Many of you probably know someone who participated in this week’s “Hour of Code,” the more pop-culture name for “Computer Science Education Week.” As is typical, and beautiful, of computer scientists, Hour of Code is a small, encapsulated function that is biased towards action: a “one-hour introduction to computer science, designed to demystify code and […]
“Soon” Never Comes: Open Source, And Life
“Temporary” doesn’t turn out that way. If you want something to be a certain way, do it from the beginning. “We’re discussing open sourcing the project code,” she said. “When?” I asked. “Oh, we’ll have to discuss that,” she said. “But soon. Soon.” What’s open source and what does it have to do with the […]
Email Thank You Notes Suck. What You Can Do About It.
Here are two truths. 1. Everyone loves thank you notes. They are small labors of love, a gift. 2. Everyone hates email. Getting an email adds to your work burden. It’s like giving someone flowers in a broken vase. So why is it so common that the two get combined? A hint: we are busier […]
Surrounded By Yes? Get The Feedback You Need.
Leaders hear a lot of “yes.” How can you get the feedback you need? Yes is a lovely word. But you don’t always want to hear it. “Yes” can get in the way of “better.” Every boss finds him on herself surrounded by minions who are going to say “yes,” or “great idea.” But, who […]
Set Boundaries Or Join The Walking Dead
Those who have no boundaries have greater stress. And they’re less effective. Indeed, they’re the walking dead of your company. You know what I mean by boundaries. Or at least I hope you do. The boundary that you set about not working on Saturdays, although you’ll be happy to work on Sundays if needed. The […]
How To Get More Spare Time
Focus is power. Scheduling leads to focus, which can dramatically save time. For years, I have advised organizations and individuals on the power of the forward project schedule, that is, keeping a list of projects organized by which quarter they will be done in. A project docket that doesn’t have a time aspect is just […]
Stop This Bad Habit To Gain 5x Productivity
Well, if that wasn’t a clickbait headline, I don’t know what was. But, really. Stop ONE bad habit and you’ll gain 5x productivity. Two words: Stop agonizing. You know what I mean. When you read an email over 20 times before you click send, because you’re afraid that your boss will see a typo and […]
The Myth of Permanence And Impostor Syndrome
Things go wrong. Anybody who tells you otherwise is selling something. Yet, when things go wrong, most of us, especially high achievers, start thinking that there’s something wrong with us. “I’m totally an incompetent fraud.” Impostor Syndrome. I know someone in the HR world who has worked at some of the biggest and best companies […]