Comments on: Thriving in Tough Times

By: Mike Wagner

Mike Wagner — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 15:08:46 +0000

Thought provoking post on many levels Allan, thanks!

Your hiring observation, “I’d rather hire someone without a degree but was passionate enough to teach himself how to write code.” —- took me back to my days as an Internet business strategist.

My model then and now — hire passionate learners.

Thanks again for stirring the pot with the post.

Keep creating…work worth doing,
Mike

By: Rohit

Rohit — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 18:00:25 +0000

Very interesting observation there on the “For-Profit” Education companies. In India the govt. still hesitates on openly associating profits with education.

By: Eric Ferraiuolo

Eric Ferraiuolo — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 03:09:39 +0000

Allan,

Interesting point about the for-profit schools as good investments in these times. That’s one type of investment that is possible under the new strict regulations about short-selling and option-trading.

I’m enthused by you’re statement about starting a company during these times, as I’m working on an innovative idea as we speak.

By: Robert MacEwan

Robert MacEwan — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 03:59:20 +0000

The Protestant work ethic will lose out to passion of purpose.

By: LadyVoIP

LadyVoIP — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:26:37 +0000

You made the point that the students who enrolled in these schools probably will not receive the greatest return on their investment. Though these for-profit schools offer a less challenging curriculum and are not as selective I don’t believe those choosing to return to traditional universities right now can expect much more. A growing number of recent graduates are unable to find work related to their studies. The all too popular solution to this problem is to return to college, get a master’s degree. It seems when Americans make much better students than professionals. After years of standardized test training and structured note taking in lectures we are comfortable; supported by the conventional wisdom that more education is always a good thing.
However it seems to me that more successful people are of the same persuasion as you, favoring passion over degrees. Perhaps this economic issue will finally break us of our higher education habit.

By: Wallen's

Wallen's — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 09:12:45 +0000

Well if you have another of these investment insights, let us know…
As for talent availability, we feel the same as Niall even though we are in Europe where usually the lag time is longer. It was very difficult to find talent a few months ago and when we did the price ticket was high. Now, I can already feel that the labor market is getting easier for start-ups.

By: Allan

Allan — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 06:03:21 +0000

Niall,

You’re absolutely right. It’s one reason why I think now is a great time to start a new company in tech despite the macroeconomic meltdown. The amount of great talent available is much higher now than only a few months ago. Some of the best companies and investments were made during the trough of the last stock market collapse.

If you’re a true innovator, you have a real chance to create significant value. However, I tied this blog post to not only tech startup entrepreneurship but also investing in for-profit schools for a reason. I don’t think you can take a gamble on a graduate from one of these schools. I’ve known a few graduates from Strayer for example and they were all underwhelming.

By: Niall Harbison

Niall Harbison — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 00:26:16 +0000

I agree totally that the best talent is starting to become available for startups which can only be a good thing. 6 months ago we couldn’t find a techie to come and work for us mainly because we couldn’t afford to pay them but mostly because they could earn far more while taking less risk elsewhere. In the last couple of months we have had 100s of people emailing us asking for jobs and we are now in a position to choose. Having this extra pool of talent available ti startups can only be a good thing in the short term!