Guessing is not a strategy: How to build decision velocity with AI and real-time data
June 10, 2026 | Live Webinar
Boom (and Bust) Lessons
Bob Weinstein is a journalist who covers technology, project management, the workplace and career development.
Remember the dot-com boom-and-bust days? If you worked for a dot-com, chances are you have mixed memories about that wacky period, which began in 1995 (the Netscape IPO) and ended in March 2000 when the NASDAQ peaked at 5,132.52. When the dot-com bubble burst, the United States slipped into a recession that lasted three years.
During the legendary dot-com years, young people--many of whom were college dropouts--rocketed from stardom to oblivion within a three-year period. The average lifespan of many of the heavily funded dot-coms was about a year and a half.
Dot-com nightmares still haunt many of the survivors who remember the day they were axed as if it were yesterday. It was all too common to come back from a vacation on Monday, rested and anxious to start work, and find yourself fired before noon. There was no warning, and you were lucky if you walked away with a couple of weeks’ severance pay and a cardboard box to hold your personal belongings.
But it’s important to return to those wild days if for no other reason than to learn from them and try to figure out what went wrong. Whether you hold a job, are looking for one or are a budding entrepreneur, there are priceless lessons to glean from that historic blip in time. What better time to look back than during another recessionary period when companies are tightening their belts, …
Please log in or sign up below to read the rest of the article.
ADVERTISEMENTS
|
Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. - Will Rogers |