Competition can be good...

Oh oh...

I go off on my own and start randomly investigating my competitors and competition in general, and I guess I didn't have a defined enough search last time 'cause I found tonight what I didn't see previously.

Yes, I was thinkin' about lookin' for the "Panic Button".

Then it dawned on me...this ain't a bad thing at all.  In fact, it's quite the opposite.  Competition for me in my business is the best thing for me, and honestly there's more than enough work out there for all of us *laughs*.  Up til tonight, I thought this was a relatively untapped market I was walkin' in to...not the case it seems.

There's a huge "however", however...

In the event that my initial research was erred and mistaken, and this market has been lightly tapped already, is it enough reason for me to hit the "Panic Button" and look for an emergency chute?  Is it enough for me to jump out of a perfectly good airplane?

Nope.

I just had to remind myself that even if the market has been lightly tapped already, despite my initial research...that's not enough reason for me to panic and flail my arms about my head, runnin' around the room cryin'.  So what if there seems to be other rivals that are in the same type of field I'm entering.  The people I've talked to (in some VERY high places) have yet to hear of any of this being offered, and they're by no means "new" to the industry...so how good is this competition anyways?  How effective are they REALLY if these high positions have yet to hear of such offerings in their area?

To me, and with no disrespect intended, they can't be that shit hot if they haven't been heard of around these parts.  And these competitors have been in business for a decade or more, so they aren't "new" to the industry either.  Put those together, and I still have a 100% viable business plan in my hands.  I just have to bear in mind now that there are other "players" in the game, so I need to make sure that I'm offering something that they don't, or offering it in such a way that makes mine stand out more (more appealing) if it is the same thing.

Admittedly, I felt a little intimidated when I found out that there are some "players" in the game, but to be honest, I kinda already knew it...I couldn't feasibly expect that this market was virginal.  Maybe that's why I didn't hit the "Eject" button as I may have once upon a time.  My research didn't dig anything valuable up initially, but the realist in me would chime in saying "C'mon now...you'd be the ONLY kid on your block with this idea?  Get serious."

It's like I've told people around me...by the time YOU have an idea, or issue, or problem, or solution...bet good money that it's already been made available before now.  You'll just be one of many by the time it hits your brain.  Guess those were sage words of advice for me to follow too, and thankfully I kept them close to me to keep me grounded in reality.  In other areas of my business and services, the competition being around is EXACTLY what will make mine stand out...'cause they're droppin' the ball left and right, and I'll be there to race in and scoop it up and run with it.  Same too with this recent discovery tonight.  I'd like to believe that my competitors being around (and so far unheard of) is the EXACT reason why mine will stand out in the end.

First don't always mean best.

First on the scene doesn't mean you can't be usurped.

This King has room on his head for someone else's crown too...expect it to happen.