Re:Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles
by prospero on Sunday January 11, 2009 @02:27PM
(#429430)
Having a vision and making money aren't incompatible. Every step Microsoft took towards a computer on every desk was a step towards a larger customer base. Microsoft identified a large trend in computing early on, and made money off of it. The same is true of Google, and pretty much every other large tech company out there.
Visions don't have to be altruistic. Having a vision just means that no matter how successful you become, you know what your next step will be.
Re:Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles
by gruseom on Sunday January 11, 2009 @02:17PM
(#429421)
But the two are not mutually exclusive, and many people need more than just money motivating them in order to stay in for the long haul.
Re:Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles
by russell on Sunday January 11, 2009 @03:11PM
(#429475)
I agree. I think most entrepreneurs are motivated more by their vision than by immediate rewards. My point is that, if you want a successful company, you need to keep the financial side in focus too. Gates, Jobs, and Ellison had the business focus from the beginning.
OTOH if the monetary side is of little or no consequence, the Open Source community is the way to go. Make what you believe in and share it. And the web allows a sideline to lead to riches depending on how the wind blows.
Re:Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles
by kragen on Sunday January 11, 2009 @05:11PM
(#429702)
I think in the early days Tim was more interested in writing literary criticism of sci-fi than in making a buck, although I didn't know him. However, his book on Frank Herbert remains the only work of literary criticism I've ever read in full.
Most entrepreneurs have a non-monetary vision of something great that they want to build, but they usually have to keep financial viability right up there in the priorities, otherwise they don't get to play very long.