Sometimes you just have to try it and see what happens

Sometimes you just have to try it and see what happens

The single greatest key to happiness in data management (and life!) is to seek success and not perfection. A corollary to that could be "Try it and see what happens."

Part of my work with clients is helping them make decisions about business rules and business processes; helping to answer the question: "How are we going to use the system?" Often there are no absolute right and wrong answers about how to do a given thing. And so typically my advice is, "Let's try [X], and see what happens."

Let's face it, for most of us in association mgt, if we choose to do X and it doesn't work, no one dies. Trying something that ultimately doesn't work may be frustrating, and perhaps a bit time-consuming, but it's not the end of the world. And likely we will have learned something in the process.

We might not be able to predict how our members and customers will react to a certain process or rule. The only way to find out is to try and see what happens! It's all part of seeking success and not perfection.

Wes's Wednesday Wisdom Archives

AI is perpetually patient

December 10, 2025

AI is perpetually patient My friend and colleague Noel Shatananda of fusionSpan was providing me some […]

User adoption is (almost) all that matters…

December 3, 2025

User adoption is (almost) all that matters… I was speaking with an association recently about their […]

When “overcommunicating” becomes overwhelming

November 19, 2025

When “overcommunicating” becomes overwhelming There is a common belief in project management and general business management that overcommunicating […]

Communicating when there is a major technology change

November 12, 2025

Communicating when there is a major technology change For those of you who are ASAE […]

Everything works, until it doesn’t.

November 5, 2025

Everything works, until it doesn’t. “If something cannot go on forever, it will stop.” – […]

Some things are unknowable

October 29, 2025

Some things are unknowable One of the most challenging aspects of moving to a new […]

Do we have access to that data?

October 22, 2025

Do we have access to that data? When I work with my clients on a […]

The three “buckets” of contact data

October 8, 2025

The three “buckets” of contact data Broadly speaking, when collecting data on contacts (individuals or organizations), […]

Balancing what is possible with what is realistic

October 1, 2025

Balancing what is possible with what is realistic When I work with clients on technology […]

“Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.”

September 24, 2025

“Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.” “Humans want to be surrounded by beauty.” – […]

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top