Recently I was talking with a friend about some of the keys to success in our professional lives. One of these is the importance of building business cases.

In its simplest form, a business case is a written justification for doing (or not doing) ‘something.’ Classic examples include seeking funding to hire someone or to purchase something expensive.

Key reasons for developing business cases, are…

“Getting Things Done—The Art of Stress-Free Productivity”

by: David Allen

ISBN: 978-1-101-12849-7

Getting Things Done, or ‘GTD’ as adoptees like to refer to it, is indeed a productivity book. But it’s not about ‘time management,’ to-do lists, or other seemingly similar equivalents. Through GTD, Allen attempts to help the reader not only with their professional lives, but their personal lives as well.

Getting…

John Lynch (@DigitalMinister) raised this question recently, after having read, “Where should social media sit within your organization?”  This is a question I’m sure many of you may have as well.



The article is an interesting read. The article would be even better, if Cara’s (author) repeated negative biases of her work…

I came across this well-written parable today, “Let the Rabbits Run.” I encourage you to take a minute and read it.

Ok, if you didn’t, the gist is a discussion of how we spend so much of our lives, focused on what we’re not so good at, at the expense of what we excel at.

There have almost certainly been times where both you and I could relate.

Last night, coincidentally, I also just watched Company Men. It’s a…

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to hear AJ Deeds (@MyLovingWorks) talk about content.  You know, the ‘stuff’ we have to spend time on, that acts like filler material, enabling us to use our shiny objects.

Or, have we let all the shiny objects out there distract us from what really matters: content.  Why do people…

You’re a professional. At something, somewhere. You’re working to improve productivity, get more done, and improve the quality of your life. At the same time you have a personal side, and you seek to do more of the same there, as well. You feel there are a b’zillion things being thrown at you and you seek to improve your focus, you ability to accomplish something.

How do you improve your focus?

For me, one item I've found that is important, is to have a Goal. Focus is…

You’ve probably heard some variation of Woody Allen’s quote, “80 percent of success is just showing up.”  It means you had to do something many others won’t.

• Seth Godin: In, “Linchpin,” he repeatedly reminds everyone to ship! If you want to be…

As mentioned in Crisis, Chaos, Panic, and Its Corollary, I had an opportunity to do some software consulting this past month.  In the prior article I discussed the lost productivity resulting from poor communication.

A…

This past month, I had the opportunity to do some software consulting.  It was an interesting environment.  Everything was a swirl of chaos, panicked surprise deadlines, and daily crises.  During one meeting, responding to the latest short-cycle deliverable, one person commented, “…we never have time to do things properly.  Are we going to have time to do this one right…?”

The longer I spent with the organization, the…