Software Engineering, Project Management, and Effectiveness
The Microsoft Windows Azure Code Samples Collection is a roundup and map of Windows Azure code samples from various sources including the MSDN library, Code Gallery, CodePlex, and Microsoft Support.
You can add to the Windows Azure code examples collection by sharing in the comments or emailing me atFeedbackAndThoughts at live.com.
Common Categories for Windows Azure Code Samples The Windows Azure Code Samples Collection is organized using the following categories:
Windows Azure Code Samples Map
Category
Items
Sample Apps
DPE
Windows Azure Training Kit
Architecture and Design
Code Gallery
patterns & practices
Claims / Identity
Configuration
Data Access and Storage
MSDN Magazine
Deployment
General
Logging and Instrumentation
Migration
Service Bus
All-in-One Code Framework
Service Management API
· Windows Azure Service Management CmdLets from http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/azurecmdlets
SQL Azure
Microsoft Support
WCF
Windows Azure Storage
Windows Azure UE Team Code Samples The Windows Azure UE team now has an organized collection of code samples available at:
My Related Posts
The Microsoft WCF Code Samples Collection is a roundup and map of WCF code samples from various sources including the MSDN library, Code Gallery, CodePlex, and Microsoft Support.
You can add to the WCF code examples collection by sharing in the comments or emailing me atFeedbackAndThoughts at live.com.
Common Categories for WCF Code Samples The WCF Code Samples Collection is organized using the following categories:
WCF Code Samples Collection
Categories
Addresses
AJAX / JSON
Bindings
Clients
Cloud / Windows Azure
Contracts
Cryptography
Discovery
Exception Management
Extensibility
Hosting
Interoperability
Performance and Scalability
Queues and Reliable Sessions
Security
Session Management
Transactions
WCF Data Services
WCF RIA Services
WCF Syndication
Web
The Microsoft Silverlight Code Samples Collection is a roundup and map of Silverlight code samples from various sources including the MSDN library, www.Silverlight.net, Code Gallery, CodePlex, and Microsoft Support.
You can add to the Silverlight code examples collection by sharing in the comments or emailing me atFeedbackAndThoughts at live.com.
Common Categories for Silverlight Code Samples The Silverlight Code Samples Collection is organized using the following categories:
Silverlight Code Samples Collection
Getting Started
Channel 9
Animation
MSDN Library
Controls
Data Access
Data Binding
Deep Zoom
Graphics and 3D
HTML Bridge
Local Resources
Navigation
Networking / Communication
Out-of-Browser
Performance
Styles and Templates
Text and Rich Text
Unit Testing
User Controls
Video and Audio
MSDN Learn
Visual States
Web Services
DPE (MIX 08)
The ASP.NET Code Samples Collection is a roundup and map of ASP.NET code samples from various sources including the MSDN library, www.ASP.net, Code Gallery, CodePlex, and Microsoft Support.
You can add to the ASP.NET code examples collection by sharing in the comments or emailing me atFeedbackAndThoughts at live.com.
Common Categories for ASP.NET Code Samples The ASP.NET Code Samples Collection is organized using the following categories:
ASP.NET Code Samples Collection
Sample Applications
ASP.NET MVC
AJAX / jQuery
Authentication
Customer Support
Authorization
CSS 2
JavaScript / JSON
MVC
Codeplex
Request Processing
ASP.NET Developer Center (www.ASP.NET)
State / Session Management
Validation
Visual Studio and ASP.NET Development
The ADO.NET Code Samples Collection is a roundup and map of some of the various data access code samples from various sources including the MSDN library, Code Gallery, CodePlex, and Microsoft Support.
You can add to the code examples collection by sharing in the comments or emailing me at FeedbackAndThoughts at live.com.
Common Categories for ADO.NET Code Samples The ADO.NET Code Samples Collection is organized using the following categories:
ADO.NET Code Samples Collection
Data Models
DataReader
DataSet
DataTable
Entity Framework
LINQ to DataSet
LINQ to Entities
LINQ to Objects
LINQ to SQL
N-Tier
O/RM Mapping
OData
POCO
Silverlight
SQL Server
Streaming
Scenario Maps are a simple way we collect, organize, and share user scenarios for a given problem space or technology. They serve as a fast and scannable index of the problems that users face. They are one of the most effective ways to see the forest from the trees. Rather than get lost in a single scenario, they are a step back and a look across all the key scenarios. This helps for ranking and prioritizing the problems for a given space. They are also a powerful way to perform competitive assessments, shape a product, and to drive prescriptive guidance (I’ve used Scenario Maps to create platform Blue Books for patterns & practices.)
