Dear friend,
Planning for 2026 is still ongoing.
As I map out the year ahead – goals, steps, directions – I catch myself doing something very human:
measuring some of my goals against other people’s.
We all do this.
And that’s okay.
But lately, I’ve been thinking about it more deeply.
Every morning, during my first hour and a half without screens, I spend time thinking. It’s part of my fyaka routine – a space where I’m fully present.
And that’s where this question keeps coming up:
Who is my competition, really?
When you strip it down, competition is just a benchmark.
A reference point.
A signal of what success looks like – at least to someone else.
That can be useful.
But how relevant is it to what you are actually trying to build?
I notice how easily a goal can shift once I start worrying about what others might think or do.
What competitors will launch.
How things will look from the outside.
But then I ask myself:
Do they want the same life I want?
Do they value the same things?
Do they define success the same way?
Usually, the answer is no.
Two people can appear to play the same game
while aiming for completely different endings.
And when you zoom all the way out, the real question isn’t who you beat.
It’s who you became.
How you felt.
And whether the path made sense to you.
That’s when it becomes clear:
Your only real competition is you.
Yesterday’s you.
Last year’s you.
Everything else is noise.
One line to carry with you:
You’re not competing with anyone else – you’re becoming yourself.
Truly yours, this moment.
Armando