As previously stated, I am working through Ashley Friedlein’s Web Project Management to learn the method presented. Because my various work projects and work environment makes it difficult to dive into a new method feet first, I plan to work through the method on a real project: this site. I am running through the introductory section again. There is not much method here, but some good general reference info that can be captured in the meantime.
I am a disciple of David Allen. Getting Things Done fluctuates between my modus operandi and unattainable savior. As such, I completely buy into Allen’s bottom-up task management philosophy. In short, he insists that all things that must be done be captured, without fail, as actionable items on contextual lists. These lists need to be available at a moment’s notice to be evaluated based on criteria that makes sense for the occasion. I could fill hundreds of posts expounding upon these principles, but not as eloquently or as effectively as Allen. Read the book; it will pay off in spades. The one thing I want to emphasize of the system is that tasks management is the precursor to project management. Read More
I needed to replace my “custom” WordPress theme because it was “designed” for objectives that are no longer valid. I just wanted to grab something quickly that was minimalist and non-offensive until I had a chance to develop my own theme. I stumbled across Thematic in the most popular free theme list on WordPress’s site. I have been really impressed with it thus far, not just from a design perspective, but also from a functionality and structure stand point.
The developer, Ian Stewart, has a great site that promotes his work and himself really well. He seems to have parlayed his work to gainful employment. It looks like he may have even “sold” his entire web brand to his new employer. I am not sure if this was a strategy by him, Automatic or just a happy accident, but it is still very interesting. I am not looking to sell out or get a new job, but the fundamentals Stewart used to build his site align with what I am trying to accomplish.
Most of the content on this site should be original writings, from a few hundred to couple thousand words, that cover some aspect web project management. However, there is a lot of other material that could be captured. I love tumblr and tumblelogs in general. They have changed the way I think about content. I want to capture tumblelog style content here too when it relates to web project management. Stream that might fit the theme:
I may be able to harness tumblr for this purpose.
Here are the things that I would like to accomplish with this project:
My work has a higher success rate, and higher quality, when given the following inputs:
This provides me a framework to find solutions, measure success and a means to assign the proper resources for the task. However, I have found that my own side projects often suffer from a lack of all three of the above.
As such, I need to force myself to make explicit agreements with myself about this (or any new personal project) to ensure success. I am to the point in my life (a professional with a family) that side projects only provide value if they can be properly executed (completed successfully) without sabotaging the little amount of time I have with my wife and daughter. So now I need to figure out objectives, expectations and priority.
Here is the intro paragraph text. This post will show me all of the various formatting elements so that I can style them appropriately. This paragraph will be short.
Longer paragraph, followed by a second paragraph. Here is some lorem ipsum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer erat nisi, consequat id tempus et, aliquet ut risus. Donec in magna eget enim egestas porttitor. Suspendisse facilisis venenatis augue sit amet ornare. Cras felis massa, posuere ac tristique id, rutrum hendrerit est. Ut sed arcu ante. Suspendisse facilisis fermentum lobortis. Duis ultrices, quam ut hendrerit scelerisque, nisi quam rutrum enim, quis hendrerit nisi lacus sit amet sem. Pellentesque sit amet molestie dolor. Vestibulum egestas neque at mi pellentesque suscipit. Etiam sollicitudin tempor vehicula. EM text: sed lectus sed erat ultrices accumsan. Here is the ‘more’. Read More
Job Analysis Visual Aid: Ideal Versus Reality
A few weeks ago I did a round of job analysis. I looked at where my time was actually going, contrasted with what was expected of me. The two sets of data were pretty disjointed and were used to setup a re-balancing of my focus, and hopefully, efforts. So how am I doing? CHARTS!
First, The Ideal
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