Making Noise

A picture is worth a thousand words... and a few hundred calories when it makes you laugh.

Having just finished giving two presentations about "what your project team isn't telling you," I heard a lot of pain and fear about making noise to the executives.  It seems a few people have witnessed messengers being shot.  Ironically, I saw this sign in New York City this morning, and I just had to share it.  I wonder who is enforcing it, because honking is a language in and of itself in a city that hears about every tongue imaginable spoken.  Somehow I doubt that anybody has collected much money in honking penalties.

So... is your reluctance to speak up and "honk your horn" at work due to "obsolete" signs that should be ignored?  As I told both the audiences, the really good executives will listen when the message is presented intelligently and with an orientation toward solutions.  The times that any executive gets hyper is when she or he is blindsided with a problem that is dumped on his or her lap with no sign of a solution in sight.  The bad executives will blow a gasket regardless of the message or the delivery.

Just something to think about as you are about to deliver bad news.

Visiting Ground Zero

My New York trip is coming to an end.  I met some wonderful people while I was here, and I feel fortunate to have seen many wonderful sights.  New York truly is one of the most vibrant, alive, diverse, loud (in a good way), bright (in a better way) cities I've ever experienced.

And yet... there's still Ground Zero.  It was a mellowing few moments to see the site of our nation's worst emotional disaster ever.  The tears welling up in my eyes could have been from the stinging cold wind this morning, but I doubt it.  So much reduced to so little in such a short amount of time.

And yet... there's still Ground Zero.  The site of clean up.  The site of new dreams.  The site of rebirth and renewal.

I reflected a little about my own "ground zero" points... those moments in my life when it felt like everything collapsed, when all hope was lost.  And now I'm able to look beyond those points and see what I couldn't see then.  The destruction, the despair, the drain... all was there to prepare me for something greater, something better, something more amazing.  A discussion with a friend a few days ago solidified this thought.  We talked about how each setback brought about a triumph... all we had to do was wait for it to occur.

Ground Zero was humbling.  September 11th was a terrible tragedy.  Yet even in the midst of it all, we as a nation are still here.  Our democracy is intact.  Our freedoms still exist.  We go through times of riches and recession, yet we still go.  This applies on an individual level as well.

If you're at your own "ground zero," get out your bulldozers and start clearing the rubble.  There's something new waiting to be built if you'll let it.  That's the only way to seize the accomplishment.

It's Up To You, New York, New York!

Carpe Factum meets the Big Apple this week.

Wednesday morning, I will be presenting to the New York City chapter of PMI, and that evening I will be making the same presentation to the Hudson Valley PMI Chapter.  Both events should be equally enjoyable (hopefully for them and for me).

Don't have a lot of time here in NYC, but enough to catch a few of the sights... and a Broadway show tonight - will see David Hyde Pierce perform in Curtains.  That should curtail my craving for the theatre for a while.  After all, since I'm staying on Broadway, it would be criminal not to take in a show.  We'll see what other sightseeing is in my future while I'm here.  As a Midwesterner on my first visit here, I'm trying not to gawk too much; that's really difficult for a chronic people watcher to do.

One of these days I'll figure out how to get a speaking engagement in Southern California or Florida or Hawaii during the winter months.  But so far, New York is pretty cool.

Eh... Whatever

This morning I groaned as the thermometer read a whopping twelve degrees BELOW ZERO.  Hence, after dropping the girls off to start their day, I decided to treat myself to a bagel before my morning conference call.  I stopped into my friendly neighborhood Panera, and was mildly annoyed to see a CENERGY van parked lopsided across what normally would have been 2-3 parking spaces in front of the building.  I parked further out than I cared to in the coma-inducing arctic cold and trekked into the building to get my morning treat.

On my way out, the driver of the van in question was getting into his vehicle.  "Nice parking," I commented to his obvious lack of skill.  I tried to make it sound playful and teasing, but I'll admit there was probably an underlying tone of annoyance.  His response?  "I slid on the ice on the way in and just figured... eh... whatever."  Then he was in his van and off and running, oblivious to any inconvenience he may have caused anybody else.

