Chad Gniffke

I am Now the Kaseya Blogger

2008-12-23T15:32:00.000-08:00

As many of you know I am now employed by Kaseya. Part of my role includes managing some of the online social marketing efforts including the Kaseya Blog, Twitter, and responding to online discussions when Kaseya comes up.

Relationships within business can be more effective or more lethal today than ever before. A prime example of this is a frustrated client we noticed over Twitter just last week. He became frustrated with our firm and vocalized it via Twitter. Both myself and the PR team at Kaseya were monitoring Twitter for real-time alerts concerning "Kaseya" and were notified immediately. Upon receiving the alert I escalated it to upper management who then gave me protocol to follow for resolve. I was then able to communicate back to the client, within a few hours, that someone would be contacting him to assist with the issue. It was just plan awesome!

I look forward to participating in the social mediasphere on behalf of Kaseya in 2009.

New Employer for Chad Gniffke

2008-10-17T10:26:00.000-07:00

re.

This week I started my new job at Kaseya.com. The company provides an incredible solution that gives IT Managers remote control software, patch management software, software inventory and a full suite of solutions in a centralized console to manage and automate systems regardless of location.

I am very excited to be a part of the Kaseya team and look forward to a successful career here.

The Dark Art of SEO

2008-08-11T14:45:00.001-07:00

Over the past few months I have been challenged to learn about the magic of SEO and how it can be a very important deliverable to the companies I serve. In all of my research here is what I have found to be the dumbed down truths of this black art:

relevant and updated content on the website
3-5 keywords per page focus (after keyword research)
continued external linking (basically write content and submit it to third party article repositories)
solid homepage structure with the proper sitemap.xml, ror, and txt

Now I know there are many SEO consultants out there that may feel this is too simplified, but from what I understand today any and all "tasks" fit into 1 of these 4 buckets.

Anyone like to comment?

Caliber Media Group is a website design agency located in Orange County, CA in the city of Newport Beach.

In Search of Adventure - Rogaining

2008-03-07T23:24:00.001-08:00

In recent months I have felt a call to search for adventure. This calling however, does not appear to be just for me, but rather others. What I mean by this is that I believe I am supposed to find adventure and bring others along. Too often we get lost in the drudge of our daily lives and forget to seek out something new.

This week I met with a colleague of mine, Jeff Warren, who used to live in Australia. In explaining my new found desire for adventure and bringing other along he told me of a game in Australia called Rogaining. He immediately insured me that it had nothing to do with hair loss, but rather navigating to waypoints using a compass and a topographical map only.

Intrigued, I did a little research of my own. Please welcome Wikipedia.com:

Rogaining is the sport of long distance cross-country navigation. It is closely related to orienteering and many people enjoy both sports. For all participants, compared to an orienteering meet, a rogaine:

is a much longer event, usually 6, 8, 12 or 24 hours
is a team sport (important for safety, given the long duration)
has checkpoints (controls) assigned point values reflecting the distance from other checkpoints and the technical difficulty (terrain, navigation) of visiting them
requires each team to plan the order in which to visit checkpoints, so route choice is a very important element

For event organizers, a rogaine differs from an orienteering meet in that:

it requires a far larger map area, but not necessarily a highly customized orienteering map
a 24-hour rogaine benefits from being scheduled during a full moon, and needs an organized food service and space in which participants can sleep

So where does this new found adventure game leave me? I don't really know… yet. I do know that my goal is to find adventure, hidden in the darkness, and bring it out into the light. Perhaps your reading this is already helping me achieve my goal. Perhaps we will get a chance to play this game together sometime in the near future.

Tech2point0 Goes Dark

2008-02-22T22:30:00.000-08:00

If you have visited the site in the last few days I have gone dark. There is much in life that has been left in the darkness only yet to be discovered. Utilizing my love for technology and my new desire to seek out adventure, I am turning the ship, that is Tech2point.com, and creating a new heading.

I hope you will have just as much fun as I plan to.

Looking for Adventure in 2008

2008-02-20T16:00:00.000-08:00

It is too often that I find myself at home on a Saturday wondering what I should do with my family. This year I have decided to change that!

