Do you consider yourself to be a competitive person? How do you view controversy? How do you handle differences of opinion? Are you a stuffer or a spewer? Ok, Ok…enough questions! BUT, can you guess where I’m going with this message?

photo credit: www.pando.com

Have you ever heard of the Porter 5 Forces, named by its creator Michael Porter?  This is the model that new companies experience in the early stages of development. We all know that there is nothing new under the sun. Everything that exists today is a newer, better version of a previous “innovation.” As a matter of fact, I’m not so sure that the very word has any meaning anymore! Anyway, I found this model fascinating and wanted to share the foundation of Porter’s work:

The strongest competitive forces determine the profitability of a new business and become the most important to strategy formulation. Strategy is nothing more than an idea. Execution is essential and action must be taken. So, when you think of competition you must see beyond the initial threats of entry or you will never take action. Remember, failure is fine as long as it is not final!