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How to Pray…

May 7, 2010 in education, humor, mentat notes, technology | No comments

The other night in the office, we were tasked to rush something as part of a programme for staff.  There were vague instructions set upon us to complete our task using unfamiliar system and terminology.  The most specific instructions were to use our best psychic abilities (sorry, boss, couldn’t help myself here) to complete the tasks set for us to complete.  No problem, I can do that.

As I started working, I got pinged left and right with private messages like, “what is the current dollar to peso exchange rate?”  Some were more mundane like, “I know I found it in some obscure site but I can’t seem to remember the title.”  Then there was the odd ball question on how to convert a unit of measurement from metric to english.  Again, no problem but I did a double take and thought to myself, how did I suddenly become the office currency expert? Or maybe I was asleep and dreaming it all.  Did I suddenly become Mr. Know-it-all?  Doubtful.  I pray to the god, just like everyone else.

So I took a little time out (I was sitting in my chair far too long already, anyway) and walked to my peers one by one and showed them how to pray with efficiency and effectiveness.  First was the question of currency exchange.  In the god’s prayer box (search box/bar), type in Amount Cur in Cur.  Like 50 usd in php for what $50 is equivalent to in Philippine Pesos.  For the areas, do the same… 30 acres in hectares, 12 feet in meters or 12 ft in m to make it shorter.  The results genuinely surprised them all with the general reaction set to, “ooooh… it can do that?”  It made me smile.  And I admit, made my day.

So a sermon sounding instructional lecture spout forth from my lips:  yes, you can use google as a calculator, currency converter, etc.  Yes, you can also do site specific, targeted, searches.  You can search for almost anything.  After all, isn’t google a god?  Just be sure to pray correctly in the most dignified of manner.

The feeling of being, so far, the only priest of the church of google (with a black belt) in the office was nice.  Though it can get tiring if there are too many requests coming in so I have decided to share the two files I’ve downloaded ages ago in learning to pray.  The prayer books or the bible for the church.  They are now available for download from here.  Links below.  Click and enjoy.  If you want to share your experiences, the comment boxes are still open.

Downloads:  Google Cheat Sheet 1 and 2

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Stages of Learning…

February 26, 2010 in education, mentat notes

I’ve been asked a few times about how to develop and train people.  I’ve done it myself a few times in the past when I was… (never mind that)… A short disclaimer here, I am not a trainer.  Never was.  Never will be.  I’ve always been in operations and might forever be in operations.

Although just because I’m not a trainer doesn’t mean I do not train people.  I do.  I have to train my staff to ensure that they are competent in their jobs.  I have to develop them into becoming leaders themselves.  I have to prepare them for making decisions that could change lives.  I help them see the box then remove those boxes.

But to answer the question about how I train my staff is through the recognition of a matrix.  These are in stages and are as follows…

1. Unconscious Incompetence: this stage is when my staff are unaware of the existence of the skills they will need to perform their tasks.  This is where they are during the training period of their employment.  Usually.

2. Conscious Incompetence: this is where my staff are when they board my team.  They know the skills they need to achieve their work but they are unsure about how to become achievers or performers.  Though they have the idea and will do their utmost to apply the skills they’ve learned.

3. Conscious Competence: the stage when they become performers and achievers.  Yet they will still act like kids in a classroom asking for validation of their decisions and actions.  This stage irritates me a lot of times.  Especially when I am busy with something else.  ;)

4. Unconscious Competence: the final stage of learning, when I can be more relaxed.  Knowing my employees’ skill levels have become second nature and automatic means less work for me and I can pursue other matters of interest.

I will give further illustrations or samples of these stages in future posts so do stay tuned.  In the meantime, maybe you would like to share your method of training your people?  I would appreciate that.

link:  conscious competence learning model

conscious competence learning model

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Pirate Philanthropists

February 22, 2010 in business, people

phi·lan·thro·py
–noun,plural-pies.

1. altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needypersons, by endowment of institutions of learning and hospitals, and by generosity to other socially useful purposes.
2. the activity of donating to such persons or purposes in this way: to devote one’s later years to philanthropy.

pi·rate
–noun

1. a person who robs or commits illegal violence at sea or on the shores of the sea.
2. a ship used by such persons.
3. any plunderer, predator, etc.: confidence men, slumlords, and other pirates.

Not too long ago, I wrote about the Somali Pirates and how they’ve come together to form a corporation or a cooperative making their activities into a business for profit.  It has helped their community in ways only some people can imagine.  Little did I know, as I do not follow their exploits, that they have already made more than $150 million in profits for the last 2 years.

This is not to say that I am now going to follow them or even make an investment.  What I am surprised to learn is that they are giving some of it away, I don’t know how much, to the people of Haiti.  Remember Haiti?  The devastation they’ve just experienced?

Their actions call out to the indifferents of the world.  If these pirates are finding ways to help their fellow man… what are the others, the so-called good guys, doing to help out?  Definitely something to think about, don’t you think?

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