Sometimes It’s Good to Stay in Your Lane
“The marketing department doesn’t have a clue,” my co-worker said.
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“A trade journal has been trying to reach them for an interview but their calls aren’t being returned,” she continued. “This is just the break we need to get our name out there. You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to give them the interview they are looking for.”
Gulp.
Performance Reviews Aren’t Important - Until they Are (PMO Office Hours Podcast)
Listen into this episode of Office Hours hosted by Joe Pusz as we dive deep into how to make performance reviews something to look forward to rather than feared.
Stand Out During Your Next Interview by Using a Professional Portfolio
How do you choose a watermelon? Some people tap it and listen for a particular sound. Others look for a uniform shape. Still others check the color of the side of the watermelon that rested on the ground. So many watermelons in the bin to pick from, but you are going home with just one. Whatever method you use, that one watermelon will have some quality or characteristic that differentiates it from the rest.
4 Steps to Create Your Professional Portfolio
I used to work at a web development company. Graphic design is significant in the success of a site, and we used various graphic designers to fill that need. We were looking for someone new to mix things up a bit. One morning, a graphic designer showed up with a HUGE portfolio of what she had done over the years. Huge, as in 2 feet by 3 feet huge. She dragged it into the conference room, dropped it on the table and started flipping through larger-than-life pages of her work.
The First Question to Ask Yourself When Something Goes Off the Rails
I once worked for a fellow who had a big job; as in, multiple departments and tons of people rolled up to him. His phone never stopped ringing, and in the constant flow of text messages and email the news was, for the most part, not good: there was a problem in this area, that person is quitting, this delivery was late, that system went down. You get the gist.
Yet, he always seemed pretty chilled.
One Way to Take Some Heat Off Your Project
I recently took a shuttle from an off-site parking lot close to the Atlanta airport. It was nearly 100 degrees and extremely humid, so I was looking forward to the doors of the bus swooshing open and a nice, cool breeze escaping and welcoming me inside.
The doors did indeed swoosh open. I stood there for a moment waiting for the cool air to envelope me and escort me onto the shuttle. And I waited…and waited. Nothing. No breeze, no cool air, no relief from the scorching heat. The only thing that came off the bus was the disgruntled voice of the driver asking if I was going to stand there all day.
Lesson Learned During a Chicken Dinner
“Who doesn’t know that…?” I thought to myself as the speaker presented his first point at a PMI project management event.
I took a bite of my chicken.
About midway through his presentation, I again couldn't help but think, “That’s obvious, isn’t it?” while shoveling in some green beans.
My attitude did not improve the more he kept talking.
Where It's At. I Got Two Computers and I Work From Home.
My home office has one monitor, wireless keyboard and mouse. The problem is that I have two laptops: a personal laptop and my work laptop. It wasn't that big of a deal when my work laptop stayed at the office most of the time.
Not so much anymore.
Be the First to Fill the Vacuum that Nature Hates
Aristotle stated that nature abhors a vacuum. His argument was that nature hates the idea of empty space and will fill it with whatever is available. While this theory was later contested, there is a valuable lesson for Project Managers today when it comes to providing information about a project.
What’s that? Be sure to manage the “communication space” that envelops your project. It’s your job to keep that space filled with facts and as many positive points of reference as possible.
How to Choose Which Ball to Drop
A new year is here, and with it, the ushering in of the latest strategies, initiatives, and projects to kick off the first quarter. You may quickly find yourself unable to juggle everything, despite your best efforts to prioritize, delegate, and negotiate. One of those balls will drop; the question is, which one?
Easy. Ask yourself which project, task, or initiative is a rubber ball and then drop that one.
Let me explain.
3 Tips for Successfully Working Remote
“I have only one rule,” my manager said. “Don’t go dark on me.” Our office was scheduled to close at the end of the year, and everyone would soon be disbanded to the suburbs of Atlanta to begin working remotely. His guidance meant that when he needed to get ahold of team members during normal business hours, we would be available.
Fair enough.
Some made it work, others didn’t. Those who did enjoyed the benefits of working from home; those who didn’t were eventually asked to leave the company.
Which brings us to the question…how can I make others feel like I’m in the office right next to them, when working remotely? Consider the following suggestions.
Are You Falling Victim to Performance Review “Bait”?