Here is a roundup of my most recent Scenario Maps related to building block technologies for building applications for Cloud, Web, and Phone, and for building Web services:
Why Scenario Maps The better the map of the problem space we have, the better we can shape our platform and technologies, improve our tooling, and create more effective prescriptive guidance. The key to an effective map of the problem space is creating a simple lens for the problem space, and getting customers to share their key scenarios. When customers share their scenarios in a Scenarios Map, it helps make sure their problems are heard in a simple and effective way. The better their problems are heard and understood, the easier they are to address.
What is a Scenarios Map A Scenarios Map is simply a collection of user scenarios organized using categories. The categories with the most pain or opportunity serve as “Hot Spots.” You can think of this map as a “Heat Map” of user scenarios where “Hot Spots” bubble up. This helps see show the forest from the trees and to prioritize investments.
5 Keys to Effective Scenario Maps The most effective way I’ve found to collect customer scenarios is to create “Scenario Maps.” The Scenario Map ends up being a highly scannable index of one-liner scenarios. The scenarios serve as test cases that we can measure the platform, tooling, and prescriptive guidance against. An effective Scenario Map has five key attributes:
The Microsoft Windows Phone Scenarios Map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks developing applications hosted on Windows Phones. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers for the Windows Phone would face.
Your call to action here is simply scan the Windows Phone Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at feedbackandthoughts at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
For a quick review of what a good Scenarios Map looks like, see my related post, 5 Keys to Effective Scenario Maps.
Windows Phone Scenarios Map
Application Bar
Bing
Camera
Choosers
Cloud
Device Management
Emulator
Gamer Services
Globalization / Localization
IE (Internet Explorer) Mobile
Launchers
Location
Media and Media Player
Model, View, ViewModel pattern (MVVM)
Multi-Touch
Navigation / Pages / Frames
Pause / Resume
Push Notification
Reactive Extensions
Sensors
Testing
Titles / Icons
Tombstoning
User Experience
XNA
The Windows Azure scenarios map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks developing applications for the Windows Azure platform. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers for this platform would face.
Your call to action here is simply scan the Windows Azure Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at feedbackandthoughts at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
Windows Azure Scenarios Map
ASP.NET Applications
Caching
Data Access / Storage
DataMarket (“Dallas”)
Logging / Health / Monitoring
WIF (Windows Identity Foundation)
Windows Azure VM (Virtual Machine) Role
Worker Role
Workflow
Contributors and Reviewers
The Microsoft WCF (Windows Communication Foundation) scenarios map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks around developing WCF services. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers would face.
Your call to action here is simply scan the WCf Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at FeedbackAndThoughts at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
WCF Scenarios Map
Auditing and Logging
Deployment Considerations
Discovery and Client Access
Impersonation and Delegation
Message Security
Proxy
Sensitive Data
Service Interface
Transport Security
The Microsoft Silverlight Scenarios Map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks developing Silverlight applications. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers for this medium would face.
Your call to action here is simply scan the Silverlight Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at FeedbackAndThoughts at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
Silverlight Scenarios Map
COM
Events and Delegates
Layout
Localization
Project
XAML
The Microsoft ASP.NET Scenarios Map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks with ASP.NET. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers would face when building ASP.NET applications.
Your call to action here is simply scan the ASP.NET Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at FeedbackAndThoughts at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
ASP.NET Scenarios Map
ADO.NET Entity Framework
AJAX
Dynamic Data
Globalization and Localization
JQuery
Master Pages
State Management
Troubleshooting
“To stay on the map you've got to keep showing up.” -- Peter Gallagher
Periodically I create a map of the Microsoft application platform. (Here is my previous map of the Microsoft application platform.) Making the map helps me stay on top of the platform, identify potential changes to architecture and design strategies, and anticipate trends. It also helps me figure out where to invest my time and energy. It also helps me see potential customer confusion.
