My first words were ‘wow’. Ok, it may be an indication of how mundane my week was at that point that such a thing did make me go wow. All joking aside, to see a service actually taking the time to send a thank you card with nothing more than a nice message from ‘Tim the developer’ saying thanks for using their service; well it’s a rare thing indeed.

Going beyond expectations

My usual expectation of a service is that it works, plain and simply anything above that I usually don’t bother to wish would happen as often it’s just not worth it. We’d all like to feel we’re a valued customer but in this faceless day and age that doesn’t happen very much. Just like everyone else I usually settle for the service billing me correctly and not breaking down. It’s like we’ve all become desensitised to bad customer service. Even when things do break the margin we ‘grin and bear’ things about is just plain huge. The glee that I felt from this card from wufoo really only goes to show that in business if you do bother to go the extra mile you stand out a mile.

Cynical head on but not winning

I can hear a few cynical voices and one of them is in my head at this point about how this is a clever marketing ploy. You know what, I don’t really care if it is. The warm fuzzy little feeling I got from this hand made rhino sticker card is a rare thing in this world. If their service was bad then maybe yes I would have more of a hmmm marketing alarm going off. Wufoo though has always been a great service for me and this kind of personal touch tops off a great experience with them. It’s all too common to get treated like a number and not being treated that way really brightened me up. Wufoo’s approach should be taken by far more services. It is just nice to feel wanted by a service for once.

Final word to wufoo

I’d like to thank Tim and the team at wufoo for the card and undeniably flawless service they have given me over while now I’ve used them. In the note it said:

Users like you helps us achieve our dreams and we won’t ever forget that.

Well, wufoo I won’t ever forget the fact that you sent me the card and actually bothered compared to the numerous services I use that quite frankly couldn’t give a fluff if I used them or not. Yay to wufoo.

Carrot on stick

One way I’ve found to get myself in a more active not reactive approach is to take the reward or ‘carrot on a stick approach’. For me, if there is something to be gained or I can see that gain then I’m more likely to do. The more unclear the gain the less likely it gets done. I’ve found that by assigning gains or at least cementing what the gain is to something (big or small, abstract or real) then I get this done.

More acting less reacting

One goal I’ve been working towards is where things are seen more before they come up and it becomes a more active process than a whacking each thing as it drops in my lap. I’ve got a combination of ways such as to do lists and for larger things breaking them down into chunks that I can see small gains as I go. I find having a generalised vague goal just doesn’t work for me - it has to be x gets y or it ends up with ‘x what x now? really? nah ooo shiny thing’.

Business as personal

For me, having a personal and business approach that varies just doesn’t work. I am lucky enough working for myself to dictate how I run my business to a certain extent and it has to be the same on both counts for me. I’m one of those people that blurs the lines between business and personal probably sometimes to my cost in hours and what I put into my work; that aside I treat both aspects of my life the same in terms of motivation. Perhaps this is because I am lucky enough to work in an industry that I would choose to for pleasure also to a certain respect. I apply the same set of goals and methods to my business as I do to my own life and really I think if you have any variation be it morals or how you ‘get things done’ then maybe one aspect of your life is being over looked. I just don’t get the concept of being organised in one and unorganised in another - before long the lacking one overlaps and takes over even the best laid plans.

Being your own motivation

Motivation comes in many forms. Nothing like a deadline or payment to get most people motivated, but is this really the only methods that work? I’ve found even small things like making a promised to myself of a Frappucino if I get a page of code done works for me. Daily I set rewards for myself like this which spur me on. I’m just like anyone if I don’t see anything in it for me what is the point? Of course rewards are not just material or drinkable. I often find say the reward of seeing a clear to do list really fulfills my need role of a ‘carrot’.

Which method works for you?

Ultimately it’s about finding a method that works for you. We may all work around the basic principles of carrots and sticks, but what sticks and what carrots we use are as varied as we are. My method I’ve worked on for a while and see being refined as I go along. I’ve probably used almost every to do list / project management package now there exists or near to it, before settling on the current solution which has worked for many months now. As I’ve said before your own motivation method and in-fact anything you do should not be set in stone it should be fluid enough to develop as you do. After all just like you hope to be around for a while you should hope your business does or your job. I honestly believe you will end up not getting anywhere fast if you just react as things come. You need to be acting upon plans and laying foundations of organisation not just fighting fires to get any real place in life and work. Days need structure, weeks needs structure and lives need structure. By having a structure you can react effectively if you have to as things of course inevitably ‘crop up’ but if you do not have this action of acting in place you’re just chasing your tail and never getting to a carrot - that just sounds depressing if you ask me.

