Reflecting on our conversations and especially the most recent one, I note a few points for discussion.  Some points involve the form or the intent of these meetings.  Some points are the content, especially from the last meeting.

On Form:

Validation

Conversations with dear friends you respect are key to maintaining a realistic perspective.  These conversations either validate what you are thinking or feeling or they can disclose quickly the invalidity of your thinking.  Of course, it does help to have a trusted and trusting friendship.  Superficial discussion will not be very productive.

Perspective

Conversations with Steve always offer another perspective.  In these discussions, we will discuss one of our situations and invariably the other will provide a different interpretation of the facts, make a different set of assumptions, and suggest a different perspective for consideration.

Synergy

I  have spoken of synergy before in these pod-casts.  These conversations invariably result in something that goes beyond either of our insight or understanding, as if a third person distilled the essence of our thoughts and formulated a thought greater than either of us considered.

On Content:

The Problem

Steve and I covered some interesting topics in our last meeting.  One was the economy.  We talked about  the economy, the fallen stock market, the failing banks, the failed corporation, asteroids, the unemployment rate.  We went down multiple paths of discussion on each and several times asked the question, “What’s the solution to the …… situation?”  We discussed multiple alternatives and the ineffectiveness of each.

Steve then identified the real issue, “I don’t think we know what the problem is.”  It certainly does seem that governments, corporations, and enterprises worldwide are taking actions to address a problem that is not clearly defined.  Otherwise, it seems to me that some evidence of progress would exist, rather than a reliance on the argument that “things would be worse of we had not done (fill in the blank)”.

True Value

With stock markets failing, 401K accounts at 50% to 60% of their value within the last year, with corporations and employers significantly reducing costs daily to survive, and with a future significantly more uncertain than 1 year ago, I raised the point that the only things we could really count on are the family, the friends, and the relationships we maintain.

The Management Message

Above, I spoke of validation, perspective, synergy, precise identification of the problem, and true value.  In our management role, we need to form relationships with our business associates that provide us true value, providing us validation, a perspective, and a synergy as we address our objectives, solve our problems.  And most importantly, we need to be able to precisely identify our problem.

See also my podcast PSM #25: The Framework for Managing Self [revised] here in the weblog.

As the lyrics in the song that say, “take your passion and make it happen” could not be more appropriate.  Only when we approach each day with passion are we truly successful.

1. Is it the Truth?
2. Is it Fair to all concerned?
3. Will it build Goodwill and Better Friendships?
4. Will it be Beneficial to all concerned?

Also, here is a link to The Rotary Club’s Guiding Principles to give them full credit for this.

I contend that this is plain, simple, management: managing with integrity by considering this Four Way Test or questions like these in everything we think, say, and do.  Considering questions like this differentiates leaders from managers and executives.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

The performance review

• provides the basis for equitable reward for the employee’s contribution. [rewards contribution]
• Highlights the employee’s strengths
• Identifies areas in which the employee may improve to achieve higher ratings and/or more responsible assignments.
• Provides the basis for fair salary administration across the organization. [makes salaries equitable]

The performance review is a formal, scheduled meeting.  The manager asks the employee to prepare a self evaluation prior to the meeting.  Using the employee’s self evaluation and the manager’s project and task information, the manager writes the review.  The review considers and documents factual, observed performance and rates the performance using the position description as the standard for acceptable performance.  I suggest a 4 category rating system.

• A zero rating means that the performance criteria was not met.
• A one rating means that the employee’s performance met the requirements of the job.
• A two rating means performance exceeded requirements in some aspects of the job.
• A three rating means that the employee’s performance exceeded requirements in all aspects of the job.

The manager rates each of the employee’s assignments using this rating system, then computes or derives an overall rating using the individual assignment ratings and their relative weights or importance.

The manager notes and comments on the employee’s strengths and areas of improvement and documents these comments in the performance review document.

Having completed the review documentation, the manager schedules the review with the employee.

The performance review is a formal, scheduled meeting.  In the meeting, the manager provides the employee with a copy of the review and provides the employee the opportunity to read the review.  They discuss the review, the manager answering any questions the employee may have.  The manager may change a rating if the employee provides factual comment that the manager did not consider. In matters of opinion, the manager’s opinion prevails.

During the conversation, the manager discusses the employee’s strengths and areas of improvement. The manager and the employee will schedule a separate meeting to discuss a development plan to address these areas of improvement.