Adventure-less living is born from a lack of creativity and laziness. I figure that with a little planning and a bit of discipline I can give my family an incredible year in 2008.

I believe that so many stay home because they don't know where to go. My feeling is that geocaching rectifies this dilemma. All you need to do is pick a cache and vvwhala you have a destination. It is amazing how the family rallies behind a simple point on a map.

Adventure in 2008. Join me!

The Ultimate Efficiency Super Power - Jumper The Movie

2008-01-08T17:28:00.001-08:00

Talk about being able to get more things done throughout your day!

Productivity Struggles

2007-12-06T21:09:00.000-08:00

Productivity...my passion and lately my nemesis!

It seems that recently I have been fighting the flow rather than feeling it. That blissful state of eternal efficiency is only a fable.

On August 1st of this year my life changed. Not only did I begin a new job, but my GTD system went from PC to Mac, Windows Mobile to the iPhone, Outlook to Mac Mail, and Exchange to IMAP. I am finding that there are few in the world who have lived as deeply in the Microsoft world only to leave it all behind and become an Apple.

As a Microsoft user of 8 years I felt fast, lean, and efficient. Today I feel bloated, uncertain, and constantly asking myself "am I doing it right?" In talking with other Mac users, who embrace the culture and technology, they are confused by my perplexed state. Uber Mac users seem to think that all things necessary for perfect productivity are right at my finger tips. Perhaps my genetic makeup is incompatible with the Mac and only generation Y really gets it.

I guess I am writing this to find that one Microsoft follower who has also jumped ship, but has found a productive Mac relationship.

Half Marathon & Nike+

2007-11-04T14:15:00.000-08:00

I began training for the Surf City Half Marathon in Huntington Beach California about a week ago. Because I love gadgets and I am motivated by competing against myself, I decided to jump on the Nike+ bandwagon.

Being a little late to the game with this technology I was so excited to see how much gear is out there to own. Shirts, shoes, hats, Nike+ watch, armbands, and more I have yet to see I am sure. There is a benefit in following the masses.

Today, I completed my best run yet and thought I would post the results:

Caliber Media Group: Here I Come

2007-07-27T15:24:00.000-07:00

Beginning August 1st I will be joining the team at Caliber Media Group- calibermg.com.

The last 8 1/2 years of my working career has been spent helping small businesses design, build, and support their technology infrastructure at inhouseIT.com. My time spent there was incredibly rewarding. Thank you to the leadership for such a fantastic experience.

Caliber Media Group is also in the technology space, but focuses on the design, build, and support of premium websites, Internet services, marketing, and web applications. I am excited about moving into the worldwide web and expanding my technology foundation.

You can reach me directly at chadATcalibermgDOTcom.

Mobile Voice Mail to Email Conversion Service

2007-06-03T20:01:00.001-07:00

Over the past week I have been using a fantastic tool bringing me one step closer to productivity perfection. SpinVox is a mobile voice mail to text conversion service that works amazing!

As many of my friends learned of this, they began to leave some very creative voice mails for me in hopes of beating the voice to text recognition. Supercalifragalisticexbealidocious was even used in one message I from Brendan Cosgrove at techsoap.net and the conversion engine picked it up and spit it out over email. We all had a great laugh and couldn't believe it. My gut says someone is just listening to the message and typing it out for me. Most likely the case.

In the end the service won't be free. Although slightly steep on pricing ($10 every 6 messages on the high side) it is a pretty impressive idea. I have not made up my mind yet if I will continue with the service once the free time is up, but either way it has been a fun ride.

New Productivity Podcast by Tech2point0

2007-05-29T23:12:00.000-07:00

I started a podcast today centered around personal productivity. The goal is to provide a 5 minute, or less, thought communicating personalized lifehacks I have incorporated into my life.

If you are on www.tech2point0.com (and not reading this through a feed) you will see the sidebar on the right with the most recent post. I am using Gcast.com to publish my podcasts over the phone and have been very happy with it so far. Most of the podcasts will be done from my car, as I commute around the OC, with little to no rehersal.

