Jeff (red shirt, with our team in Russia) and I started in the domain business some nine years ago, in November 1999. At the time I remember didn’t know about the “dot com bust”, I didn’t know much about business either. Not knowing gave me the opportunity to start without worrying about the economy, about what others say our future will look like. In short, the web was collapsing and I didn’t get the memo.
The unknown is surely better than the present, or is it?
Four years later, after some success and some failures, things looked fine and definitely something we could have settled for. While we made a decent living The expired domain business seems to be closed to impossible to compete. Registrars were taking a bigger piece of the pie, well funded corporations were coming in, and so on and on. We started to notice that we’re spending six figures every single month with extremely modest returns. We could have stuck with domains and kept doing what we knew how to do or we thought, we can take the a much riskier road to the unknown and try something completely new, something that may provide with unlimited growth opportunities, something different.
The biggest game in town
No doubt the biggest game in town is running a business. We need not to look further to see it. Microsoft, Apple, Re/max, Dell, Google, and the list goes on. All have many things in common: Founders, employees, technology, products, and most important, business logic. As domaining is all about scaling a method/s which works we were attracted to the idea of building scalable solutions.
Your vision is your roadmap. No vision, no destination
We did not have much to start with. We were thinking to ourselves, what is it that we need, want, that isn’t out there? We came up with a number of ideas, we stuck with one to start with. The opportunity of what we have tackled is in the billions we could see how we should start, build a framework, and scale up. We thought it may not be easy but at the same time we thought it is well worth the effort.
Each beginning is unique, each failure is the same
No two beginnings are the same. Unique people, circumstances, time, funding, luck. On the other hand, failures are the same. At the end, it means quitting what you have started, giving up trying. I’d love to say I have never given up but then I would be lying. More on this point, keep reading.
Adapting is job #1
In all likelihood what you thought would work will not, and you will have to adapt, try new things, things you have not yet planned to, in order to succeed.
Have You truly Reached a “Quitting Point” yet?
For me usually right after the quitting point things tend to work out. I remember one day, after 18 months in the business and millions invested, in a heated discussion due to frustration, things go too slow, I told my partner in RMG Darren Cleveland I wouldn’t care if he shut down the business. Two months later..
The light
Two months later the business made a complete u-turn. It’s good to have partners to balance your weak points, and weak times !
Conclusion
Business, as life, is cyclical. To predict downfalls you have to go against the tide, or you will be washed ashore with the tide. You have to take big risks when others decline to take those risks. Embrace the unknown, enjoy the journey! Not trying, in my book, is not an option. Failure is not when things don’t work out, it is when you have given up, stop trying. If you have done well you would know, big risks, big rewards. Want future rewards? While there is no guarantee any risk will work for you, the one way to assure you will not get any reward is simply by not taking any risk.
Have a great day,
Sahar
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Sahar,
Is it true, you will be featured in this movie?
http://www.miamiherald.com/business/story/882586.html
—- answer —-
No, never heard of it.
Sahar
Great post.
Damn thanks for reminding me I’m not crazy…just driven.
Rock the boat baby