---
title: "Copying"
description: "Human beings have been copying each other since the beginning of time."
source: "Preetam Nath"
canonical_url: "https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/copying"
published: "2020-06-16"
updated: "2021-01-24"
---

# Copying

I remember copying answers during exams from my classmate sitting behind me in 8th grade. I didn’t really do very well in those exams.

I also remember a few other friends who were also copying from others. But they did much much better than me in the same exams.

Years later I understood the difference.

Copying others isn’t new. Human beings have been copying each other since the beginning of time.

But how you copy makes all the difference.

Did you copy blindly like I did?

No wonder you got mediocre results, like I did.

Did you copy + improve it using your existing knowledge?

That’s how my friends got significantly better results.

In the context of business, writing this post reminds me of Mixpanel & Mighty founder Suhail’s thoughts on [ruthlessly copying competitors](https://twitter.com/Suhail/status/1111489225076039680).

I’d add to his original tweet that you should ruthlessly copy your competitor’s best ideas + improve upon them.

Now you’re ahead and can expect significantly better results.

## 💬 Discuss on Twitter

[View this tweet on X](https://twitter.com/i/status/1272933446780776454)

---

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## About Preetam Nath

Preetam Nath is an entrepreneur and indie software builder. He writes about building profitable SaaS businesses while leading a good life, from first-hand experience: he co-founded SuperLemon, a WhatsApp plugin for Shopify stores that grew to $25k MRR, and DelightChat, a customer support product for ecommerce and D2C brands.

His website (https://www.preetamnath.com) publishes his blog on business, life, mental models and building SaaS businesses, along with a Micro-SaaS guide, a Programmatic SEO course, and Google Sheets habit tracker templates.

- Homepage: https://www.preetamnath.com/index.md
- Blog: https://www.preetamnath.com/blog.md
- X/Twitter: https://x.com/hipreetam93
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathpreetam/
- Email: hipreetam93@gmail.com

## Continue Reading

- [Directional goal setting](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/directional-goal-setting.md)
- [A day off](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/day-off.md)
- [Overnight Success](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/overnight-success.md)
- [Freedom](https://www.preetamnath.com/blog/freedom.md)

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