Peter Rip, Partner at Crosslink Capital has a pragmatic view of where we stand in the business cycle and the outlook for venture capital and entrepreneurship generally. I quote his post on the topic below, but the full post is well worth a read.
As the fire continues to rage in financial markets, it is hard to imagine when Opportunity will reappear. But the truth is when everyone sees Opportunity; they are only seeing the reflection. True Opportunity appears at the market bottom, not at the top. It’s times like these that test what you believe in, and I believe in the Business Cycle, Human Creativity, and the stimulative effect of massive Government spending. 2009 and 2010 will be great times to invest to reap the benefits in 2012-2014, for those who can judge both business risk and liquidity risk, and have the courage of their convictions.
I think Peter is right. It sucks right now and will for a while but at the end of the day this is just another (perhaps deeper and longer) dip in the cycle of business.
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Ashe