someone stole my sh*t!
...so, you've got a copycat. Now what?
A writer-friend blasted his email list with an angry email yesterday.
One of his customers copied his entire product and now claims authority as an email marketer on LinkedIn.
Needless to say.
He was pissed.
So I responded the only way I know how...
Descending from atop of my ivory tower, like a proper enlightened Guru.
“This means you’re on to something man.”
“Mimicry, after all, is the highest form of compliment.”
In a funny turn of events.
I opened up LinkedIn just now, finding a fellow creator copied a line I had shared with him in a face-to-face conversation.
I’ve talked about killing the starving artist archetype on one hand.
And helping the soulless mercenary find their heart on the other.
I made it my mission to do so.
So, did it bother me?
Were my feelings hurt?
Did I embark on a holy crusade and throw stones in public?
No.
I did not.
But it did bring up something.
This email, to be exact.
I’m literally flushing out my feelings (and thoughts) in real-time.
Can’t help but wonder if this thing has something to do with...
society built on a false narrative
schooling conditioning us to hide our tests so others can’t copy
the myth of the self-made wo/man
Don’t we all stand on the shoulders of giants?
I, like you, see the utility of this myth of the self-made man...
...within the individualistic capitalist culture.
But does that make it true?
Do we really own anything if we owe everything to our forebearers?
Could I be writing this email, or have a point of view, if it weren’t for the philosophers, the tyrants, the fools, and the sages of old?
No.
The answer is a definite no.
Heck, I wouldn’t have had the command of English (or any other language) if it weren’t for Shakespeare and Helen, my English teacher from the UK.
Are you really leaving me with more questions than answers today Aleks?
Is that how this is gonna play out?
Let’s get to the brass tacks, what about (my) Intellectual property!
Yeah, there’s something to be said about integrity here.
Probably Austin Kleon’s book: Steal like an (starving?) artist offers some insight: (boils down to give credit where credit’s due)
Look.
An artist’s job is to consume.
In order that they find connections that no one noticed before.
So that they can create...
And split open your fckn head, and heart.
in order that light shines through...
Do you think Picasso invented cubism in his first brushstroke?
Nah.
He was imitating other artists.
Painting portraits of Parisian aristocrats.
(That’s what being an IG personal branding coach looked like back in the day, m’kay)
What’s the real question here?
Glad you asked.
If it wasn’t for one of my mentors, George Bryant, it would have probably taken me a couple more years to figure this out:
Why this obsession with needing to be/do/have something original?
Are you just looking for validation (that you’re worthy of love)?
Or are you in service to something greater than yourself?
Like, in my case, do I serve my clients better if I give them everything I learned from others and validated through experience, or do I obsess with it having to be of my own making?
If your answer is former, rather than the latter, you’re probably better off being a permissionless creator.
One who seeks no permission.
To be on a mission.
Asks forgiveness instead when appropriate.
And gives credit, where credit is due.
P.S.
Going permissionless starts with
knowing what floats your boat...
I made this 60-second Entrepreneurial Archetype survey to help you see the unconscious drivers behind the performance.
So you don’t have to copy Alex Hormozi, Dan Koe, or Leonardo DaVinci.
Sure, use them as inspiration.
But with clarity… which port you’re sailing to.
> Click here to discover who’s behind the steering wheel
Feeling social? (s)talk on LinkedIn.
As seen on Instagram.
-- Your copycat pet detective
Aleksander Brankov
