powder keg

15 people with sharp intelligence, powerful imagination, and love for the company. A recipe for success?

Tricky.

See, we’ve all got all those qualities. Plus a large degree of independence which comes with the moxie required to get a job at Wondermill. So it actually has become necessary to make Finishing Stuff a declared objective of our operation.

We come up with some truly amazing ideas, and the coders are wizards. They could code up cheesecake.

We are our worst enemies. Companies are founded on lesser projects and make millions every year. For a long time we’ve been consistently distracted by the next brilliant idea, which can only be outshone by the brilliance of the idea that will come soon after. As far as thinktanks go, we’re aces. But the fun bit is actually taking our ideas to completion.

For a while there this meant we left a door open for someone large enough to get in the game. And someone did. Normally we had more or less routinely batted down anyone who tried to step to us, but these guys had resources and some slightly off-center promotion and they managed to corner themselves a slice of the market. We had to take a reactive stance for the first time in a while.

No, we weren’t taken unaware. While they were busy being… off-center, we were planning our reaction. And we came back like a hammer. They were on the phone with us a few times to see if we were interested in selling. Took a lot of pleasure in saying no thanks.

On the other hand, we’re still redesigning, rebuilding and rethinking some of the things we came up with, because we came back so fast with so much energy that it really wasn’t very well planned. We simply unleashed a hailstorm at the problem. Talk about rousing the beast. You look at our plans and goals from a year ago compared to now and it’s night & day. Our pace and organization have intensified exponentially. Without that direct attack (and it was VERY direct) we would have got here eventually, but who knows how long?

So now we have a company based on true innovation and the processes for innovating. Ideas pass through The Wringer before production starts. What comes out the other end is tight, solid, and proven.

We have things coming down the pipe that exploit our resources, tap our expertise, and take us in new directions. Stability and diversification. Fully taking advantage of what we’ve built and applying everything we have learned toward a liquid company tempered by Vision.

For years we have been saying how important it is to have systems and processes in place. Method applied to madness. Sometimes it was hard to see, and recently we went through a phase were it was all but impossible to detect (YOU try doubling your staff in six months) but we HAVE been developing those systems. Trial by fire has mapped them out, and they have become formalized, so that now we can concentrate on Getting Stuff Done.

We went through the hard part, and most of us didn’t realize that until it was almost over. That’s a good sign. You have to love a company who’s warcry is, “We’re gonna win!” while at the same time they know that there is no one point where any of them will recognize having won. There will always be another climb, another challenge. Another bright, shiny idea.

There are those of us who have really felt the pressure, of course. Some of us have really pushed the limits. We take it for granted that we will sacrifice for our dream, just as we believe that it will pay off in the end. I say that with a little sense of irony, because sacrifice also happens to include full benefits and a fridge full of snacks. We take care of the company, and the company takes care of us.

I’ve never worked harder for anything in my life. I’ve never had to. That’s why I bore everyone to tears going on and on about how lucky I am. I’m aware of how lucky I’ve been. I appreciate my fortunes just as I endure my occasional hardships knowing that I will come through just fine. This Wondermill thing, however, is the core of inspiration. I know that my efforts will contribute directly to the success of a greater dream. By pulling my weight and doing what I can to help others pull theirs we can have this for the rest of our lives. I’m doing what I love- using my abilities to help my friends succeed. And the icing on the cake is that just by doing that I get to succeed too.

15 people with sharp intelligence, powerful imagination, and love for the company. A recipe for success?

Tricky. Add focus. Now you’re talking.