Been a minute
It has been over six months since I last posted here. Not because there was nothing to say, but because I landed the role at ddm, and my attention naturally shifted there. Between settling into that, still doing freelance work, and staying involved with nimble giant, this site was the thing that got put on the back burner. It is exactly the pattern I called out in my last post, the one where I let my own brand go by the wayside while heads-down on everything else. I did it again. Now that I have found a rhythm, I want to change that.
Back at ddm
I started back at ddm in March. If you read my last post, you know I spent almost nine years there before, left, and wanted this exact role back before it even existed. Now it does, and I am in it.
It has felt great being back. I have a larger voice and more decision-making authority this time around, and I am back in a leadership role, which I have missed. A lot is familiar, the people, the culture, the pace, but the seat is different, and that has made all the difference. Nothing about the return has been surprising, honestly. It has just felt right.
nimble giant, still simmering
The consultancy took a backseat while everyone settled into their own places, mine included. We have not been actively promoting it, and there has not been big, visible movement. But it has not gone quiet. Kris has kept pushing Ailloy forward, and there are multiple people interested in bringing it into their own workflows. The three of us still want to pursue work through nimble giant, we just have not been showing up for it the way we were in January and February. That is something I want to help fix.
A freelance win: Artizin.com
Through heydavidelliott.com and my freelance work, I moved Artizin.com off Flywheel and onto Kinsta, and optimized it hard while I was in there. It went well, and it reminded me how much I enjoy this kind of work: a clear problem, a clean execution, and a client who notices the difference.
I want more of that. More active freelance clients, and ideally more retainer-based relationships instead of one-off projects. If that is you, or you know someone who needs this kind of help, my hire page is the place to start.
Why I am back here
I do not want to only show up when I am out of work.
That is the honest version of it. It is easy to invest in your own site and voice when you are job hunting and have something to prove, and just as easy to let it go quiet once you are settled. I want to protect myself against that pattern this time, both because it is good practice for whatever comes next, and because more consistent writing here supports the freelance and nimble giant work I want to keep pursuing.
Going forward, expect more industry-focused posts from me, and expect more of my thinking on AI in particular. Not as a replacement for the work our team does, but as a tool that is already reshaping how we do it. That is a bigger topic than I want to cram into a general update, so consider this the preview. More soon.