Tom Peters made me think about how we define success. If you had a list of companies like Netscape, Microsoft, IBM, HP, and Oracle, which ones would you consider the the winners and which one(s) is the loser(s)?
But that is not the question Tom asks. Instead: “Where would you rather have worked?” or more precisely “Where, 25 years from now, would you rather to be able to tell someone—e.g., grandchild—that you worked?”
One point, I guess, is to consider what success means to you and not uncritically adopt an “accepted” definition. Always challenge your assumptions. Especially if you are an entrepreneur.
Another point is to consider what differences there would be in people working for Netscape versus the others. Who would you rather work with? Who would you rather talk to in a bar?
I think this is something to which we should return in a longer post.
This slide is taken from the presentation XAlways, the New Order (Short Master). (Yes, there is also a full master version but note that at the time of writing the “short” version is 632 slides while the full clocks in at a whopping 1061 slides.)