Working Up

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

Working Up header image 4

It’s Easier Than Ever to Know a Little

December 18th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips There is so much information available to us, what do we do? Wait, there are also so many great summaries of information available to us. It is easier than ever to know a little. Is that a good thing? It is easier than ever to know a little: It is still just […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Artificial Intelligence · Expertise · Knowledge · Learning · Research · Wikipedia · Writing

You Are Too Good, You Are Fired

October 30th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes some persons excel to the point where they need to be fired. You have outgrown what we do here. You are much more capable than we need. You are fired. Those words don’t make sense. If someone has improved and improved, we want them to stay with us, right? Perhaps not. […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adapting · Growth · Jobs · Learning · Technology · Tools

Accelerate the Learning

October 19th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Learning is good as it leads to better performance and other beneficial things. There are tools available that accelerate learning. Let’s use those. I try to learn. Sometimes I forget to learn. Yes, fatigue clobbers my mind and I simply forget to notice things, store them, and use them. There are tools […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Competence · Energy · Fatigue · Growth · Humility · Improvement · Learning · Thinking · Tools

The Meeting Is Over, Now

October 12th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Once a meeting ends, the after meeting begins and the real work is done. Can we do this better? I’ve seen it a thousand times—literally a thousand times. I’ve attended that many meetings. The meeting has its agenda and participants. The meeting is conducted. We are finished. People stay in the room […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adapting · Change · Learning · Management · Meetings · Thinking · Work

Ask the Next Question

October 2nd, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips One basic way to think through to the end is to ask the next question. “And then what happens,” a four-year-old child’s question that is asked repeatedly. Yes, some four-year-old children have endless curiosity. That is wonderful. That is learning. Let it flourish. Adults? Sometimes we just want the meeting to end […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Meetings · Problems · Questions · Thinking

Will It Scale?

September 28th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips The infamous question in the title might as well be, “What can we do to kill this good idea?” We found something that works well for. We have used it several times. We intend to keep using it. Then someone asks the deadly question, “Will it scale?” They want to know when […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adapting · Ideas · Learning · Management · Scale · Work

Take Pride in the Ability to Learn

September 25th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Learning is a good thing. There are things I can do to prevent learning. Those are not so good. I don’t know it all. I do know how to learn. I do know how to recognize that I am clueless and I need to learn. Pride in knowing it all keeps me […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adapting · Change · Humility · Learning

One Facilitator, Nine Teachers, and Ten Learners

August 31st, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips Facilitated learning sessions offer big benefits. They are not as easy to arrange, but are much better than other methods. There are various ways to conduct classes and learning. The usual method is to have one teacher and nine students. The teacher talks, the students listen (we hope), and the students learn […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adults · Change · Education · Learning · Listening · Teaching

Rehearsing for the Rehearsal

August 28th, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips There is the meta-plan or the plan about the plan. There is the meta-rehearsal or the rehearsal for the rehearsal. There are many other meta-this-and-that. They are quite useful. My wife and I have been married since 1983 (40 years as of the writing of this post). I recall our wedding rehearsal. […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Learning · Management · Patterns · Planning · Practice · Process · Review · Success · Thinking · Work

Someone Else’s Experience

August 21st, 2023 · No Comments

by Dwayne Phillips People have their own experiences. Assuming their experience denies them as a person. Try to avoid such. Each person has their own experience with something. It is often the case that several people have similar experiences. That gives me the luxury of describing some “average” experience and continuing to satisfy the “average” […]

[Read more →]

Tags: Adults · Expectations · Learning · Other · Patience · Self