The Podcast will soon be available on iTunes, but you can subsribe to the feed here

Club Soda With Lime Please

2007-04-07T08:20:00.000-07:00

No more Coke, Dr. Pepper, root beer, or anything else filled with carbonated high fructose corn syrup. I have struggled with the almighty sugar drink since college and I can honestly say it has caught up to me.

Statistics, I have read lately, state that a one 12oz can of soda per day will put 15lbs a year onto my now largely rotund frame. OUCH! Here is another alarming quote "Soft drinks also contain large quantities of phosphorus, which when excreted pulls calcium out of the bones. Heavy users of soft drinks will have osteoporosis along with their damaged arteries." - link

So, I am starting a new trend. I am beginning a new fad. Instead of ordering that extra love handle it's a "club soda with lime please". Personally I receive the same level of satisfaction without all the sugar. The bubbles and dash-of-lime really taste great while experiencing a sense of accomplishment by choosing a healthier track. This is also a great drink for business lunches.

The difficulty today is that most fast food restaurants and quick marts don't always have this available to the us. Therefore, we need to begin asking for it, ordering it, and only drinking it when possible. I challenge you to join me!

The next time you are asked for your drink order, make sure your answer is "club soda with lime please"

When I wrote this, there were 7 Google results for "club soda with lime please" so get this on your blog, post to your social network, and help me change the world!

Reducing Stress by Creating a 'Standard Day" (GTD)

2007-03-31T09:43:00.000-07:00

I have learned and felt the benefit of creating a "standard day" approach to my life as a sales person. Both GTD and Lifehacker Book talk about this. Here is what I do:

8:30AM - 9:30AM: email, voicemail, preparation for first client meeting, and task list completion
9:30AM - 10:00AM: drive time to first client and phone calls
10:00AM - 12:00PM: client meeting
12:00PM - 1:00PM: Lunch
1:00PM - 1:30PM: preparation for 2nd client meeting
1:30PM - 2:00PM: drive time to second client meeting and phone calls
2:00PM - 4:00PM: client meeting
4:00PM - 4:30PM: coffee and phone calls
4:30PM - 5:30PM: email, voicemail, and task list completion

One key area that has been incredibly useful to accomplish this "standard day" approach has been scheduling my client meeting at 10AM or 2PM everyday. I have found this leading question to help tremendously: 'Mr. Client, would tomorrow at 2PM or Thursday at 10AM work better for you?" Amazingly enough if you give them two or three times to choose from they typically pick one.

Another key component to making this schedule work is embedding the GTD method into my Outlook and then setting up the syncing properly to my Moto Q. I say this because my @phone folder becomes extremely useful during my drive times throughout the day. I can typically do all of my follow up phone calls on my way to client appointments.

Obviously each day has its extremes, but creating this framework has dramatically reduced my stress level while becoming more productive.

Gadgets and Fashion Don’t Always Mix

2007-02-18T09:29:00.001-08:00

Mainnav has developed a Bluetooth-enabled GPS watch for all of us who have fallen in love with knowing where we are at on Google Earth and the geek-ish activities that go along with it. Although there are other GPS watches out there this one definitely pushes the fashion envelope sticking up around 1.1-inches off your arm. It does however "track your current position, operate as a standalone GPS receiver, and also handle heart-rate monitoring, speed and distance tracking, and sense the temperature whilst frolicking in the great outdoors. Unsurprisingly, this beast can handle underwater excursions without a hitch, and the built-in Li-ion cell should keep things humming along for a good bit before needing a recharge." I would probably be the guy who buys one of these except it sounds like it will not be offered here in the US. Oh well. [Via Engadget & GPSGazette]

WebsitesForHeroes.com Makes Love Connection for Soldier in Iraq

2007-02-17T09:11:00.000-08:00

IRVINE, CA, Feb 20, 2007 – DigitalPost Interactive (OTCBB: DGLP), a provider of easy-to-use web platforms for digital media sharing and social networking, is happy to announce the latest success from WebsitesForHeroes.com, a nationwide program that helps America’s overseas troops stay connected with their families by providing free family websites. Using DigitalPost Interactive’s unique compression technology, Mr. and Mrs. Galvez were able to show their love online this Valentine’s Day with rich videos, photos, and messages on their personal family site – even though Mr. Galvez was stationed more than 7,000 miles away in Iraq. The event was featured on WLOX-TV, an ABC affiliate in Southern Mississippi, and can be viewed at http://www.digitalpostx.com/WLOX.php.

