Project Post Mortems are one of the best things in software development – and not only for the pizza. A Post Mortem is a great collaborative learning experience that gives the team a chance to look back on the project and think about their successes and failures. And it’s a great way to thank the team for completing the project.

Now that August is almost history, it’s time to take a look back and see what happened during the month, and where we are headed to in September.

Community growth and top commentators

One of the greatest moments for me in August was when this blog reached the 100 RSS subscribers mark.

But even better than that has been the rate at which commenting has increased. I’ve been receiving great quality comments from a group of great people and it’s already starting to feel like a community. This is what blogging is all about: sharing thoughts and ideas with people from all around the world.

Congratulations to the 7 commentators in August:

1. Petteri Hietavirta
2. Graham Lutz, The Young Ca…
3. Nedzad
4. Brian Suojanen
5. Rashid
6. Lauri
7. Lynoure Braakman

Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts with me and the other readers!

Increasing visibility

Something that has been a bit disappointing during this month is that after reaching 100 RSS readers the growth pretty much stopped there, going up to 110 and then down to 99 only to settle around 105 or so. Don’t get me wrong: I think 100 subscribers is great and I’m honored to see all of you check out my writings every day.

But if there is no growth, there is always some room for improvement.

So, this is my biggest challenge and opportunity for September: To keep writing useful content for you guys but also make the site better known among a larger online audience.

Insanely Interesting September

On Monday, September 3rd, I’m starting a group writing project titled “Insanely Interesting September”.

More information will follow on Monday but in short the idea is that during September, if you write a blog post explaining why you are insanely interested in something, I will feature you on my blog.

Thanks for August, and have a great September!

Yesterday I almost got a heart attack.

I have been working on a simple Facebook application for a few days using Ruby on Rails and RFacebook. Yesterday I got to the point that if I wanted to continue developing the application I had to deploy my server code to an online server.

I have some hosting space at Site5 that runs Rails. So no problem, I thought. I just get Capistrano running and deploy the application.

Not a bad idea. The only problem was that I forgot to think.

This blog runs on the same server.

I concentrated all my efforts in getting the automatic deployment tool Capistrano running. And after an hour or so it finally ran fine and the application was deployed.

Cool!

But when the application had been deployed, Capistrano deleted my existing public_html directory and created a symbolic link pointing to my simple Facebook app instead.

Not cool.

During the entire time I spent setting up Capistrano I didn’t pay any thoughts to what would happen at the end of the process. I just wanted to move forward one step at the time. I forgot to think.

Lesson 1:

Don’t forget to think. When you’re following a tutorial or other kinds of instructions, make sure you know what you’re doing. Don’t just mindlessly follow the steps one by one.

Lesson 2:

When deploying with Capistrano, the default setup assumes that you want to have your domain’s root folder point to the Rails application. I don’t know how to change this yet, so if there is a friendly Rails developer reading this post, some tips would be appreciated.

After my initial shock I started to breathe again. Slowly my heart rate came down to the normal 60-100 bpm.

How do I get the blog back up?

Do I have backups?

As I was thinking about these questions my heart rate started climbing up again: I didn’t have that many backups. All I had was the database (which was great because now all my articles were intact), and some old version of the design.

I installed WordPress again. Uploaded the old design.

It looked like crap, but the blog was online again. I knew I could fix it.

Few hours later the blog was working again. Some images are still missing but otherwise everything seems to be fine. I was lucky to have at least some backups – and all the posts in a database. If you notice that something is still not working, let me know and I’ll fix it as soon as possible.

Lesson 3:

Always create backups. Anything can happen, so you need to manage the risks.

Lesson 4:

Don’t panic.

If you have similar stories that you’d like to share, the comments section is all yours. Let’s learn from each other’s mistakes!

I had a few technical difficulties (or more precisely: I made some stupid mistakes) which caused the blog to be broken for a few hours. Everything should be OK  now, except for a few missing images that I’ll be putting in place during the rest of the week (once I’m able to recover them from somewhere).

In tomorrow’s post I’ll tell you all about what happened (as it can serve as a valuable lesson learned about life, software deployment and the importance of backups).

Thanks for your patience!

An anonymous commenter posted an important question to my Rich Dad, Poor Dad review yesterday:

But does more money always translate into more happiness? –
No, I am not criticising or complaining about rich people just because I am not rich. But I always prefer better work (or life) than more money. A typical “middle-class” mentality…:)

Yep. Definitely a typical middle class mentality. And that’s how I feel as well.

But there is one problem with this thinking.

We say that we prefer better work or life over money. But because we don’t have the money, we are afraid to make the move that would give us the better life we are dreaming of.

Just because we ignore the power of money we end up not being able to pursue the quality of life we want to have:

1. Many people would like to work from home to be closer to their children. They can’t because their employer requires them to be at the office.
2. Many people find themselves working in a company that’s OK but doesn’t quite fit their values. They stay because they can’t find a better one.
3. Many people would like to retire early, but can’t because there are rules on how old you must be before the government starts paying you your pension.
4. Many people would like to travel more, but can’t because there is such a thing as working hours.

