Juggling Handoffs

Kick in the air,
A ball full of beans.  
Only to find,
that gravity wins.  

Grab a few friends,
And head to the park.
Take off your socks,
To sink into the grass.  

Eye down your partner,
To gain a layer of trust.
When the roundkick is unsuccessful,
The unexpecting toe keeps it airborne.  

Your sunset goal,
Is to circle the group.
Which is so simple,
Yet easily failed.  

Keeping a rhythm,
Is all you need.
But finding the friends,
Is the trick indeed.  

Expect honest not accuracy

As a Scrum agile practitioner; I spend downtime thinking about simple ways to say powerful things.  I have been setting my team expectations on two things, Transparent and Proactive.  Adding to the list is expecting honesty in estimating.  I did not say accuracy.  All humans are poor estimators.  I would rather have honesty than accuracy.  Better data is better forecasting.  I see new words to line the workplace; transparent, proactive and honest team members can conquer the moon.

Thinking of Product Ideas

I look at problems in the context of product ideas.  This week I thought about a one-click self healing testing package and a TBI centric workout program.  Both of these need to be sustainable.  I am trying to build these products using an existing organizational fabric.  I hope to write more about how these products go from thought to reality.  Do you keep a journal to document ideas?  If not, why not?  

Why worry about the details?

As a director of product development and government services, my mentors and managers have always encouraged me to elevate myself from the details, to focus on the "big picture."  After working on two start-ups and finishing an Executive MBA program, I now, however, have a new appreciation for the the term "getting into the details."

Every successful individual must concern him/herself with the details.  How does it work, what is needed to make it successful, and where can I find the answer to these questions?  The key for each individual is to define "it."  For a CEO of multi-billion dollar company, it is the leadership team.  The CEO needs to find it, build it and promote talent.  She needs to understand what makes her people tick.  For a web developer, it may be the latest tricks and tips on HTML5 or CSS3.  For an artist, it may be finding the right color, perfecting brush strokes, or capturing inspiration.  Whatever it is, it needs to be understood at a DETAILED level

What does this mean for you?  It means that rather than focusing on the big picture, you should be "getting into the details" and ensuring that your team has covered them.  As you ascend the corporate ladder or expand your personal enterprise, pay attention to everything around you.  You need to determine how to prioritize the essential elements of your tasks, and focus on it. While this may seem to be simple advice, as one of my mentors told me, simple is never easy.  I charge you to figure it out for yourself and get into the details of making it work.

Friends, Business Partners and Spouses

Last week was our EMBA 54's graduation party.  It made me want to share this poem of people I know. Enjoy.

Friends can be made with a click,
But kept with constant contact.
Every laugh creates a bond,
And any pain show the strength.

Business partners,
Sign on the dotted line.
Clear with their intention,
and flushed with possibilities.

Students of the law,
consult on what is allowed.
Wide Eyed entrepreneurs,
hear from their intestines.

Spouses are mostly chosen,
To be companions for life.
They hold the deepest secrets,
And cherish the small things.

I am lucky enough,
To have a friend for a wife.
With work and chance,
Business partners come and go.

Doing what is upright,
Transcends time.
In business and pleasure,
Or in the comfort,
Of ones own home.

Why I am Writing.

Personal connections are important. Coffee is important. When you combine the two, you can end up with a wonderful conversation. A couple of weeks back, I meet with a friend and classmate regarding finding my voice for this blog. So here it is:

I am an entrepreneur, a father of two, a husband of a angel, and man with a learning disability in phonics. My goal is to write a blog about hard work, dedication and achieving dreams. I have learned something in my first 36 years: life can be fun, but success does not come easy.

In 2010, I went back to school for my Executive MBA at Daniels Business School at Denver University and started a company called CloudCenter LLC. I plan on telling the story about how developing CloudCenter intertwined with my business school experience is helping a small business work smarter. This blog will focus on practical steps to engage with customers, develop a brand, listen to the market, and write effectively. Over the last 2 months, I’ve spent hours at night reviewing books and blogs on writing. After all, the simple step of putting thoughts on paper is something that has always concerned or downright frightened me. The only writing I have done well in the past is poetry. I will introduce that later.

I figured out that other people must have the same fear and concern. People must also have insights and thoughts that need to be expressed to the world. I want to inspire one person to learn something new today, start a book, or to finish the letter that haunted them. In this blog, I will chronicle how an experienced telecommunications and IT project manager will transform his skill set and learning into a professional Chief Marketing Officer for a start-up Internet company.