It’s no secret that I read a great deal. The first hour or so of every workday (the quiet time before other SHIFT employees arrive) is spent reading, researching, learning, whether it’s social media, email marketing, search engine optimization, or just what’s new and notable. Using the hashtag #the5, I’ll let you know about 5…
The Top 10 Posts You Liked This Year I am always shocked and honored to see so many people enjoying what I’ve had to share over the years. This year was no different, and I want to thank you by taking a look at what YOU thought were the most important posts on my blog…
A lot of people talk about rebooting for the New Year. So, question for you: what happens when you reboot? Here’s a look inside what happens in your computer the moment you hit the power switch and boot it up. This is, for the geeks, the power-on self-test, or POST. (derived from Wikipedia) verify the…
I like tomato soup, but so many of the commercial canned soups fall woefully short. Here’s a recipe I use to make it from scratch. You’ll need a stick blender for best results. Ingredients 3 large cans of tomatoes, crushed or diced 1 large onion, diced 4 cloves of garlic, diced 1 tsp freshly ground…
Here’s a special holiday gift for you, complete with complex instructions. This is a recording of the session I did at the Web 2.0 conference earlier this year. It’s about 30 minutes long. Download the MP3 here. You will need to do the exercises in this session with a training partner. It can be a…
What World of Warcraft Can Teach You About Project Management With the opening of Icecrown Citadel in the latest edition of World of Warcraft, the challenges facing guilds and players of all levels of skill have increased. During a recent run in the Forge of Souls (facing the evil alter ego of the late James…
Ever had a New Year’s Resolution go bad? Ever fallen off the tracks in the start of a new year and had it impact your whole year? Why wait until the ball drops in Times Square when you can drop the ball right now? I’ve been failing December – intentionally – and loving it. This…
A tasty treat, and useful if you’re trying to cook for a lot of people on, say, Christmas morning. Get a tube of fast-bake dinner rolls of any brand you prefer. Separate them out. Grease a 9×13 pan. Use as little or as much as needed to keep stuff from sticking to it. Lay out…
Ever heard someone be congratulated and their reply was “Aw, it was nothing”? Ever listened to someone recount a tale of legitimate good work and say that it wasn’t a big deal? Don’t ever do this to yourself. Why? Part of our personal power is our ability to draw upon not just the knowledge but…
Ever lost someone you cared about? Ever faced impossible odds or certain defeat? The difference in life between those for whom events and circumstances crush them and those who overwhelm their circumstances to success (or at least a decent Pyrrhic victory) is all in how we approach them. For some, escaping loss and sorrow is…
