10 Reflections On Facebook's IPO

This article is more than 2 years old.

With Facebook all grown up, it's hard not to reflect on the last eight tempestuous years:

1. To those that said social media was a fad, Facebook is now accepting your apologies.

2. To those that wish they were one of the world's 20 richest people at 28, consider that great responsibility accompanies great power.

3. To those enamored with the $100 billion valuation, reflect also on the scale of Mark's ambition.

4. To those that think Mark doesn't deserve the attention, power, or wealth, accept that Mark deeply doesn't care.

5. To those that see the IPO as the end of Facebook, recognize that it's just the beginning of a larger shift to mobile.

6. To those that consider Mark arrogant or aloof, realize that everyone at Facebook is a student of the future not the past.

7. To those that bemoan the loss of privacy, please enjoy a sizable slice of shared responsibility.

8. To those that believe Mark lost his nerve with Instagram, remember that even winning teams make defensive moves.

9. To those that say Mark got too much success too quickly, contemplate what it will take to maintain it.

10. To those that believe Facebook is cashing in on our data, realize that our need to connect with others existed long before they did.

Only time will tell how Mark Zuckerberg and early Facebook investors use their wealth to realize its mission of adding social value. As Zuckerberg himself said in his IPO S-1 letter, "There is a huge need and a huge opportunity to get everyone in the world connected, to give everyone a voice and to help transform society for the future." Let's hope that Mark's vision and Facebook's resources prove to be a force for good on an equally breathtaking scale.

Follow me on twitter @simonmainwaring or visit WeFirstBranding.com