What is keeping these people from having the life they deserve is money – or the lack of it.

It’s not the lack of income.

It’s not that they would need to earn more money (although that can help).

The problem is that they don’t know how to think about money.

They, or we, need to learn how to handle money to get security and freedom, and increase our control over our own lives.

Being rich isn’t about fancy cars, big houses and more stuff to brag with. Most likely when you see a new BMW or Audi driving by, you can say that the driver is someone with a decent income and a lot of debt. The real millionaires know that instead of polishing the surface they need to use their money to get security that allows them to make the most of their lives doing things they enjoy and following their values.

Choices.

Becoming financially secure isn’t something that happens overnight. Getting a better paid job won’t get you there. Winning the lottery won’t get you there.

You need to do it yourself, through your every day choices:

Do you really need to have a new car? (Public transportation is much cheaper and saves the environment)

Do you really need to have a golf club membership card? (Taking long walks with your spouse is free and even more rewarding)

Do you really need a TV? (Reading is almost free and educates you much more)

Some questions are harder: Do you really need to buy your apartment or does renting make more sense?

Getting rich means learning how to use your money. It means that you make conscious decisions every day to decide where you put your money. And in return you gain freedom and security. When you know how to use your money so that you don’t run out of it you can afford a lower paying job that you enjoy and more time with your family.

So, I too prefer a good career over money, but I see money as a means for getting to it – not an alternative.

“Well, if you don’t pay me more or show me more respect and teach me, I’ll quit.”

“Well put,” rich dad said. “And that’s exactly what most people do. They quit and go looking for another job, better opportunity, and higher pay, actually thinking that a new job or more pay will solve the problem. In most cases, it won’t.”

“So what will solve the problem?” I asked. “Just take this measly 10 cents an hour and smile?”

Rich dad smiled. “That’s what the other people do. Just accept a paycheck knowing that they and their familiy will struggle financially. But that’s all they do, waiting for a raise thinking that more money will solve the problem. Most just accept it, and some take a second job working harder, but again accepting a small paycheck.”

I sat staring at the floor, beginning to understand the lesson rich dad was presenting. I could sense it was a taste of life. Finally, I looked up and repeated the question. “So what will solve the problem?”

“This,” he said tapping me gently on the head. “This stuff between your ears.”

Life pushes us all around trying to teach us a basic principle:

We deal ads with a minimum pay (like my brother Tiitus did for a few months).

We work as tram drivers (like I did for two years) or store clerks (like my wife Mari did for a few years) – in boring and repetitive jobs that we hate, just to get money.

Even in jobs that we like when we get the monthly salary, it never seems big enough.

But we learn the wrong lesson.

We start saying things like “I don’t care about money” or “The rich are crooks” or “I can’t afford that”.

Or even worse. We start craving for a pay raise and think that getting a better paying job would solve our monetary problems. And when we can’t get that raise from our current employers we switch companies. But it won’t solve the problem.

In Rich Dad, Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki claims that the reason why poor stay poor, and rich become richer is because the rich have practiced their financial IQ. When the rest of us play safe and try to avoid thinking about money they have learned to master money and how it works. When we buy things to look rich, they invest to actually become rich.

One of the key lines in Rich Dad, Poor Dad is the following:

“The poor and the middle class work for money.” “The rich have money work for them.”

I started reading Kiyosaki’s book out of curiosity. Graham from The Young Capitalist recommended it so I thought why not, and bought the book. It turned out to be much more exciting, and more thought provoking than I would have imagined.

Sure, there is some debate going on whether the rich dad actually ever existed or not, and if any of the successes described in the book actually are true. But even if that is the case I think the story has well proved its point: to be financially successful you need to know how money works and how to master it (and not become its slave).

Invest your money to something that brings you profit instead of spending it in luxury you cannot afford.

Try to get out of debt.

Learn how taxation works so you don’t have to pay the government more than your fair share.

Start your own side business.

Make money work for you.

Teach your kids how to handle money.

To me Rich Dad, Poor Dad is a starting point. It brings together ideas that have been running in my head already for a while. The things presented in the book may not be new but nevertheless worth thinking. Things like getting passive income, spending less, investing to assets instead of just living from one paycheck to the other.

It’s not a complete guide book to the world of money and wealth. Some even say that some of its teachings can be dangerous to you.

But the basic principle is clear: Invest in your mind and learn the logic of wealth. And then using that information you can make money work for you.

Have you read Rich Dad, Poor Dad? How did you feel about it? What do you think about the debate on Mr. Kiyosaki and his two dads?

How do you stay motivated at work?

What do you do when your boss doesn’t tell you what to do?

How do you get yourself into doing something when all you hear from your superiors is small tasks that are due sometimes “as soon as possible”?

