Should You Unbundle Strategy and Labor in Services Work?

How Did You (Erik) Arrive at Your Niche?

Long ago, when I was blogging more regularly about identifying niches, a reader asked me how I found mine. While I don't do a ton of exposition content, I thought this topic might be interesting for viewers. View this podcast as a video on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmI7CcQ2NlE&list=PL15SBd-pPBwL-qMlA7IhryDbDEh7b_tOV&index=95] Links of the week: * Spin.AI published a breakdown of the best SSPM solutions for Google Workspace [https://spin.ai/blog/best-sspm-solutions-for-google-workspace/], worth a look alongside their Google Workspace backup and recovery [https://spin.ai/platform/google-workspace/backup-and-recovery/] offering. * Unusual VC has a useful piece on accelerating your content flywheel [https://www.unusual.vc/post/accelerating-your-content-flywheel]. * Workato covered the top Marketo integrations [https://www.workato.com/the-connector/what-are-the-top-4-marketo-integrations/] worth knowing about. * Wrangle shared a collection of help desk ticket response templates [https://www.wrangle.io/post/help-desk-ticket-response-templates] for support teams. * Tricentis put out a practical guide on how to speed up Oracle deployments [https://www.tricentis.com/blog/6-ways-to-speed-up-oracle-deployments].

Should You Unbundle Strategy and Labor in Services Work?

If you're offering services as a freelancer, does it make sense to unbundle strategy from labor? This episode digs into that question. This podcast is courtesy of Hit Subscribe. [https://www.hitsubscribe.com/] Prefer to watch the video version of this podcast? View this podcast as a video, here! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1wflClnc-s&list=PL15SBd-pPBwL-qMlA7IhryDbDEh7b_tOV&index=94] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Links of the week: * Careflow published a guide to patient referral leakage [https://gocareflow.com/blog/patient-referral-leakage-what-it-is-and-how-to-reduce-it] and how to reduce it. * CSuite Content took a look at the leadership brand behind Partake Brewing's Ted Fleming [https://csuitecontent.com/how-i-lead-this-behind-the-leadership-brand-of-partake-brewings-ted-fleming/]. * Enov8 broke down the differences between data mesh vs data lake [https://www.enov8.com/blog/data-mesh-vs-data-lake/] architectures. * InfluxData published a practical guide to using D3.js with React [https://www.influxdata.com/blog/guide-d3js-react/].

How to Avoid Being Treated Like an Employee?

If you have a single big client, engaging your services for an unspecified amount of time, it can be easy to fall into an employee-employer style relationship. How can you avoid that? View this podcast as a video on YouTube. [https://youtu.be/23mpNa7itYg?si=M2_7Qd9ymF_uzxhv] Picks: -------------------------------------------------------------------------- * CSuite Content published a guide to brand strategy consulting firms [https://csuitecontent.com/brand-strategy-consulting-firms-everything-you-need-to-know/] and how to choose the right partner. * Enov8 shared a post explaining Duck Creek data masking [https://www.enov8.com/blog/duck-creek-data-masking/]and why it matters for insurance platforms. * InfluxData added a glossary entry breaking down database indexing [https://www.influxdata.com/glossary/database-indexing/] and how it improves query performance. * Unusual VC published a piece on AI in software development [https://www.unusual.vc/post/ai-software-development]and what it means for startups. * Careflow recently covered the patient intake process [https://gocareflow.com/blog/understanding-the-patient-intake-process-a-complete-guide] and how healthcare teams can improve efficiency. * Tricentis, who makes testing tools, published a guide to quality management [https://www.tricentis.com/learn/quality-management]. * Workato published an ultimate guide to optimizing NPS [https://www.workato.com/the-connector/ultimate-guide-optimizing-nps/] and improving customer feedback workflows. * Autify shared a primer on AI test case generation [https://autify.com/blog/ai-test-case-generation]and how AI can speed up software testing. * Spin.AI published a guide to Google Workspace backup and recovery [https://spin.ai/platform/google-workspace/backup-and-recovery/].

Is Improving Code Performance a Good Niche?

For a while, I was getting a lot of questions about whether something would be a good niche for indies. In this video, I answer the question of whether improving code performance is a good niche. Join us to learn more. View this podcast as a video on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNG0M27uXmk] Links of the week: * CSuite Content published an introduction to personal PR and managing your personal brand [https://csuitecontent.com/personal-pr-an-introduction-to-managing-your-personal-brand/]. * Enov8 has a new guide to GCP data masking [https://www.enov8.com/blog/gcp-data-masking/]. * InfluxData added a glossary entry explaining overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) [https://www.influxdata.com/glossary/overall-equipment-effectiveness-oee/]. * Unusual VC published a piece on AI in software development [https://www.unusual.vc/post/ai-software-development] and what it means for startups. * Careflow recently covered patient intake management software [https://gocareflow.com/blog/patient-intake-management-software] on their blog. * Tricentis, who makes testing tools [https://www.tricentis.com/], put out an introduction to AI test automation [https://www.tricentis.com/learn/ai-test-automation-introduction]. * Workato shared a guide to logistics automation [https://www.workato.com/the-connector/logistics-automation-guide/]. * Autify published a primer on AI quality assurance [https://autify.com/blog/ai-quality-assurance]. * Spin.AI broke down the differences between CASB vs SSPM [https://spin.ai/blog/casb-vs-sspm/]

What Is the Difference Between a Niche and Positioning?

You may hear the terms "niche" and "positioning" tossed around a lot, often interchangeably. What do these really mean, and what's the difference? Join us to learn more. View this podcast as a video on YouTube. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9cGHv2WEMk] Links of the week: * CSuite Content just shared a guide to enterprise reputation management [https://csuitecontent.com/the-executives-guide-to-enterprise-reputation-management/]. * Enov8 has a new checklist for DLP [https://www.enov8.com/blog/a-data-loss-prevention-security-checklist-best-practices-for-it-professionals/]. * InfluxData recently updated a node red dashboard tutorial [https://www.influxdata.com/blog/node-red-dashboard-tutorial/] for 2026. * Unusual VC has an interesting explainer of how startups can pivot [https://www.unusual.vc/startup-pivot/]. * Careflow started publishing to their blow recently, including a post about longitudinal health records [https://gocareflow.com/blog/why-longitudinal-health-records-still-dont-work] (and why they don't work). * Tricentis, provider of software testing tools [https://www.tricentis.com/], updated their offering around data integrity testing [https://www.tricentis.com/products/data-integrity].