A quick read — about 3 minutes

A client reached out to me in a hurry because their website had been hacked.

This wasn’t one of those quiet technical issues you only notice if you’re looking for it. Oh, no. It was obvious. The site was sending sexually explicit messages to people who visited it. The site owners were understandably upset and embarrassed, and they wanted the problem fixed right away. Their first thought was that they needed a new website as fast as possible.

What made the situation harder was that we’d talked before about something that could have helped them avoid this kind of problem. Years earlier, I had reached out about regular website maintenance. At the time, they didn’t think it was necessary. The site was working. Nothing looked broken. Maintenance felt like one of those things you could deal with later.

Later eventually showed up.

This kind of thing doesn’t just come out of nowhere. It builds quietly over time. When nothing appears wrong, it’s easy to assume everything is fine. The problem is that assumptions don’t usually age very well.

Urgency took over.

When the issue finally surfaced, it brought urgency with it. They went into panic mode. The focus immediately shifted to speed. How fast can this be fixed? How quickly can we make this go away?

Of course, that reaction makes sense. Their site was projecting sexually explicit content over the internet and their main audience was families. They just wanted the discomfort to stop and acting quickly felt responsible to them. It felt like regaining control.

But acting fast isn’t the same as understanding the situation.

What this client actually needed wasn’t just a new website. They needed to know what had happened and why, what was still vulnerable, what could be addressed immediately, and what would take time. Some of that work simply couldn’t be rushed. You can’t undo years of skipped maintenance in a day, no matter how urgent the situation feels.

This is where urgency can become misleading. It tends to push action in front of understanding. It narrows the focus to the fastest possible fix instead of the right one. When we are in that state, decisions get made to relieve pressure, not to solve the problem well.

Clarity works at a different pace. It asks you to slow down just enough to see what you’re actually dealing with. Clarity remains calm. Some problems really do need immediate action. Others need sequencing, context, and patience. Knowing which is which, matters.

Noticing patterns can save your business.

When the same area of a business keeps becoming urgent, whether it’s your website, your marketing, cash flow, or lead generation, it’s screaming for attention. It often points to something that’s been ignored, postponed, or taken for granted for too long.

Urgency creates movement.
Clarity changes outcomes.

Warmly,

P.S. If this story feels familiar, and you’re wondering where something similar might be brewing in your own business, I’m always open to a no-pressure 30-minute conversation. Sometimes it helps just to talk it through before it becomes urgent.