I was recently looking at some documents I had created a few years ago. My first thought on reading them was that they were out-of-date, but on re-reading them, I realised the format and appearance was out-of-date but almost all the content was still relevant.
Sometimes we get confused by, or seduced by, the medium and forget to concentrate on the essential message. Being up-to-date and looking modern and professional is important – but of no use if the underlying message is not right.
Oddly enough, things rarely change as fast as they are often though to – or claimed to. Even in the IT world, most of the ‘principles’ of computing have not changed in 20 years. The hardware and software changes but fundamentally, computing is much as it was in the early days of the PC when it moved from the computing department to the individual.
So, review and update – but also reflect on the past and learn the lessons. Change – but because you have assessed the situation and the environment and have determined an appropriate course of action – not because change looks ‘attractive’.