Seth's Blog : Endless September (10 quick rules)

Endless September (10 quick rules)

Every year, IT professionals at colleges have to deal with an influx of newbies, all of whom ask precisely the same questions as the newbies did last year. It's Sisyphean.

Of course, every day on the internet is like September, because there are always newbies, or people who didn't get the memo. The internet is a connection machine, a community. It has swimmers and lifeguards, givers and takers, the honest and the grifters...

Here are ten things to remember, feel free to share with those that are less experienced. Happy September:

1. Don't hit 'reply all' to an email unless you have a really good reason. And don't write, "take me off this list" to a listserv, because everyone on the list will probably get your note. That's been true for thirty years and it's still true.
2. You may think you can recall a sent email, but you probably can't. Best to breathe three times before you hit send.
3. Don't type in all caps.
4. Don't buy anything on the phone (or by email) from a stranger, especially anything having to do with your small business, your computer, your Google listing or a charity. Just hang up.
5. Everything you click on or surf on or do online is being recorded somewhere. Act accordingly.
6. Backup your data, get tenant's insurance and turn on 'Find my iPhone' on your Mac.
7. When in doubt, restart your computer. If that doesn't work, visit duckduckgo and type in your question. You'll be amazed at how many people have had the problem you're having.
8. To become an expert in something, you're going to need to read more than the first link that comes up in a search. And before you forward something you're not an expert in, check Snopes.
9. Offer help on something you're good at to the community at least three times before you ask that community for help. Someone is always coming up behind you.
10. Don't believe everything you read online. In fact, don't believe most of it.

Bonus #11: Be kind. Thanks.

       

• Email to a friend •

More Recent Articles

• Throwing money at it
• Justifiable
• Self-starters, needed
• Big company advertising
• Features and marginal cost in the digital age

[You're getting this note because you subscribed to Seth Godin's blog.]

Don't want to get this email anymore? Click the link below to unsubscribe.

---

Click here to safely unsubscribe from "Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect."
Click here to view mailing archives, here to change your preferences, or here to subscribe • Privacy

---

Email subscriptions powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 365 Boston Post Rd, Suite 123, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA.

Seth's Blog : Throwing money at it

Throwing money at it

There are three kinds of problems:

The first can be fixed with money. There's a defect in the plumbing and you can't get a permit to open until you fix it. The design team needs to hire a UI expert to improve the widget before it ships. The family can't get a good night's sleep with three little kids sleeping in one room...

The second can't be fixed with money. These are issues of trust or judgment. Horrific injuries or crimes against nature. An old growth forest doesn't grow back merely because you pay the trees more.

The third, of course, are problems that appear that they can be solved with money, but can't. They range from the mythical man-month to the relationship that uses resources as a false proxy for other things yet to be discussed. Culture, process and expectations are tempting targets, but the resources spent often make the problem worse in the long run.

If a problem can be fixed with money or other resources, and you can afford it, you should do so, quickly, efficiently and without breaking a sweat. For the other kind of problems, resist that shortcut and get to the heart of the matter instead.

       

• Email to a friend •

More Recent Articles

• Justifiable
• Self-starters, needed
• Big company advertising
• Features and marginal cost in the digital age
• Most projects end with a whimper

[You're getting this note because you subscribed to Seth Godin's blog.]

Don't want to get this email anymore? Click the link below to unsubscribe.

---

Click here to safely unsubscribe from "Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect."
Click here to view mailing archives, here to change your preferences, or here to subscribe • Privacy

---

Email subscriptions powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 365 Boston Post Rd, Suite 123, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA.

Seth's Blog : Justifiable

Justifiable

Of course your behavior is justifiable.

That's not the question.

The question is, "is it helping?"

It's easy to justify our mood or our actions based on how we've been treated by the outside world. Justification isn't the goal, though. It's effectiveness that matters.

We get to pick how we act, and it seems as though choosing what works, choosing what makes us happy, choosing what makes the world the place we want to make it--these choices are more useful than any justification we can dream up.

       

• Email to a friend •

More Recent Articles

• Self-starters, needed
• Big company advertising
• Features and marginal cost in the digital age
• Most projects end with a whimper
• Speed is relative

[You're getting this note because you subscribed to Seth Godin's blog.]

Don't want to get this email anymore? Click the link below to unsubscribe.

---

Click here to safely unsubscribe from "Seth Godin's Blog on marketing, tribes and respect."
Click here to view mailing archives, here to change your preferences, or here to subscribe • Privacy

---

Email subscriptions powered by FeedBlitz, LLC, 365 Boston Post Rd, Suite 123, Sudbury, MA 01776, USA.