The most recent release of Social Warfare version 1.3 (a major overhaul) got me to thinking back to the days when Social Warfare was just an idea. It was one of those things that was just a neat idea that would be kinda cool to do someday.
Nick, Dustin, and I would go on for hours about our vision for a social share plugin that could surpass anything else out there – but of course, a bit awed by the amount of work it would take to bring that vision to market.
Those talks were energetic, exciting, and full of possibility. We didn’t realize it at the time, but this was the “early days”. Our relationship was transforming and we were no longer just a couple of social media pals, we were becoming a team.
Almost immediately, we fell into a natural synergy – and the role that each of us would play became self-evident.
You see, Nick is a tech-genius, Dustin is a social dynamo… and me, well, I need to make business sense of it all. I enjoy pushing the envelope, but I’m pretty cautious about starting something unless I really believe it can happen.
There’s been plenty of give and take on this team, and in addition to our individual talents and skill sets that we brought to the table, it’s our willingness to listen to and learn from each other that’s made this effort such an overwhelming success.
Good listening and cooperation is a lesson in itself, but it’s not what got me started writing this article.
I really want to tell you about our journey.
Social Warfare: A labor of love and a whole lot of work
Ok, so the Social Warfare team has gotten our share of bumps and bruises along this journey, but Nick pointed out something recently that made us all realize how far we’ve come:
Today’s Social Warfare plugin packs about twice as many features as we first envisioned, it’s less than half the size of the first edition, and most importantly – people are loving it!
Wow.
It’s so incredible when you realize that you’re living in the moment when your vision became a reality.
As a team we’ve always agreed that the most successful endeavors are those that gather the most failures. After all, Babe Ruth struck out more than he homered, right?
We’ve continually moved the bar higher and higher. And that’s what counts in the end.
I almost sound like a giddy schoolboy telling you how proud I am of our team, but hey, this journey rocks!
Talking about the value of teamwork
I was reflecting on all of this with a friend recently, and he helped me define something that I’d always kind of known, but never really put into words.
You know how you can think you know something – but then something happens that brings it to life and you see it in a deeper way than ever before? Well, thanks to Don, that happened.
You see, our team is constantly watching for developments that could affect Social Warfare (a good example of that is our recent breaking story about Twitter’s plan to drop share counts), and anytime you’re trying to keep up with the rapidly changing world of social media marketing, there’s constant tension to move quickly.
Well, sure enough, a recent glitch in an attempt to fix some Google-related bugs caught us off-guard, things started to break, and our support forum really began to light up. Not pretty.
But, we fixed it. The problem was resolved and the support fires were quickly put out.
So Don and I are talking and here’s the methodology that he helped me realize that we’ve been living by from the beginning.
The Social Warfare team has always placed top priority on three things:
- Following developmental best practices
- Never settling for inferior performance
- Always optimizing
Performance and Optimization. It’s that simple.
That’s the soul of Warfare Plugins and everything we create.
Why the proverb tells us two heads are better than one
Of course all success stories lead back to a team of individuals who brought themselves fully to the to the table to create something bigger than any of them individually.
Same with us.
You see, Nick is the consummate performance guy. He works and works – then works some more to make sure he’s milking every bit of value he can from the Social Warfare plugin.
Performance is Nick’s specialty.
He insists the Social Warfare plugin must work smoothly, quickly, and accurately.
Dustin, on the other hand, is an optimization freak. He looks beyond the tool to the results it produces and to how it can help you accomplish your goals. He’s all about user experience and user interface.
Dustin’s a neurotic freak about driving social shares and traffic, ha! Seriously though, he’s the one that makes sure that Social Warfare gets you the most traffic possible. He’s always on the lookout for new opportunities and stays on top of current trends.
He is Mr. Optimization.
And me… I play the conservative elder. I’m always reeling those two back in and insisting on solid foundations and systems that will benefit our customers and secure our ability to grow as a company. I’m pretty fixated on the numbers and always considering the potential financial impact of every action.
My job is to provide a business perspective.
And together… we keep the train on track and keep moving forward.
We’re a team!
Here’s my word of encouragement for you: When you’re working with your team and the sparks begin to fly, don’t get out the fire hose and douse the flame. Build a bonfire and use it to forge something new.
When working with your team and the sparks begin to fly, don't douse the flame, build a bonfire.Click To TweetSomething valuable.
