What Growth? It’s time for a lesson on "future"

Everyone I talk to as of late seems to be facing more cautious leads. While the sales at OWN are still running fast and strong and we will definitely have an all time record January on the books, our growth is coming on the back of years of research, working close with our partners and being in the right kind of a market with the right mix of products.

That’s the secret to success regardless of the time or climate.

One thing that I don’t get is that most people are surprised that we are growing OWN, working on the new products, hiring and opening offices. Just because we’re doing so well now apparently means we should just sit on our ass and thank our lucky stars?

No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

You see, before you get to be successful, you have to lead.

Remember all the local PC building shops destroyed by HP and Dell? Where are they now? That era is long gone. Replaced by people who thought they could do better using the PC as just a building block of the service business, not it’s cornerstone.

Now we’re in the gold age of service providers, era dominated by high margins, rampant outsourcing, specialized providers, support and celebration. Let’s drink to this, for it will never end because this time it’s different. You know, like the OEM computer builders used to say.

The only thing that is different with each passing era of technology is the group of assholes behind the scenes thinking about how to make things better, faster, cheaper and put you out of business.

…

You probably won’t see what we’re working on at OWN until the summer or likely until the fall. But the question remains: Why are you growing and expanding into different areas if the current stuff is doing so well?

Now here is the kicker: The guys ask that question right after they tell me that they are struggling to roll out the solutions they have rolled out in the past.

The way I see it, the solutions you are providing now are not the solutions you will be providing in the future. So I’m designing and building something that makes sure I’m here a few years from now.

As always: Who am I not to take your money?

More about this on next weeks Karl’s SMB Conference call, Wednesday at Noon.