Find a Decision-Making Metric

I added a sidebar to my blog a few days ago. I’m not sure if you noticed. It’s ok if you didn’t. On mobile, it’s not really a sidebar. It’s more like a bottom bar. But on desktop, it sits to the side, telling people who I am, what I do, where I’ve been published, and gives them some navigation options. Soon, I might add a newsletter subscription form, and a link for my Photo + Video Pitch Deck Template. 

When I had the idea to add this, I was faced with a tricky decision. Squarespace doesn’t have sidebar functionality available for most of their site templates, so it would have to be coded. You can probably tell just by looking at me that I don’t know a lick about html or javascript. So I chatted with a few friends who do know a lick about what it would cost for them to help me get the functionality I needed. 

But then, something amazing happened. Instead of feeling too intimidated to even google anything, I decided to google something: “Squarespace blog sidebar,” to be exact. Within 30 minutes I read three detailed articles, with links to custom code. I decided to give it a shot on my own. A few hours later, I had the sidebar of my dreams, that I know how to change whenever I want to. 

I’m not a fan of freelancers doing everything themselves. I think it really pays for us to pay each other when we encounter something that’s out of our wheelhouse. I’ve paid friends to help me design logos, build spreadsheet templates, and edit social content. But every once in a while, a little bit of research and elbow grease can get you some pretty cheap results. 

All this to say, find a metric that helps you decide how to proceed in situations like this. For me, it’s frustration. If I feel overwhelmed and frustrated, it’s time to hire someone. If I can learn a new skill with minimal frustration, then it’s worth it for me. Others might consider time, cost, or a specific skillset they lack as their decision-making metric. Whatever it is for you, this is an important thing to have in a world with thousands of important decisions that could all cost money.