Unbridled exuberance can be good thing, according to New York Times op-ed contributor Henry Blodget, who reflects on the boom-bust mentality of the late 90′s in this piece titled “Irreplaceable Exuberance.”
As you may remember, right around this time last month marked the 10 year anniversary of the Netscape IPO and its got a lot of media types (as well as investors) taking a look back.
Blodget makes several good points in this short piece, among them one that has held through throughout time – you can’t predict the unpredictable:
“The growth of the Internet has paralleled that of most industries based on revolutionary technology. Canals, railroads, telegraphs, telephones, cars, radios, personal computers – all progressed (or are progressing) through four phases of development: boom, bust, mature growth and decay.
Why do so many investors plunge headlong into the fray, only to later lose their shirts? The answer, in part, is that stock prices and strategic decisions are based on predictions, and predicting the future in an industry’s early days is hard.”
(link via MarketingVox.com)
