A while back, I noticed a Venn diagram for the Project Triangle which added free. The only problem is that it was for graphic design. For what I do, providing services and integrations, I thought only “dipped in ugly sauce with haste and carelessness” needed adjusting. Creately was surprisingly easy to whip together this version of Project Triangle For Systems Administration.

When I first arrived, the focus was on great. We happened to be cheap too, but there was no pressure to be cheaper. Lately the encouragement has been to sacrifice great for fast and cheap to get closer to that impossible utopia. My worry is we will move through a breaks often period before we learn that it really is an impossible utopia. UPDATE 2011-APR-12: We focus on great and cheap right now. So the clients complain about it not being fast. If we shift our focus to fast and great, then they will complain about the cost. If we shift our focus to fast and cheap, then they will complain about it not being great. There is no panacea where everyone is happy. Yet we change in hopes that change makes us look responsive to the complaints.

The problem is the frame, where the clients are focused. Rather than redirecting that attention to where we are providing value, we want to fix it. If we magically could so there were no problems, then we would have….