A lot has been said and written about the so called economic crisis. I’ve gone through the leaked emails and presentations from VC funds, the panicked blogosphere posts and the news on TV. I still believe a few special companies will be able to get over the whole thing.
I say special because unfortunately companies with the right mindset are not the norm. Not a lot of companies and leaders realize how while spending will go down in general, it will not affect products and companies that create real value for their customers. Now I know that nailing that (the whole “build something awesome” thing) is the tricky part, but (at least a few) entrepreneurs make a living out of creating value for people.
Insterestingly enough I’ve read a comment somewhere (maybe Venturebeat) today where someone actually recommended firing developers and hiring marketers to explore growing existing market shares instead of exploring new things. I laughed then (and I smile now as I write this) about how stupid that was.
Get in the right frame of mind: build something special, something people crave. Figure out what people love about your product today, and make it better. Make it stand out from the flood of products we hear about every day. Who knows, maybe you’ll 1-up everyone else who’s trying to ” extend their runway” right now.
The right reading material: this article by Ted Rheingold of Dogster, or maybe this one about Tim O’Reilly. Maybe then you’ll stop making virtual lighters for the iPhone and make something that will have me, and others want to put money in your pockets.