As I’ve said before in Autumn I took the plunge and kitted out Logical Binary with 2 new macbook pros, cinema screens and CS3 Suites along with various Apple ‘bits’. This was no small order for Apple and I took the route of going through their online business buying. I’ve said before how my macbook pro was a ‘mactickbook’ but eventually (although it was eventually) this matter got sorted. Part of the ’sorting’ involved me sending in a waver form as I was to be sent out a machine before I returned the ‘mactickbook’. I was a little apprehensive as before when had a problem needing a return on my powerbook I didn’t have to go through this. The waver basically said if I didn’t return the machine I would be charged for 2. However, all seemed well as it was all updated with my return once it happened and I thought nothing more of it assuming the matter to be closed.

Things really started going weird when early in December I returned from a long client trip to discover my business bank account to be minus the cost of a macbook pro. It took me a short while to realise the Apple Inc withdrawal was the cost of the macbook pro and put 2 and 2 together to get a ‘uh oh’. I called up Apple that night and went through so many hoops and diversions to get to talk to someone by the time I did the UK store was closed and I was talking to someone in America who didn’t even have full access to my accounts. To say a little bit of a saga occurred over the next few days would be an underestimate. Eventually all seemed sorted and assurances were given that it wouldn’t happen again.

So, all sorted? Well apparently not. The following Friday again another macbook pro cost left my bank account and lets just say I flipped. Again I had to run the gauntlet of support staff and eventually after more days of finding out Apple was trying to steal Christmas or at least had become the Grinch as yet another amount was waiting to be taken out, I managed to get a promise to return all money. The phrase ‘well that’s the least’ comes to mind.

It all finished up after that and I got the money back. Whilst I did get the money back and I did get £200 compensation - initially they offered me £100 then £150 and I really had to push to get £200 compensation. It does however make me certain I won’t be using the online Apple store again. If I do have to purchase anything from Apple I will wait and take a trip to the store. Considering the amount of this order and the massive mistakes it just wasn’t good enough. Of course, I’m not put off Apple - it’s not the machines it’s the service. I do feel their service lacks a lot. I was promoised so many call backs, so many ‘won’t happen agains’ that they became meaningless.

In part, I guess this is a cautionary tale that online shopping has or can have more complications than we think. Signing wavers which seem positive probably aren’t. I should have returned one item before getting the other of course, then I wouldn’t have to sign this waver that caused all this. I still have no response as to what actually happened, I’m many weeks after this nightmare and have heard no word and doubt I will as to what really did happen.

This week I was reading an article entitled ‘Triple Your Productivity Tomorrow’ over at Pick the Brain. The approach suggested is when you have pile ups of work to take a ‘Project-Kill Day’. These are days where the phone goes off, the IM is logged out and you book blocks of focused work time in. I really like this idea and have used similar methods before with my Saturday’s. Saturday for me is a great day in the sense of catch up. I have very few and often no clients that work Saturdays and as a result my attention can be fully directed onto work without diversions. I’ve started to bring this back again with more of a booking in of this day than the casual self agreement I had to do work on Saturdays.

One problem I’ve found over the past year with the issues my health has created, has been that my usual organised chaos has quickly turned into disorganised mayhem. I think the root of this was that it started off as disorganised chaos to begin with. I may have managed to keep my head above it all this year but things definitely could have been improved. With that thought really enters my plan for 2008. I’m making less casual arrangements with myself and more official ones. I’m going to look at myself as a project and take more control over things that I do. In part I have done a bit of this in 2007 but there are a few mechanisms I have yet to add to my armory. I really do see it like an armory though - I’m battling disorganisation.

So, what am I doing to sort this out? First up, I’m taking my usual Christmas holiday sort out. Each year in our house Christmas is the time for sorting our those ‘piles’ and things that got ignored all year. I make sure all accounts are up to date, all drawers cleared and sorted, all old clothes taken to charity shops, all in and out trays dealt with. There really is nothing like starting the new year with a clean slate. This year I’m also going to be taking the lead from the article I mentioned and booking up time in my calendar for every week a ‘Project-Kill Day’. The way I see it anyone’s organisation can be improved upon and it’s so easy even if you have mechanisms in place for a life u-turn to make it all fall apart. This year was proof to me that I need to not only stick with what I’ve been doing but need to up the anti on a few things. That’s my organisational goal for 2008, what’s yours?

