Looking for that next pay hike? Want to make a leap into a new position? Doing what you’ve always done for the last few years? Still don’t see where I’m going with this? Look around at the people that have taken a leap and gone past you.   Was their skillset so different than yours?  (You’re in the same organization, so doubtful) Were they that much more likeable than you? (I can’t answer that) Did…

It is very easy to Lead when costs are low, profits are high, everyone’s happy, the world is a glorious place to live in, etc, etc. It is a whole other “thing” to Lead when everyone is unhappy, costs are on the rise, uncertainty is at a record high and nothing is going your way. The really, really good leaders, can lead the same way in times of good and in times of bad.  They…

I can’t do this without new Tool x. If only we had this software everything would be perfect. After a practice, where I felt like I fell 10 times on the ice, I went to get changed thinking my skates MUST be dull – it can’t be me – I could not have been THAT bad. Turns out the skates were fine, both edges were sharp, but the skater was dull 🙂 It’s so easy…

Said the teacher to the student when the student asked what the answer to the math question was. Said the doctor to the patient when the patient wanted to know the specifics of their open-heart surgery. Said the Territory Manager to his sales team when asked what targets they were aiming for this year. Said the Stakeholder to the developer when asked what do you want me to build. Software Development is series of ongoing iterations…

A few weeks ago, while I stood completely exhausted, huffing and puffing for air (and not alone) while at an early morning hockey practice, our coach said to us all quite succinctly… “Why are you always practicing what you can do and not what you can’t do?” What we can do is the easy stuff, the stuff we’ve gotten better at over the years, the stuff that we can do in our sleep but still…