Here is my latest map of the Microsoft application platform:
Application Infrastructure
ALM (Application Life-Cycle Management)
App Frameworks / Extensions
Collaboration / Integration / Workflow
Database Server / Storage
Desktop
Developer Tools
Games
Identity
Languages
LINQ
Manageability
Office
Parallel
Phone
Services
Web Server
Windows Server
Many thanks to Adam Grocholski, Alik Levin, Chris Sells, Jesse Liberty, Joe Stagner, Jon Galloway, Pete Brown, and Rob Boucher for helping review.
The ADO.NET Scenarios Map is a consolidated and shared view of the common scenarios and tasks around Microsoft data access technologies. You will find Getting Started and Architecture scenarios first, followed by other common areas. Scenarios in each group should represent common tasks developers would face when building applications that access or interface with data.
Your call to action here is simply scan the ADO.NET Scenarios Map below and either share your scenarios in the comments or email your scenarios to me at feedbackandthought at live.com. Be sure to share your scenarios in the form of “how to blah, blah, blah …” – this makes it much easier to act on and update the map.
ADO.NET Scenarios Map
ADO.NET
XML
The better the map of the problem space we have, the better we can shape our platform and technologies, improve our tooling, and create more effective prescriptive guidance. The key to an effective map of the problem space is creating a simple frame for the problem space, and getting customers to share their scenarios. This is where you fit in. By sharing your scenarios, you can help make sure your problems are heard in a simple and effective way. The better your problems are heard and understood, the easier they are to address.
I’ll be sharing examples of Scenario Maps in the near future.
If you’re a Silverlight developer or you want to learn Silverlight, this map is for you. Microsoft has an extensive collection of developer guidance available in the form of Code Samples, How Tos, Videos, and Training. The challenge is -- how do you find all of the various content collections? … and part of that challenge is knowing *exactly* where to look. This is where the map comes in. It helps you find your way around the online jungle and gives you short-cuts to the treasure troves of available content.
The Silverlight Developer Guidance Map helps you kill a few birds with one stone:
Download the Silverlight Developer Guidance Map
Contents at a Glance
Mental Model of the Map The map is a simple collection of content types from multiple sources, organized by common tasks, common topics, and Silverlight features:
Special Thanks … Special thanks to Jesse Liberty, Joe Stagner, Paul Enfield, Pete Brown, Sam Landstrom, and Scott Hanselman for helping me find and round up our various content collections.
Enjoy and share the map with a friend.
I’ve had a few readers ask me how they can create a patterns & practices team for their Enterprise. I think with the overwhelming choices of technologies and directions, more people are looking to create small technology incubation and innovation teams to help identify, harvest and share proven practices as well as to help pave the paths and steer the course for their bigger ships.
While I don’t have everything packaged up as good as I could, here are some resources to get you started:
I included many lessons learned from the school of hard knocks learned over more than 10 years at patterns & practices.
Here’s the opening blurb …
'Getting Results the Agile Way' -- A Timeless System for Changing Times -- Now Available in Print
Seattle, WA (PRWEB) October 26, 2010
Author J.D. Meier is announcing that his new book ‘Getting Results the Agile Way’ is now available in print. The book shows readers the way to make the most out of work and life. Meier has come up with a simple system to achieve meaningful results that combines some of the best methods for improving one’s thinking, feeling, and doing.
“The best way I can put it is, it helps you be the author of your life and write your story forward,” says Meier. “Basically, it’s a system that can support you in everything you do. It’s based on principles and patterns so you can tailor it for yourself or for any situation.”
Read the rest on PRWeb at - http://www.prweb.com/releases/Getting-Results/Now-in-Print/prweb4636494.htm
As new teams spring up and old teams redefine themselves, one of the most important aspects of an effective team is the culture.
An organization’s culture is defined by the values. It’s not what they say, it’s what they do. It’s not what they want to reward or say they want to reward, it’s what they actually reward. The other thing to know about a culture is that the values flow down from the top. That’s why leadership is important, as well as shared values among the team. Conflict of styles is easier to deal with than a conflict of values … after all, you don’t just change what you value to fit your company.
