I say, I say, I say....
Q - How many IT guys does it take to change a light bulb?
A - Have you powered it off then on first?
Q - How many programmer guys does it take to change a light bulb?
A - None. It's a hardware problem.
I think it's quite productive if you wrote about it on the forum). And if you are not sure that the concrete action will be useful for you (or for someone), don't take it for it. Or, if you don't have much time, give this task to someone. I did the same with my geography assignment because I didn't have the opportunity to do it on time because of work. But I also think that now it's a fashionable phenomenon.
Checking boxes for the sake of checking boxes, and assigning action items (that can't possibly be completed this quarter) just for the sake of assigning action items increase productivity, right?
Oh, productivity. To hit a good groove and maintain creative momentum at the office I did the following:
1. Set office-wide email alerts for free food and other fun things
2. Got 2 tiny cacti🙂
3. Learned to type faster (at 72 wpm now)
4. (most important) I arrive before the rest of the team and dive into my tasks.
Multitasking never worked for me, though.
1. Set office-wide email alerts for free food and other fun things
2. Got 2 tiny cacti🙂
3. Learned to type faster (at 72 wpm now)
4. (most important) I arrive before the rest of the team and dive into my tasks.
Multitasking never worked for me, though.
If you are interested in productivity and efficiency, you might enjoy the 1950 film "Cheaper by the Dozen" about the Gilbreth family. A Hollywood style account of a real family and real pioneers in efficiency. True to the time, the film focuses on the father but it was really Lillian Gilbreth, who was the powerhouse. She was a Ph.D in in psychology, held a good number of patents, began ergonomics studies and invented many things we now take for granted.
Worth a look and a read, if you are interested in the subject.
Worth a look and a read, if you are interested in the subject.
The film is based on a book which made a strong impression on me in the sixth grade.
So yes, you can read about it. Their family life was rather unconventional, and I thought it would be fun to be in a family like that..
So yes, you can read about it. Their family life was rather unconventional, and I thought it would be fun to be in a family like that..
How about
The elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floor
A sandwich short of a picnic
The lights are on but no one’s home
Three cards short of a deck
Helloooo
The elevator doesn’t go all the way to the top floor
A sandwich short of a picnic
The lights are on but no one’s home
Three cards short of a deck
Helloooo
The hamsters are running, but the wheel isn't spinning........related to the all important 2000's era slogan......"This project is gaining traction."
Anyone who has ever abused an off road vehicle understands what happens when the weight of the vehicle (task load) is high and the wheels gain traction. The vehicle (project) stops moving, and the engine (workers) STALLS.
Assigning action items is an important prerequisite for that all important productivity booster.....blamestorming.
Blamestorming is a "productivity" meeting usually carried out at a high level so that the managers cam all assign scapegoats to their action items that were not accomplished according to the all important Microsoft schedule printout.
A successful long term employee learns how to negotiate the action items list such that I was never brought up in a blame storming session. Accept some tasks that no one wants, do a good enough job to avoid being the long pole in the tent, but not so good that you threaten those striving to climb the corporate ladder. The best place to be for long term employment is the "middle of mediocrity."
I lasted 41 years in an electrical engineering job. The skill set needed to pull this off were learned by watching TV reality shows like Survivor and Big Brother, where people are "voted off" on a regular basis. Corporate America worked the same way from the late 1990's until all the large corporate factories and engineering facilities were gone.
Many of these TV reality shows were modeled on the work of John Forbes Nash Jr, especially his thesis on non-cooperative games in 1950. John Forbes Nash Jr was the man featured in the movie "A Beautiful Mind."
The corporate world is very similar to the non cooperative game scenario....especially after the Jack Welsh books and others like Topgrading became popular. This forced an era of non-cooperation since we were all ranked against each other.
That's a new one on me, so glad I'm not in that world, it makes perfect sense of course. Thanks for another great, thought provoking post born out of your experience. 🙂
When the company I work for was small, I used to think Dilbert was a farce. Then it got larger and I realized that the comic was a documentary.
You no longer see clips from it posted on middle managers office doors. Probably out of fear of retribution from above.
You no longer see clips from it posted on middle managers office doors. Probably out of fear of retribution from above.
Our engineering department sharepoint has a link to Dilbert. This as part of a division with tens of thousands of employees.
On the other hand, our local facility only has around 200 people and of those less than half are in the engineering group.
Speaking of Engineering, in the USA one can not claim they are an engineer even if one holds a degree in engineering (BSEE, CSE, ME etc), unless you pass the PE exam (EIT plus final PE), or are part of a big conglomerate.
My business cards state I am an engineer, but since I never took the PE final (I passed the EIT in college) I can not claim to be an engineer outside of work.
On the other hand, our local facility only has around 200 people and of those less than half are in the engineering group.
Speaking of Engineering, in the USA one can not claim they are an engineer even if one holds a degree in engineering (BSEE, CSE, ME etc), unless you pass the PE exam (EIT plus final PE), or are part of a big conglomerate.
My business cards state I am an engineer, but since I never took the PE final (I passed the EIT in college) I can not claim to be an engineer outside of work.
I sidestep the whole "So what's your job?" thingy with "I dunno yet, lot's of variation though!"
(techsupport of many different kinds, project planning, service tech, planning work for other service techs, database stuff, a tiny bit of metal works (just drilling, welding and grinding), a tiny bit of smd soldering, a little bit sales)
"Here's a manual in a language you don't know. Now go fix that thing we don't know whats wrong with 2 to 1200km in that direction somewhere!"
I had never heard that in big city Florida since tech was big (then). I had no problem getting free lance work as an engineer even before I got a degree.
Here in small town USA, yes.....I'm just a stupid retiree who once worked in a cell phone factory. Job requirements state "must have EIT, PE preferred", and that's just to be fixing machines.
My reply was, "You know that million sq foot Motorola plant out west of Ft. Lauderdale? Iv'e been there for XXX years and done every job in that place from the assembly line to fixing machines to designing phones. OH, yeah, hiring people too!" Then you start asking them questions.
Working on becoming just another stupid retiree who used to work in a cell phone (parts) factory. Will fix machines (especially ones designed to make sound) for fun. It will be a great place to be.
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