The Book of Many Hints

Presentation Points...

2008-05-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

Some points for improving your next presentation:

On a slide, always put 5 +/- 2 (i.e., 3 to 7) items

Too few and audience loses interest
Too many and it looks crowded

Give a copy of the slides to the audiences before presentation
If you tie a point to an example, you get a better retention factor
Slides (overheads) are a background for an improvisation act
Don't Apologize (shows an error or lack of planning)
Have the room clean, simple, and setup before anyone arrives
Meet and welcome people at door with smiles (generates enthusiasm, sets mood)
Call people by name, it creates a rapport (Make sure your name tag is readable)
Show people out to door at end
When meeting people, have some form of physical contact (creates rapport)

shake hands, place hand on back when leading them in
Be aware of cultural differences

Before presentation, gain rapport

mingle, get info from audience
Don't stand at front shuffling papers, looks like you aren't ready

Work in stages:

Rapport building
clarity of talk

Sitting creates conversation, standing indicates dominance - presentation
If you can't get eye contact, audience isn't paying attention (change tracts!)
Eye Contact:

When talking, look at someone directly
Only move eyes to someone else when not talking
This brings people to present

Talk to individuals, not the whole group at a time
After asking a question, wait 5 full seconds

let's people absorb info & formulate question

Thank and acknowledge all contributions from the audience

"Great question", "That's a good comment"

Don't try to answer a question you don't know
50% of communications is non-verbal

smile, be energetic
stand up straight
use non-verbal communications when appropriate
use visuals (pictures, hands)
Be explanatory with your hands
If nothing, leave hands at side

crossed arms <> open mind
hands on hip <> flexible
don't slap hands on sides

Don't use `but', as in `Yes,but"

it alienates, negates everything before
use `and' instead

Contribute & share

Give People a chance to play. If you play, they will too
Give credit to audiences knowledge, and they will credit yours
If you say `It's a fact", you will be proven wrong
be flexible, don't take a position

"I believe its true", "In my experience"

Don't assess, look for possibilities in all audience contributions
If an audience viewpoint doesn't match yours, ask for elaboration
contribution is wanted
Ask for an experience which validates their viewpoint
explain why your viewpoint is also valid
Clarify audience question, ask for specifics.
Repeat question, ask if that's what they are asking
Don't be tied to content! Be present, here and now!
Be flexible, allow interrupts in presentation
know your purpose
know what you want to say, worry about order

At beginning, state purpose of presentation

1 clear concise statement
Allows you to avoid off the wall questions (doesn't fit purpose of talk)

Voice: Construction

Have contrast

loud, soft, fast, slow

articulate

Make sure you start from audience viewpoint

why should they learn what you are about to teach
use their examples from mingling
find out where customers are coming from

Repeat things
allows it to soak in
denotes importance
Don't overdo it!

Good design...

2008-05-13T02:22:00.000-07:00

Some very powerful design principles for a website, care of Google:

From What Makes a Design "Googley"?

1. Focus on people—their lives, their work, their dreams.
2. Every millisecond counts.
3. Simplicity is powerful.
4. Engage beginners and attract experts.
5. Dare to innovate.
6. Design for the world.
7. Plan for today's and tomorrow's business.
8. Delight the eye without distracting the mind.
9. Be worthy of people's trust.
10. Add a human touch.

The Management of Change

2008-05-08T09:08:00.000-07:00

Change for the Better: Change is an opportunity, not a crisis! The skill is to learn which change is best for you!

1. Map your world:

- Define you activities - All of them!

Factors under your control
Factors not under your control

Analyze its contents

The whole picture
What you are doing and the world around you

Keeping up never means you'll get ahead
Don't react! Changing all of the time isn't good, choose to change carefully!

2. Focus on theYour Roles in Life (lots available)

Choose a point in the future to concentrate on
Explain how your context will be changed

What are needs & opportunities that arise in that new context

3. Design for the future:

Decide on the opportunities available
Shape your activities to fill the opportunities

Don't destroy what you do best to fit the opportunity

Everyone has to be able to handle change, it is vital to choose the change that is best for you!

