[chrisbrogan.com] - Self-Improvement

Critics versus Players

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 11:34:14 +0100

"It is not the critic that counts; not 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, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly. Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that know neither victory nor defeat." -- Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919), 26th U.S. President

I'm a bit of a complainer. I tend to think of my complaints as "helpful." I like to believe that I'm doing something just by bringing up the fact that something's wrong. It's the classic "tattletale" versus "whistleblower" issue.

Recently, I emailed the above quote to my VP and announced that my new tack was to be face-down in my work. I'm going to work on delivering the best solutions possible to the things I normally complain about from my level and from my station on the team. And if I have something that reaches above and beyond my roles and responsibilities, it won't be a complaint. It will be a fully-realized plan with the edges already shaded in.

This also comes to me because I've been reading lots of blogs' comment sections lately, and whenever someone gripes about a site or a person or whatever, it really drags LOTS of people into the, "Yeah, they REALLY suck!" conversation mode. Which is fine for what it is, but is it helpful? What's the next step? Where's the actionable participation?

I hope to make a difference via the contributions I provide. This is another foundation to my 2006 strategy:

Ask / Share / Grow / Do.

Dan's Life Review

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Tue, 17 Jan 2006 10:05:42 +0100

Dan Hill over at Flying Aqua Badger (yeah... just let that sink in a bit) has a great post about his life review. What grabbed me the most was the useful (and nice-looking) spreadsheet he'd put together, complete with ratings. Check it out here.

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What If You're Not That Busy?

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 00:43:28 +0100

A swell feller by the name of Michael at PigPog has a neat article called Doing GTD without doing GTD. (GTD is "Getting Things Done," and it relates to a productivity method described by David Allen.) His take on this is: what if you're not really all that busy, but you still want to use the best of the productivity tools? I like the concept. He's got great ideas on his site, too.

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Learning Theory

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 00:25:08 +0100

Ken Burgin's site pointed me towards a neat article on a Crash Course in Learning Theory. There's also a follow-up entry with a useful PDF file. Here's that entry.

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Getting Things Done and Visual Thinking

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Fri, 13 Jan 2006 00:01:49 +0100

Joan Mas, over at GTDrawings, is doing some amazing work with using visual thinking combined with David Allen's Getting Things Done. It's a site that should appeal to both Matt and Dave.

Check It Out!

The Naked Organization

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Tue, 10 Jan 2006 17:01:43 +0100

You want to hear something crazy? What if -- yes, this is a "what if" question -- what if you figured out what it was your company or team did, and focused ONLY on getting those things done? What if you chucked all the rules, all the pre-existing culture, all the format and formalized methods, and just "did stuff?" The basics. The stuff that needs doing. What would happen?

What does your organization do? What's the output? Does your team do software engineering? What's in place right now? Is it working amazingly well? Are you doing the best you've ever done? If you aren't, then there's a great license to try the idea.

Strip it all away!

Can you imagine throwing away EVERYTHING and getting back to the basics? Kill your processes. Kill your rituals, your routines. Delete all the software you use. Strip it right down to the bare metal. What would be left?

Think of those experimental cars, where the engineers just throw the frame, the wheels, the steering system, the engine, and the gas tank on the platform. Think about Google versus MSN Search. Think of a piece of paper instead of a scalable vector graphics program. Think face to face instead of emails. Go deeper.

What does your organization do, in three words? What is your part? In. Three. Words.

One trick for innovating is to start things over from scratch. Sometimes, in the process, we rediscover things that worked well way back when, and we abandoned them. Other times, we realize that we're relying on something as a crutch, and that we should have a back-up in place.

How Hard Can It Be?

There's a cliche in comic books when a new creative team comes on board. "We're going to take it all back to the beginning. We're going to look at Crusty Pants Man in a way he's never been considered before." Occasionally, a team delivers on this promise, and when they do, the same characters that have been running around with their underpants on the outside seem to come to life for yet another trip around New York to beat up other grown adults in tights. I love those moments, as it shows that a good creative team, especially one that doesn't rest on the laurels of other people, nor the pre-conceived constructs of the culture, can still bring about excitement and freshness to a product.

