Comments on: Why Success Can Set You Up For Failure

By: Jones

Jones — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 15:07:34 +0000

Corkhead, you must be living in an alternate universe. Facebook users don’t love the news feed, the majority don’t even like it. To all the college students I know, it seems like a test to see if Zuckerberg’s pretentious and arrogant attitude will actually turn away users. Because the feed is actually a relatively minor part of facebook (and it is customizable, basically to the point of eliminating it), nobody was turned away and people like you assume that people like it. It comes down to my attitude: Do I use it? yes. Would I prefer that it never existed? absolutely.

To assume that something major like Beacon, which gives promotions and recommendations (sometimes even without the user’s permission) will go unnoticed until everyone accepts it is ludicrous and naive. Like Ryan said, Beacon is such a much larger component than the news feed, and therefore the result will be drastically different.

I’d like to see if anyone says Facebook is still worth $15B if/when Beacon doesn’t do as well as predicted.

By: Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 00:14:30 +0000

I think most people would admit that the feed is a lot better than some of the initial rabble would have supposed. Which is fine, I actually do like it. But the problem is success often leads you to believe that the strategy that got you there will continue to be successful.

By: corkhead32

corkhead32 — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 20:08:19 +0000

I realize it is the ESSENCE of the post, which is why I am posting to disagree with it. I am not commenting on the implications the whole Beacon thing will have, John Boyd’s or Robert Greene’s teachings.

Although in most cases I don’t really think users “grow to love” something, I believe was certainly the case with the News Feed. I’m not “one of the experts”, but I see people using and enjoying their News Feed everyday, who like most of us had our doubts in the beginning.

By: Ryan Holiday

Ryan Holiday — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 12:37:56 +0000

Your comments are wrong with an impressive consistency. The idea that the users could be expected to “grow to love” something is the ESSENCE of the post and the entire problem. That success “They might not like it now, but eventually they will” and the fulfillment of the prophecy is what set Facebook up for what all the experts agree is a massive overreach. THAT is why success can lead to failure.

By: corkhead32

corkhead32 — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 12:28:19 +0000

Didn’t you go to college? People love the Newsfeed. Regardless of those petitions in the beginning, people saying it was too stalkerish, college kids love it. It makes it easier to stalk all of your friends at once. Exactly what Facebook provides. Would people be happy if they were to take it down now? No, most users have grown to love it.

I’m not saying the new situation is going to succeed, but they certainly were right last time.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 15:59:48 +0000

Apropos of nothing: I finally just went and set the OODA loop graphic as my desktop background. If I’m gonna understand that thing, I’m gonna have to memorize it.