July 5, 2009

Planning vs action…a mid year reflection

Note: This post purposefully focuses on personal planning vs action, don’t get me started on organisational planning vs action!

Drawing up the plans courtesy of Ronn Ashore on Flickr

Courtesy of Ronn Ashore on Flickr

June 30 has passed….most of us have or are about to be subject to mid year reviews whether that be organisations tracking against KPI’s, performance reviews, even financial reviews ready for tax time but what about a personal reflection, how are you tracking on your goals and aspirations for the year, or for your life and career as a whole?

As Ross Hill stated on Twitter:
status update

In addition its soon approaching time to commence thinking about and planning for 2010…how do you balance the never ending struggle between action and planning?

I recently had a friend move overseas, in a discussion about his decision to move he explained that 2009 was his ‘Year For Exploration’. Two things struck me, the first was I wasn’t the only person who named their year! The second was the call to action within his statement…I had always termed my year, ‘Year of…’ which implies being passive and something happening to me whereas his ‘Year for…’ is a plan, a call to action, assertive and in control in determining and fulfilling his goals for the year.

It is too easy to get lost in the planning and to not take action. Both aspects are important as planning provides structure and direction to action however it is easy mistake planning for action as well. I was challenged by Derek Sivers blog post Shut up! Announcing your plans make you less motivated to accomplish them. It focuses around the idea that research conducted in 1933 indicated that people who spoke about their intentions are less likely to make them happen…and that for some merely announcing their goals and intentions satisfied the brain enough to no longer need to actually take action and achieve them.

As Sivers states:

Once you’ve told people of your intentions, it gives you a “premature sense of completeness.”

Wray Herbert also wrote an article on this http://www.newsweek.com/id/197006 Again he discussed a study where law students who had publicly announced their intention to read more law journals had an inflated sense of their legal capabilities. He states:

That is, simply stating a strategy for becoming a good lawyer made them feel like they were real lawyers, and this inflated self-image paradoxically made them less hard working. They had become legends in their own minds, and legends don’t have to get down and dirty.

I have to admit that I fall victim to this often…there are so many things I want to do and achieve that I manage to make myself feel better by stating my intentions to complete them and then not follow through (this is not intentional but reinforces the studies above). This seems to be particularly true when its finances that keep me from doing exactly what I want for example the University course I would like to study next (there is always at least one bubbling over in my mind) but the exorbitant cost (and the insane balance of my HECS debt to date!) prevent me from pursuing it seriously. I have also been ‘planning’ to visit Japan for at least the last 3 years however…and yes there is always a however…annual leave and finances have constrained that also. Anyone that knows me knows that I am an ambitious and quite determined person and that I will find a way to make these things happen if I really want them. So perhaps the power of ‘planning’ is in the dreaming?

There are some tools available to help track your goals and keep habits.
1. Don’t Break the Chain! is a visual motivation technique where you mark the days off a calendar that you work toward a particular goal.
2. I am also a firm believer in the overlooked aspect of reflective practice and Lifehacker provides a series around the weekly review habit to assist in getting things done.
3. I also like Satisfying things I wanna do this week dammit! to establish a work/ life weekly balance and holistic view to week by week planning and action.

So as we are now mid year through 2009, take this opportunity to reflect on where you are at this year, in your career, and life as a whole and review how you tracking in your planning vs action. Are you a planner? Are you an action taker? Or are you one of the few who manages to balance both?

Take off or bust courtesy of sgs_1019 on Flickr

Take off or bust courtesy of sgs_1019 on Flickr

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June 18, 2009

The answer is in your end user…not in you

Last night I had the privilege of attending Future of Design Thinking: a conversation with IDEO hosted by Design Victoria. The IDEO representatives, Arna Ionescu Domain Co-Lead Connected Health and Jose Colucci Health and Wellness Lead, discussed design thinking and how IDEO implement this within their organisation. This is the first in a yet unknown IDEO/ deisgn thinking series.