When he logged into the family’s site, Mr. Galvez was greeted warmly with a special slideshow that featured all new photos of his wife and children, and pictures of the homemade Valentine’s Day cards they crafted for him earlier that day. Afterwards, he and his wife exchanged words of affection on the family’s message board, and he used the site to catch up on the latest happenings back home, viewing new messages, photos, and video clips of his 18-month old son, Zachary’s precious first words.

“The site is unbelievably easy to use, and it allows us to keep in touch in ways that we haven't been able to before," said Mrs. Galvez. "Phone calls are too short, and letters take too long to get there. But WebsitesForHeroes.com lets us share the daily events in our lives, even though he’s a world away." WebsitesForHeroes.com is a joint effort by two California patriots – Terry Gniffke of Caliber Media, a former Marine and Vietnam veteran, and Michael Sawtell, CEO of DigitalPost Interactive, a provider of advanced family website technology (www.thefamilypost.com) – to keep military families connected and to inspire hope during difficult times. The site allows the American public to sponsor custom family websites for our troops serving overseas, so they always have a piece of home when they need it most.

“We’re extremely happy to be working with DigitalPost Interactive to help families like the Galvez’s who sacrifice a part of their lives each and every day to serve our country,” said Terry Gniffke, CEO of Caliber Media Group. “As a former Marine myself, I know just how important it is to keep that family connection alive. These sites are a vital link for today’s military families, and we’d like to thank the American public for their continued support of this important family program.”

For more information on sponsoring a military family for this program, please visit www.websitesforheroes.com.

Bluetooth Earpieces for Christmas

2006-12-17T09:16:00.000-08:00

I figured there were a few people out there looking for the perfect bluetooth earpiece to give to that special someone. Since I found 181 different choices on Amazon I figured I would give you 4 earpieces that, I believe, you will not be disappointed in. Make sure to read the reviews on each as some have different benefits than others.

Happy shopping

Stuck Under A Mountain of Email!

2006-12-10T09:39:00.000-08:00

Recently I have been stuck at the bottom of an email mountain containing both personal and business related topics. At the base you will find a plethora of emails which contain jokes, comments, "Thank You"...only, people yelling, URGENT, and others including individual monologues on how their day is going or their current view of some news related topic.

Let me just say that I love email. In fact email is the lifeline by which I get work done on a daily basis. What has troubled me as of late is the consistent flow of email in its unregulated format. I do not wish for a standard physical format, but rather a common human conception of what and how email should be used for. Today, I stumbled across this post which details, at length, various email best practices and forms of etiquette. Although lengthy, is a good read.

Oh and I have setup a rule that only those who have read this email etiquette post are allowed to send me email. :)

2006-10-11T07:58:00.000-07:00

Urban Ninja II - Too Funny Not To Post

I came across this video today on Digg and couldn't help but post it. This guys rocks.

How To Use Your Moto Q Efficiently: Part 2

2006-09-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

Back in July I wrote Part 1 of this post providing detail on how I use my new Motorola Q Smartphone. Since then I have had many more hours of phone calls, emails, website surfing, and device browsing to better speak to some additional add-ons I have invested in to bettter utilize the smartphone

My latest purchase was the Logitech Bluetooth Stereo Headphones from buy.com. I scored them for $36.99 with free shipping. As of this post, they are still available on the site. I was a little leary at the price reduction, but I found out when I received them that they are reduced because they came in bubble wrap and not the orignal manufacturer box. The manual, charger, and everything I needed was present and the headphones work sweetly. I recommend the purchase....strongly.

Lately I have been using my Moto Q for podcasts and the beautful thing about this device is that the hands free earpiece can also operate as the audio output device when used with Windows Media Player. So I can jump off a call and startup my podcast without a hitch. The fabulous part is that if the phone rings during my podcast, it mutes itself and allows me to pick up my call. As soon as the call is over the player picks up right where I left off. This has been great for my comute to work as it is common for me to take calls at that time.

