Note: I have since scrapped the new theme and installed a new one called simpliSIMO.  I was having just WAY too many technical issues with ZinePress not working with Internet Explorer.  ZinePress is still, in my opinion, the best free wordpress theme out there that I’ve seen, but I can’t justify using a theme that has so many compatibility issues.

Well, after eight months of tweaking my wordpress theme and website design, I have finally decided to bite the bullet and simply install a new theme called ZinePress, which was designed by Andrew Lindstrom.  So far, I think that it’s a huge improvement.

I have a little bit of experience in design, and some web design, so my original plan was to find a wordpress theme that was structurally similar to what I wanted for my blog, and to build off of that to complete what I wanted.  So that’s what I did.  I installed a theme called Optimax and started working on making it completely unrecognizable.  Every few weeks, I’d make another change or two to the theme to improve on it.

Eventually, I came to the slow realization that I should acknowledge to myself that I am not a web designer, and that I should focus my energy on creating my content, and just be satisfied with a pre-made template that someone else has made.  After all, it’s not a big deal if my blog looks similar to several other blogs, right?  So that’s what I did.

The thing here is that I admitted that my strength is not in web design, so I delegated that task to someone else who is better than I am.  (Of course, I didn’t directly ask Andrew to make the theme for me, I simply downloaded it from his site.  However, it’s still a form of delegation)

In whatever project that you have going, sometimes it is best to admit where your weaknesses lie, and to find someone else to do it for you.  If you’re writing a novel, does that mean that you need to design the cover as well?  Or a more extreme example would be if you’re parinting a portrait, do you really need to chop down the trees that will eventually be used to make the paper for your canvas?  There’s nothing wrong with delegating tasks to other people if it means that the job’s going to get done in a better way.

Delegating tasks to other people is a great way to get things done, as long as you’re doing it for the right reason.  Don’t delegate a task simply because you don’t feel like doing it.  Delegating a task should be used to give yourself the opportunity to focus on other things.  People tend to not help others who they think are lazy.  Also, just because you aren’t skilled at something doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try it.  After all, we are amateurs at everything at some point or another.  You shouldn’t pass up an opportunity to learn a skill that you will later need to have.  In these cases, delegating a task will only delay your improvement.

I hope that everyone likes the new layout, and I simply can’t wait to iron out all of the little issues that I have with it.  (Mostly due to the content being made for the previous layout)  I am excited about the new look for Swollen Thumb Entertainment, and for the future, because I’ve got several things that I want to roll out before the end of the year.  2010 is going to be a HUGE year for this site, and you best believe that I plan on being ready for it!