Tribes

I am listening to the audio book of Seth Godin's latest work, Tribes, which you can still get as a free download from Audible.com. I have been a fan for a long time and this book is true to form.

The book is about leadership. We can all be leaders for what we believe in, even if we're not a formal leader in the organization. We just have to believe in what we're doing. The idea that takes off is the one with the most fanatic supporter (the heretic is what Seth Godin calls him/her).

"The only thing holding you back is your own fear" is what he has to say. There isn't a right way to lead, the key is to decide to lead and not manage.

Colin Powell

I took some notes during Colin Powell's keynote address this past Sunday at the PMI Congress and I was looking at them as I unpacked from the trip.

He talked about leadership, not a surprise from a military officer. His message was similar to what other leaders would tell you; you have to provide the purpose and get people excited, you have to take care of your troops, you have to inspire people to become self motivated, and you have to have integrity.

There was one thing that really resonated with me. He also talked about the transition in his life after leaving the military and his role as Secretary of State. He was describing his thought process when he was determining what he would do next. His advice; don't go through life looking in the rear-view mirror, look ahead.

PMI Congress wrap up

I'm at the last presentation of the PMI conference, another presentation on agile. It seems to be a big buzz around here. Our agile reception on Saturday night was well attended, including author Michele Sliger and Jesses Fewell, who is forming an agile community within PMI.

Colin Powell did the keynote on Sunday, the same day he announced his support for Obama. The conclusion a number of us had after the presentation was that the general was an agile project manager.

Live from PMI Denver

We have set up the IT & Telecom SIG Website with live twitter and flickr feeds so you can follow what's going on at PMI-Denver.

PMI Events in Denver

I am getting ready for the PMI Events in Denver. If you are there, look me up.

On Friday, I will be presenting at the Leadership Institute with Dave Prior, Mark Lurch, and Petra Goltz. We are talking about communications.

On Saturday night I have pulled together a reception to bring together some of the leaders from both traditional and agile project management.

I will be manning the IT & Telecom SIG booth from Sunday through Tuesday.

Finally, I also planned the annual SIG networking event for Monday night.

Luck and Effort

Seth Godin had an interesting post on his blog the other day. It made me think of a saying my daughter taught me, "The harder I work, the luckier I get!"

In the post, he recommends eliminated 120 minutes/day of spare time in our life, time wasted watching TV, commuting, or going to meetings. He provides a list of things to use that 120 minutes for that can help us be more successful.

Most of us probably don't think we have 120 spare minutes in our day. We're already overworked, multi-tasking, and sleep deprived. But are we working on the right things? Do you need to spend 45 minutes on the weekly status report that will only be skimmed over by the recipients? Will anyone notice if you just spend 25 minutes on it? Can you send someone else to the hour long meeting and have them give you a 5 minute synopsis later? Haven't you seen that episode of Law and Order before?

I'm pretty diligent when it comes to exercise, because I make that a priority. Any of us can do the things that are really important as long as we put them on the top of our to-do list.

Presedential Election

Like many Americans, I was watching the presidential debate on TV last night. I'll admit that I was a bit disappointed in them. Both candidates spent a lot of time talking about "their record" on what they've done in the past, and how their opponent did the opposite. I wish they had spent more time focusing on what they would do if they became president.

I didn't turn on the TV expecting a lot of accuracy. Like the vice-presidential debates last week, both candidates seemed to be off on their facts. For a reality check, visit the site FactCheck.org. It looks at the candidates statements and the real facts behind them.

Money for Charities

The website Squidoo is giving money to your charity. Go here and vote on your favorite, and they'll donate $2.00 to it, no catches. They'll keep on giving until they go through $80k.

They also had a great post worth repeating:

People online are real people.

If you send a nasty email, there’s a real human being on the other end who gets it.
If you flame in a forum, you’re wasting real people’s time.
If you spam someone, you’re really only making yourself look bad.
If you write IN ALL CAPITAL LETTERS it sounds like shouting.
If you want something to happen your way, try asking instead of demanding.
If you give, you’ll probably wind up getting, too.
If you blog just to pick fights, don’t be surprised when people don’t trust you.
If you collaborate, say thanks.
If you’re independent, say no thanks.
If you like someone, tell them.
If you don’t, walk away from the computer.
If you’re giving feedback, lead with just one good thing.
If you’re getting feedback, realize that the person must care a lot to have sent it.
If you goof, apologize.
If you apologize, mean it.
If you smile, mean that too.
If you don’t like something, don’t do it.
If you do like something, spread it.

But far far more important:

Give people a break.
The break you probably deserve yourself.
People are out to do good, 99% of the time.
You probably are too.
Say thanks out loud and a lot.
Try making someone’s day.
Chances are they’ll make yours in return.