Posts

Showing posts from 2020

Resources for Leadership

Image
I was asked recently for a list of resources for management by a fellow manager. I have so many, but I didn't have it readily available. This post is for that. I'll regularly update it with references and the like. Podcasts Simon Sinek Podcas t; interesting interviews with various leaders Jacko Podcast ; the discipline of leadership. Interesting US military leader view of the world. Good stories and lessons learned. HBR IdeaCast  - Harvard Business Review's collection of stories about business. The Knowledge Podcast - Really interesting interviews with various leaders of the world Making Sense with Sam Harris - Most of these are pretty good listen. Sometimes relevant to leadership, other times just about humanity. Video Channels Simon Sinek - a collection of lectures, cuts from the podcast recordings, and tips of the day. Leadership Nudges - Great collection of 2-5 minute reminders. This comes from the author of "Turn the ship around". Books See my book

75 Day Challenge

My wife came across this interesting challenge over the weekend, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. SO, here it is. We are diving in!  Things we will do during this challenge and many of which we'll move forward with: For a quick summary, here are the 5 things required during the 75 days. Exercise twice each day for 45 minutes — it doesn’t matter what the exercise is but one of these sessions must be outdoors. Drink 4 liters of water per day. Pick a diet or eating plan and stick to that plan. You don’t necessarily have to count calories but be intelligent — no chocolates, no cake, no soft drinks, and NO ALCOHOL (this is the one I’ll struggle with the most). Read a minimum of 10 pages every day of growth mindset material or self-help book. No fifty shades of grey content! stick to real-life material to work on your mindset. Take one progress photo each day — even though this is more of a mental challenge, the byproduct will be a physical change at the end of the 75 days. Cre

6 tips for working remote during these social distancing times

Image
In the light of recent events (read that COVID-19) a lot of companies are going remote for the first time in their existence. These are troubling times but also time for evolution to take place. The human race is brilliant, bringing sound solutions to complicated scenarios. So when we are asked to practice social distancing, we move our businesses online.  Get ready for work I'm serious, it's super important. I wake, shower, shave, and put on jeans every workday. This to me is my way of gearing up for the day. It's a mental practice I carried from my days of office work that I still do because if I didn't I don't feel I'd be ready mentally. Dedicated space I've found it really helpful to have a dedicated space, for a few reasons. First, having a dedicated quiet space is a way to block off other family members that may be home with you. It allows your brain to know, it's time for work. Long term, having a good office chair is better for y

An Elegant Puzzle

Image
Image credit, amazon.com An Elegant Puzzle by Will Larson is a new book that was released this year. I was not paid to read/review this book. I am an engineering manager and the book peaked my interest. I've read a few Will Larson blog posts throughout the years. These posts were pretty helpful in navigating the engineering manager work and so I thought I'd see what they had to say. The book is broken up into 5 major sections. Organizations, Tools, Approaches, Culture, and Careers. Organizations was an interesting section, its main focus was discussing how companies grow, what role each stage is and what to do during transition. It brought light that organizations are not static, they are forever evolving, always chasing the next step. I really enjoyed the section about "Succession Planning". I've seen so many times in my career where there is someone that has jumped from one role to another not fully giving up their old role. They didn't do great suc