To streamline my podcasting I am just about to test Pocket Podcasts. As I mentioned in my previous post about Dopplerradio.net, I am looking for a podcast application that will allow me to schedule downloaded casts straight to my sd card on the Q. I have glowing hopes that the Pocket Podcast application will do the trick. If not I look forward to hearing back from Dopplerradio.net on the progress of their app. I will provide an update soon.

On a side note, I use a wired earpiece on my Q. I do this because I am so critical on sound quality from the receivers end. I do business on the road throughout the day and it is critical that my caller hears every word I say while the background noise be minimized. In the car I LOVE having the air conditioning blowing straight in my face until it is ice cold. With other earpieces, clients and coworkers alike would ask if I was running or if it was windy where I was at. With my Plantronics MX505 and their WindSmart technology clients sometimes ask if I am in the office even though I am driving down the road at 70 with the A/C straight in my face. Man I love that!

The Home screen is something I struggled with for about 45 days. I was never satisfied with the information and how it was displayed. But after my days of toil I have found my perfect homescreen. Here are the settings:

Home screen layout: Windows Basic
Color scheme: Edgy
Background image: Edgy
Time out: 5 minutes (imporant when using speed dials - see below)

I realize that some may disagree with me, but all of these settings make for the perfect device. I will say though that I only started liking this layout after I ran the Motorola Q bios update. One of the things that makes this screen so great is that the Home Service section at the top can be depressed bringing you into a new screen called Wireless Manager. This screen allows you to turn your Bluetooth and Carrier service on an off with a simple click. Prior to this update this was all buried in the start menu. I you are a traveler I definitely recommend this update. I also like that the Text Message and Email links are on seperate lines so that you can minimize the number of clicks to get straight to what you want. (If you are using the default Verizon home screen you know what I am talking about)

As far as the update is concerned, it helped out tremendously. The device crashes less, is faster, and just seems to keep ticking better. If you are ok losing your "free" hacked bluetooth EVDO modem for the new paid version ($15/month) then go fot it. I decided to give up mine and go for a more solid device.

The one item early on that was concerning for me was that I could not invite an individual to a meeting from my calendar. (To clarify I am talking about simple meeting invites just like MS Outlook whereby you can invite someone straight from your calendar and they can accept) So while browsing one night I came across Papyrus. The application gives a little jolt to the plain builtin calendar and seems to work beautifully in it's place. I now have the ability to invite people to meetings while on the road which saves me a step when I get back to the office.

In closing, I have talked to some Q users who are frustrated with the number of clicks they have to make to get to some very important applications. I have found using the speed dial to be very helpful in this area. The next time you click on your start menu, highlight the application you want to open and click on the menu button. A nice Add Speed Dial option comes up. I added my calculator and the call history as speed dials to mine and it is very easy. All I do bring up calc is simply hold down the 3 button (while on my home screen) for about 2 seconds and whooala. If you start using speed dials more make sure your Time out option on your homescreen layout is set to 5 minutes or something less. This way when you pick up your device you only have 1 key to hit as the timeout option defaults back to your homescreen after the timeout period.

Technorati Tags:plantronics motoq moto+q motorolaq motorola+q mx505 papyrus smartphone logictech pocketpodcasts plantronics+mx505 tech2point0

Listen To Podcasts on your Motorola Q?

2006-09-22T10:15:00.000-07:00

I came across an application today that could prove promising.

Doppler is a podcast aggregator. It’s a tool to subscribe to RSS feeds which supply downloadable files. Doppler will go out and fetch the files enclosed in the RSS feed and will automatically add them to your preferred media player. And it does this in a very smooth unattended manner. It’s simple! Really.

Doppler has been around for a bit, but as of June 24th they have been working on a Windows Mobile 5 Version of their software that will allow direct download of the podcasts to your phone without a PC. Although I am still waiting to hear back from their support on the readiness of this product, I imagine the ability to schedule downloads, while I sleep, on my Motorola Q to my miniSD card and then enjoy a few podcasts during my commute to work each morning. This would be a life changing application and I am hoping they will read this post and hurry to make any last minute changes so that I can use it on my Q. Please **begging**.

