Old Rule:

Business is a competition. Protect your turf. Keep your cards close.

I heard this from the very beginning of my entrepreneurial journey: “Don’t get too close to people in your industry. They’re your competition.”

The underlying message? There’s not enough to go around. If she wins, you lose. If she gets the client, you miss out. If she’s shining, you’d better dim your light to catch up.

For a while, I believed it. I guarded my ideas, kept my network small, and compared myself endlessly to other women. I looked at what they had and thought, why not me?

It was exhausting—and lonely.

How We Show Up Competitive

The competition rule sneaks into our behavior in all kinds of ways:

• Comparing our business, body, or family to someone else’s highlight reel on Instagram
• Withholding resources or tips because we’re afraid someone else will “steal our edge”
• Feeling jealous instead of celebratory when another woman gets an opportunity
• Talking ourselves down because someone else seems further ahead
• Believing there’s only one seat at the table and fighting to claim it

It looks like ambition on the surface, but underneath it’s fear.

Why This Rule Doesn’t Work for Us

Competition is a patriarchal setup. It thrives on scarcity, fear, and isolation. It tells us to see each other as threats instead of allies. And it keeps us small.

The truth is: business is hard enough without pretending we have to do it all alone. When we isolate ourselves, we lose access to the support, ideas, and encouragement that only community can provide.

And let’s be honest—comparison rarely makes us better. It usually just makes us bitter.

What I’ve learned is this: when women work together, everything expands. Opportunities multiply. Support deepens. Creativity sparks. And the loneliness that comes with entrepreneurship starts to fade.

I’ve built more momentum in my business through collaboration than I ever did by competing. And the best part? It feels better. It’s more fun. It’s more sustainable.

The Rewritten Rule: Community Over Competition

Instead of guarding our ideas, let’s share them. Instead of hoarding resources, let’s pass them around. Instead of fighting for one seat at the table, let’s build a bigger table—or better yet, our own.

Sisterhood in business isn’t just a feel-good slogan. It’s a strategy. Because when women rise together, everyone wins.

How to Build a Better Sisterhood

In an hour: Send a DM to a woman in your industry you admire. Tell her you see her and appreciate her work. No agenda—just connection.

In a day: Share a resource, a podcast episode, or a contact that helped you, and pass it along to someone else.

In a week: Collaborate. Host a joint event, share each other’s work, or brainstorm together. Notice how much lighter it feels when you stop hoarding and start sharing.

In a year: Build your circle intentionally. Surround yourself with women who celebrate your wins, hold you accountable, and remind you that you don’t have to do this alone.

Take It & Run

This week, flip the competition script. Instead of comparing yourself to another woman, celebrate her. Share her work. Cheer her on. See how it shifts your energy when you see her as an ally instead of a rival.

Your Turn

Have you ever been told to keep other women at arm’s length because they’re “the competition”? Tell me in the comments.

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