Two New Thoughts for the Week
This week’s main section highlights one of two thoughts from the week:
- Can’t Never Will
- Deployable-No-Development
I dig deeper into the “Can’t Never Will” idea below.
The concept of “Deployable No Development” might only be interesting to Software Developers and Engineers, but I will share it too.
From my experience (especially with Agile teams), there is vast interest in iterative development practices. The ideas of short cycle Plan-Do-Measure feedback loops have gained widespread influence among those building software.
Much like Test-Driven Development (TDD) led to improvements in quality and testing practices, similar innovations like Setup-Driven Development (SDD) are arising to improve deployment and delivery.
If you participate in or manage software teams, I recommend working out build and deployment processes prior to feature development. Teams are more likely to meet schedules and commitments if they address delivery complexities early in the process rather than trying to solve the nearer the end.
You are better off building your deployment capabilities for default projects with no functionality first than doing “prototypes” and “minimum-viable products” with delivery considerations to be addressed later.
Extra Shout-Out to Atlanta Falcons:
Last week, I congratulated the Atlanta Falcons for this hire of Arthur Smith as their new Head Coach. At that same time, I predicted that they would hire Terry Fontenot (formerly of the New Orleans Saints) as their new General Manager.
Congratulations to both! Here’s to improvements overall going forward into 2021 and beyond.
For those checking out the book reviews, I finished The Ultimate Sales Machine by Chet Holmes. My post of notes from the book is complete. You can check it out on my blog at this link.
If you would like to read along, I will be starting Content Inc. by Joe Pulizzi soon.
Note: Book links are Amazon affiliate links.
I thought of the above during a recent conversation. The discussion became less about working toward a resolution and more a list of reasons why it would not work.
Can’t vs. Won’t
Do not fall victim to the conflation of ability and willingness. There are situations where we are unable to meet expectations or achieve intended outcomes. Self-awareness and honesty are a basic requirement.
However, be careful that we do not mischaracterize something that we do not want to do as “impossible”.
Can’t vs. Don’t Know How
Similarly, don’t confuse lack of knowledge and lack of ability. It is a very different thing to say that we do not know versus we cannot learn how to do it.
Too often, we unfairly limit ourselves by judging capability based upon current knowledge. It is an even more damaging behavior to pass similar judgment on others.
There is no “Try”!
With all due respect to the Grandmaster of the Jedi Order, we all have limitations.
I would prefer to work with someone willing to try than someone who immediately limits themselves by what they “can’t” do. This may be a learning or growth situation, but if so, be sure to enable yourself and others the margin to learn and grow.
If it is truly something that is a Need or Want, talking about what you “Can’t Do” is a waste! You are much better off focusing on what you can accomplish and what steps you must follow to achieve it than focusing on the obstacles hindering your path.
Thomas Edison reportedly focused not on the hundreds or thousands of failed attempts to building a light bulb, but kept searching to find the one way that would eventually lead to him achieving it!
Other Links
8 Facebook Tips for Cheaper Ads and More Conversions
Even in our current environment, it is obvious that Facebook advertising is still an immense growth opportunity for businesses. While not still the “Create Ad / Spend Little / Get BIG Results” boon that it once was, there’s still available margin space for you and your business to attract leads and build engagement/conversions on the platform.
Check out these posts if you are unfamiliar with the Facebook Ads platform or have not yet achieved the results that you seek. (If it’s something that you need strategy or execution help, shoot me an email [david-at-sirusdigital.com].)
Get Inspired by these 9 High-performing Facebook Lead Ads
6 Facebook Lead Generation Mistakes & 4 Proven Ways to Get More Leads
What an SEO Consultant should deliver
If you are looking for an SEO Consultant (or wondering what SEO expertise should bring to your business), Ryan Shelly’s post/video provides a good background. Too many business owners and businesses have been left feeling “ripped off” after spending a lot of time and money with little to show for it. In a nutshell, you should be seeing measurable improvement in your awareness (Views), interactions (Engagement), and conversions (Sales) over time. While results are typically not as fast as other options (like PPC advertising), you should see benefits and ROI over time.
If you are not, here are some ideas that you can start on your own.
SEO Consultant Tips that You can use
13 Smart Tips to Supercharge Your Social Media Strategy
Similar to the Facebook-related articles above, strategies on Social Media overall offer a wide array of benefits for a business. As PPC ads (especially those targeting Search advertising) have continued to escalate in price, a multi-channel strategy is now a fundamental requirement in 2021. It is simply not enough to just randomly run ads or tinker with SEO, Social, and Content as an aside. As competition continues to increase, companies with a coordinated strategy will continue to reap the greatest benefits.
5 Tips for Harnessing Social Media to Scale Your Online Business
University of GA’s opening new $4.4M Innovation Hub
Having been involved with the SBDC (Small Business Development Center) as an undergraduate at UGA, this is exciting news. As a vehicle for supporting new and growing businesses in the Athens area, this has the potential to be a great public/private cooperation serving the local business community as well as residents & students.
