Credit for this list goes to: Dustin Wax author of Lifehack.org
43 Folders: Merlin Mann started a lot of us on this journey, so now he has to pay. In the meantime, though, he and his crew of happy Folderers keep on providing great tips on productivity and getting things done, especially for Mac users.
All Things Workplace: Tips from Steve Roesler on becoming a more effective leader.
Awake At The Wheel: Great stuff from serial entrepreneur, yoga expert, and writer Jonathan Fields on being happy and successful in all your endeavors.
Black Belt Productivity: Co-written by Jason Echols and Michael Ramm, BBP covers workplace productivity and GTD. Home of the “GTD Primer”, an excellent series of posts introducing GTD methods.
Change Your Thoughts: Steven Aitchison’s blog on health, finances, relationships, writing, and generally keeping a positive perspective on life.
Conflict Zen: Formerly “I Can’t Say That”, Conflict Zen is all about dealing with and resolving interpersonal conflict. If you know people, you probably need to get a little conflict Zen.
Cranking Widgets: Brett Kelly offers practical GTD-minded advice on life and productivity.
Creating a Better Life: Personal development in its purest form, CaBL deals with productivity and related issues from the perspective of creating internal attitudes that make us more productive. Check out the rather thorough listing of free personal development e-books, too!
The Daily Saint : I have it on good authority that Mike St. Pierre isn’t a saint at all. But who cares? He offers great tips on being more productive and managing time better, with an emphasis on creating meaning in your life.
Design Your Writing Life: Lisa Gates poses thoughtful questions and exercises to help you tap into and express your inner creativity, in writing or any other form.
Diary of a Four-Hour-a-Weeker: Like the title says, this is the journal of an entrepreneur trying to implement the suggestions of Tim Ferriss’ 4-Hour Workweek.
Did I Get Things Done?: Andrew Mason’s blog focuses around his efforts to implement and live by the principles in David Allen’s Getting Things Done.
D*I*Y Planner: The blog is wacky and often deeply obscure, celebrating a sometimes unholy love between the writers and their pens and paper. But the main attraction is the DIY Planner templates — an incredible assortment of print-them-yourself forms for all your productivity and creativity needs.
Dumb Little Man: DLM’s Jay White ain’t so dumb after all. Jay shares tips on productivity, personal development, and business life.
Escape From Corporate America: Advice on working the corporate world to your advantage — even if that means leaving it — from career change expert Pamela Skillings.
Even Happier: Counselor and former Italian pop sensation Marco shares his insights on living a happier life.
Flipping Heck!: Productivity notes with an emphasis on the workplace. Offers lots of tutorials on using various pieces of software as well as on dealing with common workplace tasks.
Genuine Curiosity: Dwayne Melancon reviews books, software, and other tools that help keep us productive.
Get Rich Slowly: GRS is devoted to personal finance, offering tips and advice on saving money, investing wisely, and getting a grip on your investing.
Getting Things Done: Getting Things Done (the blog) is all about applying the principles of Getting Things Done (the book). Home of the Ultimate GTD Index, which pulls together feeds from GTD sites across the ‘Net.
The Growing Life: Clay Collins takes on everything you thought you knew about productivity with his anti-hacks and the concept of lifestyle design.
GTD Times: Officially sanctioned by David Allen, GTD Times focuses especially on business productivity.
LifeClever: Tips on life and productivity with an emphasis on design, both how design aids productivity and the special challenges designers face.
Lifehacker: Lifehacker offers a mix of daily news on the productivity beat as well as an assortment of handy little apps that help you get things done. It’s not Lifehack
The Life Hackery: Lots of clever tips on health and fitness, household organization, Internet apps, and plenty more.
Life Learning Today: Learn about life and live to learn with Life Learning Today. Tips on personal development and productivity, but also health, money, work , blogging, and more.
Life Lessons of a Military Wife: The title says it all: this site offers life lessons from a military wife, with a focus on personal and home finances and family organization.
Life Optimizer Life Optimizer: Donald Latumahina’s blog about making the most out of the resources you’re given to live with. Great stuff to keep your outlook strong.
