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Lone Rangers Question

by neobizman
16 replies
Internet marketing and small business reminds me of the wild west days. You find good people who are just trying to settle the land and have a productive homestead and you also have the outlaws who are robbing the wagon trains, stage coaches, and running con games.

The other thought I had is that, lets say you are one of a productive middle class settler and not the societal bane type. You get your hundred acer spread then you try to settle it completely by your self.

Settling the Internet Marketing country is a big job and most settlers who rely on just their own labor eek out a living, but never can get the full productivity out of their land because of cash and labor limitations.

Then you have the wealthier settlers. They get more done because they can hire ranch and farm hands to do some of the work. Then they have to manage it all and some hands just don't care as much about the settlers operation or if things are done on time or if it's done right.

The reason I say this is because it seems like building a team of co owners of the settlement would be the smartest, quickest, and most profitable way to get the job done. I'm not talking about temporary JV arrangements.

Does anyone have any ideas or comments on why the lone Ranger mentality rules the IM country?s Is it greed, pride, or simple mistrust of other people?
#cooperation #team work
  • Profile picture of the author Dan C. Rinnert
    Originally Posted by neobizman View Post

    Does anyone have any ideas or comments on why the lone Ranger mentality rules the IM country?s Is it greed, pride, or simple mistrust of other people?
    Independence? You're not dependent upon anyone. You don't have to worry about managing other people. You don't have to worry about "co-owners" who don't pull their weight.
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    • Profile picture of the author neobizman
      Independence is a good trait and most business owners have it, of that I am sure.

      I was thinking of Bill Gates. What would have happened to Microsoft if Bill would have taken the path of most IMers and small biz people. He decided to do it all. You know write the copy, do the programming, handle the customer service, the sales, the maintenance, the strategic planning, the delivery of products, the graphic design, the ________, etc, etc?

      Bill didn't just build a business he built an empire. Mainly because he leveraged relationships with other people and shared the profits with them. the Microsoft group generated more wealth than Bill ever could have on his own efforts alone. Everyone involved with Microsoft made out pretty well.

      Any other thoughts?
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      • Profile picture of the author Jelasco
        An offline business like Microsoft is completely different from what most of us are doing.

        Of course Bill Gates could not have done all the work there himself, even at the beginning, because it is a different type of business.
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        • Profile picture of the author fm1234
          posted by neobizman:
          Does anyone have any ideas or comments on why the lone Ranger mentality rules the IM country?s Is it greed, pride, or simple mistrust of other people?
          Does it have to be a negative trait? As Dan pointed out, often it's simple independence of mind and spirit. Any serious entrepreneur is almost certainly into doing things a certain way ie. his own way.

          I find enormous value in running ideas past other marketers, but obviously I would not post say an outline for a business model I thought would crank me out six figures over the next year or two on a public internet forum. I think you might seriously underestimate how much co-operation and consultation goes on out there -- it just doesn't all go on in public.


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        • Profile picture of the author Hamish Jones
          Originally Posted by Jelasco View Post

          An offline business like Microsoft is completely different from what most of us are doing.

          Of course Bill Gates could not have done all the work there himself, even at the beginning, because it is a different type of business.
          Why? How?

          All successful businesses have the same traits in my opinion.

          An entrepreneurial mind finding the right niche and then leverage, leverage, leverage!
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          • Profile picture of the author write-stuff
            Hi, Rick. Excellent points. Now this is obviously a generalization, but trying to go it alone is probably the most inefficient way to start a new endeavor. Hamish said "leverage, leverage, leverage" and I completely agree. A successful entrepreneur is likely to seek "mechanical advantage" by outsourcing as much of the grunt work as possible.

            I don't have any stats to back this up, but I'll bet the vast majority of successful companies were not built from scratch by one person. One person might have had the idea, but he/she most likely built a team to flesh it out and implement it.

            - Russ
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            • Profile picture of the author Corwinnx
              Hi Rick,

              My friend, I have been exactly where you are. And I know what Dan means about co-owners who don't pull their weight. I've been on both sides and I found a solution.

              It's called the mastermind group. All of us have a skill or a talent that we help each other with. But we aren't 'partners.'

              We've been able to eliminate all outsourcing headaches because if Becky does some graphic design for Mike, then Mike will do whatever Becky needs where programming is involved. And if I need copy, Miranda will write it for me knowing that when she needs a new business plan, strategy or just someone to bounce her ideas off of, I'm her man.

              We all know each other and live close enough to each other to get together once a month for drinks and dinner. It's a dynamic team effort but no partners, no arguements about how to run a business because we aren't in 'business' together.

              A mastermind group is the ultimate leverage of teamwork without the headaches of partnerships.
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              • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
                Howdy, Rick...

                I think your Wild West analogy is solid, but you're looking at the wrong point in the story.

                Before the pioneers and the settlers were the explorers and the trappers and the traders. These were often fiercely independent loners who were content to be on their own for months at a time.

                People like Daniel Boone, who moved west when he started getting neighbors within a day's walk - because the country was getting too crowded.

                These are the people I think you're seeing. Independent, driven, often somewhat anal... Face it, a lot of us are control freaks who would drive partners or employees nuts.

                Throw in a splash of paranoia, and now you include the people who are afraid that if they bring in others, those others will steal their ideas and rip them off.

                Even the Lone Ranger fit this description. If you look at the back story on good ol' LR, you find a scarred individual with a revenge complex. No friends except Tonto, and Silver. Never staying put. Becoming the polar opposite of that which caused the scars...