One of the simplest ways to establish and guide an organizational culture is to explicitly share the values and principles. If you’re in the position of creating a new team, you can use the values as a lightening rod to attract the people with passion that care deeply about similar values. Values are sticky and that’s actually how you can spread an organization far and wide and yet remain intact … it simply becomes a federated team that connects at the values (you can read more about this concept in the book, The Starfish and the Spider.)
Example of Defining a Culture Through Organizational Principles and Values Here is a simple example of defining a culture using the patterns & practices team as an example circa 2006:
Mission “Customer success on the Microsoft platform” or “Proven practices for the platform.”
Goals In patterns & practices, the goals are simple:
Values In patterns & practices, we value:
Principles We use the following principles to guide our work:
If you’re an ASP.NET developer or you need to learn ASP.NET, this map is for you. Microsoft has an extensive collection of developer guidance available in the form of Code Samples, How Tos, Videos, and Training. The challenge is -- how do you find all of the various content collections? … and part of that challenge is knowing *exactly* where to look. This is where the map comes in. It helps you find your way around the online jungle and gives you short-cuts to the treasure troves of available content.
The ASP.NET Developer Guidance Map helps you kill two birds with one stone:
You can also use the map as a model for creating your own map of developer guidance.
Download the ASP.NET Developer Guidance Map
Mental Model of the Map The map is a simple collection of content types from multiple sources, organized by common tasks, common topics, and ASP.NET features:
Special Thanks … Special thanks to Joe Stagner, Paul Enfield, Rick Anderson, Scott Hanselman, Tim Teebken, and Wade Pickett for helping me find and round up our various content collections.
Enjoy. Share the map with a friend.
“Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you.” -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
With my latest book out, Getting Results the Agile Way, I’ve had a lot of people ask me, “Where’s the training?” While I’ve been making a lot of self-paced material available on the Getting Results Knowledge Base, what folks are really asking for is, where is the *live* training? …
Well, here it is. Talk about timing and talk about a perfect partnership! The live training is now available as a one-day, in-depth workshop to help you get up and running fast. Learn how to get results with skill and work on the right things, at the right time, the right way, with the right energy to get your best results. This is the same system I’ve used to lead distributed teams around the world since 2001, on time, on budget and it integrates some of the best practices from positive psychology, sports psychology, project management, and personal development. There is a special emphasis on meaningful results, personal productivity, motivation, focus, passion, and purpose … and most importantly … responding to change … the agile way ;)
The Workshop at a Glance
John Hanson
This initial offering is being discounted to $299 (plus tax).
What you’re buying is a personal results system you can use for work and life, for the best of your life … that can help you make the most of what you’ve got today, and every day, whenever you want to get the system and science on your side. It’s the edge you need in today’s ever-changing world.
To Register
Why John Hanson John is passionate about developing people and helping them succeed. His super skill is translating concepts into real world practice. He’s been creating success with individuals for 16 years at SAFECO Insurance, and 10 years at Microsoft. What I like about John is the fact that he’s full of stories … the good, the bad, and the ugly. He’s been helping our top folks, Microsoft’s high performance employees, make the most of what they’ve got for years, so he knows what works and what doesn’t, as well as how to tune and tailor insights and actions to help people unleash their best in any situation.
What You Will Learn
Why a Workshop
Key Exercises You’ll Practice in the Workshop
"Eight hours work, eight hours sleep, eight hours play, make just and healthy day." - King Alfred the Great
One of the most important lessons at Microsoft was learning the value of a 40 hour work week. I’ve been on time, on budget for 10 years on projects ranging from grass-roots or “best efforts” to $ million+ investments. In my first few years, I was on time, on budget through heroic effort. That’s not sustainable and folks don’t want to sign up for that more than once. Luckily, I learned early on how to drive more effective results by fixing time and flexing scope, while flowing value, and optimizing team health. I also learned the value of figuring out effective product-lines, managing portfolios of investments, finding the best “Hot Spots” on heat maps of customer pain and opportunity, and mastering the art of the WBS (work breakdown structures) and cuttable scope.
