The Audacity of Copying Well: Building Personal Moats for Success

The Audacity of Copying Well: Building Personal Moats for Success

In the world of business, there is a fine line between copying and innovation. Many successful companies, such as Apple and Google, have shown the audacity to ignore the naysayers and do what is right for their own growth. However, the ultimate constraint in any industry is the attention of the end user. What do they actually want to do, and does your product help them do it?

Take Instagram, for example. It provides users with an opportunity to showcase the best version of themselves, complete with a feedback loop driven by likes. On the other hand, Snapchat took a different approach by offering ephemerality. This gave its users, primarily teenagers eager to escape the prying eyes of adults, the permission to be themselves. Although Snapchat offers similar features to Facebook and Instagram, it does a fundamentally different job. It is not complementary, but orthogonal.

The mistake most incumbents make when facing new competitors is trying to win on features. They attempt to build something distinctly different from the disruptive product, focusing on complicated user interfaces and additional features. However, the problem with this approach is that category-defining products often get the user experience right from the beginning. Imperfections become the norm simply because users get used to them.

Cloning a successful product is not enough. Differentiation is still crucial, but it requires identifying what else can be leveraged. Google, for instance, may have copied the iPhone's user interface for Android, but its success was attributed to the search company's ability to offer it for free, leveraging its advertising-based business model.

In the quest for differentiation, it is essential to identify what is unique to your own talents and interests. Building personal moats, as coined by some experts, is a strategy to create a competitive advantage that endures over time. It involves developing skills and expertise that are hard to learn and hard to replicate. These personal moats should be easily describable and shareable, making people want to do both for you.

To build personal moats, seek input from others. Ask them what comes easy to you but is difficult for others. Identify something that is difficult to reverse engineer and relies on your rare and valuable skills. The concept of Ikigai, which is the intersection of what you love, what you're good at, and what the world needs, can also guide you in building personal moats.

In the internet economy, specific knowledge and rare skills have become scarce and valuable. By leveraging your personal moats, you can build career capital effortlessly. The key is to choose something that may not be big now but has the potential to grow in the future. Additionally, focusing on areas that rely on exclusive relationships or involve legibly impressive but uncharted territories can help you build a competitive advantage.

When deciding whether to specialize or generalize, both approaches can work. However, the key is to actually be good at something. Scott Adams, the creator of Dilbert, popularized the idea of finding the intersection of two or three things you excel at, even if you're not the best at any of them individually. This intersection can be your personal moat, giving you a unique advantage in the market.

In conclusion, the audacity of copying well lies in the ability to understand what the end user truly wants and to differentiate yourself in a meaningful way. By building personal moats, leveraging unique skills and expertise, and focusing on what sets you apart, you can create a competitive advantage that endures over time. Here are three actionable pieces of advice:

1. Identify what comes naturally to you but is difficult for others. Leverage these skills to build your personal moat and create a competitive advantage.

2. Look for opportunities in areas that are not yet big, but have potential for growth in the future. Being an early adopter in these areas can give you an advantage.

3. Focus on building your expertise in the intersection of two or three things you excel at. This combination can set you apart and make you valuable in the market.

Remember, copying well is not about replicating a product or idea. It's about understanding the core elements that make it successful and finding ways to differentiate yourself and create your own path to success.