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The BIG Questions… they’re overrated!
Sometimes I’m asked the “BIG” questions. ”What are you long term goals with Purlem?” “How are you going to get there?” “Where is the business plan anyways?” They come from all sides.. family, friends, and colleagues.
I usually answer with something like “I don’t know.” Followed by… “I know I want to have a product that people love, and a business culture that people are proud to be part of.” Usually, this is not a sufficient enough answer for the one doing the questioning.
I don’t blame them for asking. I’m not taking the traditional path with my post-collegiate career… Get a good paying white colar job in the city, put as much as possible into the 401K, buy a house, hopefully be able to retire at 60. I’m going outside the box and taking a risk.
Now I do have goals… LOTS of them. But they focus on what I can do in the immediate future to improve and grow the business.
I’m not worried about 5 years down the road. (Ofcourse, I would prefer if Purlem was a raging hit worth several million). But I’m simply paying attention to what I can do NOW. I could spend all day working out “what if” scenarios with business, marketing, and financial plans. Or I can buckle down and take tangible steps towards ACTUALLY making something happen!
Purlem’s Growing up!
I have not posted for a couple months here. I have actually taken the opportunity (before Purlem gets to big and consumes every aspect of my life!) to do some traveling around the world. My wife was also in between nursing assignments, so off we went… Our adventure took us to London, Greece, Italy, Germany, Czech Republic, Netherlands, France and Ireland! Whew… It was amazing and exhausting!
Now that were back, its time to really take Purlem to the next level. Over the past couple of years Purlem has proven to be not only a profitable business model, but a product that people love.
The first thing I’m going to do is to partner with a senior level developer that can help prepare Purlem for the growth. Were also going to focus on making Purlem more fun to use. There are definitly some usability issues with the site that can use attention. And if we get these ironed out, the entire experience will be much more user-friendly.
I’m going to focus more on the business side… marketing, attending trade shows, PR, and developing new business. It’s a very exciting time and Purlem begins to grow out of it’s infancy.
Thanks to all the users who have given such valuable feedback to make Purlem what it is today. We have a long ways to go, but we have a great foundation and a very exciting future!
E-Myth vs. 37Signals
For years I have been a big fan of Michael Gerber’s E-Myth. Basically the E-Myth refers to the idea that most businesses fail because the founders are “technicians” that were inspired to start a business without knowledge of how successful businesses run. His argues that every business, big or small, should operate as a franchise where there is a systematized, documented process for doing everything. A start with the end in mind mentality. Its a great book that I recommend to everybody that is looking to get into business for themselves.
But now contrast the E-mtyhs approach with 37signals. 37signals is a small web design gone software development company based out of Chicago. Only 7 people strong, this company has development the immensely popular “Basecamp” project management software. Jason Fried, co-founder of 37signals, says “If you believe 100% in some big upfront advance plan, you’re just lying to yourself.” 37signals created their empire simply by developing a great, simple, software that people can use. The never spent any money on advertising when they launch the software. The attribute their success to their blog following and the “trial” membership which allowed people to use the software for free with some limitations. No business development plan, no manuals, no mission statement. Just execution and a blog following.
So it has me thinking… Can online companies in the web 2.0 age really thrive from an E-myth approach? Or is the more effective way to take an approach like 37signals? I’m starting to think that 37signals has the right idea…