For some people that have experienced effective 40 hour work weeks on a regular basis, this will be “no-duh.” For those that haven’t, this may be unfathomable, so I’ll share what I’ve learned so at least it can give you food for thought and potentially help give you a mental model of what success can look like. I originally slanted this for individuals and 40 hour work weeks, but I realized it’s more effective if more team leaders drive 40 hour work weeks so that everybody wins.
Why a 40 Hour Work Week It’s not that I just want happier, healthier, more effective colleagues. I want a more effective Microsoft.
In my experience, a 40 hour work week is a benchmark of the most effective teams. They have work-life balance. They have buffer to respond to opportunity and to deal with crunches. They have processes in place, they invest in their learning and growth, and they move up the stack instead of always solving the basics. Instead of perpetual fire-fighting, they are more deliberate about planning and strategy and they anticipate their customers and the market (through empathy and staying connected to customers.) They learn and respond and can turn on a dime. They have a dashboard, they know the score, and they can change their approach.
There’s another reason that cuts right to the chase. If budget cuts will break you, then the first way to build a firm foundation and execution machine is to master the 40 hour work week. It’s a forcing function that fixes a lot of underlying execution issues that you just cannot see if your organization throws time at problems. If you can’t see it, you can’t fix it. When you bound it by time, you can start testing more effective ways to produce results. To make this actionable, make it an initiative.
60-80 Hour Week of Ineffectiveness Here are some of the attributes of teams that lead and drive 60-80 hour weeks of ineffectiveness and inefficiency:
Ultimately, it’s a lost of waste on multiple levels. Mostly, it’s a waste of human potential.
40 Hour Week of Effectiveness Here are some of the attributes of teams that lead and drive 40 hour work weeks of effectiveness:
While these insights and lessons might seem easy, intuitive, or simple, they are actually hard-earned and they are directly from the school of hard knocks. It took multiple managers, testing with multiple teams over multiple years, and a lot of trial and error to figure out what actually works.
Cornerstone Concepts for More Effective and Efficient Weeks There are some fundamental concepts and shifts to understanding why and how a 40 hour work week is more effective than a 60 or 80 hour work week. You need a few concepts under your belt to help guide you through change:
My Story One of my toughest lessons to learn at Microsoft was the value of a forty hour work week. I'm known for being a workhorse. 16-20 hour days, 7 days a week was just a way of life for me. Long ago, I heard the saying you'll have plenty of time to rest when you're dead and it stayed with me ever since.
To make it worse, when I joined Microsoft, I was surrounded by passionate people who also worked well beyond a forty hour work week. I was in the zone. Not just that, I was spending my time in my passion, so I never burned out. Throwing hours at problems was no sweat and I liked the pace.
My first taste that this was a problem was when my first manager sat me down and said that my perpetual over-time was a problem. He said I was throwing off the head count. I was doing the work of multiple engineers. It made it hard for him to argue for heads if the work was getting done, and he worried that I would burn out. Luckily, I never burned out. It turns out the primary ways you burn out are by trying to solve the same problem over and over like a broken record with no results, or by spending time in things that drain you. The simplest cure for burnout is spending more time in your passions or moving to new problems or changing your container.
My second taste that this was a problem was when I joined patterns & practices. After my first few projects, my manager told me I needed to find a way to work 40 hours and produce the same or better results. Additionally, I had to get more effective results from the rest of the larger team. In other words, I wasn’t setting a good example, I set an impossible bar, and I had to make the most of the team (Oh, and did I happen to mention that this larger team was always a distributed team around the world, from UK to Argentina to India and the US?) The good news is, the story has a happy ending …
To bottom line it, by setting a constraint around the 40 hour mark, it dramatically improved team processes, improved clarity on impact, and it helped flow value versus waiting for big bang. This also had an amazing set of by-products, including achieving work-life balance for all team members, helping people spend more time in their passion and strengths, reducing downstream risk and surprises, and keeping the energy strong across the team in a more durable way. It also helped us improve our daily, weekly, and monthly rhythms of results while improving our team practices and procedures. We basically moved up the effectiveness stack and it got faster each time we had to build a new team.
The basic approach I used is what I call Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, and Friday Reflection. I did “show and tells” on Thursdays as a forcing function to drive results but to also give folks on the team a chance to show off their work and get feedback earlier versus later.