Both the manager and the employee may then comment on the review.  The manager should summarize the meeting in his comments.  The employee may comment on the review too. If the employee disagrees, the employee’s comments should so reflect it.

The manager and the employee sign the review.  The employee’s signature states that the employee understands the review.  The signature does not signify agreement.

The employee and the manager set a meeting to create a performance plan for the next year.  They also set a meeting to create or update the employee’s development plan.

Summary:

• Based on facts only
• Rates 0-3
• Comments on each task
• Notes strengths and areas of improvement
• Conduct the review
• Manager and employee write summary comments and sign

Counseling takes two forms.

The first are scheduled interim reviews during the performance period. The manager meets with the employee and discusses what the performance review would be if it were conducted now, today. The manager discusses the basis for the assessment, identifying deviations from the plan. The manager and the employee investigate the reasons for the deviations and devise an approach to address them. Both individuals may have assignments in the corrective plan. The manager also recognized the employee’s demonstrated strengths. The manager and the employee discuss how these strengths may be further enhanced and utilized. The manager documents the counseling session and provides a copy to the employee.

The second form of counseling is immediate, occurring when the manager or the employee identify a significant deviation from plan. The manager and the employee meet and discuss the deviation. They jointly identify the issue, identify corrective action, and agree to address the issue. They also schedule a meeting to follow up on the issue and its correction.  It is important to note that either the manager or the employee can initiate this discussion. [Added Nov 13, 2008] It occurred to me today that constant immediate counseling would be demoralizing.  The compassionate manager should reserve immediate counseling for those situations that require immediate attention.]

These mid course corrections are essential in maximizing individual and organizational performance.

To summarize:
Feedback is essential.
Impromptu meetings address issues that require immediate correction.
Periodic reviews summarize performance to date in the plan cycle, providing areas of improvement and identifying strengths to exploit.

The expectation stated in the performance plan should be based on the position description that describes the employee’s job.  If the position description and the performance plan are not congruent, then the employee is not being appropriately evaluated or paid.

The goals stated in the performance plan should be SMART goals.  Refer to my earlier podcast for a discussion of SMART goals.

I don’t think that the goals should be behavioral.  For example, a goal to “maintain good customer rapport” is behavioral or not measurable.  Such goals are not quantifiable and contribute only indirectly to the bottom line.  Behavioral issues should be addressed when the manager observes deviations from the organization’s standards.  Behavioral features like attendance, respect, team player, etc., are conditions of employment.

Plans should be brief, ideally documented on one type written page.  I think if plans can not be so briefly described either the performance objectives have not been completely thought out or the plan is describing how to accomplish the objectives.

Plans should state what is desired, not how to do the job.  The employee will select the appropriate strategy and behaviors to accomplish the job.  Doing so is the value add that the employee brings to the organization.

Plans, while based on the position description, should provide some possibility for growth, challenging the employee to develop new skills or to perform at the next level.  Plans should contain and identify objectives that exceed the requirements of the job, thus providing this challenge for performance and growth.

The plan should be a working document.  The employee and the manager should each maintain a copy of the plan and should periodically review the plan together.  I will discuss Performance Counseling in another podcast.

To summarize:

• Base performance plans on the job description.
• Use SMART goals.
• Define task objectives, no behavioral objectives.
• Be concise.
• Make the plan a joint working document.
• Write the plan to provide a challenge.
• Review performance against the plan periodically.

A position description should exists for each position in the company and should be the basis for determining the compensation for each job and subsequently for each person in the organization.

the position descriptions allow the company to set salaries consistent with the industry and also to ensure that the individuals within the organization are being fairly and equitably compensated in relation to each other.

Position descriptions are also the basis for hiring.  They define the skills and abilities of the desired candidate and suggest where the candidate should demonstrate experience in the required duties and responsibilities.

Second, the job description is the basis on which the manager writes the performance plan, in cooperation with the employee.  It defines the level and extend of the tasks that are valid for an individual in a particular job.

to summarize:

• Job descriptions describe each job in the company.
• A job description describes the duties, responsibilities, authority, and skills associated with the job.
• A particular job description describes the expectations that an individual in that job should meet.
• It allows the organization to establish salaries consistent with the industry and consistent within the organization.
• It is the basis for hiring.
• It is the basis for performance planning.
• It sets the acceptable level of performance in a performance evaluation.

A search on the Internet will reveal several sources from which an organization may obtain a set of job descriptions if the organization does not have descriptions for their job categories and does not wish to independently develop a collection.