You have too choices:

1. You become passive: You let your days pass, surf the web, maybe look at some of your old work and complain about not having anything to do. The salary runs anyway so it’s none of your business to get things done.
2. You think like you own the company: If you were the owner of the company and there would be a situation like that, you wouldn’t be wandering around mindlessly, but looking for ways to make the business grow. Finding new ways to expand and doing your best to learn the skills needed to tackle future challenges.

In many companies no one will come and complain to you if you choose the first option.

But for your own sake, choosing the second one makes much more sense.

1. It makes you feel more useful so that you don’t feel that your days are wasted doing nothing.
2. You learn new things that can help you on your career path. As an owner you would look outside the boundaries of your profession, so don’t be limited to learning only about the very thing you do every day. If you are a Java programmer, you might want to check out some Ruby on Rails. If you usually do some desktop programming, it can make sense to check out Facebook. Or if you are a programmer why not learn some marketing skills as well?
3. You learn how business works. When you look closely at how the business on your field evolves you learn to see how the work you are putting in from day to day affects the world and the market. If you are working on a side business on your spare time, this knowledge will turn out to be priceless.
4. And last but not least, your co-workers, your bosses and everyone around you will appreciate your attitude and see you as someone to trust and whose ideas are important to listen to.

So, here’s my tip for this Monday morning: If you want to motivate yourself to work happily through your days, imagine that you own the company you work for – and act accordingly.

September 8. – 9. 2007 will be an interesting 48 hours as enthusiastic Rails developers gather to compete against each other in designing, building and deploying the best Rails application they can think of.

If you are into Ruby and Rails and have a weekend to spare, make sure to check out the competition.

I am currently trying to decide whether I should join the competition as well or not… I might have something else to do at home, but this sure sounds like fun. What do you think?

This week my posts have been dealing with issues of slowing down and speeding up at the workplace. I also found an interesting site for giving feedback and suggestions to people, Should do This.

But to complete the week, here are a few insanely interesting links picked from my RSS feed reader this week. Enjoy!

1. How to Communicate Effectively And Still Get Things Done from the Software Creation Mystery: In the early days of my blog I mentioned that we should be careful to make sure that our good communication doesn’t become too much communication. In this post Andriy Solovey talks about the same topic and shares tips on how we can keep our communication productive and get things done.
2. Slow Cook Your Business Goals for Success from Dumb Little Man: “The best tasting food is slow cooked. If you cook food too fast it’s often not as savory. The best success is also slow cooked. Building success slowly over time allows you to do things right the first time, allows time for reflection, time to enjoy the process, and time to enjoy your life.” So, there you have it again: slow really is the new fast.
3. 30 Ways to Transform Your Career from Dumb Little Man: Jay White has done a great job in collecting these 30 tips for making most out your career to one article. By reading his article you won’t have to browse all the different sources but can get a lot of information at one go. He also links to the original articles so that if you want more information it’s easily available.
4. Bootstrapping from Matt Blancarte: And while we’re talking about workplaces, here are a few nice pictures from a small home office shared by three young entrepreneurs.

Have a nice weekend and talk to you again on Monday! And if you have some great links to share, feel free to leave a comment.

My latest Amazon orders arrived yesterday, so now I have some more reading for my bus rides:

1. Make a Name for Yourself by Scott Ginsberg: I already read the free e-book some time ago, but wanted to support Scott and get the real book as well. I was really impressed when I saw how good the book looks! It’s in full color and printed on high quality paper, and I’m already really happy I got this book.
2. The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell: Last Christmas I bought myself a copy of Malcolm Gladwell’s other book, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking. Reading Blink was an exciting adventure into the human mind so I assumed that this one should be pretty interesting too.
3. Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money–That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! by Robert T. Kiyosaki: Graham from The Young Capitalist recommended this book. He said that the book had an enormous impact on his life so naturally I had to check it out. Let’s see how the book works for me.

What about you?

What are you reading right now?

Feel free to add your affiliate links to the comments so that if I decide to get one of the books you recommend, you’ll get your share of the money as well. My spam filter might catch your comment because of the link but don’t worry about that, I’ll get to rescue as soon as I can.

I just stumbled across a new service created by the company behind two of my favorite web services 43Things and AllConsuming, Should Do This.

Should Do This, just like the other tools by Robot Co-op, is based on a simple idea: you choose a person and recommend that he or she should do something. On the service you can see political messages such as:

1. Zimbabwe should stop the madness or
   
2. George Bush should resign

…as well as personal suggestions like:

1. My best friend should play more WoW with me and
2. Emily should marry me

But the best part from my point of view is how Robot Co-op is using the service to get feedback on it:

1. Should Do This on Should Do This
2. Robot Co-op on Should Do This
3. 43things on Should Do This

I added my own Should Do This profile this morning, so that if you’d like to suggest something for this blog or to me in general, you can check out my profile and easily send me some suggestions.

What about you, do you have your own account at Should Do This yet? Let me know and I’ll suggest something to you.