Don't Compete. Differentiate!

Want to scale your business? Stop worrying about the competition, and focus on these three areas instead.

- Adam Bornstein

Q What are innovative ways to scale a business that most people don’t discuss?

—DIANA, CHICAGO

THE FIRST RULE of scaling a business is “Don’t worry about the rules of scaling a business.” If you’re copying others, then you’re always following their lead, which means you pick up breadcrumbs instead of getting the loaf. Instead, look for the leverage only you can create.

That requires an innovative strategy on three fronts: positioning, pricing, and people.

Let’s start with positioning. Look at your three biggest competitors and make a list of the problems they solve and why they exist. Now add yourself to the list, but don’t think about how you’re better than them. Think instead about how you’re different—because remember, you don’t want to be competing.