This framework contains 4 elements:

• The Position Description
• The Performance Plan
• Performance Counseling
• Performance Evaluation

The position description describes the job that the employee performs in the organization.

The performance plan describes management’s expectations of the employee in terms of results.

Performance counseling provides the employee relevant comment and feedback, during the performance period, allowing the employee to capitalize on strengths and improve when needed improvement is identified.

Performance evaluation formally reviews performance during the performance period and serves as the basis for salary administration and employ development planning.

In the next 4 podcasts I will discuss each of these items in more detail.

Hats off to Wordpress and its contributors.

In the past, producing podcast recordings was time consuming. I would record the audio using either Garageband or Audacity and a USB mic. I would then export the file to the desktop, import into iTunes, and convert to mp3. I then uploaded the mp3 file and assembed the podcast in Wordpress.

Enter the iPhone.

Over the last 2 months I have accumulated several voice recording applications for the iPhone. I am most impressed with “Recorder for iPhone” by Retronyms.

I decided to try this app to record 2 podcasts. I recorded the audio using the iPhone headset. Upload to the mac was straightforward thru the application’s sync feature and the AIFF files opened directly in iTunes.

The sound quality seemed fine though I tended to hiss my S’s. And the process of producing an mp3 was significantly shortened. All in all a great experience.

The only fault I find with Recorder for iPhone is that it does not have a pause feature nor does it have a way to resume a recording interrupted by a phone call.

I highly recommend podcasters consider the iPhone as a great supplement to a desktop setup and to seriously consider Recorder for iPhone by Retronyms.

Trust is a fundamental aspect in all of our relationships, both business and personal.

It is interesting that one of the fundamental underlying issues precipitating a failure in the financial markets is the lack of trust between lending institutions.  It seems liquidity was not the main issue, it was the fact that these institutions did not trust each other.  It seemed that the institutions did not know what the others’ situation was.

This lack of trust seemed to suggest that the institutions were questioning each other’s judgment, honesty, and/or character.

As I mentioned earlier, trust is essential in relationships.  As a manager, trust is vitally important. How do we establish and maintain ourselves as trustworthy?  I offer the following list.

• Be honest.
• Understand who you are, your character, your values, and consistently use these features to guide your interactions and decisions.
• Say what you will do and do what you say you will do.
• Form and demonstrate good judgment.
• Avoid drifting in the winds of politics and demands.

Trustworthiness takes time to build but can be destroyed in a instant.

Recall from an earlier podcast that I mentioned successful accomplishment of an objective requires three things: responsibility –the ability to respond, authority, and accountability.  Often we find ourselves where we may be held accountable but not have either the responsibility or the authority to perform.  But such is not the case with recent Wall Street.

Too many in power had the responsibility and the authority but not the accountability for their actions.  They took actions that made them millions of dollars and, even though those actions failed, they were not held accountable.  It seems that the boards of directors did not hold them accountable.  And I think most significantly, they did not hold themselves accountable.

It seems to me that what one stands for, one’s character, one’s core self, is defined by what one is accountable for.  I think one has to be accountable to self to define one’s self and one’s worth.

So in our practice of management we must ensure that we have the responsibility and the authority to accomplish our objectives, and we must be accountable to ourselves certainly, and to our stakeholders.

On July 9, feedburner noted 400 subscribers.  I appreciate your support.

“The best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men / Gang aft a-gley.”

We all know this one as, ” The best–laid plans of mice and men often go awry” but i am a romantic and prefer the older language.

But the fundamental truth here is that no matter how carefully we plan and execute our projects, occasionally situations arise when, in spite of our best efforts, plans and projects fail. This happens for one or more of many reasons, but I think it comes down to this distillation.

• We did not know all of the parameters necessary to construct and effective plan. We did not have all of the necessary information.
• Our assumptions were erroneous.
• We had a faulty plan.
• We did not have control of the environment in which we executed the plan.
• We did not have contingencies in place to deal with deviations from plan.
• We do not have enough time (or other resource) to respond.

I am sure the list goes on and I missed a big one, so if I did please comment to this blog and we can start an aggregate list.

What do we do when a project does fail?