But your job is much more important than comic books, right? It's just short of life-or-death. Doctors throw away traditions and protocols all the time. They start over naked every time a researcher blows the medical field apart with a new treatment, a new process, a new way to make the world a better place. But maybe that's not rocket science.

NASA was in the business of throwing people into space and having them poke around the moon, or share powdered cocktails on the International Space Station. Can you imagine the meeting where a guy came in and said, I want to hurl a bunch of little robots all over Mars. Okay? But the guy was right, and he was a success. Robots that were built to live for (hopefully) 90 days just celebrated their two year anniversary of being fully operational.

How would you strip your business naked? How would you strip your own habits bare? What's not working, and why are you still doing it? I challenge you to strip away 3 habits today. Now. To the bone. Write them down. Try this format:

These three things aren't working for me:

________________________________________

________________________________________

________________________________________

So, I'm going to chuck them. I'm going to STOP doing them. Today.

Write down the list. Carry it with you. Stick to it. Make no excuses. Just give them the boot. (And for those of you playing at home, here are the three I'm going to kick starting today: no more soda, no bagels for breakfast, no chocolate monster). What are yours?

Make Holes Not Drills

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 20:40:41 +0100

Jack Welch went into leading General Electric with a pretty clear message. He wanted each of the business units to be the Number One or Number Two business, or GE should get rid of it. This worked for a little while, but then he realized a snag: once a business unit hit their stride and made #1 or #2, they didn't really grow in leaps and bounds. The solution?

Jack had the business leaders go back and redefine the markets such that the business units were no longer #1 or #2. Usually, this meant broadening out the mission. Instead of being the #1 lightbulb maker, maybe GE Lighting would re-cast themselves as the #14 Office Environment company. The message, and I'll talk more about it, is this: broaden your view of yourself and the work you do.

In his great book, BUSINESS WRITING AND COMMUNICATION, Ken Davis titles Chapter 2, "Make Holes Not Drills." It relates to an old business story, where a consultant tells a tool company that they're not in the business of making tools; they're in the business of making holes. Does this click with you? It's a matter of perspective. It's a matter of better understanding what value you're bringing. It's not that you're great tool makers. You're great at helping your customers/users/clients make great holes. (The rest of the book is equally useful in helping one write more concise, useful material, and I highly recommend it).

Take Away

How do you see the purpose of what you or your team (or company) do? What is it your customers (internal or otherwise) are using you for? Is there a way to expand the value? Are there other complementary resources you could provide when you look at this differently?

A Personal Example

When I started this new role last year, I saw myself as a strong "operations" kind of guy, someone to get the logistics managed for this new line of business. As the year progressed, I realized that what I was doing MOSTLY was providing content. In this new world of voracious consumption of information, someone still has to churn out the content. It was a breakthrough. But further, I took this role out into my personal ventures. I've stepped up content production enormously. Take this site, for example. Take the work I'm doing on other sites. I'm expanding the view of my "business," such that I'm hoping to grow it into something bigger through the expansion.

2006 is the lab experiment for this specific idea. What's YOUR plan?

A Simplification Checklist

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Mon, 09 Jan 2006 08:47:15 +0100

Lifehack.org is offering a checklist for simplifying your life. I agree with the concept. Reducing streams of information in factors heavy in having your head free to do what matters most to you.

Rope Off Your Bad Habits

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Sun, 08 Jan 2006 23:17:08 +0100

Here's a great post for folks who are looking to break bad habits in 2006. A DMZ for bad habits.

Productivity at Home!

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Sun, 08 Jan 2006 23:06:22 +0100

Are you at home with the kids and thinking, "Man, this Chris Brogan NEVER has anything that pertains to my life!" ? Well, you're right. But here's who does: Parent Hacks! These guys have a great site, with lots of top-shelf ideas for making things easier for the diaper-and-minivan set. (Don't forget: a new kid is coming in 7 days).

Getting Things Done with a Blackberry

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Sun, 08 Jan 2006 23:03:03 +0100

Gary Slinger has a 3-part series on using a Blackberry for Getting Things Done, which is something ELSE you can do with a Blackberry. I use mine for playing Texas Hold-Em, mind you.

