Mole End

At times The Mole displays behaviors that might be variously described as having a very narrow craw, or a jaw with a death grip, or an obsessive inability to forget and move on.  Today's object lesson starts on 23 April 2010 -- yes, The Mole not only wrestles with ideas over the span of a decade, but also can, at least sometimes, pinpoint the moment the struggle began.

In fact, you can hear it for yourself right here.  That's Steve Blank speaking at the 2010 Startup Lessons Learned conference (notes on the conference by the estimable Sean K. Murphy here).  The Mole has been bothered ever since by the notion that the term "lifestyle businesses", describing firms that provide employment and income for a modest number of people, is a perjorative.  While The Mole is not sure that Blank himself means it quite that way, he does at least have a preference for other kinds of companies.  He has said as much:  " When I started teaching, I thought all entrepreneurs and startups did what I did for 21 years - aim for billion-dollar markets and keep at it until you achieved liquidity or ran out of money."

That attitude, and the focus on going big or going home, have lead to the toxic culture of megastartups we see today.  The Mole was therefore delighted to read about the Zebras movement, and, though even a quick Google search shows that he is reporting old news, hopes to help spread the word.