• Realize that life is an ebb tide and a flood tide. There will be more failures and more successes in life, and no one event is totally life changing.
• Look for the solution. From every failure comes the opportunity to learn and to achieve a greater success. The cause of he failure, when analyzed, will demonstrate significant opportunity for contribution. Entrepreneurs thrive on identifying failures and problems in processes and systems, and they benefit and succeed when they provide solutions.
• Examine what you could have done. We all have a circle of influence, to borrow from Covey. Often the cause of the project’s failure occurs outside of our circle of influence, and consequently we have no way to exercise control over the situation leading to the project’s failure. If the situation was in your circle of influence, reflect on the issue in the project review.
• Always conduct a project review, a post mortem. The purpose of this exercise is not to place blame but to identify real issues that we can correct, escalate for correction, or provide contingencies should they occur again. Our focus is creating a blueprint for a better plan and a successful project next time. Before you start the project review, review the following list with the review team and brainstorm other questions and tasks you want to add to the list.
  • Identify what went right with the project.
  • Identify what went wrong with the project.
  • Identify assumptions that were invalid.
  • Identify defects in the plan, its execution, and/or the project’s control systems.
  • Identify what was our of our control that contributed or caused the project’s failure.
  • Identify resource deficiencies and shortages.
  • Identify communications issues.
  • Identify structural issues and organizational aspects that contributed to the project’s failure.
  • Have each participant relax, clear their minds, and intuitively sense why they feel the project failed, list these observations, and discuss them

  From this exercise, produce a succinct report listing items that people can take action upon, identify the importance or priority of each item, and identify the person or organization best capable of resolving the issue. Publish this report to your management team, then to those who have action items to accomplish.

• I think the most important thing that allows us to deal with project failure is to maintain a realistic and healthy view of life. There are no successes or failures in our lives, just outcomes. Some are positive outcomes and some are negative. We will experience both outcomes several times in our lives. We need to view both our successes and our failures with this perspective and realize that we are not our failures, nor are we our successes.

These tools are built around the concept of a tiddler, an element of information with a title, a body, and a collection of tags. These tags provide an implicit and dynamic structure to a group of tiddlers, relating them in multiple ways, allowing you to slice and dice your information in multiple ways.

I first started using a version of TiddlyWiki several years ago and found the tool quite effective in allowing me to manage several projects concurrently without dropping any balls. The entry and formatting of the tiddler is quick and simple. Tiddlers may be linked to each other to provide references and linkages to relevant information. Tiddlers may also link to external files and to URLs, allowing reference to documentation, mail addressees, etc. And as I mentioned earlier, tiddlers can be tagged with multiple tags.

In my personal use of TiddlyWiki, I used a collection of tags for the 6 areas that I map my life into: Physical, Mental, Social, Spiritual, Family, and Financial (Professional). I also used a collection of tags denoting importance: High, Medium, Low. Using built-in macros and plugins, I created a tiddler that contained a list of other tiddlers that had the same tag. Using these tiddler collections I could easily view my action items for my Physical life, or I could display all of my High priority tasks. During recent years, TiddlyWiki has continued to evolve and improve and now offers a robust feature set, CSS based formatting, and a huge collection of plugins that are easily installed to extend its capability.

Recently an associate at work asked for a recommendation for managing todo lists. Since the work environment is locked down, I thought of the simple html system that required only a browser, and recommended TiddlyWiki. I continued to look at extensions and variants of TiddlyWiki and found Simon Baird’s implementation based on TiddlyWiki.

Simon implemented the concept of a TagglyTag which I will let you read at his web site since I can not do it justice. And he has provided a way to group tiddlers that are tagged, allowing their classification based on other tags used to describe them. Now I can see my tiddlers tagged as Physical, grouped by those that are High priority and those that are Completed. I highly recommend Simon’s MPTW implementation to you if you are looking for a simple, powerful, tool.

Please post questions and comments here.

If you are considering an upgrade, you should have no issues.

In the world series between the New York Yankees and the Milwaukee Braves, Elston Howard was at bat in the 9th inning.  Warren Spahn was pitching.  Winning run(s) on base.  The coach walked out to the mound and told Spahn, “Whatever you do, don’t throw it high and outside!”  Spahn delivered the next pitch high and outside and Howard hit it out of the park, winning the series for the Yankees.  When asked later, Spahn said that all he could see and think about was high and outside.

The message is this.

• Always state what you do want rather than what you don’t want.  The mind has to create a picture of the thought before it can negate it.
• Know how to use your language to construct representations of what you do want.

Plan the meeting.

