(Pic Courtesy: Pinterest)
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Waterfall to Agile
Working in Agile and don't know what to expect? Helping teams self organize but too much push back?
This e-book is a great resource, read how the experts are doing it around the world one organization at a time.
You can find me on slide 19 and 20.
From the road and in between
I have been trying to post and as is evident haven't been able to.
As a consultant I travel every week to another city (flight time 2 hours) and am back on the weekend. that has pretty much taken a toll on me and my time management skills. I have tried posting from airports, in between the crazy busy week and sometimes on the weekend.
Reality is, I mostly blank out in airports and at 5am in the morning I don't feel like working on the blog. I am not a morning person at all. During the week the focus is more on the training's, work, reports, meetings and endless hours streamlined to keep things functional. Weekends is mostly mommy duty- Rio is 9 months old now and like all working moms I try to be with him when I can, as much as I can.
So, yes the blog has suffered in the process. However, I have been reading some good stuff and am sure will share it over here.
I hope in the busy schedule that you have, you get the time to sit down and relax and keep an hour for yourself. I honestly suffered with it, constantly travelling and working in deadlines. So, I am trying to force myself to relax sometimes, like I napped this weekend, didn't open my laptop until now, played with Rio and was just happy to be home.
I hope like all pro bloggers I learn to write from airports, take mental notes while on elevators and can keep the blog going and make it look very easy.
Oh and before I forget in case you would like to help a fellow PM and one of my favorite people Samad on his research project and get a free cross cultural training, click here .
(Pic courtesy: google images)
As a consultant I travel every week to another city (flight time 2 hours) and am back on the weekend. that has pretty much taken a toll on me and my time management skills. I have tried posting from airports, in between the crazy busy week and sometimes on the weekend.
Reality is, I mostly blank out in airports and at 5am in the morning I don't feel like working on the blog. I am not a morning person at all. During the week the focus is more on the training's, work, reports, meetings and endless hours streamlined to keep things functional. Weekends is mostly mommy duty- Rio is 9 months old now and like all working moms I try to be with him when I can, as much as I can.
So, yes the blog has suffered in the process. However, I have been reading some good stuff and am sure will share it over here.
I hope in the busy schedule that you have, you get the time to sit down and relax and keep an hour for yourself. I honestly suffered with it, constantly travelling and working in deadlines. So, I am trying to force myself to relax sometimes, like I napped this weekend, didn't open my laptop until now, played with Rio and was just happy to be home.
I hope like all pro bloggers I learn to write from airports, take mental notes while on elevators and can keep the blog going and make it look very easy.
Oh and before I forget in case you would like to help a fellow PM and one of my favorite people Samad on his research project and get a free cross cultural training, click here .
(Pic courtesy: google images)
Mixed bag- links to read
I have been reading and accessing links from my Evernote account, so here's what's open in my tab right now:
- http://brodzinski.com/2015/02/why-we-fail-to-change.html
- http://www.bunchball.com/blog/post/1608/why-gamification-will-revolutionize-workplace-2015
- http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240212482/CIOs-must-combine-traditional-and-agile-IT-projects
- http://www.richarddurnall.com/?p=57
- http://disciplinedagiledelivery.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/technical-debt/
- http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/05/the-neuroscience-of-effort/
Pic courtesy: Google images
Life- as it is
Most days are a mix of good and bad, some make you happy and content and confident and some are just bad decisions, moments that make you doubt your confidence.
My effort to re-organize my life- personal and professional often turn out futile. I plan and re-plan and then suddenly something needs my attention and the plans out of the window.
The buzz has rekindled itself. Suddenly there has been activities mostly positive round me. I am not sure if I have anything to do with them, may be I am just trying to be me again and trying to organize better and that’s probably the way to know that I am on the right direction.
So, in trying to juggle my role of professional who is trying for the next jump, a blogger who wants to get back to the regular routine, a community member who wants the connect site to connect more people and bring help to their careers and a mom who tries to spend some quality time with her 6 month son- organization is the key.
So, here are some tips to bring them in your life no matter how complex your life has become:
That pretty much sums my life right now.
(Pic courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya)
My effort to re-organize my life- personal and professional often turn out futile. I plan and re-plan and then suddenly something needs my attention and the plans out of the window.
The buzz has rekindled itself. Suddenly there has been activities mostly positive round me. I am not sure if I have anything to do with them, may be I am just trying to be me again and trying to organize better and that’s probably the way to know that I am on the right direction.
