One of the most common fears I have shared with me during strategy sessions with clients is the worry that their business idea isn’t unique enough. They’re paralysed by the thought that “everything has already been done”.

If you feel this way too, I encourage you to answer this question: If you jumped on the homepage feed of your ideal client, what do you think you would see?

Chances are their feed is NOT filled with 50+ other businesses just like yours. You see, once you’re in an industry, you end up following a lot of your colleagues (and competitors). There’s huge benefits to having a supportive community of fellow creative entrepreneurs, but not if it’s to the detriment of your own business (and mental health).

Imagine if you didn’t follow your “competitors”, and instead followed your ideal clients. How different would your feed look then? What ideas might you come up with? How differently would you think about what you wanted to put out into the world? Would you still feel as though everything had already been done?

You know the saying “comparison is the thief of joy”? Couldn’t be more true. Performing a strong market analysis and having a knowledge of your competitors is important in launching and running any successful business. But there’s a difference between knowing your competitors exist and knowing the daily movements of their business as told through their social media feeds.

Stop judging every idea and decision against your competitors, and instead judge it on how it has the potential to benefit your ideal client.

“A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms.” – Zen Shin.