How did Microsoft get a reputation for being evil and having inferior products? Was it one thing they did? Of course not. It was the increase in blue screens of death, along with bad Windows design decisions, antitrust lawsuits, along with the increasing quality of Apple products.

Did Groupon start out evil? No, they slowly started pushing tougher tactics as they reached for IPO, focusing less on their original goal of helping small businesses and more on metrics that investors.

Neither of these companies woke up one morning with a completely different reputation. They slowly earned it. (And they’re just as slowly trying to get past it.)

Most companies never aim to become bad or shady or evil. But many start sacrificing their values in the rush to hit short-term goals. They gradually start ignoring the customer experience in favor of the investor experience. And then, maybe years later, they suffer the consequences.

Invest in your values and your customers now and you’ll have longevity. Sacrifice them for the short term and suffer later.

(“But isn’t Microsoft massively successful? Can you really say that they’re a failure?” Sure I can. They used to be exciting and loved and the thing to have. They have plenty of revenue now because they’re a massive, diversified corporation but I can’t imagine Bill Gates feels that this is the company he dreamed of having.)