IDEO focus on human centred design which involves designing products with the user at the core of the process at all times. (Note: I know it sounds logical that the design process should always be focused in this way but surprisingly it is not.)

They come to each project with this:

People don’t do what THEY SAY they do
People don’t do what WE THINK they do
People don’t do what THEY THINK they do

Understanding and fulfilling this is critical to developing the best possible solution for the client. As it assumes that all participants in the design process bring their own personal bias and the end user are the best source of input. To illustrate this they told some telling and powerful stories (Dear IDEO, if you ever read this and I have gotten minor details wrong apologies)

Image: Grandma's hands by sparktography

Image: Grandma's hands by sparktography

People don’t do what THEY SAY they do
In Germany they were speaking to an elderly lady with rheumatoid arthritis. They asked her if she could remove the top from her medication bottle. She replied she could. To be sure they asked her again and she replied ‘Yes, it’s easy’. They asked a third time but this time ‘Can you show us how you open the bottle?’. ‘Of course’ she replied. The lady then got up from her chair, took the two gentleman to the kitchen, proceeded to turn on her domestic electric bread slicer (think circular saw, but smaller, embedded into the backsplash) and ‘sliced’ the cap from the bottle.

The moral of this story is: being in the natural environment with the end user allowed this conversation to progress to this demonstration, and the realisation of how people complete tasks. Jose Colucci said that if they had’ve been in a focus group situation and she answered yes, they would tick off the check box on the list. She could do it but not the way most people would assume…people don’t do what they say do.

Image sourced from IDEO website

Image sourced from IDEO website

People don’t do what WE THINK they do
IDEO designed the first defibrillator to be used by a lay person and approved by the appropriate authorities. IDEO were able to simplify the process to two steps – turn the machine on and then another button shock the body. However they found users did not like this – and wanted three steps – which is counter intuitive. IDEO introduced a false third step to the process and in testing discovered adding an extra step shaved a few seconds off the time for people to complete the process. Big difference when it comes to bringing someone back to life!

As professionals, it’s very easy to develop assumptions about our clients/ users/ customers. This is particularly prevelant the more experience we have with an organisation/ user group/ industry – we believe our experience provides enough knowledge of our clientele…but IDEO show that people do not do what we think they do (or want them to do).

Image: Opposite Day, courtesy of hartboy

Image: Opposite Day, courtesy of hartboy

People don’t do what THEY THINK they do
Okay…so this one is not and IDEO story, this one is mine…which some of you may have experienced. I have done a number of presentations in my time…and I am an extremely nervous presenter. I often am nauseous for at least a day before the actual event – even if its just a simple short talk, sweaty palms, racing heart, the whole kit! Because I felt like this I assumed that I presented like this also until I had was video taped presenting last year (very scary!). It turns out I turn my super power calm on, I don’t have any odd twitches, nudges, scratching, or stammers. I can even pace myself reasonably well. (I am not a great speaker by any means but I’m definitely not atrocious as I thought!). This is a perfect example of what goes on outside does not match at all the inside – I did not do what I thought I did.

From these three statements, it is easy to see how important it is to remove yourself from the process and heavily involve your end users in anything you create. Assumptions are very powerful in the way we conduct ourselves and our work – both our assumptions of the project, as well as personal assumptions of the clients and end users which are easy to go unnoticed, and which they may not realise exist! This is not just a lesson in talking and working with your end users, but knowing them, and teasing out the real solutions to the challenges and issues they face (some of which they may not even know about).

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May 27, 2009

Do you trust me? Play in the workplace

This evening I attended KMLF in Melbourne and had the privilege of listening to Stuart French discuss corporate culture and choosing appropriate collaboration tools based on application rather than on the actual tool (amongst other things).

On his blog, Stuart French presents the central ingredients for creating knowledge cultures:

  1. Trust
  2. Behavioural integrity
  3. Ability
  4. Benevolence
  5. Situational strength

Trust is the largest issue with 2-5 still seeming to include components of trust within them.

