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Running a business means contact with reality

fredkozlowski.com

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Re: Running a business means contact with reality

#3

Post by mistersquid »

Thoughtful piece with a different and engaging tack to the “Developers don’t understand marketing” commonplace. Kozlowski describes indirectly his mother’s professional organizing business, which indirectness asks readers to consider the churn of consumer culture and the goals (if any) of capitalism.

It’s just a trace, but the following paragraph (quoted in part) hits hard in this season of thanks and bounty. Thank you, Fred K, for writing it.

> The business has been a giant blackpill on Temu. Seeing people pay my mom to throw away bags full of internet purchases has been depressing. Bringing yet cheaper goods into the States hasn’t actually increased quality of life whatsoever over the already cheap goods on Amazon[. . . .] Unfortunately — despite the very real benefits that mass affluence and consumer culture have, it’s difficult in my position to not think that we’ve gone too far.

Re: Running a business means contact with reality

#4

Post by asah »

well... it's a certain KIND of reality... one where numbers fight with "common sense"...

examples... a large paying customer can kill a business... tiny or free users can be great for free marketing and product testing... a weird channel partner can make a business... obscure cashflow and accounting can make/break a business... product development or inventory can require fundraising which comes with wild "strings attached"... and and and...

(having started a number of both self-funded and venture-funded business, in tech small format retail and more...)

Re: Running a business means contact with reality

#6

Post by zkmon »

Seems the page is down. So, yes, Reality is where money is. For money to reach you, you need to setup the pipelines, or poke a hole in an existing pipeline.

Maybe that's old-school. Youngsters seem to argue that they don't need to move out of their den, to start and run a business. And they were right some times.

Re: Running a business means contact with reality

#7

Post by cpursley »

zkmon wrote: post #6

Seems the page is down. So, yes, Reality is where money is. For money to reach you, you need to setup the pipelines, or poke a hole in an existing pipeline. Maybe that's old-school. Youngsters seem to argue that they don't need to move out of their den, to start and run a business. And they were right some times.

This is why I build static astro sites now for marketing and blog type pages. Cheaper to run, too - it's just html/css with optional js/ts sprinkles.

Another biz lesson I learned luckily through observation (WP sites being down too often and a nightmare to configure and maintain).

Re: Running a business means contact with reality

#9

Post by victorbuilds »

After 20 years building software for other companies, I started my own thing a few weeks ago. The reality check hit fast. When you're an employee, you can hide behind process and blame the market. When it's yours, every signup or lack of one is direct feedback. No buffer.
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