You know the routine. We’re born, we grow, eventually mature and ultimately die. That’s our life cycle as human beings – birth, growth, maturity and death. But did you know that the same life cycle also applies to companies. More importantly, those four stages apply equally to the “stuff” companies sell – their products and services.

Whatever stuff your company happens to sell, it’s not likely to sell well forever. There is the moment when it’s introduced – birth. That’s followed by a period during which sales began to soar – growth. Over time those sales will plateau – maturity. Eventually, sales of your stuff will start to decrease – the death cycle – prompted by competition, a decline in the need for what you’re selling, often both.

That same cycle can also apply to entire industries. Not too many years ago there was a big push for people to invest in privately owned “public telephones,” phones located in public places so that a person could walk up to one, drop in a few coins, and talk to anyone anywhere in the world. Privately owned public telephones were particularly prevalent in airports and hotel lobbies.