You’ve been working hard on a project, perfecting it and making it your own when suddenly someone else comes along and copies it. It’s frustrating, and can even feel like a personal attack.
But there are a few things you can do to deal with jealous copycats.
5 ways to deal with jealous copycats:
1- Remember that they probably admire you:
First, remember that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If someone is copying your work, it means they think you’re doing something worth copying.
So if you’re creative and successful, then there’s almost no way that you won’t have to deal with copycats at some point. It’s ego-boosting, in a way, to know that someone admires your work enough to want to imitate it. But it can also be frustrating to see your ideas being taken without credit.
In this case, do your best to remember that they’re probably motivated by admiration, not malice. Instead of getting angry, try to have a sense of humor about it. And who knows?
Maybe one day the tables will turn and you’ll be the one copying someone else’s brilliant ideas. The only difference is that you may want to be original and alter their work enough to make it look like your own. In the end, getting inspired by something or someone else is not so bad as long as it helps create something even better and incredible!
2- Stay ahead of them:
Second, try to stay ahead of the game by continuing to innovate and evolve. Copycats will always be two steps behind you if you’re always moving forward.
If they’re always trying to imitate your style, make sure you’re always changing things up so they can’t keep up. You can also try to be less open about what you’re doing and not share your ideas ahead of their time.
That way, they’ll be forced to stay behind as they will be unable to copy your work before it becomes publicly known and published. And in this case, everyone will know you’re the real deal anyway; because they’re forced to copy your work sometime after it was made public and not before.
So try doing this and it will not just force them to stay behind but it will also prove your authenticity. If all else fails, you can always just ignore them and focus on your own work, rather than play cat and mouse. Remember that if you get too distracted you won’t even be able to keep up the quality of your work that’s good enough to make others want to copy it, in the first place.
3- Confuse them:
Dealing with jealous copycats can be tough, but there’s one surefire way to give them the slip: confuse them. If nobody knows your next move, they’ll never be able to keep up with you. However, if they think they know your next move but it turns out to be something completely different then that can be even more powerful!
So mix things up and confuse everyone. You can leave everyone scratching their heads and wondering, if you play with elements like suspense and mystery and if you are a bit spontaneous and dare take chances.
So do not hesitate to be different and stand out from the crowd. And most importantly, don’t let anyone control or dictate your life. You’re the only one who knows what’s best for you, so live your life on your own terms rather than be forced to do something completely out of character, just to confuse a bunch of useless copycats.
4-Stay focused:
Jealous copycats are always going to be a fact of life, no matter what you’re doing or how successful you become. They are inevitable. At some point in our lives, we will all come across someone who is trying to do exactly what we do, or be like us in some way. It can be tempting to get caught up in the drama and try to take them down a peg or two.
However, they would’ve gotten your attention this way and could use anything you do or say against you to bring you down to their level. That’s why one of the best ways to deal with them is to keep your focus and keep moving forward.
Ignore them and don’t let them get to you; they’re just trying to distract you from your own goals. Keep your eyes on the prize and don’t let anyone stand in your way.
5- Don’t give up:
Finally, don’t let the copying get to you. Keep your head up and keep doing your own thing; eventually, the copycats will get tired and give up.
Jealous copycats can be frustrating, but don’t let them get you down. Show them that you’re not going to let their jealousy stop you from doing what you love. Pursue your passions with even more intensity and prove to them that they can do nothing about it.
Copycats thrive on the attention and energy that they steal from others, so take away their power by ignoring them. Don’t let them see that their jealous attempts to sabotage you are having any effect. Eventually, they’ll get bored and move on to someone else. Don’t give up and you’ll come out victorious in the end.
You can also check this article out in the end, on how to distance yourself from a coworker friend if this copycat is a frenemy from work or even school.