As for staying small, how are you going to pay the politicians to enact regulations that cement your position in the market?
I think one of the worst things a company can do is go public (outside of industries and niches that simply require large players). It just seems to ruin the quality of a company's products, services & culture.
I know we can't all live in Mayberry, and that people don't really pay for quality, but when your sole objective boils down to pleasing Wall St. quarter after quarter, something gets lost in the process.
Being a part of something that you take pride in used to mean something. Craftsmen and inventors weren't necessarily looking for a seven figure exit (or more), or to become billionaires. They wanted to make the lives of their customers better.
I think we all suffer in different ways because of this growth-at-all-costs mentality, from the top all the way down.
I decided to wait and see, and months later I heard that they're replacing their CEO: promising! But then their CEO said this in his first letter to employees, and I lost all hope:
> what really gets me up in the morning is the idea that we can expand the Sonos platform well beyond “out loud audio at home.”
Seems like adios to Sonos as a good product, and I guess I have to look at those alternatives now.
I've worked at multiple lean companies that were purchased by bigger public entities. Without fail, the "problem" the company existed for moves from delighting customers to financial engineering.
Since going it solo, it's been amazing how satisfying a job/business can be once you get a sense of what "enough" is each month. I find that going the extra mile for customers, even when you aren't getting directly paid for it is incredibly rewarding and knowing when I've made "enough" each month allows me the time to do this.
Don't get me wrong, I went hard in the first few years to build up some buffer, but it's amazing how powerful and enjoyable building goodwill is, and how it pays for itself down the line.
A more descriptive title would be something like "the minimalist entrepreneur", which is actually a title of another book on the same theme by Sahil Lavingia of Gumroad.
The book is full of interesting stories and presents a counterpoint to the "default" VC-backed growth-at-all-cost startup. If you haven't been exposed to the indiehacker/soloprenur ideas, a useful read even if you don't take that route (same for Sahil's book I mentioned).
Which ultimately means smaller businesses
However, this article just misses the mark completely and starts arguing against “growing too fast” without specifying why. Made me not wanting to read it.
The military has this figured out and they organize accordingly.