When I was a child, there was a sticker on the telephone at the house of an old relative. Yes, I mean the telephone (there was just the one). The official looking AT&T sticker read “wait for dial tone.” When we visited, I’d wait for no one to be looking so I could pick up the phone and listen. Sure enough, there was always a dial tone–the days of waiting for an operator or mechanical switch to connect a circuit were already gone (I’m not that old). Things were connected!
Category Archives: Project Management
Tech Changes Are Good Changes
When I was in my teens, my dad used to tell me that when he was a kid, a slice of pizza cost a nickel. I didn’t think much of it. I was getting a slice and a coke for a buck at that time. Not too bad, I thought. Things change. Now as a father myself, I understand what he was trying to tell me. Cost has certainly gone up over the years. Pizza for my sons costs quite a bit more than when I was a kid.
Why Wait?
I spend numerous hours on the phone each week speaking to potential clients (or as we call them in the sales world “prospects”). It’s my job to find and encourage these prospects into participating in a short demonstration of the Spitfire Project Management System. But, regardless of the system, the one thing that seems to be the connecting thread, or theme, throughout all these calls is the phrase “I just don’t have any time!”
Seeking Answers in Work and in Play
I admit it: I’m a long time Sims fan. For those who don’t know, The Sims is a life simulation video game series, developed by EA Maxis and published by Electronic Arts. Some time ago I started playing the Sims 4. It had been years since I last played and, of course, the that vresion was different from previous ones. I often found myself with questions: How do I rotate objects in the room? How do I go to work? Is there some place I can eat while on a date?
Respecting the Details
I had already decided I needed to write about something less technical this time around, and then a 24-year-old writing about the Millennial Retirement Plan in Time magazine caught my eye. If that isn’t funny enough, Jack Dickey (the esteemed author) seeks guidance from a 31-year-old salesperson (oops) retirement planning expert. Turns out I have some free advice for Jack, too!
Unlike Jack, I find myself just about in the middle of my productive work life: I’ve worked the 24 years of Jack’s entire life and realistically expect to work about that many more. Perhaps that is why Jack made me laugh out loud when he pontificates that “what little employability I have comes from my brain. I’m not going to break down in my mid-60s”.
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