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Random Thoughts Category

Dear Recession, Thank You

Posted By Melissa Ballate as Random Thoughts, Strategy, strategic planning

Posted 11.30.2009

Italicized items can be filled in by you the reader

Dear Recession,

The two years that you have been in my life have been the most unstable and yet transformative that our business/organization/department has ever seen (our balance sheet was particularly shocked by your arrival).

When I first heard of you in 2007, I figured that after years of banks and mortgage brokers gorging themselves on unqualified homebuyers, you were just paying them a visit to make amends. Next, when I heard the talking heads on television warning me to stop shopping, I thought it was a scare tactic. It took the near collapse of the auto industry to convince me I was mistaken. I quickly realized you were not particularly selective and further how much the world economy was interdependent.

As soon as 2008, my funding/customers/clients began to fall away. When a grant that was cut off/account who couldn’t afford us anymore/partner going out of business, we began to feel your wrath. First we had to make amends by cutting expenses, pretty soon we were cutting jobs. The swiftness of it all caught me so off guard that I think I failed to lead where I should have, bringing my business/organization/department further into the hole.

With cash flow at a minimum and a dozen or so of my staff members gone, you got me thinking. I mean really reflecting. I started to ask myself questions I hadn’t thought about since I took the helm of this operation. What is it that we do best? What value do we provide our customers and distributors/partners? Why do we do business? How are we going to sell/operate?

This thinking quickly propelled me into a week-long period of sleepless nights, research and maddening note taking… It took my husband/wife/partner pointing out to me that I hadn’t been this excited in years. That’s when it hit me…I was actually planning for the future! I had been so taken up in my success over the last 10+ years that I forgot to do what got our business/organization/department here to begin with… plan for the future!

There is a Spanish song called “Me Asustas, Pero Me Gustas.” (This translates to “You Scare Me, But I Like You.”) I never thought I’d say this about such a difficult time for our business/organization/department, but this has been a hidden blessing. I have realized that no matter how successful I become, I less not forget the importance of setting goals, adapting to change and strategizing for our future.

Tags: benefits of the recession, i love the recession, making the best of the recession, melissa ballate, planning, strategic planning, strategizing for success, strategy
Posted in Random Thoughts, Strategy, strategic planning | 1 Comment »

It’s All in Your Head

Posted By Melissa Ballate as Random Thoughts, communications, strategy

Posted 10.30.2009

The brain’s 100 trillion synapses have been mapped by a group of scientists in Lausanne, Switzerland. The result? Physically and structurally, a picture of the brain looks exactly like most human systems (think the interconnectedness of relationships, an aerial view of a city, a computer network). What that means is that what we see everyday, what we’ve built as a human race, is a projection of the brain. This is not only a survival mechanism, but undoubtedly makes the brain the most successful organ in evolution.

Communications works much like the brain. With it, we recreate a person’s (or a group of people’s) projection of reality in words, images, and scenarios. Its when people see themselves in something, that they create the emotional connections that drive action. (It’s what we here lovingly call information consumption.)

What we know today about the brain, only proves that everything in life is a matter of perception. If we perceive a problem; we act like there is one. If we perceive love; we respond to it. If we perceive happiness; we become it. The quicker human beings recognize this as reality, the sooner they can begin to make the most of it.

Until then, we communicators will just have to make the best of the situation…

Tags: blue daring, communications, melissa ballate, perception, reality
Posted in Random Thoughts, communications, strategy | 1 Comment »

Manage My Expectations

Posted By Carlos Posso as Random Thoughts, Strategy, optimization

Posted 10.27.2009

The most widely known iterative methodology in software development is the Rational Unified Process (RUP). It’s a framework for managing projects in a way that kind of resembles real life. Meaning that the first time you do something you do the best you can with the information in front of you. Then, you try harder the next time given what you’ve learned. One of 3 things will happen the next time around; (1) you’ve improved, (2) you’re about the same, or (3) you’ve gotten worse. Here’s something surprising that may not sound intuitive; all three situations are a win.

That doesn’t sound right, does it? How can I win, when I lost or stayed the same?

The answer is that in all three situations you’ve measured your performance, which gives you a better chance to set proper expectations the next time around. See, we’re not trying to be the best at predicting outcomes; we’re merely trying to do the best we can to beat unexpected obstacles and make progress. Software development teams who don’t hit their deadlines have done nothing wrong. In fact, they’ve done a more honest job than teams that claim to predict the future. In the end they have software to show off; it’s just being built at a slower pace than some people may have anticipated.

What we have here is a problem setting proper expectations, not a problem delivering software. Ultimately building software is not a predictive endeavor, it’s an adaptive and creative one.

Tags: Agile, being adaptable, methodology, project management, RUP
Posted in Random Thoughts, Strategy, optimization | No Comments »