• Define what the desired outcome of the meeting is.  Too many meetings occur without an end objective.  Consequently, few of these meetings achieve the intended result.
•  Identify the meeting participants who are capable of making the desired outcome a reality. Avoid inviting spectators.
• List the minutes of any previous meetings that have been held to achieve this outcome.  Occasionally, it is necessary to frame the problem for the participants in a meeting, then meet again to reach an agreement.  Recalling the minutes of previous meetings hopefully prevents addressing issues that have already been decided.
• Define the meeting duration.  Keep the meeting as brief as possible.  Like work, meetings tend to expand to fill the time allocated to them.
• Construct an agenda that states the desired outcome and includes references to the previous meeting minutes. Include a list of the meeting participants.
• Schedule the meeting at a convenient time and place for all participants.  Be sensitive to time zone differences for dial-in participants.
• Send out the invites.

Conduct the meeting.

• Start on time and end on time.
• Begin the meeting by stating the desired outcome.
• When discussion drifts from the desired outcome, gently bring the discussion back to the stated outcome.
• Work for synergy within the meeting participants.  Encourage discussion.
• Reserve time at the end of the meeting to summarize the meeting to assess the success of the meeting in accomplishing the desired outcome. Obtain agreement that the outcome was achieved.
• If the outcome was not achieved, list the issues and obstacles that prevent accomplishing the outcome, identify and owner for each issue, and agree to meet again.
• Conclude the meeting on time.

After the meeting

• Write up the minutes of the meeting and send to all participants.
• Include in the minutes those items that have been agreed upon and resolved.
• List items requiring further action and the owner of each.
• Send the minutes to all participants.

Rinse and repeat.

Yearly the President presents a State of the Union address, presumably to detail just that, The State of the Union, summarizing the state of the nation and its future intentions.

It seems that such an assessment would be good for me as well.

Doing my state of the person assessment entails the following items:

• Recall my mission and vision.
• Recall my written SMART long term and short term goals.

First I will examine my SMART short term goals. Since they are measurable, I go through this list of goals and for each one I indicate the degree of success I have had, the planned versus the actual achievement. I now have a visual element that describes how I have done versus what I had planned to do. Some of these goals may be in progress, but I think it is still constructive to list them and figure out their degree of completion or realization.

I could use this data to construct a spider graph showing the shape of the invidivdual (me) and have a good visual representation of me. Bar charts would work just as well.

Now we see why SMART goals are useful. They are measurable.

I now have the basis for preparing my state of the individual speech to my audience (wife). I know how I have done relative to the plans and the achievements  that I had hoped to accomplish.

I think I need to fine tune this part of the presentation a bit. I need to do a reality check on what I observe. I need to review the assessment I have made and ask myself if this really reflects the state of the individual. Do the metrics really tell the honest story? Did I accomplish the goal but not the achievement I intended? In any situation where I feel uneasy about what the assessment reveals I need to make a footnote and figure out why I have fallen short. Am I really honest with myself? Is this goal really what I want? Did I “cook he books” and achieve one objective like eliminating credit card debt but deferred maintenance for which I did not have a measurable goal?

The next viseral check is to review my mission and vision and to ask myself if the numbers show that I am consistent with my mission and vision. If I get an uneasy feeling that I am not consistent, then I know that when I get to the next step I need to align goals with my mission and vision.  This visceral check is really important. I have found throughout my career that, when I had an uneasy feeling about something, I was usually right in my concern.

Equipped with the mission, vision, goals, and quantitative assessment, I can develop the plans for the next year.

• Is the mission and vision still accurate? If not, modify.
• Referring to my goals and my assessment, am I where I need to be? Do I need to add other goals? Do I need to modify the goals based on a revised mission and/or vision.
• What do I plan to do this year, based on this process? What are the goals for the year? Where do I want to be 1 year from now?

Now I have the current state of things and my plans for the next year. I can complete a state of the individual address.

I believe this assessment does the following

• It shows us our successes, giving us confidence, reinforcement, and a sense of accomplishment.
• It indicates shortcomings, suggesting that we are not really identified with the goal[s] that we list. “Stop Smoking” has been on my list for years. Perhaps “live a healthy life, evidenced by healthy diet, weight management, cholesterol management and exercise” might be better.
• It validates our direction, that is, our mission and vision, or it suggests that we need to revise our mission and vision, then our goals.
• It lays the foundation for the coming year.

The Amazon affiliate program offers a wonderful feature, the astore, that provides a very attractive way to list these references.  My Library is located here.

