"The first rule is if you see a snake, don't call committees, don't call your buddies, don't form a team, don't get a meeting together, just kill the snake.

The second rule is don't go back and play with dead snakes. Too many people waste too much time on decisions that have already been made.

And the third rule of snakes is: all opportunities start out looking like snakes."

Jim Barksdale was hired as President and CEO of Netscape in 1994. Netscape's products revolutionized communications, letting businesses and people communicate faster and better. He served in this role through the company's merger with America Online, completed in 1999.