Call to Action Make a 40 Hour Work Week an initiative, for yourself, for your team, or for your organization. Start small. Lead by example. Start with yourself, then help other people. Focus on finding more effective ways to do things, focusing on the vital few things that matter the most, playing to your strengths, and improving your energy. Know what counts and be able to put your finger on it.
You can explore the system in Getting Results the Agile Way. The Scenarios and Solutions for Getting Results and the Guidelines for Getting Results are fast tours of the landscape and rich with strategies and tactics for changing your game.
Today, I significantly revamped the Knowledge Base for Getting Results the Agile Way. The Getting Results Knowledge Base features templates, tools, and step-by-step How Tos for adopting and implementing Getting Results the Agile Way. Here is a screen shot:
Templates and Tools for Making Things Happen The Getting Results Knowledge Base is a non-trivial collection of some serious know-how that you can use to change your game. The Knowledge Base includes:
If you ever get lost or if you’re helping somebody get up to speed, simply refer to the one-page guide … Getting Started with Agile Results. It shows you how to adopt Agile Results in three easy steps. Another good entry point, and one you might end up using as a daily reminder, is the Checklist for Getting Results. It’s a tickler list of one-liner reminders and prompts to help you get better results in any situation.
This is a step through of how you can adopt Getting Results the Agile Way. Getting Results the Agile Way is a simple system for meaningful results in work and life. It’s an integration and synthesis of best patterns and practices for time management, productivity, motivation, and project management for getting faster, simpler, and more effective results. (You can read some testimonials from users of Getting Results the Agile Way.)
You can adopt the basics of Getting Results the Agile Way in under five minutes. You can adopt or tailor pieces as you see fit. By adopting The Rule of 3; the Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection pattern; and the life Hot Spots, you establish a rhythm of results and achieve work life balance. Agile Results is action-oriented with an emphasis on outcomes over activities, while supporting continuous growth and learning. Agile Results also helps you manage your energy across your work and life, giving you the power to achieve whatever you want with sustainable results.
Objectives
Overview Agile Results is a simple and effective results system for personal productivity. It works by establishing a rhythm of results, prioritizing value, and taking simple, consistent actions towards your results. By treating time as a first-class citizen, you can set effective boundaries and achieve work-life balance. By having a system you can count on, it helps you get back on your feet again. The simplicity is part of its effectiveness. The heart of the system is the synergy of three things: The Rule of 3; the Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection pattern; and life Hot Spots.
The Rule of 3 is about identifying three outcomes each day. By starting your day with three outcomes, you clarify what you want to accomplish. When you know what you want to accomplish, you can prioritize more effectively, and you can let things go. Rather than focus on your endless backlog or overload, you shift your focus to the three most valuable things you can do today. Each day is a fresh start; so is each week, each month, and each year. It’s your chance to wipe the slate clean and cherry-pick your most important items. Rather than focus on everything that you haven’t finished, you focus on answering the question, “What’s the next best thing for you to do?” The most important thing about The Rule of 3 is that you are focusing on outcomes over activities. You are also limiting what’s on your focus so that you don’t overwhelm yourself. When you finish your three outcomes, you can always grab more. This is about setting your sights on three meaningful results for you, and using that to drive your day. It can be as simple as (1) have a great lunch experience with a friend; (2) complete 10 draft pages for your next book; and (3) complete an outline of your project plan.
The Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection pattern is a simple weekly results system. On Mondays, you identify the three most important results for the week. Each day, you identify the three most important outcomes for the day. On Fridays, you reflect by asking yourself what are three things going well and what are three things to improve?
Life Hot Spots is a heat map for your life and a way to invest your time and energy in areas that matter: mind, body, emotions, career, financial, relationships, and fun. When you invest in these areas, the sum is more than the parts. By spending time in fun, you keep your mind and emotions in good shape. By investing in your mind, body, and relationships, you perform better at work. The most important concept for the life Hot Spots is to set boundaries in terms of time or energy. For example, you might need to set a boundary on how much time you spend at work, using a rule such as “Dinner on the table at 5:30.” You might want to set a minimum of time in your relationships, such as “Tuesday night is date night.”
