Eliana's iCarly Song!

Eliana has been asking me to upload a video to the iCarly website for weeks! She's excited at the thought of being on TV.

Knowing When to Push Back

Some great stuff from Harvard Business Online. This comes from there "50Lessons" videos. This quick clip is an example of "push back" with a customer. (You'll dig Phil's accent, too.. Imagine him saying "I can't hold her,Captain", while your listening).

But, when is it time to push back within the company? This is just as difficult. It's about knowing the unwritten rules... knowing all the players. Timing is everything. Patience is a virtue, at times.... but, there is a limit.

"Catch ball" is a term used in Hoshin Kanri planning. (Policy Deployment).... Where the two way communication should allow for some "push back" against unrealistic objectives set from above. In a company that historically doesn't play this way, I think we still figuring this part out.
...It's a process.. It doesn't happen over night! So, in some ways the command and control model is in place under the guise of the Hoshin language.
But there is hope.... in the name of continuous improvement!

Blog-O-Rithm ... Informative thought...and other random stuff

The Chain Theory

I bought the book "The Goal", The Theory of Constraints, Eliyahou Goldratt for 70 cents on Amazon! Now, I just have to read it ...

Smarty Splash

Splash
Originally uploaded by SdPanek

Eliana said, "Daddy, what's the middle number in the world.... I think, maybe it's 50, I dunno... Or maybe it's googleplex, is it?"

She's a smartypants, we talk about math sometimes..... and a lot of other interesting stuff.

Teen toob toss!

Work Hard, Play hard.

I've also decided that it's fine to not own an expensive boat, a million dollar vacation home, and a pair of waverunners.... We get caught up in ownership... I can use those things a couple times a year for a fraction of the headache. I'm getting smarter all the time. I also discovered that it's harder to get up on one ski than it used to be!