Now, I don't know what CENERGY does.  I don't recall ever spending money with them.  However, if I'm representing my company's brand in any capacity, it's certainly NOT going to be accompanied with an "Eh... whatever."  While I'm a law-abiding citizen and a fairly even-keeled guy, if I'm wearing Drake gear or Carpe Factum wear especially, I make sure that I'm on my absolute best behavior.  My brand is showing to the world, and the last thing I want is somebody thinking that "eh... whatever" is good enough for me.  Brian Phillips has a great article about quality and apathy and making claims.  He makes a good argument that there are times when good enough is, really, good enough.  But I'd be willing to bet that not even Brian would let his clients hear him saying "Eh... whatever."

Now, a small parking indiscretion on a frigid day really doesn't warrant a major chastising in my book.  But I wonder about the values of this technician.  Does he approach his job with an "eh...whatever" attitude?  Or (to his defense) was it just too cold in his book to fix the problem for a quick trip into the shop for breakfast on-the-go?  I can understand that.  But I really hope it is not indicative of a larger organizational-cultural issue.  I'd hate to think of an entire organization of "eh... whatever" drones serving the public at large.

Cabin Fever... Ugh

This post is for all of my readers in the northern half of the US, where winter seems to have a death-grip on everybody's spirits with no sign of letting up.

(Those of you in the warmer climates can go and sunburn something.)

OK, I think we can all agree that cabin fever is setting in.  We're all trying to be nice, but even those with whom I've chatted have agreed that spirits are running low and tempers are running high.  Even my police buddies have mentioned that domestic calls have been on the increase recently.

Well, I've decided to focus on what I can do about my mindset rather than what is outside my control (although my proposal to The Almighty to see if He wants to outsource weather to a project manager has not received a denial yet, so there may be hope).  En lieu of being given the keys to the climate, I jumped on i-Tunes and downloaded some songs that make me think warm thoughts.

Here's my "heat my spirits" playlist:

What would you add?

Looking For Innovation? Try The Yellow Pages

Looking for Innovation?  It's most likely located between "Hospitals" and "Juice Bars."

I've been using this creativity exercise for so long, I can't even remember where/when I learned it, but I do know it's not original to me.  One of the most powerful concepts of creativity is the power of connectedness (or combination)... pulling together two dissimilar concepts or ideas into one.  Last night, I gave my Drake "Creativity for Business" students small sections of the Yellow Pages I had torn out of the local phone directory.  Each group had at least two sections.  I challenged them to come up with as many new product/service ideas as they could by combining one entry or heading from one of the phone book sections with a completely different one from another.  With their creativity in overdrive, here are some of the results:

• Combining "Fraternal Organizations" and "Assisted Living" yielded the "Frats & Old Bats" alliance
• "Airlines" and "Escorts" merged into the "Mile High Club"
• "Funeral Homes" and "Appliances" collided into a sort of do-it-yourself cremation service called "The Oven"
• Don't even ask what happened when "Annuities" and "Fleas" were meshed
• "Pizza Delivery" and "Bars & Nightclubs" created a new chauffeur service that picked you up from the bar and delivered you and your pizza safely home at 2 AM
• "Heating Pumps" and "Bras & Lingerie" came up with a heated bra (I'm sure a big seller on a cold Iowa Winter day like today)
• "Wigs" and "Mini-Blinds" formed a new hairpiece where the length could be adjusted by a twist of a rod.
• My students wouldn't tell me what yielded the "Red Neck Dating Service:  Getting Outside the Family Tree" but I think I heard somebody muttering something about "ATVs" and "Genealogy"

You get the idea.  The ideas don't have to be good.  They get people laughing, relaxed, and talking, providing an excellent environment for your team to tackle their own innovative problem solving.  All it takes is one phone book and a lot of imagination to get the creative juices flowing.

I'll Do It Myself

Living with a toddler means that you'll hear the phrase, "I'll do it myself" a lot between the ages of two and four.  The kids are trying to assert their independence and it's up to us parents to figure out when to intervene and take over and when to back off and let our kids make a few mistakes.  It's all part of the learning process.

