Brent Sordyl's blog » gtd

5 Ways Process Is Killing Your Productivity

Brent Sordyl — Fri, 25 May 2012 12:30:07 +0000

1. Empowering with permission – but without action: It’s not empowering when people are given more responsibility, yet must still obtain an unreasonable number of approvals and sign-offs to get anything done. This signals a lack of trust.
2. Leaders focused on process instead of people: Leaders look to processes, not people, to solve problems and it doesn’t work. Where’s the inspiration, the vision? This signals a lack of humanity.
3. Overdependence on meetings: productive teamwork does not require meetings for every single action or decision. People become overwhelmed and ineffective when they are always stuck in meetings.
4. Lack of (clear) vision
5. Management acts as judge, not jury: If the purpose of a meeting is to think, create, or build, management has to stop tearing people down when they propose new ideas or question the status quo. This signals a lack of perspective and openness.

(Full Story: 5 Ways Process Is Killing Your Productivity)

5 Reasons You Need to Meet in Person | Inc.com

Brent Sordyl — Mon, 14 May 2012 18:42:35 +0000

1. You’re off the record. In Silicon Valley and many other places, there are few private offices. Many of my clients work in cubes and can’t have private telephone conversations with me or anyone else. This means that when I talk to them on the phone, I might not get to hear the most important information they can share: the unique team dynamics or executive’s personality quirks that would make or break our ability to match an expert consultant. Over sushi or a latte or a walk around the block, my clients can let me know more — with more color — than they can over the telephone or in an email.

(Full Story: 5 Reasons You Need to Meet in Person | Inc.com)

What I Learned at Summify Before Twitter Swooped Down and Snatched-Up My Team

Brent Sordyl — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 20:31:36 +0000

if you don’t know what you’re supposed to do or don’t understand something, ask.
if you’re not able to complete your task by the deadline, for whatever reason, tell the team now, not later, and adjust as necessary.
if you need help, get some.
the task isn’t done until you say it’s done.

(Full Story: What I Learned at Summify Before Twitter Swooped Down and Snatched-Up My Team)

DropboxAutomator.com – Automate your Dropbox

Brent Sordyl — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:06:25 +0000

Like IFTTT, Dropbox Automator is capable of triggering a similar series of actions, based on what kind of files have been added to your Dropbox folders.

(Full Story: DropboxAutomator.com – Automate your Dropbox)

No Excuses: Robots Put You In Two Places At Once : NPR

Brent Sordyl — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:06:23 +0000

One of Anybots’ telerobots costs about $15,000, which, he points out, is about the cost of one overseas trip.

(Full Story: No Excuses: Robots Put You In Two Places At Once : NPR)

100 ways to get more done

Brent Sordyl — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 19:47:13 +0000

#81 - Mindfully form habits. Generally, a habit that you consciously establish will improve your efficiency or otherwise be beneficial. In comparison, the habits you form accidentally tend to be detrimental. This includes everything from being mindful of how far you turn the tap to wash your hands, to how you respond to common criticisms.

(Full Story: 100 ways to get more done)

The top 9+7 things every programmer or architect should know – Java Code Geeks

Brent Sordyl — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 13:11:58 +0000

1. “You don’t have to make every module perfect before you check it in. You simply have to make it a little bit better than when you checked it out.”
2. “The bottom line is that beautiful code is simple code.”
3. Step Back and Automate, Automate, Automate – Cay Horstmann
4. Continuous Learning – Clint Shank
5. Check Your Code First Before Looking to Blame Others – Allan Kelly
6. Hard Work Does Not Pay Off – Olve Maudal
7. Comment Only What the Code Cannot Say – Kevlin Henney
8. Know Your IDE – Heinz Kabutz
9. Learn to Estimate – Giovanni Asproni
1. Understand The Business Domain – Mark Richards
2. Before anything, an architect is a developer – Mike Brown
3. Find and retain passionate problem solvers, Give developers autonomy, Empower developers
4. It’s never too early to think about performance – Rebecca Parsons
5. Record your rationale – Timothy High
6. Stand Up! – Udi Dahan
7. Great software is not built, it is grown – Bill de hora

(Full Story: The top 9+7 things every programmer or architect should know – Java Code Geeks)

Email Charter

Brent Sordyl — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 19:53:10 +0000

1. Respect Recipients’ Time 2. Short or Slow is not Rude 3. Celebrate Clarity 4. Quash Open-Ended Questions 5. Slash Surplus cc’s 6. Tighten the Thread 7. Attack Attachments 8. Give these Gifts: EOM NNTR 9. Cut Contentless Responses 10. Disconnect!

(Full Story: Email Charter)

The Definitive Guide to Meeting Minutes

Brent Sordyl — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 19:53:02 +0000

There are only 3 types of notes you need to take to keep your minutes simple but also useful.
1. Key Points – These are the regular notes you’ll take. I say “key” points to highlight the fact that you shouldn’t write every word down. Capture the main idea and then rejoin the discussion.2. Decisions – These are important! Highlight them so they’re easy to find.3. Action Items (@) – Capture all todos including the task, the owner, who the todo is owed to, and the due date.

(Full Story: The Definitive Guide to Meeting Minutes)

How to succeed in IT without really trying

Brent Sordyl — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 21:21:43 +0000

The other way to succeed in IT is with little effort or proficiency at all. I hate to say this, but a number of people in IT positions work harder to make it seem like they’re busy as beavers than doing actual work. Quite often this dysfunction starts at the top: When an IT manager doesn’t know the technology very well, he or she may hire folks who have no idea what their job is other than to show up every day and answer the occasional email, passing questions along to others with more technical abilities, or to their contacts at the various hardware and software vendors. People like these populate many consulting companies. They rely almost completely on contractors to perform the actual work, serving as remote hands in a real crisis and as part of a phone tree for less pressing issues.

(Full Story: How to succeed in IT without really trying)