Caramel isn’t totally finished and the other bits will be done over the next day or so and probably have some tweaking for the next week. I have yet to add back in the flavour switcher which will only be coming in for Cherry or Caramel but the others are coming back soon once I’ve modified them to take the new content.

I’ve got a few more things to add in such as the author highlight and other bits that never went into Cherry but I felt should. I hope you like it and look forward to any comments. I’ve not tested fully so if it’s a little rough around the edges please excuse the live redesign process and expect all bugs to be hit with a big heavy bat in a few days at worst.

Community is a two way street

Pre-Ali 2 there was a new member’s agreement and a fair few feathers ruffling over it. Personally, I agreed as the change was to be active in the 9rules community and I was being anyway. To me as I’ve said before this has always sort of been the point for me about 9rules. I’ve never had the 9rules link farm / syndicate view (lets just leave the word blog network in the history books shall we). What I want to say with Ali 2 is that I want to recommit to 9rules and all it stands for. I feel renewed by this launch and straining at the leash to get more involved and even more proud than I was before to be a member. 9rules proves the theory to me that ‘you get out what you put in’.

New toys

So, what are the new things over at 9rules beyond the fresh lick of paint? There is so much I’m just summing up some of the main things here.

• Clips: Think snippets you and other 9rules members post from around the web and you can ‘clip it’ to show you like it.
• Store : A place to buy headers and other undisclosed additions for your profile using the points you gain at 9rules as the currency.
• Reworked areas: from member pages to communities and notes there is a face lift and refresh of format throughout, even the 9rules blog has been touched by Ali 2.
• Profile page : This has been updated to include your 9rules ’stream’ (what you’ve done on 9rules), badges (9rules member, posts made, amount of friends) and your clique membership. There has also had a feature made of your 9rules friends who become recommender’s of content for you.

It’s quite a list and I’m not really doing it full justice so would recommend you check it out as there are a lot of new things to play with and even the old toys have been revamped.

Thoughts on a relaunch

It was great to follow Mike, Scrivs and Tyme through twitter and the 9rules launch as the new site went live (there is even a podcast). A big yay to them on this great new 9rules. I didn’t think I’d be prouder today to be a member that I was yesterday, but I am. Here’s to this next step in 9rules.

Normal service will be resumed shortly

There are many changes that I’m hoping to have time to push onto this site with cherry. The most significant change is a move to the grid hosting on media temple. After hearing a lot of problems I took my time before upgrading to the grid. A short while ago, I moved over logical binary and aside from a few email / ftp issues it wasn’t too bad. I now plan the coming weekend or one after move over this site. This means potential down time as I also plan on upgrading to the new wordpress as will finally have php5 going on. So, the short is if you see a ‘coming soon’ or message of that ilk on this site, I’ve not fallen down the back of the sofa I am just upgrading and whacking on the new theme. As they say ‘normal service will be resumed’. I plan on posting a quickie note when it’s going down and then when it’s back so you should know when this is going on.

Contemplating wooly socks and jumpers

Today seems to be the first knock on the door that autumn is coming to the UK. It’s windy and there is a distinct chill in the air that makes you think of hot chocolate and knitted garments. After the madness of the past few months it’s nice to get back to the focus that a change of season can bring. In the UK autumn and winter are times when we get less light, the evenings are dark and so are the mornings - with this comes oddly often a more productive nature to me. Whilst I was designing cherry I also have been having a renewed enthusiasm for this blog. I’d like to thank everyone for being patient over the past few months when I’ve not posted as regularly as usual. Cherry is potentially only going to be up for October but the new format is something I want to keep for a while.

So long flavours and a few other things…. for now

The one downside of cherry is that what I want to do breaks the other themes. Cherry is a wider theme and something I feel confident doing looking at my user resolution stats - I have yet to decide if this wider site will stay beyond october though. Along with this a lot of other issues come up such as wanting to change the contents beyond the blog that is shown with Cherry. I’m creating a new section called ’spiration’ which will hold webspiration and colourspiration. I am also loosing one category and that is espresso. Espresso will now be turning into a form of lifestream with my tumblr and other feeds being brought into one place. Again, how much of this is there on launch of cherry or comes soon after is to be confirmed. I’m launching the new pink for october site first and then cherry is being done. With all these changes about half of the previous flavours are going to be pretty useless as focus on sections that simply aren’t used anymore or have become new ones. I plan to slowly bring them all into line over time but for now it’s going to be just one flavour. I have not given up on flavours and hope that cherry brings enough to make up for their temporary loss.