Link back: Doppler on Smartphones

Technorati Tags: dopplerradio motorolaq motorola+q motoq podcast smartphone tech2point0

Geocaching

2006-08-28T21:41:00.000-07:00

So I began Geocaching under the name Entt over the past few weeks. I am a little late to the game, but it has still been enjoyable. I am thankful for the plethora of people who have stashed caches within 2 miles of my house. Below is my current geocaching stats...

Tags: gps geocaching

How to Use Your Moto Q Efficiently

2006-07-30T09:40:00.000-07:00

Over the past month I have been grinding away on my new Moto Q by Motorola through Verizon's network. My goal has been in pursuit of utilizing this new device to it's fullest by replacing any and all things I carry with me on a day to day basis as well as add a few more bits of information to my arsenal. Here is a list of how and what I am using it for:

Email: Utilizing the Exchange 2003 Server Active Sync wirelessly and it has been working just great. I have had speed issues with my device when I sync my 2000 plus contacts so beware of this if you are a contact hog like myself.
- Because I try and hold to the "Getting Things Done" mentality I have also synced my subfolders within my Outlook/Exchange inbox (you have to set this up on your SmartPhone) where I file everything. So when I am on the road, at lunch, or in bed I can do quick replies or filing to prepare for the next time I sit down at my desk. If you are not using the "Getting Things Done" method I highly recommend it.

Key Information: I have also installed the SplashID application that runs on my PC and syncs (cabled not wireless) with my Moto Q. I have access to a tremendous amount of information that this handy little application helps me keep track of. Probaly the biggest is the all of the weblogins that I have. It has saved my bacon many times.

Calendar: The wireless sync calendar using Exchange Sync is also fabulous. Everything I need is right there and I can lay in bed in the morning and take a quick look at my day or make a quick meeting so everyone knows I am still in bed, I mean spending time with a client.

Remember The Milk: Because I use RTM for my personal GTD method (non work related), the speed of Verizon's network and the browser on the Q is amazing! It is very easy to get my RTM up and running quickly especially for Target runs when I know I needed to get a few things. Thanks RTM for making your app mobilized. I have setup a contact called RTM that I can address an email to and it dumps it into my Inbox at RTM. So when I am driving and have a thought about something I need to do or want to get I just shoot a quick email and BAM it's there the next time I review my Inbox. (The GTD principles really make this type of thing work)

Virutal Earth Mobile: That is right, there is a mobile version of this application and it is great. You will want to make sure you have mini SD card in your Q so that you can cache more data. I find that doing this helps as I tend to pull it up for stuff in my city versus global lookups and so the mini SD storage allows for much quicker access.

Weather: Again the web browser on this phone is awesome! I login to AccuWeather.com (mobilized) to do a quick weather check.

Gmail Email: Yep gmail works great over the browswer too.

Google Mobile: Many people don't even know that this exists. Google mobile works wonders to search sites that are mobilized so you are not waiting too long to pull graphic intensive information. You can get to Google Mobile by going to http://www.google.com/xhtml (Normal mobile phones go there on their own when you type in google.com because Google recognizes that it is a mobile device. With the Q however they have optimized the browser in such a way that Google will think it is a desktop or laptop accessing it. Make sure to make the above link a favorite on your phone.

Blog Reader: The best online blog reading application that I found is Bloglines. The great thing about and many reasons why I switched was that they have mobilized the application making it UNBELIEVEABLE on my Q. Seriously, sometimes I would rather just sit and read my blogs in my Q then at my desktops. Bloglines plus Q is awesome. Let's just call it Qlines because I think the two of them should hook up.

The Camera and ScanR: Because the Q has a built in 1megapixel camera you can use ScanR to send pictures of whiteboards (after a meeting) and then ScanR dumps it to your email as a document. This works great and is easy to use and very functional.

The Camera: Again because of the 1megapixel I can take decent pictures when I do client walk thrus and thanks to the built in flash because I am many times in dark rooms that require it.

Media: I typically download my podcasts onto my mini SD card (you can go as big as 2GB) and listen to them when I can. Whenever I have downtime or am board, badabing I am in podcast heaven.