When you have an overbearing parent, the child never learns how to do things for himself.  Even simple tasks become long drawn-out chores over time because the child hasn't learned how to manage them.  In my master's leadership class a couple of weekends ago, I heard some of my students bemoaning the fact that they were working for micromanagers.  One shared that her manager couldn't even insert a picture in PowerPoint by herself, but she would stand over the employee's back and instruct her how to do it.  I've worked for managers who wanted to have a hand in every single email or deliverable that went out the door.  Michael Sheeley shared some great ideas for new managers to prevent them from becoming micromanagers.  But what if you are the subordinate who is dealing with the micromanager?  Since the balance of power is not in your favor, do you have a game plan for handling that scenario?

In short, the answer is yes, you can upwardly handle a micromanager, but it does take some finesse.  Micromanaging is a form of bullying, and there are some control and perception issues at stake.  Here are a few ideas and tips I've used in that arena:

• Stroke the ego - I've used phrases like "Certainly someone of your importance doesn't have time to look over my shoulder on such a trivial task."  This becomes a catch-22 for the micromanager, because if they admit they have the time, then they also have to admit that they're not as important as they thought.
• Help them practice time management skills - I will suggest to the micromanager that it is in their best interest to let me take the task or the project to a certain level, and then schedule check-points with them before proceeding.  This gives me some wiggle room to do things my own way and then to share the results and output with them.  Try setting up end-of-day recap meetings for 15-30 minutes.
• Multiple choice - when you come to an impasse, go to the micromanager with multiple solutions (that you've researched as much as you can), share your ideas with them and let them know that their final say is important.  At least you've provided them with a series of choices that are of your design, but you've still left the final decision with them.
• Their Idea - one of my favorite scenes in the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is when the Mom and the Aunt work over the Dad to make him come to the conclusion they want about the daughter's choice of employment.  "The man may be the head of the house," admonishes the mom, "but the woman controls the neck."  Don't be afraid to try to basic manipulation techniques on the micromanager, but only if you can successfully let him think it was his idea all along.
• Better to ask forgiveness - if the micromanager is more of the hit-and-run type, sometimes I will go ahead and make progress.  If I get in trouble, I'll pull the "sorry, didn't know I wasn't allowed to make that decision" comment.  I've made more progress on projects that way.  If you just don't wait for the micromanager, you can get a lot done.  (WARNING:  This one can backfire and cause even more micromanagement if you screw up.)

So, what are your thoughts on dealing with a micromanager?

Dating My Daughter

Tonight, I had the honor of escorting my older daughter to the annual Daddy-Daughter Valentine's dance in West Des Moines.  I learned quite a few things tonight.  For example, I now know that my daughter does a great Macarena.  Also, this old guy can pull off a Cha-Cha-Slide when he needs to.  And I have not forgotten the moves to the Chicken Dance.  Oh, and that I get a major lump in my throat slow dancing with my daughter to Bob Carlisle's song, Butterfly Kisses.

I spend a lot of time talking about accomplishment, but the accomplishment that matters most is the relationship.  I see it in effective communication between a project manager and his team.  I experience it when people learn to use office politics in positive ways.  I feel it when a team works together to create something new and exciting and better than the status quo.

But the relationships that excite me most of all are those of family and community.  When I see hundreds of dads get dressed up to take their daughters out for dinner and dancing, that is a huge accomplishment in both arenas.  Guys, teaching our daughters about dating and romance one of the most important roles we can fulfill.  It's our job to show them how it is done correctly, how chivalrous gentlemen act, how it feels to be placed on a pedestal, how important it is to be told they are beautiful (both inside and out), how to set an example of integrity, how to raise the bar so high that any boy who even thinks about looking at our daughters (let alone pursuing them) will have to work very, very hard to impress them.  When I see hundreds of guys willing to make the investment in that critical relationship, I know that both family and community are seizing the accomplishment that really matters.

SWAT This!!!

I've been playing with the concept for the better part of three years.  I've been living the concept throughout most of my consulting career, with successful engagements at multiple clients.  I've been researching the plot and characters for about the last 18 months.  The active writing started around eight months ago.  As my new year's resolution, I set February 6 at my target date for completing the first manuscript.