Goal Setting: Start at the End

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Fri, 06 Jan 2006 08:02:44 +0100

Lots of folks have been talking about goals. It's January of a new year. That's what people do. But do you want to set goals you might actually achieve? Here are some thoughts.

Start at the End

Here's a popular goal: "I want to lose 20 pounds." Well sure. Lots of folks do. But let's recast this goal just a little bit. Look at what you want to accomplish, and then, try thinking about it in all its dimensions. Try this:

"By September, I want to feel GREAT. I'm eating more fruits and vegetables, whole grains and lean protein. (And I still cheat on one big meal a week). I'm getting out to bike every few days, and doing pushups in my living room. Getting up early stinks a little, but hey. You gotta put in the work. It's taking me about an hour from start to finish to work out, but I use the time to catch up on the news. My son's getting into working out with me, too, which is nice. I get more and more compliments, and I don't tell my spouse this, but, I get more looks from others lately. It's a nice feeling."

What's the difference? I added in the experience. I drew the picture in all its dimensions. I showed more of the end-state, and less of what you're thinking at the start. When you read the above, it should make you think: "Wow! Maybe I'll do that goal, too!"

I asked the guy at my local Chinese take-out what his next plans were after the restaurant. (Most of the younger folks working at Chinese restaurants are doing it to help out the family, and earning money for what they REALLY want to do in life). His answer? "I'm planning to retire at 45."

I was floored! Whoa.

He went on, "Yeah, and then I can golf, read books, travel. I can do anything I want, because I'll still be healthy enough to enjoy it. I'm working six long days a week now, but when I think about the future, I can make it."

Talk about starting at the end.

New Post at Grasshopper Nation

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Tue, 03 Jan 2006 15:10:37 +0100

Are you celebrating the Year of the Grasshopper? Today's post is titled: Towards a More Balanced Toolkit. You might have a great set of methods and practiced skills around executing and accomplishing daily tasks, but do you have tools to help better focus you on what matters most to you? Read more at Grasshopper Nation.

Bust a Mental Log Jam with Visual Thinking

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Mon, 02 Jan 2006 22:29:54 +0100

There's this work-related problem that's been bugging me for days, a real foundation-shaker of a mess in my head. I've been pretty down about it. The thing is, I know all the piece parts of the issues, but I haven't figured out how to get past "bitching" and into "useful stuff my Vice President will appreciate." You see: bringing a problem to your boss's doorstep is like a cat bringing you a dead mouse.

Before this point, I was stuck, because mostly, I was repeating a little mental sound-byte collage of the things bugging me. My thoughts were swirling around in my head. I tried journaling this, writing down my thoughts in paragraphs. I tried bullets. I tried splitting a page in half and doing the old reliable "pros" and "cons" columns. No go. I only figured things out when I added a dimension to my problem-solving.

Visual Thinking.

In this specific case, I drew circles and lines, and swervy curves. I drew the "mother ship" of my company, and the little areas that I feel are in flux. I drew my own problems with me at the center. I drew radiating lines of options around me. It was exactly what I needed.

I figured out a way to approach the problem that was holistic, that focused on the needs of the company, instead of what was bugging me. Realistically, I can DEAL with what's bugging me, if that's just a matter of personal conflict, but the larger picture, the stuff I saw when I started mind-mapping and drawing visual imagery around what was on my mind, came to me only when I used a different technique to dissect my problems.

I didn't realize this was called "visual thinking" until I read Dave Gray's work. (I've linked a million times to Dave, but here's his Communication Nation blog, his Visual Thinking School, and his company.) I encourage you to give it a whirl the next time you've a problem to solve.

2006- The Year of the Grasshopper

supersized@chrisbrogan.com (Chris Brogan) — Sun, 01 Jan 2006 07:57:29 +0100

It's launched.

I got the first grasshopper site configured and put up a post or two. What's different? This will be the focused effort I've been working up to over the last several months. This will also be the starting point of the collaborative effort I mentioned to some of you in email a few weeks ago.

This is your own personal "call to arms."

Come join the Grasshopper Nation.