See, I have been busy

I’ve focused so many times on trying to get a new flavour done since the last one and no design every ‘fitted’ as much as cherry seems to. Whilst it’s not going to be totally unique due to being for pink for october, it’s changed enough on this site to work for the month and is forcing the changes I’ve wanted to do for a while around here - so in short all good then. I’m really looking forward to finally getting a new look around here and focusing on new things rather than boiling away ideas that have been lingering for a while.

Birthdays are a time for celebration of course, for me I like to take them nice and quietly. I’m not big into parties and so on and usually opt for the indulgence option. Taking time for myself on that day. Last night I had my birthday night (a bit early but whose counting). I watched ‘Saw III’ (it’s a slasher movie and great photography but ends at about that) and ‘The Toyko Godfathers’ (an anime I’d never heard about but found in the rental store, beautifully done with an odd slower story that tackled some things I’ve not seen in many anime - homosexuality and homelessness, I can recommend it). This was coupled with a chinese take away of my usual lemon chicken (I think I’m obsessed with it).

I’ve got a lot to be thankful for this year. The 30s are a damn fine age in my opinion. Dillon has been with us a year. I’ve been lucky enough to do some great projects work wise and thing are going so well at home. So yay for another year old this getting older stuff can be good.

1 - It’s a given that Cas (and Bright Meadow) are the best thing since bread came sliced. But what is the second best thing on the Internet?

Hmm, well considering my job this is a bit tricky. I think I’ll go for the website I use the most and that has to be google search. Why? Because it ‘just works’ and answers my random queries accurately most times. Got to love the way you can type thoughts almost and get websites that actually match. It has helped me out so many times I really have to vote it the top.

2 - A word or phrase that only you and your family/friends use. If you can explain it and how it came to be, even better!
This is a tricky one as I keep getting told I need my own dictionary… Really can’t say just one as I seem to have absorbed a wide variety of odd phrases along the way. Fairy fud, awoga, fugley and so on…… I really do pity someone who tries to take my variant of english as the one to ever learn by.

3 - The one thing you wish most you said at uni but you never did?
Although I’m glad I did the courses I did, I sort of wish I’d opted to study web something from the start - the only issue with that would be such courses didn’t exist really when I was at uni. Maybe something more design not art orientated would have been good. I guess what I wish I’d said would have been can I change my course to this one - again that would have needed a time machine so not really doable. I caught up later with software engineering but just doing art at the start really wasn’t the brightest choice.

4 - What would you say the hardest part about being a ‘grown up’ is?
Commitments.

5 - Eeyore, Tigger, Piglet or Pooh?
Piglet every time.

So, there you go and a big thanks to Cas.

It’s times like these that challenge even the most blog mused of us. I get it more with the design posts on my blog - I feel sometimes I’ve said this so many times before how can I justify saying it again. The thing is really that sometimes you do repeat - time is like that and there are only x number of subjects in the world (some blogs are only on one subject after all) - yet the key is to finding a fresh approach to it. Journalism is like this, the same news goes around and comes back again but it’s how the delivery is done that is the key. Finding fresh material and inserting it into the mix also reduces this rewind / heard it all before feeling.

Blog block can easily come as a result of this blogged there before feeling. I’ve had a fair bit of that lately in the sense of ‘what is there to write about anymore’, the thing is there is always something to write about as a blogger and you just have to de-block yourself. Yes, you may have said it before but have you said it in this way or with this view before? Seeing things from different sides of the coin really can offer a new fresh post. Often it’s tempting to start a new blog when this feeling comes - if you do something different then yes it won’t be the deja vu for a while, the point is it always comes and how you deal with it when it does. The successful bloggers in my book are those who take that blog repeating and turn it into new angles and a new approach to things. Often returning to a subject can bring it more power and more relevance.

I’ve been thinking of how I should look through my own archives and take my own advice (first time for everything there) in revisiting some post views and seeing if I feel the same or things have changed? We have a constant source we can use in those creative droughts and most of us just ignore it to search for elusive shiny new posts. Time traveling back isn’t always bad and it’s something I want to start doing a bit more every now and then. Yes, you have to be careful in rinse and repeating or going back - everything in moderation - but it also can be a rewarding and good post making thing to do.