A brief review of the rationale for organic business and career growth. I recognize there are disparate views on this topic, and fully hope to enrich my own view with your feedback.
Let's start with sacrifices made while growing fast and furiously
1) Dominating a new market and monopolizing leaves users with little choice. Choice is the foundation of freedom, and there are few prospects with greater value.
2) Those who explosively build have a weaker corporate culture. The ties that bind the organization together are based primarily on mechanical execution and greed. We humans can act robotically for only a limited time ;).
3) Forerunners in a new market space are vulnerable to those who follow with better knowledge of real user/customer need.
4) Rapidly rising to the role of leadership in a company without "paying your dues" burns the capital of trust within the organization that is integral to sustainable income. Sustainable income is tightly correlated to team building.
Why Sustainable is the Holy Grail of Revenue
I've seen my share of arguments for explosive growth at the cost of sustained revenue. The concept of market domination by early saturation (Amazon) has proven to be effective for several hungry startups. But BIG is no longer desired in an interconnected network economy.
The ocean of wealth is deeper than a single sale.
The lifeblood of business is a complex system of interconnected relationships. That's why my view on business (and employment) is based upon relationship building. There are a myriad of connections that we must understand and respect to prosper individually and collectively:
1) our relationship to our colleagues. Having a strong bond to our employees, our boss, and our coworkers is a priceless asset in times of crisis
2) our relationship with users/customers. By cultivating a long term relationship of friendship and service we lay the foundation for trust.
3) our relationship to business partners or others in our field. Having a working relationship with many other experts in your industry is a huge information advantage. Instantly you can be informed of changes in your industry. Other businesses may have overlapping service spaces, learning to collaborate with other like minded organizations allows for complimentary action (force multiplying)
What evidence are these views founded on?
Each day I witness a dramatic global shift in the way people think, communicate and ultimately value their precious time. There is a growing discontent rising with over sized structures that are deaf to user needs or too slow to react. The voice of one can echo through many minds nearly instantly by digital broadcast. Diverse groups are emerging that share a common passion for creating real wealth for themselves. These groups seek long term value, and will nurture the creation of wealth.