Judge Eric Shepperd

Last week, while at the Leadership Austin Experience Austin event at the Acton MBA in Entrepreneurship campus, I had the pleasure of hearing an inspiring talk by the Honorable Judge Eric Sheppard, Travis County Court of Law #2 on “Leadership & Service”. Judge Sheppard drew our attention to a quote prominently displayed at Acton for all to see and encouraged us all to reflect on it. Here it is…

It is Not the Critic

It is not the critic who counts, nor the man who points out how the strong
man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The
credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred
by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes
short again and again; who knows great enthusiasms, great devotions; who
spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows in the end the
triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails
while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those timid souls
who know neither victory nor defeat.

Theodore Roosevelt

“Citizenship in a Republic”

Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris

April 23, 1910

Have you ever paid attention to the labels on your clothes? Every garment you own comes with a care label: dry clean only, wash cold, tumble dry, etc. It’s there as a guide, aimed to help you clean your clothing properly and not do something that might shrink, damage, or alter it. I’ve done all three!

I must admit, our house is very low maintenance in the laundry department. We either dry clean our business attire or we cold wash, tumble dry the rest. Button down shirts and delicates are hung dried. Care labels are rarely a major concern. I don’t know if that’s reflection of my wardrobe tastes.

On a recent load, I had a new item and was unsure of its care, so I went for the tag and was suprised by the number of symbols. So many, I could not determine what to do without a trusty Google search. The result, a comprehensive legend from the Textile Industry Affairs website. Click here to see the Care Label Guide. Would you know what all of these symbols mean if you found them on the label of your favorite shirt?

I’m usually a proponent for standardized symbols. Think of the Stop sign, WiFi logo, or Women’s restroom figure. All of these are helpful in providing quick recognition. The laundry care label symbols reflect when we may go too far. This level of complexity limits use. Sure, my local dry cleaners may be able to translate the various symbols, but will us Sunday home laundry mortals be as astute? I’m predict I’ll mess up.

When designing for easy recognition, it’s important to keep it simple. Sometimes less is more. If we need a cheat sheet to translate, it likely missed the aim. What do you think?

This year’s event, much like last year’s, did not disappoint. It was a blend of thought provoking and inspiring speakers intermixed with music, great local food, and wonderful community. Here are some of the highlights from the day.

Chris Riley – founder of Studioriley started us off. He talked about the power of stories and how our narrative can shape how we view the world. From my experience with appreciative inquiry and learning from people’s stories in my own work, I found Riley interesting, especially in the context that so many people can more easily share their story than ever before. He shared pictures from Brazil, Pakistan, and others that showed images of beauty and joy we rarely see in our American, 24-hour news. Learn more here.

One reflection he shared struck me because I’ve had a similar experience. Riley talked about this feeling you get when you land in America coming from somewhere else and how you can just feel a different narrative. I’ve often been struck by the reentry experience when coming back from working in Europe last year. Landing in Dallas, Houston, or Newark, I’m always conscious of the almost immediate attitude change as I encounter our Customs & Board Patrol process and the TSA. There’s just a negative essance as if there’s a different lens of perspective.

David R. Dow – a death row attorney presented an objective discussion of the tragedy of murder and the death penalty process and the missed opportunity to potentially prevent many from reaching that crossroad. Dow talked about how focus has been on the appeal phases, but that 80% of death row inmates were customers of the juvenile justice system. Dow makes no excuse that murder is tragic and should be punished, but he advises the place we should be focusing our attention is in the childhood years and at that first brush with the system. He told the story of one of his clients, whose childhood was unfair for any kid, as an example of how early intervention and prevention could reduce the potential of the future tragic. Learn more here.

Todd Humphreys – a professor/researcher at the University of Texas provided a fascinating and troubling side of GPS technology. While we have enjoyed turn-by-turn directions and being able to find restaurants in our proximity on our iPhones, there are some aspects of GPS technology of concern to watch. In one example, he talked about a woman who believed a former partner was tracking her. She couldn’t confirm there was a device and law enforcement was in a grey space to help her. In another case, he talked about the danger for transportation and others that rely on GPS and how things like Wave Bubbles that can disrupt GPS in an area or GPS Spoofer technology which can confuse devices could be dangerous in the wrong hands. One potential positive he predicts is the invention of “GPS dots” which you can place on almost any item and never loose anything you value. Learn more here.

Ellie Audet – is a 16-year-old Austin girl who loves fashion and paper shared some amazing creations she has made and modeled a dress she designed just for TEDxAustin. I was excited by her creativity and imagination. Learn more here.

