Caveat, Et Cetera...
I scrapped it.
The whole thing. Gone. Done.
Business plan, marketing plan, these new-fangled organic instruments of inspired implementation: Toast.
A shiny new gadget came out of Cupertino, and people lost their ever-loving minds. And I lost my socially-open, operationally transparent, and technologically inclusive business plan. Come to think of it, I'm going to lock down my life, too. Instead of being an engaged citizen, I'm going to withdraw. I may still vote - still mulling this one over - but I may vote for everything I'm against. Or against everything I'm for. Still a little fuzzy on that point. That's why I'm mulling it over.
Why? In a word: manufactured consent. Ok two words. But when I'm encouraged to study - even emulate - companies like Apple Computer, the only thing I'm left with is this counter-intuitive cynicism that I've simply got to hypnotize people with hype and hyperbole in order to sucker them into giving me permission to deliver less than before (just call it more), and charge them more for the less (just call it greater value). If I'm to do this whole business thing right, I've got to throw over openness, transparency, inclusiveness and well-established technological standards (and completely disregard sound partnership and customer service standards - do NOT get me started...), and replace it with... well frankly, that's a moving target because I'm manufacturing consent: so I can engineer your permission to replace substance with any style I so choose. And I can even charge a premium for it...
