Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips Stop. Breathe. Think. Now act in a way that leads to what is desired. Stop. Breathe. Think. Act. In that order. I think that is the definition of a wise person acting wisely. “Knee jerk reactions” are not in the definition. A long time ago (in a galaxy far, far away) a […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips When spending someone else’s money, there are essential things and nice to have things. Focus on the essential. I am not naive. This topic is in the news and involves politics. That can take it from general management consulting to all sorts of hyperbole and worse. Let’s try to consider something. As […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips “We have a process we use here” usually means one person declared the process and that process will disappear the day the person leaves. I have recently encountered organizations where “process is everything.” I hear boasts of, “WE do it this way all the time.” In my experience of 45 years (yes, […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips This is a simple, two-word question. It is fundamental if someone is paying for my time. What is all the fuss about? In the news recently, I find that a new advisor to a new executive asked all the employees to answer the basic question that is the title of this post. […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips The first rule of consulting involves how much improvement a consultant can suggest at a time. Recent news highlights this rule and the peril caused by ignoring it. There is an unwritten rule among smart consultants that you only suggest things that improve a situation by about 10%—no more. If you suggest […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes we hold popular ceremonies without thought. Doing just about anything without thought can be fraught with peril. There are many popular ceremonies among those of use who build systems. One of those is the daily standup meeting. I could go on with a long list of these. Are we using these […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips Should we be having this meeting? Here is another test that would eliminate many meetings. Should we be having this meeting? Should all of us be sitting around a table or standing in a circle (stand up meetings are supposed to be short and necessary, right?)? Here is one type of meeting […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips Sometimes the better type of improvement is when all the other people improve. That tends to help me improve, too. This is about working with others in a manner that they become smarter and better. Some would describe this as leadership, but often I think of leadership dedicated to the designated leader […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips There are times when we do some things quietly to minimize the hurt. We should, however, decide whose hurt we are minimizing. Someone has made too many mistakes. We are dismissing the mistake maker. Let’s do it quietly to minimize the embarrassment and hurt of the mistake maker. Well, there is no […]

[Read more →]

by Dwayne Phillips Is it alright to declare that we behave erratically and that others just need to watch out for us and be cautious? Recently, while driving on the Interstate, I saw a sign posted on a car: Oh, just declare that we drive erratically, so just watch out for us. Silly, of course. […]

[Read more →]