In the startup world, people oftentimes use the term “runway” to describe the amount of time we have before we run out of money and need to be profitable. I just read a quote which I think is a lot more appropriate (and creates a greater sense of urgency).

“An entrepreneur who’s just left his day job is like a guy who jumped off a cliff and must assemble his airplane on the way down from a bag of parts.

That airplane is revenue and profit. You need to build that airplane before you hit the ground.

The bottom line is: TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!!! Do not waste a minute of it surfing the web, IM’ing, blogging, hanging out at Starbucks, networking with interesting but useless people, or ANYTHING that does not contribute to building that airplane. After the airplane is built and you’re flying, then you can relax a bit and do more of the stuff you enjoy.”

Love that.