On my tram ride home I watched Tim Brown from Ideo ‘s TED talk on creativity and play.  His talk focused particularly on the importance of play and the creative process for designers.

His three major points:

  1. Exploration: Go for quantity
  2. Build: Think with your hands
  3. Role play: Act it out

These two quite seemlingly unrelated events & topics converged for me though.  After watching Tim’s talk I couldn’t help but think about the importance of play in any workplace – and how this may transform any individual worker or organisation.

The overtones in both brought me to the core concept of trust in the workplace.  At KMLF an example was discussed where 5 people were standing around a computer trying to solve a legitimate problem – however a senior member of staff told them to ‘go back to work’ (forgive the paraphrasing those who attended kmlf!).  The implication is clear.

Trust enables collaboration and the opportunity to innovate without looking over your shoulder to make sure noone is watching.  Trust allows exploration, attempts, mistakes and failures without judgement.

Often strategic plans, process and history mandate organisational progress with little slack given in the work week for critical needs of reflection, exploration, building and scenarios. Tim Brown in his talk says ‘co-negotiation leads to productive play’ whereby if everyone knows the ‘rules’ for collaboration, working together, problem solving in the workplace then it can lead to innovation and transformation.  This implies the ongoing relationship required to maintain effective work relationships where the underlying ‘rules’ continue to be fluid as the task and/or situation requires.

Trust in the workplace is rare – it often happens within small teams or organisations but as workplaces grow in size so does its complexity and often the levels of trust lower at similar pace as growth increases.  If more organisations empowered employees through trust and allowed the freedom to (productively) play as progressive design companies do I wonder how organisational culture would be impacted?  And at what rate innovation would progress?

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April 15, 2009

We are all Big Brother in a popularity contest

Big Brother WAS watching! by David Maddison

Computers, video games and the web were all at some point labeled as causing people to be more insular and solitary, and less social.  This has now come full circle with people now being more connected and social than ever – but do we actually have more friends? Or are we simply broadening our horizons and networks to include the thousands of ‘acquaintances’ we may RT or @ in our Twitter lifetime? Or share a wall post on a Facebook group trying to get 1 000 000 members so someone will call their child Batman?

A Google search using keywords ‘increase twitter followers’ retrieves approximately 907 000 articles – everyone has a strategy to become more ‘popular’, some are worth reading and embrace the essence of what Twitter is about (see Collective Thoughts) and others, (like Shroom Heat – who blogs in capital letters?!?) are disappointingly shallow.  It seems that social media and web 2.0 tools appeal to the high school student in all of us – wanting to be popular and if possible the most popular – Prom Queen, School Captain, Head Prefect or whatever was the ultimate accolade at your school.  We want to feel accomplishment that we are more successful than the student who was dux and more popular than the football star. Mike Arauz has developed a Spectrum of Online Friendship: Spectrum of online friendship

We are not only competing in a popularity contest but judging it too – the ‘Passive Interest’ section or the ‘Big Brother’ column, where we seek out and pursue someone across online spaces but often don’t actually interact -  follow them on Twitter, read their blog, view Flickr images, see what they’ve tagged in their Delicious bookmarks, their professional history on LinkedIn.  We are now all cast in the role of ‘Big Brother’ from 1984 knowing almost everything about a person except their social security number.  The opportunity to monitor one another so closely had not existed until the web 2.0 explosion. There have been multiple reports in the media of people losing their jobs, getting dumped and being evicted due to social media faux pas (primarily on Facebook). Stephen O’Grady considers how he should present his personal  life to ensure it does not interfere with his professional life. Ultimate control is still with us as we decide what we will post but as the professional blends with the personal at an ever increasing rate people will use this information about us.

Our lives in public written by Gavin on Servant of Chaos takes this issue one step further:

The most pervasive aspect of living in an online, socially connected world is not identity –- but the traces of our identity that we leave with every click of the mouse. For every time we visit a website, download a PDF, leave a comment, buy a song or write a blog post, we leave something of ourselves behind.

