Happy New Year

Sunday Silliness - Trouble

Science of Beer

I treated myself to my first beer making kit, but I do not think I will give it a try until the weather is warmer, there appears to be a lot of cooking involved and I have heard that it may have a slightly overwhelming aroma.  This will be a good spring/summer project.  

InfoGraphic from Popular Science

Goals...

"The most important thing about goals is having one."

  

- Geoffry F. Abert

What Do You Want?

"You, too, can determine what you want. You can decide on your major objectives, targets, aims, and destination." 

   

- W. Clement Stone 

Project Management Humor :o)

6 stages of a project

1. Enthusiasm

2. Disillusionment

3. Panic

4. Search for the guilty

5. Blame for the innocent

6. Praise and honor for non-participants

Happy Holidays & Merry Christmas

Sunday Silliness - Challenges

Your Mind...

"Your own mind is a sacred enclosure into which nothing harmful can enter except by your permission."  

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Levelized "Park"ing

When Osaka’s baseball stadium closed its doors, it opened the door to a prime redevelopment opportunity in a new commercial district adjacent to Namba Train Station, the first stop from Kansai Airport. Owner, Nankai Electric Railway, wanted to create a gateway that would redefine Osaka’s identity.

They conceived Namba Parks as a large park, a natural intervention in Osaka’s dense and harsh urban condition. Alongside a 30-story tower, the project features a lifestyle commercial center (with 120 tenants) crowned with a rooftop park that crosses multiple blocks while gradually ascending eight levels.

In addition to providing a highly visible green component in a city where nature is sparse, the sloping park connects to the street, welcoming passers-by to enjoy its groves of trees, clusters of rocks, cliffs, lawn, streams, waterfalls, ponds and outdoor terraces. Beneath the park, a canyon carves an experiential path through specialty retail, entertainment and dining venues.

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Blueprint

"Visualize this thing you want. See it, feel it, believe in it. Make your mental blueprint and begin."   

  

- Robert Collier    

Who Can You Laugh At?

"You grow up the day you have
your first real laugh--at yourself."

 

- Ethel Barrymore 

BCS Bound!

BCS Championship Tickets purchased, complete with Fan Fest Hospitality package! This will be our most expensive weekend in our life I am sure, but it is once in a lifetime, just like my wife (the once part LOL). Luv U Honey!  Our seats are on the 40 yardline, upper tier, 3rd row.  

This is an estimated view.  We are very excited.

Negotiation, NOT!

Sunday Silliness - Maturity

A Moment of Silence for the Victims and their Families...

Inflatable Subway Plug

When Hurricane Sandy struck New York City a few weeks ago, seven of the 14 under-river subway tunnels flooded as a result of the storm surge, halting operation of some subway lines for more than a week. One possible future safeguard for this kind of disaster: huge, inflatable tunnel plugs. At the University of West Virginia, researchers working with the Department of Homeland Security are testing a massive balloon made of high strength material that could potentially be used to plug subway tunnels during future calamities--be they weather- or terrorism-related--keeping water out and important infrastructure functional. Catch a video of this technology inflating over at the NYT.

Timely post since we just watched the benefit concert last night on AMC.

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Want to Play Catch?

My brother used to work for Disney Animatronics, so I knew they worked on things like this.  And if you have ever been to a Disney theme park, then you know that they are a leader and innovator in this area.

Having said that, this is cool to share.  Disney researchers invented a humanoid animatron that plays a lifelike game of catch.

They used an external camera system to track the balls and an algorithm to predict where and when the ball would fall. When the robot misses a catch, it looks back or down at where the ball fell, shrugs, or shakes its head. This guy was designed for theme parks, but one day it will be playing catch with our children and fetch with our dogs. Next they should program it to make dad jokes.

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Opportunity Identification

Simply asking "what job is the customer trying to get done?"  forces you to go beyond superficial demographic markers and to zero in on frustrations and desires that motivate purchase and use.  I think that in everyday life, you can substitute  “person”  for “customer” and end at motivate.

Seductive simplicity hides a rich, robust set of opportunity identification tools: the five Cs of opportunity identification.

1.       Circumstance. 

2.       Context.

3.       Constraints. 

4.       Compensating behaviors. 

5.       Criteria. 

We all look at things through functional, emotional, and social lenses.

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Meet Bucko!

I have had people question my e-mail address, "buckoclown@aol.com", and today while I was putting away a new clown (thank you Aunt June!), I came across this picture.  I figured I would clean it off and post it so you can see my alter-ego, or perhaps my real personality.  Beth has never seen me in make-up, but she lives with the personality :o)

Sunday Silliness - Bravery

Goals!

"People with goals succeed because they know where they are going... It's as simple as that."

  

- Earl Nightingale

Crisis Management!

All leaders are challenged by crisis. Here are four things to help cope with such situations:

1.Communicate immediately and clearly. 

2.Directly assess the impact. 

3.Establish and communicate clear expectations for your workforce. 

4.Set priorities among conflicting demands. 

Patience & Perseverance

"Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."

  

- John Quincy Adams

Think Much?

"You become what you think about."  

   

- Earl Nightingale

Successful Meetings

Successful meetings are possible. With forethought and planning, your meetings will use attendees’ time wisely and accomplish important business goals.

Structure meetings to ensure effective results. Every meeting must have:

•       A written objective.

•       Crucial stakeholders’ attendance.

•       A circulated agenda.

•       Beginning and end times.

•       A written summary with action items, fixed responsibility and follow up.

A written objective: You need to look at the end before you know where to begin. What do you want the participants to do when they leave the meeting? This helps determine your objective. The objective should be clearly stated in writing at the top of your agenda.

Crucial attendees: The success of your meeting depends on participation from all of the stakeholders.

A circulated agenda: With a pre-circulated agenda, everyone knows the objective of the meeting, which topics will be discussed, who is responsible for the various topics and how much time the meeting will take. Every agenda should have subjects in sequential order, with a time allotment and moderator for each. Keep on task! This is the moderator’s focus. When a question is raised or statement made, re-state to avoid confusion. Make sure everyone is listening to the person speaking, with no side conversations. The moderator must control the discussion to stay on topic. If an important issue is raised not germane to the topic at hand, table this to an offline task force.

Begin and end on time: Be respectful of attendees’ commitments, and wrap up the meeting within the allotted time.

Provide a written summary: The note-taker provides a written record to each participant. Action decisions must be noted in writing. Affix the proper person’s name to the action, along with the deadline completion date.

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