3 Ways to Respond to Someone Who "Borrows" or Steals Your Idea and/or Tech

I was "inspired" by a post that has gotten a lot of attention here on Indie Hackers and, to be honest, the post and the comments have made me terribly-sad.

Not because the post was necessarily a bad one but because of the incredible amount of time that has been (literally) wasted by not just the two parties in contention but by the larger community here on IH.

Just give that a thought for a moment... the cumulative and aggregate amount of time that every single person that has commented and/or read through the content as well as all of the supporting links and resources and WayBackMachine / Web.Archive and emotional bandwidth that's been spent...

... WOW. Just... ugh!

I shared some thoughts in a comment but I wanted to expand a bit more on this topic:

honestly... i empathize with the pain... but, move on.

so much energy and TIME has been (already!!) wasted! let’s get back to building... let the best product (and community) win.

i really do like free markets.

Trust me, I know what this is like. I've experienced it countless times over the last 20+ years of building stuff! I want folks to just get back to building!

Time's a wastin'...!

And, over time, I've realized that you have 3 different paths to take when this happens to you (and it will, especially if you're an Indie Hacker and someone who builds in the open!):

1. Slay Them All

First option is easy (and cheap) to execute against: Publicly eviscerate / humiliate the person as much as you can, making it a point to call them out on everything that you can, providing as much evidence that you can find so as to make yourself feel a bit better. Nothing feels better than a makeshift army of internet trolls!

Unfortunately, you end up spending valuable and precious time working to defend yourself or your pride and/or "honor" — and you don't feel good about the public humiliation either because it puts you on the same "playing field", sotospeak.

2. Pat Them on The Back

This option is harder: Congratulate them on their work and ask how you can help. I've tried this and the at-bat average isn't as good as you might think! Usually, most folks aren't even interested in talking to you about it — that's usually fine by me!

This can also be a bit of a time-sink too, but, sometimes in the right circumstance, this can be a net-positive. Rare, but, it has happened.

3. Ignore Them Haters

This option is generally the best: Ignore the noise and get back to work.

Remember, people can copy your product / service and/or technology but they can't easily borrow, copy, or steal your community.

This is why I suggest building community before EVERYTHING else — it's your true competitive advantage and it's not something easily taken from you — in fact, it's kind of impossible, assuming you've loved on your community and have treated them proper and well!

In the end, I think Option #3 is the best choice in most circumstances and I know there are always some instances where a public post (and public outcry) is useful and meaningful... but, in the context of a super-early stage project and/or startup, execution is everything and you honestly don't have much to steal and if you do, then, technological-parity isn't hard to reach.

So, it's better that you:

1. Focus and invest in your community.
2. Love on your community harder than all of your so-called competitors or copiers.
3. Remember that ideas are a "dime a dozen" and that nothing speaks louder than focused execution. You might even try to internalize the well-known idiom: "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."

Your mental health will thank you and you'll be better for it! Time is our most precious and limited asset... let's not waste it, shall we?!

Lastly, I decided to do a short vlog on this topic:

You can watch it here! I'm sorry that @bozkan and @daxeelsoni aren't on good terms... that sucks for everyone!

Let's stay strong... because this community is stronger when we're united!