LifeReboot: Shaun Boyd’s blog on finding and pursuing your passion in work, learning, relationships, and life as a whole.
Life Sutra: The 4-Hour Workweek Journal: Andrew Brick, a 30-something software professional, offers tips and tricks centered around the ideas in 4HWW.
LifeTweak: Blogger Manu writes on general productivity topics. Distinguished by his amusing hand-drawn illustrations and earnestly helpful content.
LivSimpl: Happiness through simplicity (and the elimination of silent e’s).
A Long Long Road: Lawrence Cheok’s blog on personal growth, careers, and relationships.
Matt’s Idea Blog: Matthew Cornell is a personal productivity consultant who shares his ideas on productivity, motivation, and personal growth.
MonkAtWork: Adam Kayce is not a monk. Instead, he writes about bringing a sense of spirituality and passion to your work. If you must have a monk, though, there’s a very cool drawing of one.
Newly Corporate: Group blog covering workplace and life “best practices” for young professionals.
One Bag Nation: Ann at One Bag Nation documents the journey of a naturally disorganized person in her quest to gain a little order in her life.
Open Loops: Good, solid GTD-oriented advice from a man with a beard (there’s no About page, is what I’m saying).
Organize IT: Practical-minded advice on productivity, health, finance, personal growth, and GTD.
Nick Pagan: Nick Pagan wants you to understand you better. To that end, he presents productivity and personal development information based on how the mind works. Meaty, deeply researched stuff.
Steve Pavlina’s Personal Development Blog: Are you smart? Then you owe it to yourself to check out Steve Pavlina’s personal development tips for smart people. Steve writes eloquently about entrepreneurship, especially working online, and the tools and attitudes that make it work.
Personal Development Blog: Gleb Reys shares what he learns on his own quest for personal development.
Personal Development Ideas: You want personal development ideas, Personal Development Ideas has personal development ideas. Goal-setting, time-management, and personal growth top the bill here.
Persistence Unlimited: From the man who gave MobilePC users “Achieve-IT!” comes a blog about coming up with and acting on your ideas. By turns inspirational and funny, PU knows how to get stuff done.
John Place Online:John Place helps you maximize your potential for happiness with tips and advice, with a lot of strong material on relationships.
Productivity501: Great blog from Mark Shead on productivity tools and techniques. As the name suggests, Mark is focused not just on getting started but on advanced thinking about productivity.
Put Things Off: Nick Cernis enlists the aid of a fuzzy kitten and his lunchtime banana to transform productivity from a hobby into a way of life. Refreshingly contrarian — and a little silly. Focuses on freelancing, software, entrepreneurship, and general productivity.
Right Attitudes » Ideas for Impact: Nagesh Belludi offers practical advice for developing the right attitudes in life — and transforming attitudes into behaviors that help you be more productive.
Ririan Project: Ririan is a guy on a quest to remake his life, and he shares the process with us.
David Seah: David Seah offers advice and a set of great templates (including “The Printable CEO” series) to empower you to reach new heights.
Alex Shalman : Lifehack.org contributor and medical student Alex Shalman’s site offers thought-provoking essays on relationships, the examined life, and health, along with general productivity and personal development tips.
SimpleProductivityBlog: Lots of great ideas here, including several multi-part series on various aspects of GTD and productivity.
Slow Leadership: Focused largely on business leadership and the evils of “hamburger management”, Carmine Coyote’s ideas about leadership can be adapted to any life.
Slower Living: Slow down! What’s the big rush, anyway? Find peace, happiness, and even greater productivity (in the things that matter to you most) with these tips on living life in the slow lane — or off the road entirely.
SuccessMinders: Jacob Cazell’s tips on developing a success-oriented mindset.
Success Soul: Shilpan Patel offers inspiration and advice drawn from the greatest minds, all with an eye towards what you and I can learn so we can make our own success.
Technotheory.com: Technology and productivity talk from a DC-based efficiency trainer.
Think Simple Now: Creativity, clarity, and happiness — what could be better? Think Simple Now covers the tools and techniques to get there.
Today is that Day: Aaron Potts’ goal is your empowerment, with posts on success, wealth, and happiness.