To Implement Change:

Good management means working together to find an answer

1) Analyze the gap

List the main differences between where you are and where you intend to be
Use the staff/everyone in a positive approach to change
Get the people to help map the differences, effects of changes

2) Plan the Route

Decide on the steps to help everyone progress from the present state to the future state. Examine what could help & what could hinder along the way.
Plan Carefully, 1 step at a time
Everyone must work together to plan the route
Raise practical problems
Make sure everyone has a clear understanding of the plans
Don't Rush

3) Manage the Journey

Provide the resources to take the steps

Support and train those involved
Change means unlearning and relearning
Will add new responsibilities

Work the issues
Provide information & advice to cope with change

You can never get there (the future), you are always looking and planning ahead.

Software Lifecycle detailed...

2008-05-01T08:19:00.000-07:00

Feasibility Study: Goals, documentation, focus, key participants produce req. doc
Functional Spec: - define terminology, requirements, volume & scale, what is needed and how it will work, conversion plan to new software, users help write specs (not review)
Detailed Design: - Define standards & conventions, identify development tools, define application architecture
Programming: - creating bugs
Unit Testing: - You Nit!, insure consistency to spec, insure program produces correct results, test plan, use drivers & stubs!
System Testing: - System meets functional spec., modules worktogether, identify programming and integration problems, insure system meets performance requirements. Check system with consistent and inconsistent input (users are not always consistent in their typing, on average 50% of code should be consistency checking).
Parallel testing: - Does system produce correct business results? Does system meet user requirements, compare old and new methods of doing business.
Training:- get users familiar with system, get operations familiar, allow time for developers to learn the new area where code will be used. Users should develop the training manual! Users should write the users manual.
Documentation: - Comprehensive, consistent with system, completed before system and parallel testing. Program documentation should be in code andextracted using utilities (like PDF).
Conversion: - Provide real data to new system. Enable users to do testing (system & parallel). catch problems before life operations. This is a large part ofthe software Lifecycle, should be 10% ofprogramming effort. Allow plenty of time for users to test it.
Pilot: - Phase the new system in a controlled way. Catch problems on a small scale while things can still be changed.
GO live: - the primary goal
Maintenance/Enhancements: - getting the chance to do things the way it should have been down the first time

Support Required:

Project Mgmt: - provides direction, defines responsibilities, monitors progress,institutes change
Progress Report: - Daily where we are, what we did to get there, what Tasks want to be, what needs to be done to get there. (spend no more than 1hr/wk. on this)
Review & Audit: we are; problems & opportunities; communicate and resolve issues; identify, evaluate, and reduce risks.

Conducting A Meeting

2008-05-01T08:11:00.000-07:00

Some points to keep in mind when conducting a meeting

Start on Time

if you wait, you are rewarding tardiness

Discuss one piece of business at a time
Allow each member to contribute in their way
Silence doesn't mean agreement, seek opinions

"What do you think, Peggy?"

Be ready to confront the verbal member

"Okay, we've heard from Mike, how about some other views?"

Test for readiness to make a decision
Make a decision
Test for commitment to the decision
Assign roles & responsibilities
Agree on follow-up or accountability dates
Indicate next step for group
Set time & place for next meeting
End on time
Was meeting necessary?

Source: I believe this was from John Cleese's 'More Bloody Meetings'

The Secret...

2008-04-28T08:02:00.000-07:00

I'm not usually a fan of the books/infomercials/presentations/etc about how to be successful - most of them are just hooey. However, after taking my CPM class, some things have become a bit clearer for me to explain to others. Last night Kerstin and I watched a film that I had seen in class called 'the secret'

I find that the cinematography of the film to be well-done (i.e., it fit to the story well) even if the message was a bit 'too much' for me. The main theme that they discuss in the film is called "The Law of Attraction" - if you want something enough, your thoughts will manifest themselves into that object, i.e., fulfilling your dreams. In other words, the universe will provide. Personally, this manifestation part is hard to swallow. My view is that opportunities/contacts/connections are flying by us all the time - one fellow CPM student described it like the starfield zipping past the Enterprise in the opening sequence of the original Star Trek series - each star was an opporunity/connection. By visualizing the object of your dreams, I don't think you manifest anything - rather, I think you become aware of the opportunities/contacts/connections that can help you achieve your goal. You can then pick out the next step that will help you towards achieving your goals. Same result, different way of expressing that, for me, doesn't seem so cultish.

