Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips
Building systems, managing efforts, raising kids - these and many other worthwhile endeavors can be difficult. I see no good in attempting to make those things sounds easier than they are. The reframe discussed here changes the description of tasks to be attempted.
We will just…
I don’t know how many times I have heard [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
Estimating budgets months and years into the future is difficult. I have yet to meet anyone who does it well enough to risk large amounts of anything valuable. The Excel spreadsheet calculates well enough, but it can provide a false sense of precision. Instead, I use a slide rule. The difficulty of using [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
Written rules and regulations restrict us. They also allow us to forget about some hazards and concentrate freely on the problem at hand. Restrictions can permit freedom. The trick is to learn where the areas of freedom exist and how to use them.
A colleague was contrasting the type of people who are sticklers [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
In a common usage, the word “but” erases all that has been said previously. This is a writing nicety. It is also a bad way to confuse conversation in the workplace.
You have a lot of enthusiasm, but you need to check with me on things like this.
Quick, without looking back, what did the [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
It is possible to predict the future on projects. It is also possible to change the future on projects. Knowing this second property and how to state it can make a big difference to project stakeholders.
It is possible to predict the future. Given a system-building project that has been planned properly, you can [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
Knowledge comes with age. Older colleagues don’t need to be taught some things that younger ones do. There are, however, times when you want older colleagues to attend events that are not necessary for them. Explaining the reasoning makes attendance easier.
I’m in my 50s. I know much more than people in their 20s. [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
People attend meetings. People make decisions in meetings. Two days later, people rarely agree on what they agreed on in the meeting. This doesn’t have to be the norm.
I lived through one agonizing week a few years ago because notes were taken in a meeting, but they were not done visibly and were [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
On Internet coffee shops and my preferences for such.
I frequently visit places that sell coffee and have Internet WiFi service. On a regular weekday, I will usually visit two of these places. There are several personal and professional reasons for this habit, but that is not the subject of this post.
My preferences for [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
Organizations tend to highlight their differences. The differences set them apart in the marketplace. Concentrating on the differences also can dim thinking. Perhaps it is good enough to merely be good enough.
In my experience, organizations tend to highlight what makes them different from all other organizations. They concentrate on the differences. They talk [...]

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by Dwayne Phillips
Managers and leaders should encourage their colleagues. Sometimes the well of compliments runs dry. There is, however, one fundamental compliment that is always appropriate.
I was wandering through a new, unfamiliar, and uncomfortable place hoping to find something on which to anchor myself. Then I heard someone call my name. All was well.
This happened [...]

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