Uncle Joe’s Leadership Blog: “Uncle” Joe Hungler shares his advice on cultivating and teaching leadership.
What’s the Next Action?: Read What’s the Next Action for advice on project planning and getting things done.
Wise Bread: A personal finance site committed to helping readers live within their means with budgeting tips and advice on finding the best deals saving money on life’s necessities.
Work N Play: Good advice from Ritu, especially on making the most out of the web for networking, freelancing, and doing business.
Scott H Young:: University student Scott Young takes on general productivity topics as well as offering studying tips and advice on lifelong learning.
Zen Habits: Leo Babauta writes incredibly well about productivity, health and wellness, and most of all about living the simple life.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Thursday, July 03, 2008
Arrogant Leaders
Arrogant leaders are by nature self centered. They believe their success is because of their own abilities and qualities. They are quick to point out the mistakes of others and rarely take the blame for anything that goes wrong. They are project killers because of their poor listening skills and their inability to see beyond themselves and their narrow views. They know best, and find it burdensome to give others the stage. Challenge them or try to draw them into a debate and watch out! You will be quickly labeled as inflexible and unwilling to accept “what is best”.
In Jim Collins’ book “Good to Great” he found through surveys that humble leadership (opposite of arrogance) was one of the many leadership traits that contributed to the long-term success of organizations. Humble leaders get involved, are willing to listen to opposing viewpoints, and have high self-esteem. They have high moral values, which causes them to be centered on doing things right for the right reasons. They energize others, and believe their talents are a gift to be kept in perspective both in the work place and in their personal lives.
Note: This doesn’t always apply, but you would be surprised. Look at what the arrogant leader and the humble leader drive to work. That can tell you a lot about who they are and the image they are trying to portray.
One of the things we know is that leaders can’t effectively lead if they don’t know what is going on. A telltale sign of the arrogant leader is they don’t care about the details. That is because details are beneath them. They also believe that execution is beneath them. They are the grand strategist and don’t have time to get involved in the details. They are interested in headlines, not deadlines. Serving the greater good takes a back seat to serving their own self interests.
Another trait you might see is that arrogant leaders are threatened by the “good” leaders. They fear the good leader’s success and often view them as weak and ineffective (envy is a four letter word). In fact, many arrogant leaders see humility and attentiveness in others as a character flaw. We know by observation that the arrogant leaders are the ones with the weak character, the ones with the poor communication skills, and are the ones with the low self esteem. The arrogant leader’s weaknesses are easy to spot. They don’t fool anybody but themselves. Remember the CEOs of Enron, MCI/WorldCom? At one time they were arrogant, now they are in prison.
Emotional Outburst #1 - Arrogant leaders are organizational pariahs, and are terrible project managers.
A leader that motivates and inspires has to be visible, informed, and respected. Like any good engineer knows, you sometimes have to get your hands dirty to solve problems and gain the respect of the people doing the work.
An arrogant leader is the opposite of a servant leader. Whether they wear a skirt or a suit they are inhibitors to organizational excellence and their thirst for power destroys team synergy and employee morale.
In Jim Collins’ book “Good to Great” he found through surveys that humble leadership (opposite of arrogance) was one of the many leadership traits that contributed to the long-term success of organizations. Humble leaders get involved, are willing to listen to opposing viewpoints, and have high self-esteem. They have high moral values, which causes them to be centered on doing things right for the right reasons. They energize others, and believe their talents are a gift to be kept in perspective both in the work place and in their personal lives.
Note: This doesn’t always apply, but you would be surprised. Look at what the arrogant leader and the humble leader drive to work. That can tell you a lot about who they are and the image they are trying to portray.
One of the things we know is that leaders can’t effectively lead if they don’t know what is going on. A telltale sign of the arrogant leader is they don’t care about the details. That is because details are beneath them. They also believe that execution is beneath them. They are the grand strategist and don’t have time to get involved in the details. They are interested in headlines, not deadlines. Serving the greater good takes a back seat to serving their own self interests.
