The Project Management and Communication Source: June 2014

Monday, June 23, 2014

Recommended Productivity Books

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey (see, Amazon).
First Things First by Stephen R. Covey, A. Roger Merrill, & Rebecca R. Merrill (see, Amazon).
Getting Things Done the Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen (see, Amazon).
Ready for Anything: 52 Productivity Principals for Getting Things Done by David Allen (see, Amazon).
Making It All Work: Winning at the Game of Work and The Business of Life (see, Amazon).
First Things First by Stephen R. Covey, A. Roger Merrill, & Rebecca R. Merrill (see, Amazon).
How to be a Productivity Nija with Pocket Informant by Matthew Brown (see, Smashwords).
25 Tips for Productivity by Augusto Pinaud (see, Amazon)
Evernote: the Unofficial Guide to Capturing Everything and Getting Things Done by Daniel E. Gold (see, Amazon).
Getting things Done (GTD) + Evernote = Ultimate Productivity: The Complete 7-Day Action Plan by Dominic Wolff (see, Google Books).
It’s All About Passion by Michael Sliwinski (see. Michael Sliwinski).

Sunday, June 22, 2014

Recommended Leadership Books

The Hidden Agenda by Kevin Allen (see, Amazon).
The Case of the Missing Cutlery by Kevin Allen (see, Amazon).
The One Minute Manager by Kenneth H. Blanchard (see, Amazon).
Strengths Finder 2.0 by Tom Rath (see, Amazon).
Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell (see, Amazon).
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni (see, Amazon).
Good to Great by Jim Collins (see, Amazon).
Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Travis Bradberry & Jean Greaves (see, Amazon).

Recommended Technical Writing Books

The Only Grammar Book You’ll Ever Need: A One Stop Source for Every Writing Assignment by Susan Thurman (see, Amazon).
Single Sourcing: Building Modular Documentation by Kurt Ament (see, Amazon).
Web Copy that Sells by Maria Veloso (see, Amazon).
Writing for the Web: Creating Compelling Web Content Using Words, Pictures, and Sounds by Lynda Felder (see, Amazon).
Developing Quality Technical Information: A Handbook for Writers and Editors 2^nd Edition by Gretchen Hargis, Michelle Carey, Ann Kilty Hernandez, Polly Hughes, Deirdre Longo, Shannon Rouiller, Elizabeth Wilde (see, Amazon).
The Copywriter’s Handbook 3^rd Edition A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Copy that Sells by Robert W. Bly (see, Amazon).
Write Good or Die: Survival Tips for the 21^st Century by Scott Nicholson (see, Amazon).
Software Requirements 2^nd Edition: Practical techniques for gathering and managing requirements throughout the product development cycle by Karl E Wiegers (see, Amazon).
The Software Requirements Memory Jogger: A Pocket Guide to Help Software and Business Teams Develop and Manage Requirements by Ellen Gottesdiener (see, Amazon).
Technical Writing 101 by Alan S. Pringle and Sarah S O’Keefe (see, Amazon).
Technical Writing for Dummies by Sheryl Lindsell-Roberts (see, Amazon).

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Simple Techniques to Prioritize Tasks

With the daily demands of work it's hard to know what to begin first. In order to accomplish projects successfully, you must have a strategy on how to prioritize. Check out the following strategies:

Realistic Tasks: You must realize that during a typical day you won't be able to complete all you tasks. Identifying wether a task is urgent or not enables you to concentrate on you most important tasks. As a result, you will task strategy that you can accomplish.
Task Productivity Software: Managing task by sending your self email or placing them on sticky notes doesn't work. Instead use a software tool like Nozbe to manage your tasks and get a clear picture of what needs to be done.
Use Prioritization Labels: Labeling tasks in a hierarchy such as A, B, and C helps you easily see what's tasks are most import.
Delegate: You don't have to do everything, since it's impossible. Therefore delegate your tasks to other coworkers when possible. they will be glad to help you achieve success. Plus you can help them out when the need your help with their tasks.
Your Manager: Communicate with your manager to determine what tasks he or she believe are the most critical to successfully complete your projects.

Fixing project problems with a structured strategy helps you resolve them directly and in less time. You need a solid understanding of the problem to determine why it's occurring and to ensure it does not reoccur. Use the following strategies to determine and resolve problems.

Determine the problem: Describe the problem clearly, so it's easy to understand. Then explain it's effect on the project.
Why it's happening: Determine why the problem is occurring. If you don't know why, you won't be able to track the problem.
Alternatives and impact: Determine other alternatives and their impact on the project.
What's the best alternate approach: Have the appropriate project stakeholders determine the best alternatives that you have identified.
Fix it: Determine a plan using the alternatives identified to fix the problem and implement it. Then place them in your project plan to ensure that they are completed.
Monitor: Check to make sure that the problem has been resolved. If it has been, then you are finished. If not, you need to keep working by returning to step number one.

How to make your meeting's insanely productive

Geoffrey James, writer of the Geoffrey James Inc. Magazine Blog discusses how to make your meetings insanely productive. In his article he states the following: The time wasted in business meetings is like the weather: Everyone complains about it, but nobody ever does anything about it. Well, today we're going to change that.

The biggest misconception about business meetings is that they're a good way to communicate and share information. Frankly, that's ludicrous.

When meetings are used for conveying information, it forces everyone to spend time and mental energy understanding what was said and what it means.

Then, when it comes to making decisions about what needs to be done, everyone is thinking on the fly using that half-digested information.

