Burn It All Down

What would you do if you could, for lack of a better phrase, burn it all down.

I’m talking about your IT infrastructure. What built-in assumptions does your current infrastructure contain which you would revert if you were able to start with a completely barren landscape and build something entirely new.

That is an interesting thought experiment, but that is about it. In almost no circumstance will you be able to find yourself starting from a completely barren landscape and able to build up something without the interference of the past. Even new buildings need to interface with old buildings or people who expect things to work in a certain way are going to be in that new building, so completely starting over is never a true option.

Something more fun is to think about what benefits you want from that new infrastructure and to think about how you might bring those benefits without tearing everything out to start over new.

Small changes add up over time, just like they did to get you were you are. Create a plan, or a goal, of what you want to change and then start picking off the low-hanging fruit (now I’m really getting the metaphors in here) so that you can get some momentum.

Many times we might want to just tear things out because it seems like the easier path, and maybe it is sometimes … but perhaps there is a better way to get some the benefits without tearing your hair, and your infrastructure, out.