It is hard to choose a sentence to highlight from this inspirational yet non-ideological article. Thanks, Tim!
This link has been bookmarked by 259 people . It was first bookmarked on 11 Jan 2009, by Antonio Tombolini.
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vaniarosI spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that stuff might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone. I thought I'd do better to start the new year with some ideas about how to think about...
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Work on something that matters to you more than money.
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Create more value than you capture.
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There’s a wonderful section in Les Miserables about the good that Jean Valjean does as a businessman (operating under the pseudonym of Father Madeleine). Through his industry and vision, he makes an entire region prosperous, so that “there was no pocket so obscure that it had not a little money in it; no
dwelling so lowly that there was not some little joy within it.” And the key point: -
Father Madeleine made his fortune; but a singular thing
in a simple man of business, it did not seem as though that were his
chief care. He appeared to be thinking much of others, and little of
himself. -
Focusing on big goals rather than on making money, and on creating more value than you capture are closely related principles. The first one is a test that applies to those starting something new; the second is the harder test that you must pass in order to create something enduring.
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Any business with a web presence need only take a look at its referrer logs if it questions that assertion.
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It’s particularly tough to stay focused on big issues in the face of an economic downturn, because getting paid looms large. I look back at some of the decisions I made after the crash in 2001, when I became far more focused on the survival of my business than on the value we were going to create in the marketplace. We did some me-too publishing that I really regret; the things that ultimately made a bigger difference to our bottom line were commitments to the future: our Web 2.0 events were driven by the goal of reigniting enthusiasm in the computer industry as well as helping people to understand the new rules of the emerging internet platform; Safari Books Online was driven by the desire to create a new revenue model not just for ourselves but for all publishers; Make: was a celebration of the next generation of hackers; Foo Camp started as a way to give something back to all the people who’d contributed to our success.
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3. Take the long view.
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03 Dec 13
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Don’t be afraid to fail. There’s a wonderful poem by Rainer Maria Rilke that talks about the biblical story of Jacob wrestling with an angel, being defeated, but coming away stronger from the fight. It ends with an exhortation that goes something like this: “What we fight with is so small, and when we win, it makes us small. What we want is to be defeated, decisively, by successively greater things.”
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It’s also clear that if you’re thinking more about the competition than you are about customers and the value you’re going to create for them, you’re on the wrong path. As Kathy Sierra once put it, “In many cases, the more you try to compete, the less competitive you actually are.”
The most successful companies treat success as a byproduct of achieving their real goal, which is always something bigger and more important than they are.
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If you’re succeeding at this goal, you may sometimes find that others have made more of your ideas than you have yourself. It’s OK.
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Look around you: How many people do you employ in fulfilling jobs? How many customers use your products to make their own living? How many competitors have you enabled? How many people have you touched that gave you nothing back?
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Focusing on big goals rather than on making money, and on creating more value than you capture are closely related principles. The first one is a test that applies to those starting something new; the second is the harder test that you must pass in order to create something enduring.
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05 Oct 13
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29 Sep 13
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Work on something that matters to you more than money.
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You should regard money as fuel for what you really want to do, not as a goal in and of itself.
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Money is like gas in the car — you need to pay attention or you’ll end up on the side of the road — but a well-lived life is not a tour of gas stations!
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Whatever you do, think about what you really value
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Don’t be afraid to think big. Business author Jim Collins says that great companies have “big hairy audacious goals.”
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Google’s motto, “access to all the world’s information” is an example of such a goal. I like to think that my own company’s mission, “changing the world by sharing the knowledge of innovators,” is also such a goal.
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It’s also clear that if you’re thinking more about the competition than you are about customers and the value you’re going to create for them, you’re on the wrong path.
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Create more value than you capture.
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If you’re succeeding at this goal, you may sometimes find that others have made more of your ideas than you have yourself. It’s OK. I’ve had more than one billionaire (and an awful lot of startups who hope to follow in their footsteps) tell me how they got their start with a couple of O’Reilly books. I’ve had entrepreneurs tell me that they got the idea for their company from something I’ve said or written. That’s a good thing!
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Focusing on big goals rather than on making money, and on creating more value than you capture are closely related principles. The first one is a test that applies to those starting something new; the second is the harder test that you must pass in order to create something enduring.
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Take Microsoft. They started out with a big goal, “a computer on every desk and in every home,” and for many years unquestionably created more value than they captured. They helped grow the PC industry as a whole; they built a platform that helped many small software vendors to flourish. But over time, they began to capture more value than they created: as the cost of PCs plummeted, hardware vendors had to survive on the slimmest of margins while Microsoft collected monopoly rents; bit by bit, Microsoft consumed its own developer ecosystem by building the features of successful startups into their own products, and using their operating system dominance to crush the early movers
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Or take Google. Again, a huge goal: “Organize all the world’s information.” And like Microsoft in its early years, they are enabling others while making a pile of money for themselves. Any business with a web presence need only take a look at its referrer logs if it questions that assertion. How much of your traffic comes from Google?
