What if Twitter started in Bahrain? What would it be like? Would it survive? The realization was saddening.
I spent some time reading “Hatching Twitter” by Nick Bilton, and halfway through, pausing for a moment, a very long one, I imagined if Twitter was a Bahraini company! The thought quickly turned funny as I kept flipping pages that spoke of the social giant’s early days. Let’s go through what went through my head and dissect my thoughts into several parts.
The Idea!
The simple question “What are you doing?” was the main idea behind Twitter. This was the brainchild of Jack Dorsey, who imagined Twitter as a status update service. On the other hand, Evan Williams, Twitter’s co-founder thought of it as a micro-blogging service. Even years after Twitter launched to the public, its founders still couldn’t figure out what it was.
Imagine what it would be like to have to convince a single person on this island to pay you anything when both you and your co-founder are confused about what you’re doing, let alone having to describe your service as one to share “statuses” online for others to read.
Formation
Twitter quickly turned into a solid idea when the founder realized its potential after tinkering with some code. The service was up and running in no time with people were signing up in masses for the new viral social craze.
Over here, one would assume that all hopes for a company such as Twitter would shatter at the glass gates of Bahrain’s Investors Center. Twitter’s founders would sure find the BIC’s process, documentation, and regulation inspiring.
“Over here, one would assume that all hopes for a company such as Twitter would shatter at the glass gates of Bahrain’s Investors Center.”
An Ethical aspect
After kicking Jack, the other founders had a laser sharp vision to protect the essence of Twitter. The company kept its promise to turn it into a world changing phenomena by empowering people around the globe and creating a monster that was able to morph itself to an essential part of the world today.
I can just imagine how someone’s morale and principles will endure the hammering from Bahraini investors who would love to shape things into their own limited view of reality and the world outside. Just envision a Bahraini restaurant reaction to a bad review by a customer and how you will receive a call from their biggest dog asking you to remove the review to retain a “good” business relationship in the future.
The Board
Twitter’s board played an infomercial role in making the social network a universal success. The board made tough and hard-hitting decisions to fire multiple CEO’s and shuffle the founders around in a power struggle between the most dominant personalities behind the service to protect the interests of the shareholders.
In Bahrain, the board will be more than happy to sit back and relax while listening to a boring powerpoint presentation over and over while playing with their boring mobile phone and ingesting a mini sandwich. At the end of the day, they will be more than happy to receive their remuneration by attending a handful of meetings a year.
Financing
Twitter’s potential was spotted by venture capitalist and elite hipsters from the very moment they used it. The company at the time had an extremely high cash “burning rate”, and no clue how to make a dime! In fact, it kept accumulating losses for years before finding the right formula to generate decent income.
Now imagine telling Tamkeen, Tanmou, BDB or any other financing arm in Bahrain that you have no idea how will you make money. And imagine the faces of people who you’re trying to explain your product’s potential to.
And now you have it! Until and unless we can have entrepreneurs who are passionate enough to invest all their resources chasing a dream they believe in, a business atmosphere that can foster innovation and talent and a regulatory environment that wholeheartedly adopts ambitious ideas, we will only think of the next cupcake recipe to steal or plan a seminar to benefit from Tamkeen’s scheme.
