This is a great read. However, while the early culture of the company certainly has some non-zero impact on the current company, my guess is that it’s very small today. The difference in mindsets — maturity, priorities, etc — usually change a lot from college-age to well-past-college, and growing a company from a few people to global-scale certainly has to foster a sense of business maturity and responsibility, no matter how much one wants to be retain a vibe of being cool. See people grow (and face crises), getting married, having kids, being responsible for so many lives, facing so much criticism… I truly hope you’ll do a follow-up article that finishes the comparison implied by the sub-title statement: “built a corporate proto-culture that continues to influence the company today.” How much? How much is it different? How much is it like/unlike other large Internet/software companies today, despite it’s, um, unusual beginnings? When companies — and their leaders — grow up, are some changes universal?