Grocery Shopping: This is my new challenge and I am open to anyone who might want to drop me some ideas. I have just acquired the grocery shopping duty from my wife. With two kids I have been finding dinners a little less than wonderul so I offerred to do the shopping so that she can have more things on hand to make sweet dinners. I have been trying to come up with a way to easily work with my wife on creating lists, managing lists, and completing them. To start it looks like I am going to try Vons.com and see where it takes me. I have not tried to access Vons on my Q yet, but I definitely am going to.

Corporate Wiki: I am in the process of setting up a Wiki for my office and have been paying special attention to those that look good and are mobilized. I have found two that I like so far and both seem to work well on my Q as well. Stikipad and SocialText both have mobilized access and it is quick. If you have a Wiki somewhere else, dump it when you buy your Q. You will love me for it.

If you are interested in some of my quick tips and/or more detail of my daily useage let me know by commenting and I will give you another brain dump in the next couple of days. Thanks for reading.

Moto+Q Motorola+Q Getting+Things+Done ScanR Exchange+2003 SocialText Stikipad SplashID Vons Bloglines Google+Mobile Virtual+Earth+Mobile RTM GTD Remember+The+Milk Verizon+Wireless AccuWeather

Nail Meetings Down - lifehack.org

2006-06-25T09:22:00.000-07:00

I attend meetings weekly and find that they sometimes turn into a time to share issues than to solve issues. The meetings tend to also run longer than they should and less is accomplished. This morning I ran across this blog from lifehack.org that gives some obvious, but good reminders of how meetings should run. I have copied some of the content below. You can read the entire post here.

Publish the agenda as early as possible. At the top, state: “This is the agenda for this meeting. We will review items on this list ONLY. If you would like to propose an agenda item not yet covered, please do so in the reply. An adjusted agenda will be sent out. “
At the bottom of the agenda, set the rules of the meeting: “Your time is important. I value your time and respect your attendance. Please turn off all mobile devices for the duration of the meeting. Please agree to stick to the agenda. Please refrain from sidebar conversations.”
At the beginning of the meeting, start regardless of whether all the people you need are there. It only takes missing a few beginnings, especially if you refuse to go back, to get people to arrive promptly. Once they understand the nature of your meetings, they’ll get the clue.
Start every meeting with the briefest of “house rules” conversations: “We’re going to meet quickly on this specific agenda. I’m going to talk, and you’re going to confirm the information we have here. There’s a question of next steps that we’ll keep open for discussion. Please, no cell phones - turn them off- and no sidebar conversations. One speaker at a time. Thanks. Let’s begin.”
Be pleasant, but be the authority. Gently remind people that the agenda is there, that the meeting is what it is. There shouldn’t be discovery at this flavor of meeting.
Never go over. If you still have agenda but no time, stop the conversation. Thank everyone for their time. Get up. They can stay, but you should walk out. Don’t bend on this. You’re making people late for the next meeting.
If you can, finish early.
Give people every chance between the meetings to be heard. Those who blather the most at meetings are just afraid that you don’t get their point. Go to them personally, one on one, and listen to them as long as you can stand. Reflect their words back. Show them you know what they’re saying.
Publish meeting notes right away. They should be very little more than the agenda with “confirmed” next to every point, and/or maybe a small block of notes at the bottom. If you are all in the same building, consider just photocopying your version of the notes and handing it to everyone. If an electronic copy is needed, be brief. Do not publish volumes of information. Meeting agendas are status queues, not logs for the meeting. (One peeve of mine with most project managers, formal or informal, is that they write mini novels when a status is all that’s necessary).

I believe that well managed meetings can change an organization for the better. People will be more effective, excited, and challenged when expectations are higher. Application is always the most difficult.

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Learn to Love Projects - lifehack.org

2006-05-06T21:13:00.000-07:00

This post is for my friend Ryon. His main role at my firm (www.inhouseIT.com) is to oversee and implement many of the VOIP and IT projects.

Even though this post applys mainly to internal projects, I think there may be some tid bits of knowledge he can glean from it. Here you go Ryon, visit this link: Learn to Love Projects - lifehack.org