Step 1—Adopt The Rule of 3 The simplest way to adopt Agile Results is to start using The Rule of 3 to start your day. The Rule of 3 is about identifying three outcomes each day. Each day is a fresh start, and three is an effective limit. The Rule of 3 has been used with success in a variety of contexts. It’s sticky, and people tend to be good at remembering things in threes. To use The Rule of 3, start your day by asking either, “What are 3 outcomes I want for the day?” or “What are 3 results I want for the day?” While it’s recommended that you write them down, it’s more important that you internalize them, so you don’t have to look them up. A simple check is if you can say your three outcomes for the day, whether you’re in the hall or in your car or wherever you are.
Don’t overwhelm yourself. The Rule of 3 is about identifying only and no more than three outcomes each day.
If you’re not sure where to start, pick one thing for yourself, one thing for your family, and one thing for your job each day.
Step 2—Adopt the Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection Pattern This is your pattern for weekly results. The idea is that each week is a fresh start. To adopt the Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection pattern, at the start of the week, identify your three most important outcomes for the week. In other words, if you look ahead to Friday, what three results would you like to have achieved? At the start of each day, identify your three most important results. On Fridays, start your day by asking yourself, “What are three things going well?” and “What are three things to improve?” You can then feed your results into the next week. For example, if you find that you are accomplishing your three results for the week, are they the right things? Can you push back on what’s on your plate? If, instead, you find that you aren’t finishing your three results each day, is it because you are getting distracted? Are you not picking the right three things to begin with? This is your continuous improvement loop. The more effective feedback you provide yourself, the more you can improve your results. Each week is a new chance to tune your results and learn more about your capacity and bottlenecks.
Checkpoint
Step 3—Adopt Life Hot Spots Life Hot Spots are a set of high priority categories that help determine where to spend your time and energy. By setting effective boundaries, you’ll achieve work-life balance and improve your results in all areas of your life. The life Hot Spots are
By investing in these areas, you set yourself up for success, and you help limit the impact of potential downturns. This also gives you a concrete way to achieve work-life balance, in the worst of times and in the best of times. To adopt the life Hot Spots, simply use the categories as a lens to identify your pain or opportunities, what actions or outcomes you want to focus on, and set more effective boundaries.
In this case, step one is deciding to spend no more than 50 hours each week on your career Hot Spot. Now it forces you to bite off only what you can chew. This is how you start improving managing what’s on your plate and pushing back more effectively. You can only spread your life force over so much. The categories help support each other. If not properly allocated, they can also work against each other.
One common pitfall is throwing a lot of time and effort at things, only to find that when you’re done, nobody cares. If you keep feeling a lack of appreciation, then ask yourself, “Who was I doing it for?” If it was for yourself, was it what you most cared about, or could you have invested the same time in something else and felt like you made a more important impact. If you were doing it for somebody else, ask them whether what you’re working on is really the most important thing to them. If you’re working on a lot of low-priority items, don’t expect to get the rewards. In fact, a pattern is that the more you work on low-priority items, the more you become a dumping ground. The more you become a dumping ground, the busier you get; the busier you get, the more overloaded you will feel. Now the worst happens—you’re overworked, underappreciated, and no fun to be around. By failing to work on what’s valuable and by failing to understand and reset expectations, you’ve worked yourself into an unrewarding, high-stress scenario.
Browse more tips on getting results at http://GettingResults.com
I’ve added a set of slides on Getting Results the Agile Way to the Getting Results Knowledge Base. The overview slides provide a quick walkthrough of the system and then the additional slides are short step throughs of key ideas (The Rule of 3, Monday Vision, Daily Outcome, Friday Reflection, and Hot Spots.) (Note that the slides are hosted on Slideshare.)
The Rule of 3 - Setting a limit of 3 makes it easy to focus and prioritize on meaningful results. Grouping things in 3's makes them easy to remember and repeat.
Monday Vision, Daily Outcomes, Friday Reflection - This is a pattern for weekly results. It's a way to use stories to make your week more meaningful and connect to your values and passion. Each week is a fresh start.
Hot Spots - Hot Spots are a way to see the forest from the trees. You can think of your life as an investment portfolio or heat map of what's important. Hot Spots help you invest your time and energy more effectively.