages of a beautiful game changer. For those who still have the same passion about disruptiveness as in the first day, here’s something that we can do:
We Can Bet on Our Strengths
We can focus on what steemit has achieved already and introduce it to the world. How many people have made some good income already? How many projects has steemit helped? How many it has brought in to life? How many relationships have been forged?
So maybe you’re a filmmaker looking for a good story, maybe you can make a documentary about the lives that steemit has changed and its future effects on society, maybe the rest of us can help you.
Maybe I should listen to my own words and lead by example. Maybe I should carve out some time and finally launch my very own book that was born out of pure steem.
Or maybe we shouldn’t have to do anything at all. Maybe we shouldn’t have to step up our game just yet, and ignore any competition.
I’m not quite sure.
Whatever the case may be, I just want you to know that if you’re here for the long run, than you should know that more competition will come, and when that happens don’t listen to the alarming voices and trust your own judgement.
I want you to know that it’s not the end, that this is the beginning and that I hope that you’re still enjoying this beautifully game changing ride and not planning to give up your seat just yet.