They know what the Next Wave is - ecommerce, broadband, optical networking, digital convergence, genomics, storage, peer to peer. Clearly, these waves have not passed us by. But knowing that these are driving the next wave does not give us the winning business model, the competitive strategy, the technological advantage or the timing. In 1990, no one would have imagined that we would not have interactive digital television by 1996. In the Real Economy, successful companies meet today's needs, not tomorrow's fantasies.
Today is the best time in history to start a company.
A lot of entrepreneurs and investors are worried that they have missed their chance, now that the boom is over. But the future isn't over yet. Anyone working in the Real Economy knows that there are huge business and technology problems that remain to be solved, and most likely entrepreneurs and new companies will solve them. The perverse rules of the New Economy are being swept away, and the field is open to new companies focused on delivering real solutions. The New Economy has taught us a number of valuable lessons, and it has guided us to a new focus on the Real Economy.