Having just completed the process to 2.3.2 in late January, the process did not seem as intimidating. Actually, the upgrade proceeded quickly with the actual file transfers taking all of the time. Really straightforward. And not so intimidating since I made a complete backup before starting the process.

For any who are hesitant to make the update, just make a backup of everything and follow the upgrade directions.

Thanks to the tutorial at Styling for Print WordPress Codex , I have added a print stylesheet to eliminate the sidebars, comments, and other elements not required in printing. You can use your browser’s print feature to print a selected post on this site.

This is another example of how to overcome fear and/or procrastination:

• Become more knowledgeable about what you fear or put off.
• Take action, then fear and procrastination disappear.

Let me know if the print style sheet causes you problems.

Thanks

Craig

So if you have been putting it off for whatever reason, I suggest you do the upgrade. Well worth the effort.

The management message here is that the best cure for fear is action.

Recall we have five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and tactile. Of these senses, people tend to use sight, hearing, and tactile more than smell and taste, especially for internal processing and storage of information. So we will focus on sight, hearing, and tactile senses in these discussions. [Note that the verb in the previous sentence is visual. I will talk more about this in a moment.]

Each of us has a preferred sense that we use. I am visually oriented. I prefer to see information rather than to hear information and I seldom identify with any information as a feeling or experience. If you want to communicate with me most effectively, show me something. Provide the information to me visually.

Take a moment an identify your preferred system.

To most effectively communicate with someone, we want to tailor our communications in his preferred representational system.

• If a person is visual, show him the information or use phrases that are visually oriented.
• If a person is auditory, then tell or use auditory cues in communication.
• If a person is kinesthetic, provide for hands on, experiential communications or use cues that appeal to feeling.

Note that we can use words that appeal to the preferred system rather than communicating through that system. I can say something to someone and cause that person to see something internally.

The preferred representational system is also our preferred method for storing and processing information internally. My recall is almost always visual. I need to construct a visual representation of it in my mind to be able to retrieve it effectively. I have a friend who is auditory and can recall conversations word for word. But being visual, I can not begin to imagine how a kinesthetic person organizes and processes information.

These are our preferred strategies but we all process information in all three systems. Once we understand our preferred system we can ensure that we obtain and manage our information most effectively by using our preferred system. I always takes notes, make mindmaps, to capture auditory information. I also brainstorm and plan using visual tools. When I start a project I try to build a visual scaffolding in my mind on which I hang data about the project as it unfolds.

I welcome those auditory and kinesthetic people to post a comment a the blog to discuss how they manage the acquisition and retention of information using their preferred system.

As managers we want to maximize our effectiveness in communications. If we listen to people and to their phrases we can determine what representational system they prefer. We can tailor our language to provide information and to express ourselves to others using their preferred system.

People give us clues to their preferences in their conversation.

• If a person uses phrases like “I don’t see what you mean”, “that isn’t clear”, or “show me the money”, the individual prefers a visual representation.
• If a person uses phrases like “that doesn’t sound right”, “that doesn’t ring true”, or “countrymen, lend me your ears”, the individual prefers an auditory representation.
• If the person uses phrases like “that does not feel right”, “let me get a handle on it”, or “he rubs me the wrong way”, the individual prefers a tactile representation.

We can use these clues to guide us in structuring our language for effective communications with the individual. In meetings, lectures, and other group settings, we must communicate in all three systems, particularly in our examples, to effectively communicate with the participants.

To summarize.

• People have a preference in how they receive and process information, typically visually, auditorally, or kinesthetically.
• We can figure out what they prefer by observing their language. Other means exist that I will describe in another podcast.
• We can tailor our communications with the individual to use their preferred system.
• If we are communicating with a group, we need to provide our message in all three systems, especially in our examples.
• We need to know our own preferred system and enhance our use of that system in our internal processing.

Good luck.

I invite you to subscribe to the blog and/or check for these posts occasionally. You are welcome to leave comments to help these ideas grow and become something meaningful.

And please post comments and let me know if there is a particular topic you would like to discuss.

Thank you.

Effective management requires a unique perspective. This perspective comes from one being centered, confident, and proactive rather than reactive. Effective management also requires communications skills, both verbal and non-verbal. And I think it requires a confidence of one who is comfortable with self and has a clear direction.

In this section on managing self I will review the skills and techniques that I have found useful.

