New Project

Been absent from these pages since the Houston gig. I got diverted by a trip to the Antarctic and getting a photo journal pulled together afterwards.(Hey, when you’re retired what’s a month or two?)

Starting a new project that will cause more frequent posts to this blog. I was inspired, I suppose, by a discussion with someone I hadn’t talked to in a few years. We were discussing MindManager Ver 8. The discussion lead to podcasts and training.

I have toyed with creating a series of podcasts that talk about Workshop Planning. But, never really had the motivation.

Last May I bought an MP3 player, for noise while I walk. I’ve been downloading a lot of Skeptical podcasts after reading about “The Skeptic’s Guide To The Universe” in Wired magazine. The variety of podcasts I’ve listened to since then have convinced me that “I can do that!”

So I was primed for the conversation.

A lot of decisions and resources to locate. I already teach MM Fundamentals, so content per se and structure isn’t an issue. I’ve got to solve and implement the following (not in priority order):

1. Audio Capture and Editing
2. Find music for (a) Free and (b) Useable for (marginally) commercial purposes
3. Podcast Hosting (other than piqueroinc.com [bandwidth])
4. Examples and Student Map hosting (maybe/maybe not piqueroinc.com)
5. Framework for a Series Syllabus ( segment topics/features covered)
6. Create a new company for series examples (Igor’s Baloon Factory)
7. Revise the Student Maps to reflect my objectives
8. Build a Knowledge Management Map to keep track of components
9. Script the episodes using Mind Manager (and save as Show Notes)
10. Record and edit the materials
11. Build a better references list of resources for follow-up information
12. Treat This As A FUN Thing to do, once I commit. (like now)

This is probably the tip of the iceberg, but gives me a current “mission” for Piqueroblog. Keep a diary of how it’s going. It is still business startup for low costs.

Finally Had The Class In Houston

Got home from Houston Tuesday night. Taught two full day classes on the Mind Manager Fundamentals. Had about 12 students in each class.

The sell/perform cycle on this one was longer than usual. The original contact had been in mid-May. After comparing schedules we looked at mid-Summer. Then it took an unexpected turn. Instead of 8-10 students, we were looking at the potential of 33. That had to be two days instead of one.

Now room scheduling became tricky, since we needed two consecutive days. We settled on Sept 15 & 16. Unfortunately, Hurricane Ike came ashore, at Houston, on Sept 12. So the class was cancelled.

We finally got the class scheduled for Nov 3 & 4. So, I drove over Sunday afternoon, conducted the two classes, and drove back Tuesday night.

In preparing for the class I found one change I wanted to make, since this was primarily a research organization. In the thinking styles section there is reference to the Idea Cycle. Typically this is a progression from Create – Organize – Present – Action

I modified the chart to have a more research oriented set of phases. Hypothesize – Filter – Plan – Propose – Test – Observe. It covers the same four larger steps but is more focus on experimentation. It is also consistent with the DMAIC cycle used in six sigma process improvements.

New Tricks For An Old Dog

It is often said that teachers learn more from their students than the other way around. I suspect that's true. I had some time to kill in DTW on the way home, so I did an After Action Review on what I learned.

1. 5 to 6 people trying different things during an exercise finds new stuff (and features).
2. Check all the hyperlinks on the presentation map the day before.
3. The zoom box on Pan & Zoom can be stretched and compressed, with a corresponding zoom in/out of the map.
4. Resources can be entered as Bill;Mary;Dave but will each create a separate icon marker.
5. Mingle with the group during the exercises to help, they are more likely to ask questions.
6. Quiet ones ask all their questions during breaks, expect that students take breaks but you're "on" all the time.
7. Use a map for the day's agenda, add links to the documents for each topic. (see #2)
   
8. Use "pps" files for shows, ppt brings up the editor.
9. Right-Click on news feed directory on map parts, the menu asks if you want to add a news feed. This is easier than the macro route.
10. Visit the facility the day before and make sure everything is set up. (I knew this but wanted to have a top ten list.)
    

I'll bet there was more, but these are the ones that jumped out at me.