Working Up

Working Up in Project Management, Systems Engineering, Technology, and Writing

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When the Audience Knows More

October 10th, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes, the audience knows more than the designation teacher or expert. Great. There is much good that can come from this. Let’s discuss teaching adults or at least a situation where someone says you are the teacher and everyone else in the room is an adult. It is common for one of […]

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Tags: Adults · Authentic · Conversation · Honesty · Learning · Teaching

Kids’ Sports and the Company Picinc

September 9th, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Some advice on kids’ sports. This is really good advice. As usual, someone else gave it to me. Major league baseball is concluding yet another season. The Little League baseball national and international tournaments just concluded (putting all those kids’ games on national TV live was a horrible mistake). What’s one to […]

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Tags: Adults · Competence · Fun · Learning · Teaching

Always Be Ready to Teach

August 19th, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Hiring new people? Want to them to know everything that people who already work here know? There is no easy answer, but there are some answers. When look at the Help Wanted ads, I frequently encounter employers who want to hire people who already work for them. The ads are easy to […]

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Tags: Adults · Learning · Reality · Teaching · Time · Work

Hard Right, Easy Wrong

June 6th, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips I must have missed something in my life as the title of this post was very confusing the first time I heard it. I was being interviewed for a job. This was on the telephone. There were several people on the other end of the line. The principal interviewer asked me something […]

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Tags: Accountability · Adults · Authentic · Communication · Trust

John, I am Upset

February 8th, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Here is one way to begin what is likely to be an unpleasant conversation. It lessens the unpleasantness and moves toward a more productive conversation. Let’s begin with, “John, I am upset.” (Substitute the other person’s name for John. That was the most alias of names I could find.) There, said the […]

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Tags: Adults · Communication · Context · Conversation · Wishes

Large Language Models and Adults

February 1st, 2024 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Large Language Models appear to have all sorts of problems. I wonder why companies that build such don’t hire adults to help build them. I recently learned that large language models (LLMs) have “sleeper agents” in them. Given some inputs, the LLM starts doing crazy things that it shouldn’t do. Gosh. LLMs […]

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Tags: Adults · Artificial Intelligence · Computing · Concepts · Engineering · General Systems Thinking · Testing

Childhood Instructions Carried Into Adulthood

December 4th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Most of us received many instructions in childhood. Now that we are in adulthood, are we still tying ourselves to instructions meant for children? Here is something I was told as a child (and I have told many children): Look both ways before crossing the street. I still recommend this instruction for […]

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Tags: Adults · Change · Childhood · Decide · Nap · Self

50% of 50%

October 26th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Let’s pay attention to some basic math. We don’t like that, but we are adults, so let’s behave accordingly. In some respects, asking, “What is 50% of 50%?” is silly. Ask a mathematician that question. I did recently and the response was a laugh. The answer is 2,500%%. Huh? Everyone knows that […]

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Tags: Adults · Approximation · Clarity · Communication · Data Science · Knowledge · Science

No Fun

October 16th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes, the better way to do something isn’t as much fun. A few years ago, I wrote a book on software project management. I began the book with the words, “I like to write software.” I did and still do like to write software. I am simulating a machine that does wonderful […]

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Tags: Accountability · Adults · Employment · Fun · Integrity · Software

The Parking Lot Concierge

September 21st, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips This is something we need. Shopping centers, please read. I’ve seen it many times. An adult steps out of their car in the shopping center parking lot. They have two or more small children with them. All the children are strapped into car seats. Let’s see, unbuckle the oldest child first, or […]

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Tags: Adults · Culture · Expectations · Observation · Rest · Security