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I agree. Externalities are making ruining a business especially challenging. Nonetheless, I think there is still a dominate strategy for investors of all types.
My expectations of an investable start-up has always been one that had a clear path to sustainable profit. I was told by several angel groups, and indeed fund managers, that is unreasonable.
However, over the past ten years, companies paying attention to profit and reinvestment have developed new products and created new IP based-entities with minimal external investment. Geopolitical and economic factors taken into account, those companies have strong balance sheets are and in control as much as any business can be.
Valuations over the past decade have been driven too much by factors other than margin funded cash flow.
Revenue is the best funding, next is investment to open a profitable revenue stream. Strategic investment is often necessary and critical to growth, but it must lead to margin on revenue.