Dan Barber is a chef and story teller who is fascinated by how the food industry is organized. In February 2010 he gave a great presentation on TED where he told a story on how in South-West Spain a company was created on wetlands that were used for farming cattle, but now used it as a Fish farm company.

The owner of the farm shows that by having extensive farming (not intensive) he is able to have great Fish production, while meanwhile being able to host one of the largest bird populations in the world. Better so, Success for the owner is achieved when the birds are in good conditions and in large numbers.

Can you imagine, measuring your success based on the number of birds, whilst they are eating the fish?

But here is the comparison with your company, isn’t it true that markets can grow because competition is there, so that you either can create establishment and credibility of a new product in the market place, or that you are so focussed on continuos innovation because you want to stay ahead of the competition.

Take another look at your eco system and potential competitors. Don’t automatically see them as something bad. Look at how you can build on each other, what you can learn. Embrace competition as a trigger for improving your company and your performance.

If you are not convinced, take a look at the TED video of Dan. Perhaps he will be able to convince you.

Frank Wammes