Last night (February 6) at 11:02 PM, I typed the last word of the Epilogue of SWAT (Systems Working All Together) into my laptop.  Of course, that was just the first draft.  Now I have months of editing, reviewing, revising, critiquing, second-guessing, buzz-building, marketing, speaking, and blogging about my next book before its release early next year.  But for now, I'm going to enjoy this one milestone.  Because it's a big one.  I remember when I reached it with Race Through The Forest, and I recall the feeling when GUST's final word was typed.

I really have to thank the Suburban Emergency Response Team (SERT), especially the guys from Urbandale and West Des Moines.  Their input into the world of SWAT operations and their encouragement have meant the world to me.

It feels great to be this far.  It feels better to know I've had wonderful people behind me the whole way.

Carpe Factum!

Following DUH-rections.

For Christmas, my wife gave me a new navigation system for my car.  Since the Ford Escape I chose was rather basic, it was missing many of the creature comforts I had enjoyed in my last vehicle, one of which was a compass.  Mind you, I'm not directionally impaired, but I do enjoy being able to see where I'm headed.

Now I'm stuck with the perky lady's voice giving me directions like "Turn Left Here" and "1.5 miles until right turn."  The fun part of having a bossy navigation system is that I'm still in the driver's seat.  And I'm a contrarian, so I ignore the directions a lot of the time and make the device recalculate the route based on my decisions rather than on its instructions.

While everyone from a school teacher to a hiring manager will tell you how important it is to follow directions, I'm here to challenge conventional wisdom on that front.  Here are a few times when I would say it is OK to ignore the directions and follow your own route:

1. If the directions don't make sense - a lot of people have blindly followed others because they were just programmed to do so.  But the orders they were following made no sense whatsoever and were not what the direction giver intended.  Put your "follower" side in neutral and engage your logical side.  If the request doesn't make sense, then ask questions.
2. If the direction-giver has no credibility - my first rule of following:  make sure the leader isn't an idiot.  If they have given consistently bad directions in the past, then there is a good chance that their managerial abilities have not improved.  Think about what is being asked of you, and who is asking it.
3. If the directions are not realistic given the environment - directions we've been given in the past some times do not make sense given new information.  One of the SWAT team instructors I know made a very astute observation last month when he told his team, "There's textbook, and then there's tactical."  He knew that there are times to throw out what you've been told and follow your gut if the rules of engagement have changed dramatically.

These are just a few of my guidelines for following (or ignoring) directions.  What are some of yours?

Super Bull Sunday

Today is the day when the two (supposedly) best teams in football match up against each other.  Personally, I'm tired of the Patriots and given their cheating (videotaping their opponents), I don't believe they should even be allowed to play any post-season games as punishment for earlier actions; hence, I'm rooting for the Giants.  But I'm not that big of an NFL fan to expend that much energy one way or another on this issue.  If the Packers, Bears, Vikings, Chiefs, or Colts are playing, I pay a lot more attention.

We're also two days away from Super Tuesday (which I find highly coincidental that it occurs on Mardi Gras).  The candidates are all scrambling, attempting to convince the remaining undecided voters that their camp is the best pony to vote on.  Those of us who have made up our minds on which candidates we like (or dislike) just chuckle amusedly at their feeble attempts to sway us, viewing their arguments as an intellectual pile of manure blowing in the political wind.

Not to be too harsh on the candidates' last ditch efforts, we do this all too often in business.  We wait until it's time to get a business case approved, go into management and present, and then wonder why it gets shot down.  Alistair Bathgate of the Workforce in a Box blog recently quoted an InfoWorld Article by David Linthicum that touched on the whole issue of selling your business case - especially in an economy-softened corporate budget environment.  While the economics of selling your idea has merit, and I don't disagree with either article in the least, one thought to add to both authors is the soft-skills... finding the key decision-makers early and beginning the influencing WELL BEFORE the decision needs to be made... or before they have the chance to make a preliminary decision against you.  Granted, you need to push the Return on Investment numbers and justify why it's a good idea, but you also need to make sure that the executives understand that well in advance of the formal presentation.

So don't wait for Super Bull Sunday to put your Monday Morning Presentation at Risk.  Start influencing and selling your ideas early.