So, in trying to juggle my role of professional who is trying for the next jump, a blogger who wants to get back to the regular routine, a community member who wants the connect site to connect more people and bring help to their careers and a mom who tries to spend some quality time with her 6 month son- organization is the key.
So, here are some tips to bring them in your life no matter how complex your life has become:
- Prioritize your list- I use Trello and I timebox it. It’s usually open in a tab in front of me while I work, so I know the goals if I want to just check on them once in a while. Oh and I have the app downloaded as well.
- Visualize- every morning I start my work life with somnote. I simply click on it and list down to-dos for the day. And then work around it for the rest of the day.
- Focus- its difficult midst meetings, calls, emails and lots more happening. So sometimes I will simply use coffitivity or noisli with a headphone. I work better with a noise and rhythm in background.
- Efficiency- time is sparse and I try to make the most of it. When I have difficulty focusing, I will use the pomodoro app and try to get something done. It works great for me.
- Remember and refer - I use Evernote to remember things I read and categorize them. I also try to maintain a physical diary where I will jot down points or theories or new concepts that I liked or am thinking about, so I can refer to them quickly.
- Connect- I barely get time to have a day out with friends, so I keep in touch mostly with whatsapp, viber and skype.
- Relax- I panic with so much going on or loose my cool. So sometimes at night, I will unwind by listening to some good music with tea and reading a good book or carelessly browse through pinterest even if its for a few minutes.
- I forgive- I try not to be too strict on myself when I know there’s a lot happening. I try to be grateful for what I have. Close my eyes and hear me breathe.
That pretty much sums my life right now.
(Pic courtesy: Soma Bhattacharya)
New Resources Pt 3- Interview with Samad Aidane
Samad Aidane is a cross-cultural leadership and Project Management Consultant and Coach with over two decades of experience in information technology change initiatives. He is also a featured speaker at Project Management Institute Congresses, local PMI Chapters, and at organizations such as J.P Morgan, HP, and T-Mobile.Please tell us about your website which is a great resource for the upcoming project managers and why understanding the co-relation between neuro-science and project management/leadership style could be the key to being successful in this profession.
Although we tend to think of project work in terms of tasks, resources, and milestones, the brain experiences projects first and foremost as social systems. The latest research on how the brain works is bringing a fresh perspective on how the brain responds during times of change, uncertainty, and ambiguity and the drivers that create an environment that fosters engagement, collaboration, and commitment.
Neuroscience is the interdisciplinary science of the nervous system that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics, medicine, philosophy, physics, and psychology. The field has seen significant advances in recent years which can be largely attributed to very recent scientific and technological advances, particularly functional magnetic resonance imaging, or fMRI, which allows researchers to literally watch the brain in action.
Guerrilla Project Management and Neuro Frontier reflect my interest in this field. The blogs explore core neuroscience of leadership principles that form the foundation for making decisions, solving problems, collaborating with others, and facilitating change. Understanding these core neuroscience principles and drivers of human behavior will help us understand individual capacity to cope with ambiguity, deal with conflict, and find innovative solutions to complex problems.
Why do you think this is a must read for new project managers?Wwhat are the 3 main takeaways from the site?
Through Guerrilla Project Management and Neuro Frontier, new project managers will be able to:
- Understand the neuroscience of leadership, its latest research findings, and its implications for project managers
- Gain insights into the effectiveness and benefits of brain-based leadership for Project Managers
- Learn how to apply these insights in our projects to make effective decisions and solve complex problems, stay cool under pressure, and facilitate lasting change.
One piece of advice that you think is an absolute must for new project managers?
Project are a series of moments of dull but important work interspersed with moments of pure joy and often even euphoria. To sustain ourselves, every project must contribute a body of knowledge to our journey of mastery. This starts with not letting projects happen to us. This means we must get to the point in our career where we get to select the type of projects we work on, the way film directors choose their next film or musicians select their next album project. This power of choice is the secret to making sure every project we touch tells a story about our journey to mastery and contributes to our masterpiece.
Samad Aidane holds a Post Graduate Degree in the Neuroscience of Leadership from Middlesex University, U.K. His research connects the latest findings in brain science research to leadership development and informs the ways leaders can improve their capacity to make effective decisions, solve complex problems, and facilitate lasting change. Samad is certified by the Project Management Institute and a member of the Social & Affective Neuroscience Society.
(Pic courtesy: Samad Aidane)
You can also read Pt 1- Interview with Jeff Furman and Pt 2- Interview with Elizabeth Harrin.
