COMING AT YOU WEEK OF 4.13.21

Weekly catch up

A few things from the search world

• Google released this product reviews update that will reward sites with Google’s definition of useful product reviews (For the record, their criteria is pretty 👌.)
• This nifty interactive shows you what hobbies trended in 2020.
• ​This piece on keyword fluctuation focuses on the simile that just how weighing yourself everyday isn’t very effective for reaching your goal, neither is checking your kw rank on the daily.
• Here’s an article for you if you’re looking to prove link-building hasn’t died, if you’re genuinely curious about why link building is still around, or if you’re nerdy about link building.

A few other (somewhat random) interesting finds

• Pew Research just released a cool report about social media usage. We were interested in its insights on how usage of many platforms has plateaued.
• An actionable flowchart for remembering the many pieces of content creation.
• Check out how Amazon’s advertising budget has grown (and how Amazon, Facebook, and Google stack up to the total US ad spend). You’ll need to scroll to the bottom of this link.

Ask yourself this

How do I create systems that will make my boss think I’m magical?

Part II

Have you ever worked with someone who you couldn’t keep up with? Who just always got so much done (with a smile 🙄) and was this enigma of a power house? Well, using systems is going to make you one of those people.

​Last week, we discussed the benefits of systems. Today, we’ll teach you how to create them.

Step 1: Choose a value of your identity.

You need to identify a KPI because it’s hard to create a system if you don’t know what you’re working toward. And it’s hard to prioritize a KPI unless it’s identity-focused.

Choose three to five adjectives that describe you or your team well. After that, pick one to improve. (Examples below.)

Step 2: Choose a KPI.

Many before us have taught you how to define an effective KPI; we will simply provide examples of them in the table below.

Step 3: Choose a repeatable, high-impact action.

Take time to consider repeatable actions that will help you achieve the KPI.

Here’s a table of four scenarios.

On a scale of one to five, how much willpower it will take you to complete your action?

If you say one or two, you might be fine to just get going.

If you say three or four, leverage routine and environment.

Routine: pair your action with another action you complete at the same cadence.

Ex: My system is posting on social once a day. Every day I’ll post before I take my first snack break (and tell myself that I gotta earn them sesame sticks).

Environment: make sure your environment makes it easy to complete your system.

Ex: My system is responding to emails within three business hours. I might try out different email software, tools, and notifications to make the system as easy for me as I can.

If you say five, consider adjusting your system to make it easier.

Can you break the action down into smaller chunks?

Why systems work

You’re going to see a ton of progress because you’ve done so much to make your system easy for you to complete.

Increased chance of completing system → feeling of success → motivation → increased chance of completing system. You’re welcome.

Wordless Wisdom (kind of)

Fire your 6s