Working Up

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

Working Up header image 4

Half the Job

January 27th, 2011 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips An old lesson holds true today: getting the tools and people to the job site is half the job. Twenty-five years ago, I was involved in a fence-building project. Members of the community gathered to start from scratch and erect a 50-meter-long fence. I was one of the first people there and […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Communication · Learning · Management · Work

My 2011 Personal Training Budget

December 6th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips It seems to be a good idea to invest a portion of my money and time to personal training or learning experiences. Some reflection on 2010 shows that I spend much more time than money on such. Perhaps in 2011 I will pry more money from my wallet. Last year I realized […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Change · Learning

Dependably Undependable

November 18th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Some people are undependable. Most of the time, I can choose to work with them or not. My choice can tell me much about myself. I know people who fit the title of this post. If they tell me they will be someplace at nine o’clock, I am almost certain they will […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adapting · Choose · Differences · Excuses · Learning · People · Reframe

Don’t Teach – Model

November 4th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Don’t just encourage someone to do something – teach them how. Modeling the behavior yourself is probably the best method of teaching. Sometimes it takes me a while to remember things I have learned. Someone comes along, does something, and it all hits me: What are they doing?  Don’t they know…? I […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Change · Culture · Learning · Time

Fewer Nouns and Verbs

October 14th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips I continue to work with graduate students on their writing. I am working with engineering, computer science, and IT students. They continue to teach me. This week’s learning concerns the variety of nouns and verbs. In novels and other fiction, the writer uses a variety of nouns. It would be boring to […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Writing

Experiential Learning Book

October 6th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips After several years of drafting, waiting, drafting, revising, waiting, adding, waiting, revising … you know, the usual stuff … I finished (for now) a small book on experiential learning. The book is about a hundred pages long and is titled “Some Notes on Experiential Learning.” It includes: Some theory Tips for the […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Writing

A Few Learning Accelerators

September 16th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Want to learn faster? Go to different places, go at different times, or go without any money. How will you survive? You will learn. Want to learn faster? Go someplace different. The difference of surroundings helps me to notice so much more than when I am in my regular routine visiting all […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Change · Learning

The End of Credentials

June 28th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips No journalism degree? Not needed to blog and break news. Not a pro photographer? Not needed to publish world-wide on Flickr. No computer science degree? Not needed to learn programming and work. I believe these things to be true. I believe that you don’t have to have a credential from an organization […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Change · Employment · Learning

The Weak and Powerful

May 17th, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips People make mistakes. Some mistakes lead to a complete collapse of groups of people. When large, well connected groups fail, others suffer. This happens in national and international economies. It also happens on projects involving only a few persons. There are things that project managers can do to contain the damage from […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Management

Cheating in Computer Science

April 21st, 2010 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Universities report that cheating is prevalent in computer science classes. A closer look shows me that the universities are cheating the students by teaching them bad work habits. Computer science enrollment is high this year in universities. Cheating in universities is also on the rise. Universities are proclaiming that the cheating is […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Programming