Movies that appear to be produced for the sole purpose of Academy Award nomination are called “Oscar Bait.” One strategy of movie producers in this genre is to release the film late in the year, just in advance of the Oscar season. Why? The fresher a film is in the mind of voters theoretically increases its chances of winning an award.
Similarly, with annual employee review season right around the corner, we may find ourselves guilty of succumbing to Annual Performance Review "Bait.” Employees do not intentionally bait you by doing their best work at the end of the year, but rather, it is just our natural inclination to remember what happened most recently.
The Single Greatest Quality a Project Manager Must Possess
There are all kinds of skills, qualities, and talents you must possess to be a successful project manager. You need to be able to see the big picture, break it down into smaller pieces, and assemble it back together again. You need to be a leader, motivator, inspector and persuader. But, all of these qualities mean nothing unless you have…
Credibility.
Credibility is defined as the quality of being trusted, convincing, or believable. Trust me when I say there is a lot of trust me in project management. Maybe the following will sound familiar:
Change Your Lighting, Change Your Influence
Warning: I’m going classic “7 Habits” here...
Stephen Covey talked about a Circle of Concern and a Circle of Influence. The larger Circle of Concern is everything that worries you, but you CAN’T do anything about. The smaller Circle of Influence is everything that worries you that you CAN do something about.
Understanding these two circles is why I bring the same small desk lamp with me to any new job or position.
Let me explain...
3 Ways to Reduce Friction When People Work with You
n a previous article we asked, “How Much Friction Do You Generate When People Work with You?” The net of the article was that people come to you because they want to transition from their current state to a different state. For example, from not being trained to being trained, from not having a report to having a report, or from not having a product to having a product. The easier it is to transition from one state to the next (aka low friction) the higher the chance that someone will want to work with you or continue to bring their business your way.
So, what are some ways you can reduce friction either personally, departmentally, or company-wide?
How Much Friction Do You Generate At Work?
Videos from the cockpit of the space shuttle re-entering Earth’s atmosphere are amazing! As the shuttle reduces its speed, 'kinetic friction,' the resistance created by two objects sliding against each other, generates extreme heat, intense light, and turbulence. This resistance makes for a spectacular sight-and-sound experience and is key to slowing down or stopping an object altogether.
That’s great for the space shuttle, but in the workplace, resistance is not so great. Are you doing things personally or are there departmental systems and processes in place that unwittingly generate heat and slow others down?
A Template to Help Prioritize, Organize, and Delegate
I have a confession to make…
I’ve been struggling with an addiction for years and just can’t seem to break it.
It’s kind of embarrassing to say, but I still use pen and paper. Yes, it’s true. I STILL USE PEN AND PAPER!
Now, don’t get me wrong. It’s not like I’m a Luddite or anything. I love technology. I enjoy trying out new apps, gadgets, or processes for being more productive (see 3 Great Tools to Increase Productivity). But I use pen and paper to write my plans for the week, prioritize what’s important, and to remind me what to talk with others about.
Find Important Messages in Seconds by Color Coding Your Email
Receiving hundreds of emails a day is no longer the exception but rather the norm. They range from critically important to a litany of one-word replies such as “thanks” and “ok.” Sometimes you can block out 30 minutes to plow through your inbox, but sometimes you can’t.
For those days that you can’t, there is a way to zero in on emails that need your immediate attention, such as those from your manager, customers, or anyone else that needs a quick response.
3 Reasons to not "Phone It In" When You Are a Remote Worker
I remember watching The Jetsons and thinking how cool it would be if we could video call like them. Jane, Judy, or Elroy would pop up on a desktop screen and talk to George like they were in the same room. Well, the future is now, and for the past 10 years that technology has been commonplace.
Do you take advantage of all that video has to offer you as a remote worker? Or, do you hide behind visual anonymity and just dial in to company meetings? Sure, phoning in is tempting. You don’t have to worry about your face on a big-screen JumboTron at the office. But, there are some very real benefits to using video.
But We've Always Done It That Way!
A young girl once asked her mother why she cut off the ends of the roast before putting it in the pan. “That’s a great question,” her mother said. “I’m not really sure, it’s something my mother always did. Why don’t you ask her?”
So, the girl asked her grandmother the same question and was told, “Y’know, I’m not really sure, it’s something my mother always did. Why don’t you ask her?”
When she called and asked her great grandmother, the mystery was solved. “Oh, that’s easy,” she was told. “It’s because the pan we had was too small to hold the whole roast. We had to cut off the ends to make it fit!”