Maybe it’s just me but it seems in these times success is harder to recognize. But one message within that statement I want to make clear is that success is certainly nothing to stop striving to accomplish.

Two conversations that are ongoing right now which get me excited and appear as essential elements to successful business objectives and profitable products are the ones taking place on content strategy and context.

Both philosophies are quickly gaining momentum with smart and passionate people behind them who are engaged in meaningful conversations.

Context is information that informs your understanding of the world, literally allowing you to derive more meaning from an experience. Context is primary. You actually need context before you can make much sense of what’s in front of you. – Tristan Harris

Content strategy isn’t a bunch of tactics. It’s a plan. It’s a well-founded plan, fueled by your business objectives and user goals. An achievable plan, created with your current business reality, content assets, and limited resources in mind. A future plan, for what’s going to happen to your content once you send it off into the world. And, most importantly, a profitable plan, where your measures of success ultimately have impact on your organization’s bottom line. – Kristina Halvorson

What’s proving to be equaling as exciting is seeking the intersection of both those disciplines and applying them in smart ways. I actually believe that neither context nor content is king. I have to believe it’s somewhere in the middle combined the values that users bring to the table that are recognized by brands and publishers.

I wrote about 10 months ago that it was time for the full-court press. I reread that post recently and realize I haven’t done enough to push the envelope or challenge norms to reach the intersection I describe above. I keep worrying about the rules instead of redefining them. I wasn’t part of the Cult of Done.

I wrote then about how relentless effort and the fearlessness to work in unconventional ways leads to a better chance for success. Along the way, I image, some of the rules are rewritten as some risks reap rewards and lessons are learned from failures. That’s the avenue I now see clearer.

I recently had a conversation with online content team members I work with that focused on moving forward. The talk was all about ability, urgency, content development and having fun. The talk was really about new rules.

Here are some of those new rules. I hope you comment and add your own.

The article page is dead: The old building block of journalism — the article — is proving to be inadequate in the current onslaught of news. I’ll argue here that the new building block is the topic. – Jeff Jarvis

Brands are still alive: Consumers are actually more receptive and actively engaged with brands than ever before. According to our study, nearly 40% of consumers report having “friended” a brand on Facebook and/or MySpace and 26% have followed a brand on Twitter. – Garrick Schmitt

Packaging without an engagement strategy won’t work: Indeed, we are programming the social web around our brand hub, which requires a consistent flow of engaging and relevant social objects. Social objects are the catalysts for conversations — online and in real life — and they affect behavior within their respective societies. – Brian Solis

Content strategy is the next big thing: It’s a way of thinking that has direct impact on the way we do business. And the way we do business must include a clear focus on how we create, deliver, and govern our content. Because more than ever before in the history of commerce, content has become one of our most valuable business assets. – Kristina Halvorson