In this edition of Web Enlightenment we'll be talking unsupervised thinking and why it is important you are aware of it.

This newsletter focuses on giving you practical, interesting insights into how to successfully use technology as a tool to improve the way you do business. Bridging the gap between knowledge and understanding that all entrepreneurs have will help you make money online.

Please hit reply and tell me about unsupervised thinking experiences you may have had. I answer every email sent to me.

All the best,

Unsupervised Thinking

People often ask me about how much they "should" be paying for Interactive services - when they do I like to tell them the story of the $1,000 squeaky floor.

There once was a man with a squeaky wood floor - it drove him crazy. He hired a contractor to fix it who spent lots of time installing special devices and working hard but the floor still squeaked. Frustrated, the homeowner hired another contractor who had a whole new plan - he was going to fill the cracks in the floor with a special anti-squeak caulk and that would solve it. Lots of effort and time was spent but the floor still squeaked and the homeowner hated it.

One day our homeowner met a very old man who was wearing a tool belt and he told him the story of his problematic squeaky floor. "I guarantee I can fix that for you and if I can't you won't pay" said the grizzled old carpenter, "But it is going to cost you $1,000". The homeowner was joyous and immediately agreed - he had already spent much more than a thousand dollars on the other people he hired.

The old carpenter came to the house the next day and took his shoes off. He slid around on the wood floor in his socks and it looked like he was doing a crazy dance. He reached into his back pocket and extracted a big shiny nail - and drove it into the floor with one blow of his hammer.

The floor was fixed, the homeowner was speechless. "I know I said I would pay you $1,000 and I will but I'm going to need some detail on my invoice" said the homeowner. "Not a problem at all" said the carpenter and he took out a piece of paper to make a detailed invoice, here is what it said:

One Nail: $1
Knowing where to put the nail: $999
Total: $1,000

When you are working on your web site you need to make sure that you have proper guidance, you need to be aware of the fact that a lack of knowledge can cost you an awful lot of money and frustration.

The first two contractors that the homeowner hired were in the "we'll try our best" category, Internet Entrpruernes tend to need folks in the "I already know how" category.

An incredibly common mistake that Internet Entrepreneurs make is to assign someone, often an employee of theirs, to be responsible for a web program - from email marketing to shopping cart development to search engine optimization - this poor person is asked to do a task that they have no experience with whatsoever.

The end product that folks like this put out - hard as they work - is referred to by people like me as "unsupervised thinking".

They are often trying to solve problems that have already been solved by other folks, or they are unaware of technology, or they may have no information about common tools and tactics.

Here's the bottom line: Be wary of unsupervised thinking in your own company, it can cost you lots of time and money.