Another trait you might see is that arrogant leaders are threatened by the “good” leaders. They fear the good leader’s success and often view them as weak and ineffective (envy is a four letter word). In fact, many arrogant leaders see humility and attentiveness in others as a character flaw. We know by observation that the arrogant leaders are the ones with the weak character, the ones with the poor communication skills, and are the ones with the low self esteem. The arrogant leader’s weaknesses are easy to spot. They don’t fool anybody but themselves. Remember the CEOs of Enron, MCI/WorldCom? At one time they were arrogant, now they are in prison.
Emotional Outburst #1 - Arrogant leaders are organizational pariahs, and are terrible project managers.
A leader that motivates and inspires has to be visible, informed, and respected. Like any good engineer knows, you sometimes have to get your hands dirty to solve problems and gain the respect of the people doing the work.
An arrogant leader is the opposite of a servant leader. Whether they wear a skirt or a suit they are inhibitors to organizational excellence and their thirst for power destroys team synergy and employee morale.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Project Management is about the Journey and the Destination
I like to use the ProjectSteps blog to vent, and hopefully, every once in a while, I pass on some small piece of useful information to another person. It is hard to know sometimes if anybody is benefiting from my ramblings, but like all free advice it is worth what you paid for it. There was an article published recently that said keeping a blog is therapeutic. I believe there may be some truth to that statement, and that is why I will probably keep the blog going. I need a place to vent my opinion, and occasionally rail against the “demons of stupidity”.
We are in a tough economy right now and It is having a big impact on the area where I live and on the organization I work for. We are struggling to make meaningful cuts (tens of millions of dollars) to achieve savings that will balance our budget. At my workplace people are losing their jobs, and as we all know this is a very upsetting and troubling process to watch. I have faith that I can work my way through this situation and still find time to give back to others in need. These are tough times that may get tougher and we have to all pull together and do what we can for each other.
I feel blessed to have a job and I’m thankful to have a roof over my head and two great kids. I have hope for my career, my country and believe that both will get back on track to better times soon. Sometimes hope and faith are the only things that we have under our control. I believe that while faith can be fleeting, hope lasts forever.
In the end, we all are in charge of our own destiny and our own success. In tough times it takes effort to keep your head in the game and stay focused. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that the career of a project manager can have great rewards, but it can also be filled with great frustrations and experiences that are less than rewarding. My point? Tough times and times of uncertainty require mental toughness and a strong resolve to do the right things at the right times for the right reasons.
In closing I would like to say we lost a good man when Tim Russert passed away. I will miss seeing him and hearing his wisdom on Sunday mornings. Also, I can’t forget George Carlin who also passed away last week. While controversial, Mr. Carlin told it like it was and also loved to rail against the “demons of stupidity”. I will miss them both.
We are in a tough economy right now and It is having a big impact on the area where I live and on the organization I work for. We are struggling to make meaningful cuts (tens of millions of dollars) to achieve savings that will balance our budget. At my workplace people are losing their jobs, and as we all know this is a very upsetting and troubling process to watch. I have faith that I can work my way through this situation and still find time to give back to others in need. These are tough times that may get tougher and we have to all pull together and do what we can for each other.
I feel blessed to have a job and I’m thankful to have a roof over my head and two great kids. I have hope for my career, my country and believe that both will get back on track to better times soon. Sometimes hope and faith are the only things that we have under our control. I believe that while faith can be fleeting, hope lasts forever.
In the end, we all are in charge of our own destiny and our own success. In tough times it takes effort to keep your head in the game and stay focused. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that the career of a project manager can have great rewards, but it can also be filled with great frustrations and experiences that are less than rewarding. My point? Tough times and times of uncertainty require mental toughness and a strong resolve to do the right things at the right times for the right reasons.
In closing I would like to say we lost a good man when Tim Russert passed away. I will miss seeing him and hearing his wisdom on Sunday mornings. Also, I can’t forget George Carlin who also passed away last week. While controversial, Mr. Carlin told it like it was and also loved to rail against the “demons of stupidity”. I will miss them both.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Reward Excellent Failures!
Another great video from Tom Peters! I agree with everything he says in this video to my core.
Do you have a comment? Leave it here.
