In the real world, there’s always tension between the do-it-right-the-first-time mentality and the figure-it-out-as-we-go mentality. It’s fun to watch this unfold. Couples ordering dinner. Teams developing a project plan. Boards hashing out priorities.

Any time we’re doing something for the first time, we learn as we go. In industries and companies undergoing fast change that’s a necessity. And whose business isn’t experiencing a little upheaval these days?

Some people learn better through experimentation, “failing fast,” going for the no. And some disciplines really require that mentality. (I would argue that generating demand for a product or service is such a discipline.)

Doing things right the first time is a mentality from the waterfall days of software development. And there’s some merit to the rigors of waterfall thinking. How will we know what problem we’re solving unless we do some analysis first? If it absolutely, positively has to work, why should we trust that it will all be figured out as we go?

In all functional areas, especially marketing, companies need both mentalities: planning and doing. But both mentalities must be checked by the testers. Why presume your ideas will work in a real world environment without prior proofs?

What’s fun in business is figuring out what has to be figured out upfront, and what has to be figured out through iteration. And how to test the assumptions.

Related posts:

1. Someone sent me a Seth Godin post, so I will blog about it now.
2. B2B complex sale = influencing a community.
3. Marketers: under pressure for ROI? How to find accountability mentors.
4. Pretty vs. Gritty
5. I bet you don’t know your customer this well.

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