By contrast, when everyone comes into a meeting knowing what has happened (i.e., information), you can jump immediately to discussing what needs to happen next and then making decisions to make that happen.

In other words, use your valuable meeting time to create the future rather than summarize the past.

Every meeting should have a pre-meeting email that summarizes the information that's needed to make decisions as well as a tentative agenda of the decisions that need to be made.

Yes, this requires more upfront work than simply calling a meeting where everyone goes over their list. It means preparing for the meeting rather than taking the lazy path of just showing up.

But think about the benefits! No more sitting through long presentations. No more spinning your wheels while everyone else gets up to speed. No more showing up at a meeting just to discover what it's about.

You go in, you discuss what to do, you make a decision. Boom! A meeting that would have taken an hour or more only takes 10 to 15 minutes.

Multiply this times the number of meetings that you (and everyone else) attend each year and you're talking about hundreds or even thousands of person-hours that can now be spent doing something productive.

That's a truly insane increase in productivity. All because of a little prep work. It's really that easy.

The Best 2014 SXSW Startups

This year I attended SXSW 2014. Once I entered the Austin Convention Center, the number of startups represented were extensive.

I decided that I would survey the landscape and pick out the best startups.

After talking for a couple of hours with numerous startups, I created a list of the best 2014 SXSW startups.

Checkout my list:

Free PowerPoint Template plus E-Learning Interaction

Checkout the "Free PowerPoint Template plus E-Learning Interaction" article from the Rapid eLearning Blog available courtesy of the Articulate Network.

How to Set Goals That Lead to Success

Dustin M. Wax’s article in second issue of Productive Magazine describes an effective and achievable process when creating goals that lead to success. In his article, he states that SMART goals are achievable while other goal strategies might be dumb. What does he mean by dumb goals? He identifies dumb goals as vague, unspecified, open-ended, and without a completion date. His process of goal achievement on the other hand is SMART as opposed to dumb. What does his acronym stand for?

Specific (S)
Measurable (M)
Achievable (A)
Relevant (R)
Time-bound (T)

Defining the SMART phrase in detail, he states the following:

S - Set specific goals (e.g., Lose five pounds in 30 days).
M - Create goals that are measurable, so that you can keep track of them.
A - Make sure to create goals that are achievable (e.g., Save $5,000.00 this year as oppose to saving $50,000.00 this year.).
R – Set goals that are relevant to you.
T – Attach a deadline to your goal (e.g., Be able to do 100 sit-ups by February 1st.)

In closing, he mentions the most import aspect of goal setting, which is tracking your goals. When you track your goals, you place accountability on yourself. When you don’t track your goals, you’re not accountable; as a result, your goals become just another wish instead of an achievement.

Fix Project Problems with a Structured Strategy

Determine the problem - Describe the problem clearly, so it's easy to understand. Then explain it's effect on the project.
Why it's happening -Determine why the problem is occurring. If you don't know why, you won't be able to track the problem.
Alternatives and impact - Determine other alternatives and their impact on the project.
What's the best alternate approach: Have the appropriate project stakeholders determine the best alternatives that you have identified.
Fix it - Determine a plan using the alternatives identified to fix the problem and implement it. Then place them in your project plan to ensure that they are completed.
Monitor - Check to make sure that the problem has been resolved. If it has been, then you are finished. If not, you need to keep working by returning to step number one.

How Successful Entrepreneurs Manage Their Time

Checkout a recent slideshare presentation from Shane Barker titled "How Successful Entrepreneurs Manage Their Time."

4 Secrets to Giving a Great Marketing Presentation

Presentation skills are necessary to provide a successful seminar or meeting. Checkout this recent article about the Four Secrets to a Giving Great Marketing Presentations from Entrepreneur.com.

How To Get Home Earlier

A recent article from ProjectManager.com covers effective time management tips that ensure you arrive home on time.

Tip #1: Get organized

Do you manage your work in an unstructured manner? If so, start using task lists to ensure you know what has to be done when. Also,use time sheets (e.g., a simple spreadsheet) to track how you are spending your time. Ensure too that your team members are organized too by employing resource management tools that enable you to assign work to the right person. Use your calendar or project management software to set up alerts and reminders; as a result, you won't store all that information in your mind. Find a few techniques that work to ensure your organized and your project is on track. Then use them consistently.

Tip #2: Use collaboration software

One of the things that slows project managers down is not being able to get updates and status reports from team members. Start using collaboration software to communicate with your team, host impromptu meetings and check facts quickly.

Tip #3: Work online

Use pockets of time during the day when you normally would not be able to accomplish anything. Online access can make it easy to work from home when needed. Arrive home earlier and then check in later that evening at a convenient time, since you'll be able to access everything you need.

Tip #4: Say no!

You don't have to take on so much work! Practice saying no when colleagues ask you to take on extra responsibilities or to do their tasks for them. If your manager is asking, talk to them about what you could move down the priority list in order to make time for this new work.

Tip #5: Manage your meetings

There are two ways that you can manage meetings, so try them both and see which one is most successful for you. First can try to schedule meetings late in the day so that everyone is keen to get quickly through the agenda and leave the office. You may find that the team works productively during the meeting if there is the incentive of going home afterwards!

Second, you could do the opposite and avoid late meetings which may overrun. Instead, schedule your meetings earlier in the day. People will be alert and able to concentrate which will also lead to productive meetings.

Test out a couple of these techniques to get home earlier.