Chris Bliss – an Austin-based comedian shared his project – mybillofrights.org – which aims to enable installments of the bill of rights in civic centers across America. Bliss points out that there are many pushing for the 10 commandments, but that no one was pushing for the Bill of Rights, which he sees as 12 amendments that are a model for the world, that do not exclude anyone, and that both the left and the right have favorite amendments. Learn more here.

Jason Roberts – An artist activist was probably my favorite presenter. His excitement was contagious and you could feel his enthusiasm as his speech picked up pace and his volume increased. He shared examples of how he and his community renovated a theater, transformed a dilapidated downtown block into a vibrant strip for a day, started a bike friendly initiative, created a dog park, and brought back the trolley. He shared his not-so-secret formula: 1) Show up, 2) Give it a name, and 3) Set a date and publish it (blackmail yourself). This reminded me a lot of what I learn in my work about setting aims (with deadlines and measureable goals) and doing rapid cycle testing to learn through doing. Roberts left me yearning to start doing several projects that seem daunting, but I just need to begin. Learn more here.

Taryn Davis – a military widow shared her heart breaking story of loosing her husband when he was killed in combat and how that inspired her to start a non-profit to tell their stories and to support military widows. I was struck by the young age of many of these widows (~26) and two things she said: 1) she wanted to ask widows the questions people had stopped asking her and 2) she was afraid to smile or laugh because she feared people would believe she was over the loss. Learn more here.

Michael McDaniels – shared his story of developing a temporary shelter for disasters after learning that it took 45 days for them to arrive for Katrina victims. He developed a prototype of a modular shelter that sleeps four, can be stacked like cups for transportation, may be organized to create community, and linked together to create larger shelters. Hearing McDaniels tell of the challenges of getting the Feds to be interested in his invention (even when he tried to give it away) was frustrating and an example of when government isn’t at its best. Learn more here.

In addition, we hard from Craig Hella Johnson, Bill Eggar, Jeremy Courtney, and the very talented Paul Miller (a.k.a. DJ Spooky).

There were also some great videos from TED’s library including an MIT Professor who studied his kid’s development of language by recording his home, an artist whose name I didn’t capture who makes up fictional artists bios and their works, and the professor from CMU who created the reCAPTCHA (see the bottom of this post), which protects against spammers while also helping to digitize books. He shared a new project called doulingo.com, what will do the same to translate the Internet while helping people learn languages.

A description of the day wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the great food. Whole Foods provided locally grown staples and chefs from great local eateries like Uchiko, Lenior, Swift’s Attic, Carillon, BC/Tavern Wink, and Fino/Asti created wonderfully prepared dishes shared with great company.

Finally, the day ended with a great sing-along led by Craig Hella Johnson and a full choir. Very fun.

TEDxAustin was a great experience and wonderfully produced. I’m thankful to have been part of it again and appreciative of all of the hard work that went into creating this unique event. I look forward to next year.

Since I first got my driver’s license, I have made sure I designated myself as an organ donor. When I renewed again this year, I made sure that my intentions are clear. The loss of life is tragic, but the idea that a single donor may help many people continue to contribute to the world just makes sense. I encourage all to learn more about being donor here.

January is National Volunteer Blood Donor Month. For several years now, I have been making a regular trip to the Central Texas Blood & Tissue Center to give blood as often am allowed. It’s easy, relatively painless, and free and you know you are making a difference with every pint. They make it easy to donate and there’s really no excuse. Look up opportunities in your area and sign up to become a regular.

There are a lot of ways to make a difference. You too can save lives.

In 2011, I set out to read and learn deeply about Dr. W. Edwards Deming. In addition to watching DVDs of his four-day workshop, I read the books written by him, by his many mentees, and even a fascinating book by his longtime assistant.  Along the journey, I discovered a ton about the man, the evolution of his theories and the value of his work. Reading about the System of Profound Knowledge, the Fourteen Points of Management, and the Seven Deadly Diseases from many authors, I encountered new understanding that helped shape my awareness of the science and aided me in teaching the theories and practices and in supporting my clients.

Learn more about the Deming books here.

Source: Chris Guillebeau

The start of a New Year is a natural place for reflection of year’s past and for planning going forward. I’m a firm believer that one should avoid autopilot living at all costs or, as Ferris Bueller said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. “

I’ve been a fan of Chris Guillebeau’s blog The Art of Non-Conformity: Unconventional Strategies for Life Work and Travel. Chris is 33 years old and headquartered in Portland, OR. He has set out a mission to visit every country in the world before he is 35 and blogs about his experiences. He’s reached 150 countries to date in addition to writing a book and an annual gathering.

One of my favorite blog posts is Guillebeau’s Annual Review. Each December, he stops and reflects on the year that is about to close and he compares what he accomplished and learned versus his intended plan at the start. He then develops a plan for the year to come, which includes a bucket list of activities and even measurement to track his progress. I think this is an excellent example of conscious living. You can read about his 2011 annual review here. He also shares his review process and template here.

