Efficiency
I was reading an article recently from an efficiency expert. I am always looking to squeeze one more task out of the day to make the most of the time away from my family.
Two points he made which resonated with me:
1) make lists for everything...I used to make fun of people who were anal enough to do this, but I've joined their ranks. Albeit with my interpretation of what qualifies for list status. I use Things across all of my devices (phone, iPad, MacBook) to stay synced up.
The system in Things breaks my lists into projects (something that will end) and area of responsibility. It's nothing more then titling the organization of lists, but it makes all the difference to me. I have dozens of conversations each day where people need me to do something, this keeps me organized and sane.
2) The experts recommend making the first task of the day the hardest! Resist the temptation to respond to emails (it's easy) or tackle a few easy projects first.
I find the longer my list the more efficient I am in completing items. I also find I procrastinate some of the more creative tasks as that requires a focused space to concentrate. Tough to find in the office or with the phone chirping with texts, voicemails, and email.
Time will tell if these techniques will work, but getting into the habit of thinking different about my efficiency should pay dividends.
Handy Email App
I've been searching for an app that easily integrates into my workflow for sending large attachments. Numerous recommendations for drop box, box.net, etc. but each had some barriers for sharing with my team members.
Our technology manger found CloudApp, it's free and can handle unlimited number of files. Check it out @ http://getcloudapp.com/ also available for the ipad.
Great office look from a brand and design firm. Who needs Herman Miller when there are millions of extra pallets floating around industrial sites?
Unique Pallet Design
What I Learned This Week
It's Friday, the day of the week I reflect on the chaos of 4 days and the promise of what's to come this weekend.
Spent a lot of time with vendors looking at new products. All are big companies with rich R&D budgets and large manufacturing operations. Some interesting possibilities, but nothing that's game changing.
We don't have thousands of dollars hanging around to acquire marketing lists, but I needed a way to find new, potential clients. As I looked back on the new accounts we've closed most share strong similarities. Using Google Maps, Wikipedia, and a lot of search queries I was able to piece together profiles of target accounts. It's all mapped in Excel and out to our sales force. We'll see what they do with it!
It's clear we're more agile and have a better sense of the market then the big companies. Our intimacy with the details of those products and their daily application is going to allow us to continue to find new product and service ideas.
Product Management Tip: Be Revolutionary
I spent a couple of days this week with a product manager from a manufacturer we represent. He brought in a prototype of a new version of a key product. The new version follows conventional product management path, listen to your customers, address concerns with current products on the market, prototype it, validate it with current users, etc.
The problem is of course, customers don't know what they want. They know what they want to change about current products. However, a good product manager looks beyond the obvious iterations and re-examines the customers entire lifecycle of the product to find the unspoken needs.
We listened to these customers for two days, many of which confirmed it looks like a good product. However, the PM never read between the lines to hear the true needs. He acknowledged one key need which would present a huge improvement wasn't going to be addressed even though no manufacturer had addressed it. He was here to validate what they had, not find a revolutionary product need. Shame.
Lauren Greenfield
One of my favorite photographers, Lauren Greenfield. Her work puts a mirror to the extremes of the American dream.
http://www.laurengreenfield.com/
Getting To Plan B
We're continuing to ramp up our marketing, business development, and innovation projects within our company. Many opportunities are emerging which are bringing these functions together. I am finishing a book, "Getting To Plan B", and I'm struck by how true this book has been for me in my current role. We've gone back to the drawing board many times, pushed by the necessity to succeed and make something work.
I think this is one of the inherent advantages in a small business where spending years and millions of dollars on a project without concrete results is not acceptable.
One of the key concepts they discuss is dashboarding, which we do in a rudimentary form. The authors talk about dashboarding your 'leaps of faith', quickly, to validate or refute your assumptions. I'm reframing projects through this lens and I think it's helping me to articulate the value proposition and needed tasks better to our team.
Book Review: Rework
I don't care to read many books on business. I find too many authors are full of opinions and lack experience applying what they preach.
Rework from the founders of 37Signals is a breath of fresh air. Breath deep, relax - this book has helped me maintain a healthy perspective on my work and where it should sit in the priorities of life.
Lots of short chapters explaining their philosophy of running a company and building elegant software products. Having worked for myself and in large companies, the lessons in the book can be applied in almost any organization.
Sometimes the good guy finishes first.
Now I'm sure Mickelson has plenty of flaws outside of golf, but it was good to see a man reaping what he sowed with his wife. I think he knows what it means to balance work and home life.
Find a Problem, Not a Solution
Symptoms: Solution created (product or service) and can't find a market.
Prescription: Find a business, get your hands dirty and you'll find enough problems you can solve with a solution.
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- Jay Frankhouse RT @TED_TALKS: Jim Toomey: Learning from Sherman the shark http://t.co/55eqIHJO January 28, 2012Jay Frankhouse RT @TED_TALKS: Jim Toomey: Learning from Sherman the shark http://t.co/55eqIHJO […]
- Jennifer Churchill is now connected to Bethany Preble (District Manager at Starbucks) January 28, 2012Jennifer Churchill is now connected to Bethany Preble (District Manager at Starbucks) […]
- Joel Comiskey is now connected to Charles Van Engen (Founding President and CEO at Latin American Christian Ministries, Inc.) January 28, 2012Joel Comiskey is now connected to Charles Van Engen (Founding President and CEO at Latin American Christian Ministries, Inc.) […]
- Home at last! Long week away from the family.
- On the road to company annual meeting. Lots of snow on the road! I am the only guy with my rice way shoveled in my neighborhood.
- I haven't looked outside but hearing the hard rain on my roof means it will be a fun drive to work.