One of the most useful skills I have found that empowers pro-action is the ability to watch my own thoughts. As I watch my thoughts I can interrupt the reaction that I would normally generate and replace it with a more appropriate action. Further, by altering the internal talk, I can change how I feel, how I interpret what I see or hear.

So I want you to watch your thinking for the next few minutes. Look at something. Note the internal dialog that you have that interprets what you saw. Note the instant before you make that internal comment. Think about an alternative comment that would totally change how you feel.

If you commute, you will have the opportunity to find several situations that upset you. Note how you judge the other fellow in these situations. Listen to the internal dialog. Then the next time a driver does something stupid, (yes, I know it will not take long), say something to yourself like “I am glad I have more time than he does” or some other positive comment and note how you feel differently about the driver.

Seek other situations during your day and note those situations where your internal comment is negative and destructive and brings you down. (By the way, it does not bring the other person down.) Consider what constructive commentary you could internally utter that would change your attitude. Note then how you could more constructively deal with the situation. Try to make your internal comment more factual and less editorial.

Consider now the influence you can exercise over situations by selecting alternative representations to yourself. You can actually change how you feel about something or someone by changing your internal dialog about the something or someone. See if you can change your feeling about something you don’t like to something that you do like by interrupting negative reaction and stating positive statements instead.

Try this for the next few days. Practice watching and listening to your internal dialog. Note how much different you feel when you take command and change your conversation.

Managing Your Self Talk links here.

If you do not manage yourself, someone else will. And when you allow this to happen, you compromise your ability to provide significant added value to the position you hold. You compromise the ability to serve the stakeholders, the shareholders, and the customers of your organization. You become an agent of someone else, accomplishing their vision and fulfilling their dreams. Being an agent in itself is not bad. We are successful when we help others to be successful. But we need to do this consciously rather than unconsciously.

If we do not have a strategy for self management and the the skills to do so, someone else will manage us instead.

So what is the strategy for self management? We have to start with the mission statement I spoke about several podcasts ago. We live for something. If we do not focus on who we are and what we live for, we can be assured that someone else will provide us that direction for his or her own ends. We need to center ourselves with our mission statement. I have also spoken about the value of a plan and the need for goals in our lives. These features, our mission, our plan, and our goals, create the framework under which we live, manage, and make decisions.

I think there is one other element in this framework. Our mission, our plan, and our goals state what we DO and only implicitly state who we ARE. To borrow a quote from someone, “we are human beings, not human doings.” Actually, I think we are both, but what we do is a result of who we are.

So on another sheet of paper, I encourage you to list who you are, what attributes make you uniquely you. Then review your mission, your plan, and your goals to see how your attributes of being are reflected in your doing.

This is the framework we use for decisions and direction: our mission, our plan, our goals, and our concept of being. This framework keeps us from becoming easily distracted, misdirected, or manipulated.

The podcast is located here.

Have a happy holiday season.

I am really excited about being back online and sharing this information with you.

PSM #24 is here.

Craig

See you in the New Year. Stay tuned!!!

PSM #23 is here.

• Hello, this is Plain Simple Mangement, I am Craig Walters, and today’s podcast deals with Time ManagementThank you all for your responses to my poll, and thank you for visiting my web site. In the future the web site will become a more integral part of the podcast, so please visit here often.Time management has won the poll so far, so I will share with you my views on time management.Some thoughts on time
  • Time is man’s theoritical construct to measure the rate of change. What we are really interested in is change and the rate of change, not the passage of time.The change we seek is to progress from the current state to the desired state. All of our energies should be focused on making this transition.As I mentioned before, Asimov in “Time, Space, and Other Things” points out that we have been given the life we need. He calculates the heart rate time the life expectancy for several other mammals and man, and finds that all mammals except man have about 1 billion heart beats during their lives. Man and man alone has 3 billion. He concludes that we have the time we need to do what we need to do.Our issue is not having enough time, it is an issue of how do we spend the time we have.I conclude that there is enough time do do what is important.So what is important.
    • Refer to the mission and vision statements that you have developed for your lives.
    • If you have not done so, then do it now.

  The Mechanics

  • I have used manual systems and computer systems. I don’t think it makes much difference. Eventually I have to answer the question; “What is the best use of my time now?” I find that manual systems are just as good as computer systems in answering this question.Since I do not spend 24×7 in front of a computer, something that I can transport is more ideal–Maybe a PDA, maybe index cards.For the most part, calendars only manage the interruptions rather than support the accomplishment of objectives. We use calendars to keep track of the interruptions. Sometimes, we put entries on the calendar in our own interest rather than some one elses, but most of the time we are serving someone else.It does not matter what you do as long as you meet these criteria.
    • I can review what actions I need to take
    • I can record progress and other necessary actions.
    • I can record my dreams.
    • I can list those actions that will achieve my dreams.

