Why Most Side Hustlers Fail—and What to Do Instead
A Book Review of The Existing Market Trap
If you’ve ever launched a product, pitched an investor, or led a marketing campaign that just didn’t land—The Existing Market Trap is the book you didn’t know you needed.
I have dropped plenty of products that didn’t go anywhere and after reading this book, I have a much better understanding of why it happened.
Written by
, , Jason Wellcome, and Mary Grice—the team behind Play Bigger—this new release delivers a powerful and necessary correction to the startup and growth playbook.Where Play Bigger introduced the discipline of Category Design, The Existing Market Trap identifies the invisible force that keeps even great companies from breaking through.
And it’s exactly what the title says: the trap of trying to win in an existing market.
The Problem: Competing in a Game You Didn’t Design
The core thesis of the book is simple but disruptive: most founders make the fatal mistake of launching new products inside old markets. They assume they can build a better, faster, or cheaper solution—and take a piece of the pie. But what they’re really doing is surrendering their story to someone else’s category.
The result?
Their innovation gets ignored. Analysts compare them to companies they don’t actually compete with. Customers see a new feature, not a new future. And startups get crushed—not by inferior products, but by inferior framing.
As the authors write, “It’s not a marketing problem. It’s not a product problem. It’s a belief problem.”
The Solution: Build Belief, Not Just Features
So what’s the way out? Category Design.
Instead of chasing product-market fit in someone else’s aisle, the best companies define their own. They name a new problem. They position themselves as the only solution. And they lead the creation of a new market category.
The book breaks this down into a four-part journey:
Find the Truth – Identify the real problem and the hidden traps of your current framing.
Mobilize Internally – Align the executive team and rewire the company to live the new Point of View (POV).
Execute a Lightning Strike – Launch the category with a bold, belief-shifting move.
Strike Ops – Run repeatable campaigns that turn belief into gravity and scale.
Unlike traditional go-to-market strategies, Category Design isn’t about winning existing demand. It’s about creating new demand by building belief.
What Stuck with Me
There are three things that make The Existing Market Trap essential reading:
The 13 Deadly Sins – These are specific failure patterns that feel eerily familiar. Whether you’re a founder, CMO, or investor, you’ve seen them—or lived them. The “Obviously Better Fallacy,” “The Horizontal Tool Illusion,” and “Existential Decline” are especially relevant in today’s crowded tech space.
Real-World Case Studies – The authors don’t just theorize. They show how companies like Docusign, Qualtrics, and ClearMetal broke free from the trap and created entirely new categories—like Intelligent Agreement Management and Experience Management. These stories make the abstract actionable.
Market Creation Mindset – Perhaps the most liberating shift this book offers is this: you don’t have to play the game the market gave you. You can design a new one. That idea changes how you think about your product, your company, your messaging—and even your career.
Who This Book Is For
This is not a light read—but it is a fast one. The authors call it a “primer edition,” meaning it’s sharp, dense, and laser-focused. It’s ideal for:
Founders and CEOs who feel like their messaging isn’t landing
Marketers trying to position a product that doesn’t “fit the mold”
Investors wondering why certain portfolio companies aren’t breaking out
Product leaders tired of shipping great features that get ignored
This book doesn’t offer quick hacks or trendy tactics. Instead, it offers a playbook for thinking differently—and playing a bigger game.
Final Verdict
The Existing Market Trap is a field guide for escaping irrelevance and claiming the leadership position your company—and career—deserve.
If you’ve ever felt like you were being misunderstood … if you’ve ever had a product that was “obviously better” but still lost the deal … if you’re tired of competing in markets someone else designed … this book is for you.
Because escaping the trap isn’t just about better marketing—it’s about designing a whole new way of being seen.
Rating: 5/5 – Required reading for anyone serious about innovation, growth, and category leadership.
Grab Your Copy Today!
It’s time for you to grab your copy of The Existing Market Trap: (a Primer) Escaping The 13 Deadly Sins that Destroy Companies, Careers and Portfolios.
My name is J.R. Heimbigner and I am a #1 Bestselling Author on Amazon with 20 self-published books. Learn more about The Minimalist Author HQ!
A few more people to check out if you are interested in this book:
(He introduced me to the book). and there newsletter/podcast.Also, this post may contain sales or affiliate links, so I might get a little kickback if you purchase anything. Thank you in advance!
This book is ridiculously good and has challenged me so much as I helped them with production!
Thanks JR for reviewing it. Great read