It was the days of the .com bubble. I had a great job working as a VP for Dell at the time. I was bored, but for the most part, it was a good job. Then I had this idea… I was going to sell barbecue supplies on the web. Yes, my wife thought it was a bad idea, but all my friends kept egging me on. So I said screw it, and I did it.

For some reason, in those days you could say that if your company only got 5% market share it would be hugely profitable. But it’s not really about that percentage number, it’s about actually getting people to buy from you! And I discovered that most barbecue lovers (myself included) actually like going to the store and talking with the experts, and shooting the breeze. And if you take into consideration that no one in their right mind wants to buy butane online, well, it’s a no-brainer just to go to the store.

So anyway, of course the business bombed and I did the math and found that I would have had over a million dollars in Dell stock had I stayed to vest a bit longer. Yeah. But it all ends well because now I’m an independent consultant telling .com’s what not to do. And I never have to wear a suit again.

Numbers can lie. Always check common sense first.