  Examples

  • In the 70’s I thought that John Dean had his stuff straight, when appearing in front of the Watergate commission. I journaled everything, noted everyting and spend more time recording my life rather than living it. Do not be a John Dean.Cardio-vascular surgeon
    • He carried index cards in his pocket, 1 per patient
    • The relevant info for each patient and family was on the card.
    • He could scan them easily.
    • The totality of his current surgical doctor life was in the deck.
    • The deck went with him everywhere.
    • He used the cards to share with others. He probably used these cards to plan his surgeries.

    I really love the system provided during
    the 80’s or 90’s provided by Century Plastics.

    • ScanCards used a specialized card.
      • This was not good.
    • 20th Century used index cards. Yea!!
      • I have placed a scan of the page on the web site.
    • I accomplished more using the index cards
      than I did using any other system.
    • My calendar and my administrative assistant managed my distractions.
    • My index cards managed what I wanted to do and need to do
    • Century Plastics and their card system are no longer available.
    • An alternative approach
      • Buy 3×5 Post-it notes.Buy a nice notebook or portfolio that you might and will carry everywhere.Buy a set of Avery dividers that have sufficient partitons for your life.Identify these dividers as the sections of your life.As tasks, objectives, initiatives, gotta-do’s come up,
        write them each on a 3×5 postit and stick
        in in the appropriate section of your life.When you have a free moment or an hour or a day, review the post-its.Select the postit that you love most now.

        Put you heart into its progress.

        These post-its or index cards are youre agents.

        • Write on them as things change.
        • Use highlighters to call out actions.
        • Use different colored cards for different purposes, priorities, etc.
        • Move them to your accomplishments box when you finish them.

    The God box

    • I have to share this with you.I am independent and self centered, or have been. I think I can solve my problems. Some I can not.I can not solve them all.For those I can not, I take the card out of my stack and put in the box labelled “God’s box”.I do not dwell on fears.I do not dwell on things I can not control.I let God deal with it as he may and move on to addressing what I can do someting about.

      This is the most sane prayer I have ever prayed: “…move me forward in your plan for me. I ask not that You bless what I decide to do, but that You will lead me to do what You have already blessed.”

      Actually it is the second most sane prayer. The first most sane prayer is the Lord’s Prayer. “Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven>”

  Conclusion

  • We have all the time we need
  • We need to focus on what matters.
  • We need to minimize the distractions that keep us from getting there.
  • Simplicity is the key.
  • What is the best use of my time now??
    • I hope you felt this podcast was a good use of the last few minutes.
    • I hope that the next few minutes take you closer to your dreams!! Good luck!

Links to resources:

Here are the links I promised you in the podcast. Please note that I have no financial interest in any of these offerings and, as far as I am concerned, they are available as is. I hope they work for you if you elect to go down the low tech path.

• www.scanplan.com I found this link today in my preparation for this podcast. When I was in college, the scheduling people used a similar system each quarter to schedule students into classes, and it seemed to work quite well.
• http://www.executivegallery.com/Pages/SCIdx.htm Here is the old scan card system that I mentioned in the podcast. I used this system for a while and it did serve its purpose. I did not like the size and propriety of the note cards–thus I elected a 3×5 system.

I feel like I need to tell you some other rules for time management.

• Delegate anything that you can delegate.
• Try and minimize the urgent interruptions, focusing instead on the important aspects of the job.
• Set aside times during the day to return phone calls and to answer e-mail. However, if you are in the office and the phone rings, answer it. Otherwise you could play phone tag forever if you return or answer calls at a different time than the caller–who is also managing his or her time.
• Look for an minimize time wasters imposed by the system. You have to spend your time with people but you do not have to spend your time in mediocre applications.
• Plan meetings with an agenda and an expected outcome. Drive meetings to achieve the outcome. I can accomplish in 20 minutes what others take an hour in doing.
• Do not procrastinate decisions. If you have the necessary data, make the decision. Otherwise you waste everyone’s time.
• Read a good time management book but don’t get stuck to the method to the extent that it spends 30 seconds keeping you from what you need to be doing.

Good luck.

Craig

Thanks
Craig