                I believe we're entering the transition to frontier towns online. Most are sole proprietors of various flavors, operating independently while clustering together in communities like this one.

                Because I have a lot of the traits of a Lone Ranger, I have to keep reminding myself that LR was at the bottom of things a very lonely man...
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                • Profile picture of the author Corwinnx
                  Hey John,
                  Nice fish. I'm in Fort Lauderdale, where are you? Was just reading your post and thinking about 'history repeating itself.'

                  If the Internet is still in Frontier Days akin to the Wild Wild West, yet we are beginning to see communities forming with a bunch of individual propietorships, then it would seem that as we move forward, we will eventually see the Internet controlled by a very few huge corporate conglomerates that own ALL the profit-making websites... (think of buying and selling sites here.)

                  Maybe we could all start our own co-op to start purchasing these profit making sites and eventually we would all be on the board of directors of this huge conglomerate, ruling the world.

                  And if you think that that's far off, I have to see that no one business in history has ever proven to be built and be successful with the record speed of an Internet business.

                  Just thinking about position and leverage.

                  -Marcus
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                  • Profile picture of the author jensrsa
                    we will eventually see the Internet controlled by a very few huge corporate conglomerates that own ALL the profit-making websites...
                    Not really. We already have the Google's and MSN and other large corporates but the "real" world still have their one man businesses and small partnerships, etc. that are doing well.

                    But Marcus, when you sell you IM business for billions remember where you started
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                  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
                    Originally Posted by Corwinnx View Post

                    Hey John,
                    Nice fish. I'm in Fort Lauderdale, where are you? Was just reading your post and thinking about 'history repeating itself.'

                    If the Internet is still in Frontier Days akin to the Wild Wild West, yet we are beginning to see communities forming with a bunch of individual propietorships, then it would seem that as we move forward, we will eventually see the Internet controlled by a very few huge corporate conglomerates that own ALL the profit-making websites... (think of buying and selling sites here.)

                    Maybe we could all start our own co-op to start purchasing these profit making sites and eventually we would all be on the board of directors of this huge conglomerate, ruling the world.

                    And if you think that that's far off, I have to see that no one business in history has ever proven to be built and be successful with the record speed of an Internet business.

                    Just thinking about position and leverage.

                    -Marcus
                    Howdy, Marcus...

                    I'm over on the left coast, between Sarasota and Fort Myers (any of your ancestors, Paul?). Snookums came from Pine Island Sound near Sanibel.

                    I don't think we'll ever see the kind of control and consolidation you mention. The means of production are getting too accessible.

                    I was just reading a thread here on audio products, for example.

                    It wasn't long ago that you needed a huge investment in infrastructure to start a recording label. Now you can get started for under $1,000, including the computer. And you'll have more power at your fingertips than entire studios had when Elvis was still becoming the King.

                    For that same $1,000, you can bundle your recording studio with a publishing house and a TV/radio station - using the Internet as the medium.

                    As for the Googles of the world, remember when Hotwire and Alta Vista were the big dogs in search? Unless your plans and execution are solid, you may burn bright for awhile, but it's easy to fizzle out quickly as well.
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          • Profile picture of the author jensrsa
            Rick,

            What's happening is the normal business life cycle and to take your wild west analogy:

            1. Pioneer phase - starting the business with little or no money, loans from family or friends and bringing an idea off the ground. You're basically on your own but you look for a wagon train to join to make the journey west

            2. Wagons West - As you take the trail you join a wagon train and become co-dependent. Start outsourcing, take on staff, management, partners as the business develop.

            3. Settler - As you reach a destination you settle down to your speciality, or look for further growth opportunities, starting a new venture, look for new horizons

            Some people will always be the pioneers, the buffalo hunters and never settle down. Other will follow behind and take over as the pioneers move on to greener pastures.

            Jens
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          • Profile picture of the author Jelasco
            Originally Posted by Hamish Jones View Post

            Why? How?

            All successful businesses have the same traits in my opinion.

            An entrepreneurial mind finding the right niche and then leverage, leverage, leverage!
            If you don't see the difference between
            1) a global software company that creates hundreds of products and sells to many different markets
            2) someone working at home alone working a list or selling ebooks or the like,

            then I don't know how to explain it.

            Do you see the difference between Toyota and our businesses? Hint: I can't sit at home and build new cars by myself. Hint 2: It takes more than $100 to get into the car manufacturing business.
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      • Profile picture of the author QuantumSuccess
        Originally Posted by neobizman View Post

        Independence is a good trait and most business owners have it, of that I am sure.

        I was thinking of Bill Gates. What would have happened to Microsoft if Bill would have taken the path of most IMers and small biz people. He decided to do it all. You know write the copy, do the programming, handle the customer service, the sales, the maintenance, the strategic planning, the delivery of products, the graphic design, the ________, etc, etc?

        Bill didn't just build a business he built an empire. Mainly because he leveraged relationships with other people and shared the profits with them. the Microsoft group generated more wealth than Bill ever could have on his own efforts alone. Everyone involved with Microsoft made out pretty well.

        Any other thoughts?
        Of course you can partner with talented people permanently and get them their "department" (copy writing, graphic design, etc.).

        But...

        1. That makes only sense when your company has become big enough to provide a full time job for them, and...

        2. You lose a big part of your independence and freedom.

        Why not outsourcing those tasks whenever you need something done you either are not good at yourself or just don't want to do it yourself?

        This gives you the advantage to do it right from the start and you keep your independence and freedom!

        Hope this helps.

        Peter
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