"You become/attract what you think about most"
"Whatever you're thinking and feeling today is creating your future"

Project Phases and Elements (One Possible View)

2008-04-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

Phase 0 – Initialization
o Project Trigger
o Brief Context
o Main Targets
o Alternative Sketch
o Kick-off
Phase 1- Analysis & Pilot Study
o Problem description
o Alternatives
o Decision
o Sign-off
Phase 2 – Business Requirements
o Current Situation
o Target State & Deltas
o Business Prototype
o Profitability Assessment
o Sign-off
Phase 3 – IT Requirements
o IT design
o Systems & Application
o Test Concept
o Sign-off
Phase 4 – Implementation & Test
o Infrastructure
o Application
o Maintenance Concept
o Test
o Sign-off
Phase 5 – Introduction & Maintenance
o Introduction Plan
o Documentation & Training
o Go Live
o Live Test
o Sign-off
Phase 5+ - Closure
o Profitability reassessment
o Project exploration
o Maintenance and service check
Over-arching activities
o Project Management – project organization, planning, staffing, communication, controlling & risk management
o Change Management – requirements management, configuration & version management, distribution management
o Software Architecture Management – application management
o Quality Management – total quality & test management

Socrates’ Three Rules for communication

2008-04-24T09:17:00.000-07:00

Reference: Socrates?

Before reporting something you’ve heard (especially about a person), it should pass all three of these tests:

TRUTH - Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to repeat is true?

GOODNESS - Is what you are about to say something good?

USEFULNESS - Is what you want to tell me going to be useful to me?

The :01 Minute Manager Meets the Monkey

2008-04-17T03:51:00.000-07:00

The :01 Minute Manager Meets The Monkey

Get the book now at Amazon.co.uk

What is a Monkey? A monkey is a piece of work or task that needs to be done.

Goal: You should keep monkeys at the lowest level where they can be taken care of.

Four Rules of Monkey Management:

Describe the Monkey – what are the next steps for the piece of work. These need to be identified & specified
Assign the Monkey – The monkey should owned and handled at the lowest possible level.
Insure the Monkey – Decide whether the owner of monkey has to recommend the next step/answer, get approval, then act OR the monkey owner can act and advise you.
Check on the Monkey – set an appointment to review the monkey

Write a great email in 8 easy steps

2008-04-10T09:32:00.000-07:00

Write a great email in 8 easy steps

Category: Communication
Reference: Marc Cenedella, 2 Apr 2007, Technology Ladder newsletter

Your subject line should say why you are sending the email – this allows the reader to provide a theme and stay organized
Cut to the chase. Quickly. – this ensures that the reader gets to the message without having to scroll down.
Use bold sparingly, to accentuate words that you’d like emphasized.
Number or alpha-bullet point – use a) b) c) or 1) 2) 3) to break up the email, clarify your main points and make responding to you easier.
Attach with caution! – always send .doc or .txt if you don’t know if the recipient can read PDF
Include a clear “call to action” – this is your request to the read to do something. What do you want the reader to do and in what timeframe.
Delete every word that is not absolutely essential (to achieving your meaning).
Check out what George Orwell, author of "1984" and "Animal Farm", has to say on the topic.

Planning a Meeting - Meetings, Bloody Meetings

2008-04-08T07:41:00.000-07:00

Source: Meetings, Bloody Meetings from http://www.johncleesetraining.com/. Excellent & humorous video on running meetings.

Plan the Meeting

Determine Agenda

Direction
Area
End goal expected

Attendees
Objectives of Meeting/Reason for Meeting

Inform

Tell attendees:

What is to be discussed
Why is it to be discussed
Expected result of discussion

Anticipate what will be needed for meeting
Ensure needed materials will be ready for meeting

Prepare

Get the order of agenda correct (logical succession)
Allocate time for each item

Based on importance, not urgency

Structure & Control

For each agenda item:

Give evidence
Interpret evidence
Decide on action

Don't jump back and forth between phases

Summarize & Record

For each item discussed:

Summarize what was discussed
Summarize action to be taken
Determine responsibility of action decided