Free blankets are nice. You take one even if you don’t need one. But what if you do?

If you need one, a free blanket makes all the difference in the world. It might even mean the difference between life and death.

In a race to the bottom, free blankets are always taken. By everyone. Even people who don’t need one, take one. Sometimes all of them. They help you marginally reduce your overhead.

Every hand grabs.

But there comes a time when the amount of energy required to carry the free blankets outweighs the value they create.

The problem with this of course is that blankets are a scarce commodity. There are only enough to go around. A few people desperately need one, and most people only kind of need one.

The same goes for our attention, our time, and our money. Everyone is grabbing for just a little bit more, but it’s unclear whether or not they really need it.

Even worse, the focus on grabbing everything from everyone takes attention away from making things and doing things that truly matter.

There’s another way to compete.

Instead of taking a blanket, move to the beach.

Surf’s up.