Today I was inspired by a Socrates quote which is helping me to deal with some feels I'm feeling.

"The secret of change is to focus all of your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new."

Sounds so simple, right?

Yesterday Gov. Rick Snyder signed a bill that ensures Tesla Motors, the Silicon Valley automaker, can't sell cars directly to consumers in Michigan, which was heavily supported by Michigan's powerful auto dealer lobby.

There are a plethora of "reasons" however the main thorn in their side comes from Tesla wanting to sell cars through "stores" instead of franchised dealers, which today is the standard of the automotive industry. No other automakers do this. Supporters argue Michigan should have a business environment where all participants play by a common set of rules.

This is the silliest thing I've ever heard.

A "common set of rules" will suppress competitiveness, which is the backbone of businesses. It will suppress innovation based on fear of the same banishment and because innovation and change have now been made unnecessary for a successful business. And without a culture based on innovation, Michigan has just suppressed the automotive industry, its pride and joy.

Just because we didn't do it first doesn't mean it isn't a good idea. 

Business and the industry need to keep up with the needs and lifestyles of a new generation, a generation that is far different and complex from anything else we've seen. Those who are unwilling to change to meet their demands, will be pushed aside.

Just because we didn't do it first doesn't mean we can't do it better.

If the industry spent half as much time, energy, resources, and money on change as they have on fighting the new model, maybe they would have been able to develop a competitive solution that could have, once again, put Detroit's auto industry on the map.

In the words of, Detroit billionaire, Dan Gilbert on the ban: "Why don't you man up and compete like everybody else does?"