Telling someone that they are amazing, naturally creative, resourceful and whole with unbounded potential is NOT an acknowledgement. Read More
Acknowledgement
Vectors of Influence
Vectors of Influence come from all sides in a changing world and tension easily arises that hinder effective Human Transformation. Read More
Lean Out “Down” / Lean in “Up”
The WEF estimates that it will take the U.S. another 208 years to reach gender equality. So, women and minorities may need to lean in for some time. As leaders though, we should lean out to create space so others may lean in. Read More
Confidence Villains
Leaders inspire people to persevere in the face of adversity and ultimately derive energy from the challenge of confronting their villains. Read More
Radical Candor, Meaningful Conversations
Radical Candor is an overlooked asset in creating high-performance teams when that candor is built upon a foundation of trust. I’ve discovered that evoking transformation can often require radical candor. However, when properly applied, the transformation can resemble a metamorphosis. Read More
10x Engineer – The Root Cause
What is the root cause of a 10x engineer? Are “10x Engineers” mythical creatures that exist only in our imagination or are they real? Read More
Start with Trust
Start with trust to set the foundations of a relationships when a new person joins your team. The first impression you make on them sets the foundation for the rest of your journey together. Read More
Unconscious Bias / Privilege
Unconscious Bias and Privilege are things that are easy to claim we don’t have. The City Bus metaphors may help us wake up. Read More
New Hires
New hires present the best opportunityto put employees on their path to achieve their greatest potential. There are three very impactful people in determining the joy, success and fulfillment an employee finds in their job… Read More
New Managers
In developing talent within an organization, there are times where an individual contributor , often one that has excelled as an engineer, may be interested in becoming a manager. Read More
The Room Where it Happens
As leaders, much of the magic happens in the one-on-one conversations either in the privacy of a physical of virtual room (think Skype or Zoom) or on a walk-about as a more neutral setting and where you also benefit from the energy of being in Motion. These conversations should sometimes be as non-threatening as a… Read More
The Dark Side of Agile
Along with the virtues of Agile Software Development also can come some destructive downsides that can erode trust and effectiveness within your company culture. I recently attended a 3-day Scrum certification class where the founder of the particular methodology was the instructor. He insisted that managers not participate in standup meetings, planning meetings, grooming sessions,… Read More
Embrace the Challenge
After riding the dot com wave, I decided to leave high-tech and embrace the challenge to find a way to give back by getting my teaching credentials at San Jose State. There I walked by this statue commemorating Tommie Smith and John Carlos’ brave protest at the 1968 Olympics, a watershed moment for civil rights… Read More
Lean Staffing – It’s about the People
The notion of Lean Staffing is best paired with the concept of The Lean Startup. In his insightful book The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses, Eric Ries speaks of his startup lessons learned at IMVU and from many other companies he came to know afterwards including Intuit.… Read More
Orange Observations
I devised this Orange Observations exercise in my efforts to inspire my students to be observant. Read More
Heart Rate Meditation
There are advantages for mind, body and soul to being calm oneself to be more present and aware. Much of the guidance on meditation starts with focusing on the breath. I found it to be more effective to practice Heart Rate Meditation by focusing via direct feedback. Also, a key to consciously changing your heart… Read More
Building Collaborative Groups with Broken Squares
In his book The Culture Code – The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups, Daniel Coyle refers to a competition at Stanford where business students in university squared off against kindergartners. The four-person teams had to beat the clock and build a tower using uncooked spaghetti, tape and string with a marshmallow on top. You would… Read More
Role Models
Inspiration, curiosity and drive for someone with a growth mindset can be sparked or fed by role models. Here are just a few of the many role models that inspired me If we consider the possibility that the potential lies within each of us to be a Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Malala… Read More
Different Stokes for Different Folks
My high school history teacher Mr. Hupert always used to say “different strokes fo different folks” in explaining how under different circumstances in different times with different people, different forms of government were effective. So, too, I discovered, it is with effective software development methodologies. When I joined IMVU, we were continuously deploying to our… Read More