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3. Take the long view.
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I just didn’t understand. Why would anyone spend so much money building a place like that in a neighbourhood like this? Later I got into conversation with the hostess. “Do you like it here?” I asked. “It’s the best place I’ve ever lived”, she replied. “But I mean, you know, is it an interesting neighbourhood?” “Oh – the neighbourhood? Well…that’s outside!” she laughed.
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31 Jan 13
David HoodReread @timoreilly's "Work on Stuff That Matters" this morning. http://t.co/lpiH1Fhf It always fills me with a renewed sense of purpose.
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12 Dec 12
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Don’t be afraid to fail. There’s a wonderful poem by Rainer Maria Rilke that talks about the biblical story of Jacob wrestling with an angel, being defeated, but coming away stronger from the fight. It ends with an exhortation that goes something like this: “What we fight with is so small, and when we win, it makes us small. What we want is to be defeated, decisively, by successively greater things.”
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If my goal is really “changing the world by spreading the knowledge of innovators,” I’m thrilled when my competitors jump on the bandwagon and help me spread the word!
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Father Madeleine made his fortune; but a singular thing
in a simple man of business, it did not seem as though that were his
chief care. He appeared to be thinking much of others, and little of
himself. -
Focusing on big goals rather than on making money, and on creating more value than you capture are closely related principles.
-
It’s a matter of balance. Every business needs to pay attention to its bottom line; every individual needs to put a roof over his or her head and provide food for loved ones. But take a look inside: how much are you thinking about yourself and what you might gain, versus what you might create?
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We need to build an economy in which the important things are paid for in self-sustaining ways rather than as charities to be funded out of the goodness of our hearts
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Rainer Maria Rilke that talks about the biblical story of Jacob wrestling with an angel, being defeated, but coming away stronger from the fight. It ends with an exhortation that goes something like this: “What we fight with is so small, and when we win, it makes us small. What we want is to be defeated, decisively, by successively greater things.”
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Focusing on big goals rather than on making money, and on creating more value than you capture are closely related principles. The first one is a test that applies to those starting something new; the second is the harder test that you must pass in order to create something enduring
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14 Oct 12
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01 Oct 12
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It’s easy to get caught up in the heady buzz of making money. You should regard money as fuel for what you really want to do, not as a goal in and of itself.
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18 Jul 12
Tim McCormickPrepping for my #oscon keynote, I re-read my piece from 2009: Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles http://t.co/DzUTht25
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abraham"Work on Stuff that Matters. Create More Value than You Capture. Take the Long View." http://t.co/1OzpCbSm An ageless piece by @timoreilly
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Jesús Rodríguez"Work on Stuff that Matters. Create More Value than You Capture. Take the Long View." http://t.co/1OzpCbSm An ageless piece by @timoreilly
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12 Mar 12
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Work on something that matters to you more than money.
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Create more value than you capture.
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3. Take the long view
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Beto BorbollaThis post from @timoreilly is almost two and a half years old, but if anything, it's even more relevant today: http://oreil.ly/dTnjJv
– Alex Payne (al3x) http://twitter.com/al3x/status/50976253192318976 -
Kevin DiVicogreat article on working on Stuff that matters - its an old article but it still rings true
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What we fight with is so small, and when we win, it makes us small. What we want is to be defeated, decisively, by successively greater things."
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20 Sep 10
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I spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that "stuff" might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone.
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archizooI spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that "stuff" might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone. I thought I'd do better t
designstrategy strategydesign business philosophy productivity innovation strategy
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Garrett PendergraftI spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that "stuff" might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone. I thought I'd do better to start the new year with some ideas about how to think about...
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Work on something that matters to you more than money.
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Create more value than you capture.
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Take the long view.
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Add Sticky NoteFor example, a bank that loans money to a small business sees that business grow, perhaps borrow more money, hire employees who make deposits and take out loans, and so on. The power of this cycle to lift people out of poverty has been demonstrated by microfinance institutions like the Grameen Bank.
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Kitty WooleyDave Gurteen: "Some interesting thoughts on Working on Stuff that Matters from Tim OReilly
1. Work on something that matters to you more than money.
2. Create more value than you capture.
3. Take the long view.
But to me this is key:
We -
06 Mar 09
william doustThis one is dedicated to Christine when she feel's she's flagging a bit - and to my chums who are on buzz steroids who may need a little boost every now and then: Eliz & Bunny
philosophy goals lifestyle oreilly work values for:christinewp
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Work on Stuff that Matters: First Principles
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"What we fight with is so small, and when we win, it makes us small. What we want is to be defeated, decisively, by successively greater things."
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The most successful companies treat success as a byproduct of achieving their real goal
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20 Jan 09
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19 Jan 09
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18 Jan 09
William WallaceI spent a lot of last year urging people to work on stuff that matters. This led to many questions about what that "stuff" might be. I've been a bit reluctant to answer those questions, because the list is different for everyone. I thought I'd do better t
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17 Jan 09
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Public Stiky Notes
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