Do you have a comment? Leave it here.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
A Case for a Business Case
Before a project is started, there should always be a business case. Without a business case that defines the problem(s) you are trying to solve and what success looks like your project will start on very shaky ground. Remember, the business case is always written by the organization receiving the benefits.
A business case is nothing more than a story. As you begin to write your business case one of the first things you must define is the benefits (the value) the product(s) of the business case will bring. This value statement should be specific and brief, and additionally the business benefits must be clear and measurable.
Here are some basic questions that must always be answered when developing a business case. They are:
What is the problem you are trying to solve? What are the gaps between where you are and where you want to go? What are the assumptions? What will it cost?
What is the ROI (Return on Investment) and how long will it take to recoup the investment?
When did the problem first appear? How long has it been happening? What is it costing you?
Where is the problem occurring?
Who is impacted?
Why is there a problem? What is causing the problem and what is the effect? Why is it needed now? How big is the problem?
How will solving or minimizing the problem save money or add value? How will you measure the value?
Are the business case’s benefits worth it? Are they realistic?
There are many more questions to be answered when developing a business case, however answering the questions above will get you off to a great start. Also, there are templates available in the Project Management community that can help your organization put together a business case that makes sense for your needs and requirements.
A business case is nothing more than a story. As you begin to write your business case one of the first things you must define is the benefits (the value) the product(s) of the business case will bring. This value statement should be specific and brief, and additionally the business benefits must be clear and measurable.
Here are some basic questions that must always be answered when developing a business case. They are:
What is the problem you are trying to solve? What are the gaps between where you are and where you want to go? What are the assumptions? What will it cost?
What is the ROI (Return on Investment) and how long will it take to recoup the investment?
When did the problem first appear? How long has it been happening? What is it costing you?
Where is the problem occurring?
Who is impacted?
Why is there a problem? What is causing the problem and what is the effect? Why is it needed now? How big is the problem?
How will solving or minimizing the problem save money or add value? How will you measure the value?
Are the business case’s benefits worth it? Are they realistic?
There are many more questions to be answered when developing a business case, however answering the questions above will get you off to a great start. Also, there are templates available in the Project Management community that can help your organization put together a business case that makes sense for your needs and requirements.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Refreshing Break?
Ok, I’m trying to make the blog a little more fun from time to time. Check out the video below.
How To Build A Mentos And Diet Coke Booby Trap
Does your boss drink Coke?
How To Build A Mentos And Diet Coke Booby Trap
Does your boss drink Coke?
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Listening and Respect
I used to work for a guy that spent most of his time checking his e-mail during meetings with his staff, and during one-on-one conversations. He never really cared what others were saying because his responses to questions and his off-hand comments would always deflect to what he wanted to discuss and rarely would he address the other person's ideas or inquiries. I still think of him as one of the most disrespectful and arrogant people I have known.
Looking back, I think he is insecure and uncomfortable communicating face-to-face, which would explain why 98% of his communications to his staff and peers is via e-mail. His poor listening and communication skills hurt his credibility with others, and cause many of of his ideas to be rejected or considered to have little merit. You see when you tend not to respect and listen to others, they tend not to respect or listen to you. It is a shame people like him hold powerful "leadership" positions. Great leaders must be incredible communicators, and must be respectful of others at all times.
Watch this very short video of Tom Peters explain how we can ensure we are showing proper respect to others.
Remember, give people the time they deserve and really listen to them. To be honest, I am guilty of not listening well all the time, but I'm aware of it and I'm trying continuously to improve these skills.
Looking back, I think he is insecure and uncomfortable communicating face-to-face, which would explain why 98% of his communications to his staff and peers is via e-mail. His poor listening and communication skills hurt his credibility with others, and cause many of of his ideas to be rejected or considered to have little merit. You see when you tend not to respect and listen to others, they tend not to respect or listen to you. It is a shame people like him hold powerful "leadership" positions. Great leaders must be incredible communicators, and must be respectful of others at all times.
Watch this very short video of Tom Peters explain how we can ensure we are showing proper respect to others.
Remember, give people the time they deserve and really listen to them. To be honest, I am guilty of not listening well all the time, but I'm aware of it and I'm trying continuously to improve these skills.