[ Thanks to grw for this
link. ]
“An unwritten historical law says that an empire is at its most
vulnerable at the apex of its greatest power and influence. People
don’t live long enough to see the parabola of political empires but
the life cycle of businesses is comparable. Take les Big Macs for
instance–McDonald’s and Microsoft…“The current issue of Business Week serves up a dire
forecast–‘Hamburger Hell’–for the golden arches. However, there’s
hope: At 50, McDonald’s is still young in business years. Business
wisdom puts the average lifespan of a business at just over 100
years. After a century, direct links to the founders will
disappear. But in our fast-food world, the lifespan of a business,
or an empire, may be growing shorter–as Bill Gates might
appreciate.“The story that he lost 60 per cent of his wealth last year but
remains the richest man on Earth is probably a sign of the changing
nature of time and wealth. Has anyone ever accumulated, or lost, as
much money as Mr. Gates in so short a time? You wonder whether Mr.
Gates spent much of last year worrying about his shrinking
fortune–my father used to say that rich men worry more about money
than poor men–but I imagine he’s spent a lot of sleepless nights
worrying about penguins…”