Sunday, September 4, 2011

Competition and the Bear


Last week I went to a Social Media Conference up in Lake Tahoe.  Too beautiful of a place to sit locked inside all day talking about social media and the emerging advertising technology.  So after lunch I grabbed my backpack and decided to go hiking on a nearby mountain trail.  A mile or so into the woods, I came upon a competitor of mine that had the same idea (once again).

We made some small talk as we ventured deeper into the forest.  He bragged about his revenue growth, I bragged about our profitability.  Then suddenly a large bear wandered onto the trail about 100 yards ahead.  My competitor -- who never had first mover advantage in business -- started to panic.  I calmly sat down, took off my backpack, removed my hiking boots, and began lacing my running shoes.

"You can't out run a bear," he yelled anxiously.

 "I don't have to," I replied, "I only have to out run you."

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