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I’ve been enjoying the book The More of Less: Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own by Joshua Becker. Mr. Becker says that most of us own too much stuff. And we tire of cleaning and taking care of our possessions. The accumulation of stuff can rob us of life. The author has caused me to think about the clutter in my projects. Do I really need all the stuff? Are all the …

So you’ve compiled a list of possible project risks. It’s long and thorough, but it’s a bit too long on its own. Categorizing these risks would be the best plan of attack to get them under control, but how would you go about categorizing them? Have no fear. In a post for Project Management Tips, Elizabeth Harrin has you covered with three different ways to manage your list: Categorize by nature Categorize by level Categorize …

As digital transformation continues to move forward, we see that it will take a great effort from the people to implement them. Companies need to be able to stick the landing here in implementing these new technologies so their business can continue to grow.  However, there is a lack of confidence in how to achieve the vision the organization is striving for. To aid in this, John Rauschenberger gives some strategies at the Enterprisers Project …

As CIOs continue to lead the IT world, the implementation of technology has become an increasingly important part of business. Being able to innovate your company and move to the future is an important part of ensuring success in the modern world. To help with this, ZDNet’s Mark Samuels gives four ways to help engage tech with business: Use your experience to bring innovation to the table. Transfer knowledge between functional teams and departments. Bring …

Generating new and innovative ideas for your company can require work, timing, and dedication. The key is taking a lightning-in-a-bottle idea and converting it into a battery as you look to continuously improve upon those ideas with new ones. In an article from Computerworld, Nicholas Evans gives some insight into how to approach continuous improvement in corporate innovation: Continuously adjust the sights around innovation as customer needs and market conditions dictate. Incorporate new developments in …

Pointing fingers is easy to do when it comes to IT professionals. Budgets, infrastructure, and even fellow colleagues aren’t safe when it comes to complaining. But in the grander scheme of things, this behavior inhibits the ability to recognize changes that are completely within an IT leader’s power to change. To combat this, seven-time CIO Mark Settle explains how IT leaders can stop playing the blame game in an article for CIO.com. Pointers to Progress …

Project managers, as the name implies, are the managers of a project. But ultimately they’re much more than that. They’re leaders who push their projects forward and teams toward growth. In an article for TechRepublic, Moira Alexander covers the six essential traits of a good project manager: Fast learner Conflict resolution skills Exceptional communication Initiative Emotional intelligence Stress management Find the Great Traits A project manager needs to be as adaptable as possible to their …

Bias underscores many of our actions and the actions of businesses in often imperceptible ways. Acknowledging that bias exists is important, but that in itself is not enough to actually reduce its presence. In an article for McKinsey, Tobias Baer, Sven Heiligtag, and Hamid Samandari describe specific processes by which you can “debias” various types of decisions in business. Blind Spots of the Brain The strategies commonly employed to reduce bias in decision-making right now …

Today, I would like to talk about a basic topic: knowing the objective of a meeting. Meetings remain an essential part of projects. Whether they are traditional meetings, teleconferences, or virtual meetings, you will need to talk to various persons. Yet meetings can have a bad reputation. They can be viewed as a big waste of time. And indeed, some of them are. I am sure we all can share bad experiences of useless meetings. …

Inheriting a new team is like getting a used car–sometimes they’re great, and sometimes there needs to be some work done. But what if a team has gotten so far off track that sweeping changes are needed to fix problems a previous manager avoided? These would be sweeping problems that were completed by multiple people throughout the team and not just the actions of a member or two. In an article for Harvard Business Review, …

The project presentation is your time to shine. It’s the time where you can convey your project to anyone who is interested, so making a good impression is key. In a post at the Project Risk Coach, Harry Hall explains how to easily improve a project presentation. Project Presentation Pro Tips Presenting a solid presentation can take a good deal of prior planning on the presentation itself. Structuring the presentation in a simple format (introduction, …

Back 20 years ago, Alexa and Siri were just names and chatbots were just another reason to get caller ID. Nowadays, the chatbot is on the rise and has revolutionized the way we live our lives as consumers. But they have so many more applications than that. In a post for IT Chronicles, Jonathan Munn shares his thoughts on what he sees to be the future of IT support. AI to Help IT Chatbots have …

Is the way you gather information effective enough? In an article for Lifehack, Mike Martel challenges you to level up your questioning. For starters, avoid yes/no questions. Ask questions that make people explain themselves, which in turn challenges them to decide what information is really pertinent. Then dig deeper with follow-up questions that clarify vague points and expand potentially interesting nuggets. Do not worry about there being periods of silence between questions and answers; allow …

In an article for Harvard Business Review, John Baldoni shares four fast pointers to expand your perspective and improve your ability to ask questions: Be more interested in listening and learning than in getting first and last say. Ask open-ended questions that make the recipient think before answering. Express active physical interest in the questions you ask, to inspire full and earnest answers. When no one is delivering bad news, dig deeper to confirm if …

You really need a helping hand from Horatio in accounting to finish this project on time. How do you win over Horatio quickly? In an article for Forbes, Emma Johnson shares some reliable advice for how to ask him: Ask for advice, rather than a favor. (But then maybe build off of that.) Ask specific questions that can be clearly answered within a few minutes. Articulate how that person helping you will also be helping …