The Hits Keep Coming!
First, it was Basecamp and Coinbase, now this link from Techcrunch highlights another company (Medium) that is experiencing internal turmoil where work is taking a backseat to disputes over politics, opinions, and beliefs.
Historically, the relationship between employee and employer has been one where an employer commits to pay for services that an employee agrees to deliver. Under this arrangement, the relationship was a legal one based upon business.
In today’s environment, that relationship gets filtered through a myriad of additional feelings and value judgments often having little to do with the products/services provided, customers served, and audiences attracted. We cannot “Agree to Disagree” and focus on the shared mission/vision. Extraneous concerns having nothing to do with our work regularly consume time, energy, and attention.
Frankly, this needs to STOP!
Unless it is part of my job responsibilities, I do not need to be proselytizing and politicking at work! I need to deliver on the commitments that I make & my employer needs to compensate me when I do.
When it comes to what we might believe or how we might choose to lead our lives outside of what we do, the only thing required in the workplace is respect where choices may differ.
A good start is to replace our tendency to “ask to differentiate” (which purposely highlights differences) with a practice of “asking to learn” (which genuinely seeks to connect). There really are more things in common about us than there are things that separate us, but we too often take the easier path to the detriment of everyone.
Note: I would really love to hear your thoughts on this! Add a comment below because I think there is a lot of positive margin for us and our businesses if we stop focusing on the things that divide us.
One thing that became clear to me is how much those memories and stories view life via the lens of where I was or what I did.
There is nothing wrong with reminiscing, but we have to make sure that we stay focused on what we are doing now and what we are now. Living in the past, whether remembering the good times or trying to forget the bad times can cloud our focus on those things we control – Now!
If you missed last week’s newsletter, I shared Principal Mitch Young’s six pieces of advice to Seniors at Forsyth County High School.
Hint #3 suggested that we focus on Fulfillment (not Happiness).
Happiness and sadness are emotions tied to results and outcomes. Fulfillment comes from the effort that you put forth to achieve it.
If you target Fulfillment, the outcomes will take care of themselves & we can have peace that we put forth our best effort.
Note: You can hear Principal Young’s address via this YouTube link. (He starts at about 46:30.)
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.
Other Links
Auditing your site with Google Search Console
If you have not audited your site recently, definitely check out this article sharing hints for performing one. The things that matter, we measure and performing a regular audit of your site, your SEO rankings, and your positioning in front of your audience needs to be a consistent practice.
Site rankings w/ SEOBase
There are a number of tools for monitoring your site rankings. SEOBase is one of them and this post shares some of its features.
Building Featured Snippets for Google
There’s debate on whether Featured Snippets are good for traffic (or not helpful). Your results can vary, but from my standpoint, our goal is to be the site that best answers question for our audience. Even if you don’t physically get that traffic, Google’s search algorithms are recognizing your value and this will benefit your authority!
Heads Up!! Force Updates to WordPress sites
Like many other sites, SirusDigital.com runs atop WordPress. I am not a fan of forced updates from any of my providers. It is one thing to recommend updates and, in extreme cases, send direct notifications highlighting needed updates. It is wholly another to take away a site owner’s choice. Yes, EULAs probably allow it, but it’s a bad practice in my opinion. #Shame