This also includes all the social networking and web 2.0 tools you have used or signed up for over time and leave your presence on, no matter how small.

Social networking and web 2.0 tools are extremely valuable – both on personal and professional levels but left unchecked we are all Big Brother in a popularity contest.

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March 9, 2009

Organisational re-learning: the five R’s

Today I presented the ideas of organisational re-learning to a group of librarians at the University of Colorado, Denver.  It is perhaps the most unattractive powerpoint presentation I have ever developed however shortness of time did not allow the usual beautification.
The organisational re-learning system I propose incorporates the four ‘R’ steps of:
  1. Reprioritising which includes a renegotiation of organisational foundations and operations
  2. Repurposing according to identified needs established from new and changed priorities
  3. Reframing occurs to align staff thinking and behaviours
  4. Retooling happens to develop staff skills to the level required for new strategic directions
Framed within:
5. Reflection
And specifically a reflective evidence based practice process which I adapted from reflective and evidence based practice literature.  This model proposes a fluid cyclical process of evidence based practice with critical reflection occurring at the beginning and end of the cycle.  Each stage of organisational re-learning occurs concurrently utilising the reflective evidence based practice process as a strategic pathway to accomplish each step.
Reflective evidence based practice process

Reflective evidence based practice process (Callahan & Howard, 2008)

The principles I presented of organisational re-learning are founded in a paper I co-authored in 2008 entitled Planning for Success: Reprioritising, repurposing, and retooling with results presented at the 5th International Lifelong Learning Conference in Queensland.

Since this paper was completed I have further developed the ideas to incorporate the ‘Reframing’ stage which is in many ways the most critical as it focuses on encouraging behavioural changes across an organisation, both on an individual and holistic level, in order for the organisation to move forward in delivering new strategic directions and goals.
The ‘Reframing’ stage is the people stage where the importance lies in engaging each individual and building relationships to encourage growth in professional confidence, professional possibility and empowerment.  If there is the need for organisational re-learning – there is also the need to build trust and confidence which occurs primarily through relationship building and demonstrating genuine care.  For me, I come back to my personal leadership philosophy ‘If I don’t have my staff, I have nothing’.  This focuses on the idea that people are the organisation and that as a leader/ manager it is my role to support and nurture them appropriately toward success.  If I am successful in this, there are two probable outcomes: any organisational re-learning initiative will be a success and the organisation as a whole will be a success.

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February 17, 2009

From Twitter sceptic to convert (and slight addict) in 7 days

Twitter is the buzz word and ‘it’ tool of the moment and as a newly immersed social media girl I am officially jumping on the bandwagon with my journey from being Twitterless to Twitterfied.

A little over two weeks ago now I walked down the garden path, closed the front gate to the  library world and moved across the street to begin decorating my knowledge sharing and social media home.  At this stage Twitter to me was nothing more than a version of a Facebook status update.  As I had just moved in, I had no Internet privileges for the first week and lived a social medialess existence yet my neighbours spoke about the world of Twitter with such energetic gusto that by the end of week 1 I felt like there was a never ending party going on that I was missing out on.

Commence week 2: Internet privileges received, @zaana is reborn!  When best describing the evolution from Twitter sceptic to convert I refer to minxuan’s presentation.  If only I had come across this  I may have been converted earlier.

After being an active user of Twitter now for 7 days I reached two milestones yesterday: I had my first retweet and passed the 100 follower mark.  I have been most intrigued at my inbox filling up with emails stating ‘God is now following you on Twitter!’ and after looking at their profiles thinking either of two things: How on earth did you find me let alone decide to want to follow me? or ‘Another spam follower telling me how to make money from the Internet’.  So despite my followers reaching a good round number of 100 it is really comprised of four sets of people: people I know, people who I follow and reciprocated the follow, people who are building their following numbers arbitrarily and spam followers (this is what I call them – there is probably a better term out there!).  I am sure there is a minority fifth group also who actually found me and follow me because they are interested in what I have to say but I am yet to uncover any evidence of this – although obviously this is what I hope to build.