Another blogger and associate of Guillebeau – Jonathan Fields – also does an annual review and actually published an annual report. It’s also worth a read and you can download the PDF here.

I did a similar process myself personally and professionally. It was great for clarifying what went well last year and where there were opportunities for improvement. It also made me very conscious of what I wanted to accomplish this year. I’m not yet as transparent as Guillabeau and Fields, but I welcome their example. If you haven’t done a review to start 2012, it’s not too late to start.

The Live Music Capitol of the World – Austin, Texas – has a different buzz downtown today. The convention center is filled with Texas’ volunteer and career emergency medical services caregivers. Held annually, the Texas EMS Conference rivals many national EMS conference events and draws industry leading faculty from across the country and caregivers from across the state.

Ernie Rodriquez, Director of EMS for Austin/Travis County EMS, has been a leader in advancing professional development for EMS leaders in the State. This year, he is joined by EMS leaders who strive to push EMS operations to the next level in a dedicated administration track. Dr. Dave Williams was invited to introduce the Model for Improvement – used throughout health care for process improvement – and share his experiences using the model with organizations across North America and Europe. The conference is always a great event and we welcome the opportunity to contribute.

American Medical Responses (AMR) is the largest private ambulance service in North America. Responding to more than 8,600 requests for service per day and with a staff of 17,000, AMR serves 2,100 communities in 38 states. It is also one of the first organizations Dr. Williams worked with as a paramedic back in Springfield, MA.

AMR sees more patients than any other pre-hospital care and transportation organization in North America. The organization’s leadership has committed strongly to improving clinical quality. They aspire to develop needed improvement skills and strive to achieve the results witnessed throughout health care.

As part of this pursuit, AMR is embarking on an improvement journey modeled after the IHI Breakthrough Series Improvement Collaborative Model used around the world and throughout health care. More than a dozen operations, from across North America, will test changes in two work streams, including sudden cardiac arrest and portfolio of clinical areas. The sudden cardiac arrest work is part of the the HeartRescue initiative sponsored by the Medtronic Foundation and the portfolio of clinical areas is directly connected with AMR Clinical’s strategic plan. This is the first patient care improvement collaborative in this segment of health care or public safety.

Dr. Williams is pleased to support AMR’s work as improvement advisors coaching on testing and measurement.

More than a 100 people convened in Austin, TX at the Austin Convention Center for Wave 2011. Sponsored by ESO Solutions, a technology company developing solutions for emergency medical services organizations, Wave 2011 is a 2-day conference produced for its clients. It brings industry leaders and ESO’s deep pool of talented staff together to provide timely and pragmatic sessions on using patient data to improve care.

Dr. Dave Williams has had the pleasure of presenting at several of ESO Solutions’ national and regional education venues. ESO Solutions’ CEO – Chris Dillie – was Dr. Williams’s paramedic partner when they worked together at Austin EMS.

Today, he presented a session on using data for improvement and learning. With so much data, it’s easy for people to struggle with were to begin. Dr. Williams focused on identifying important metrics and measuring data over time to understand process variation and improvement. The audience included many innovative, local people striving to improve the reliability and quality of care in their communities. It’s always rewarding to see people really interested in improvement and change.

For the last few weeks, I have been testing an experiential exercise to quickly train large groups to use rapid cycle, small tests of change (i.e., PDSA cycles). The exercise involves teams learning through testing how to assemble a toy Mr. Potato Head. I modified the exercise after working with with Dr. Eric Dickson on the faculty for the Instituite for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Impacting Cost & Quality collaborative. Dr. Dickson is the Senior Associate Dean and President, University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Group in Worcester, Massachusetts. He uses Mr. Potato Head to teach emergency physicians and medical students about lean principles. You can read a description of a session he did for the American College of Emergency Physicians here.

The modified exercise I am testing includes teams developing theories, making predictions, carrying out tests, and measuring results on run charts. In addition, participants learn how to share knowledge across teams and harness the power of the collaborative learning process. I’ve now tested the exercise half a dozen times in public safety, health care, and education audiences and  each session has improved upon the last. And, I have received lots of positive feedback from participants. IHI even bought seven Mr. Potato Heads for the home office for use in the Patient Safety Officer Course and to teach internal staff about PDSA testing.

While the use of a toy produces an element of fun, this exercise, more than many I have used, really enables participants to discover the power of making predictions, using small PDSAs to test theories, and tracking data in real time using time series charts. It’s amazing how sometimes small experiential learning exercises can really connect people with the concepts and facilitate applying them to their improvement work.