After my 7 days according to Twitter Grader my mark is 87 out of 100.  There is a whole explanation of how it is calculated but I don’t really know what it means, although I do feel that tug in my tummy that I want to get 100 (but then I have always been an overachiever).

It is the ‘Why?’ factor of Twitter though that has me converted – and yes slightly addicted and in trouble at home when caught sneaking a Twitter glance in the evening.  I like Daiv Rawks blogpost on Why do you use Twitter? where he put out a call on Twitter to his followers asking why they use it.  Amongst them were these:

Mark Shimko

@mybiziz To connect with & build a like-minded community. I place a lot of weight on the adage *united we stand, divided we fall*

meznor

@meznor I use it as a new source, to do research, and to find and keep in touch with people who have common interests.

Sherry Main

@sherrymain 1) to learn, 2) be in the know – latest and greatest, 3) stay in in touch, 4) share my interests, 5) easier than blogging

Valerie Maltoni’s post You’re on Twitter Now What? provides guidance on using Twitter to best benefit your goals.  Have you set what you wish to accomplish from Twitter?  Is there a particular way in which you wish to portray yourself?

From these kinds of comments and from my own experience the real value in Twitter lies in the ability to be instantly connected with a likeminded community – and a community you can contribute to and draw from.  According to Ajesh Patalay’s article Life is Tweet from The Observer Twitter is the ‘new cultural forum’.  Melbourne in particular has felt this over the past two weeks with the huge amount of Twitter activity resulting from the recent devestating bushfires.  The key to Twitter is that you are the creator of your own Twitterverse allowing you to define the connections and level of engagement you choose. This means there are of course fringe benefits too, like being connected to news (ABC Radio Melbourne), respected authors (Neil Gaiman), favourite musicians (Imogen Heap) and just for fun (Hamish and Andy).

So from sceptic to convert – for me whose foundations lie in the theories of face to face supported by technologies, Twitter is challenging this perception as I create connections and networks not defined by time and (physical) space.

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January 16, 2009

Questioning the value of professional development

A new year provides the opportunity for reflection – and often a good spring clean!  In my case I had two large boxes filled with papers and documents collected over a three year period at my previous job.  As is usual whilst sorting and rationalising what is kept (I am unfortunately a bit of a hoarder though) to reminisce, become nostalgic, re-experience a thousand situations and re-visit  a plethora of memories.

These two boxes represented much more than just three years in a job but so many rich learning experiences and professional growth – a real ‘coming of professional age’.  Which made me begin reflecting on the many professional development opportunities I had been given across this time – leadership training programs, seminars, conferences, workshops, courses (I was very fortunate in the opportunities I was afforded) and tried to remember the key points I learned and the key people I learned them from.  I was disappointed to realise that I was struggling to remember the key moments from NLS4 (ALIA’s New Librarian Symposium) that I had attended less than a month ago let alone conferences I had attended years previous – despite trying to decipher copious notes taken at the time.

If I could not remember these experiences with clarity – what was their worth to my professional development? Am I product of informal or formal learning (or both)?  How do conferences, seminars, workshops etc impact on our work practices or are they good only for their immediate context?  Put another way, how transferable are professional development programs into the work place and our work practices?

I have no doubt that these were all valuable experiences (even the not so great seminars – you can learn from anything!) but the real question becomes about our own responsibility and commitment to what happens after the professional development event – attendance is not enough – taking notes at the time is not enough – what is really required is a little time to digest and filter, and then use a forum (whether written or oral, public or private, individual or collaborative) for critically reflecting on the experience.  This solidifies the experience and contextualises it within the individual and their environment – it allows the transfer from one context to another to take place.

Reflective practice then becomes the primary learning tool and the key to enabling professional development and growth, not the event itself.

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