People and Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

The Lost Art of Conversation George Bernard Shaw once said "The single biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place." As leaders of teams and projects, that's a serious problem since so much of our success depends on our ability to communicate effectively with those around us. For all the wonders of technology, one of the unintended consequences is we're getting worse at the art of conversation. There are plenty of studies to back this up, but I think the point is intuitive to us all—-there's more talking, for sure, yet perhaps less true conversation than ever. To help us become better at conversing with even the most difficult stakeholder, we're joined in this episode by Celeste Headlee to talk about her new book We Need to Talk: How to Have Conversations That Matter. It's related to her famous TED Talk, which I've included below.   For Your Administrative Assistant! If you have an administrative assistant, here's an idea for how you can invest in them! Our Effective Administrative Assistant Webinar Series starts up soon. Learn more at https://i-leadonline.com/Admin Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! {youtube}https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1vskiVDwl4{/youtube} WE NEED TO TALK by Bachman available on Amazon at http://amzn.to/2CuoGYA HARD BOILED by Kevin Macleod Licensed under a Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 License.

Influencing Skills for Leaders For those of us responsible for leading teams and projects, there are a core set of skills we need to develop. We need to manage our time. Deal with conflict. Develop relationships across the organization. We need to think strategically and learn to deal with change. Oh yeah, and develop confidence as we do all of that! All of these are true. But one area that I see over and over that most of us need to develop has to do with our ability to influence. Regardless of your level in the organization, project managers and leaders are constantly faced with situations where we need to influence team members, bosses, customers, and other stakeholders. And more often than not, we have to do that influencing without authority. To help bolster your ability to influence without being a jerk, I’m joined today by Tim David to talk about his new book TRUE Influence: The Magic of Human Connection. It's packed with practical lessons to help you further develop your influencing skills.   For Your Administrative Assistant! If you have an administrative assistant, here's an idea for how you can invest in them! Our Effective Administrative Assistant Webinar Series starts up soon. Learn more at https://i-leadonline.com/Admin Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! TECH LIVE by Kevin Macleod Licensed under a Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 License. ENTER THE PARTY by Kevin Macleod Licensed under a Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 License.

Everything Comes Down to Relationships It's the dirty little secret of business. Your career will be boosted or restrained by how well you build and maintain relationships. In this episode, FranklinCovey's Chief People Officer Todd Davis joins us to talk about his new book Get Better: 15 Proven Practices to Build Effective Relationships at Work. It's packed with practical lessons that can help you in the year ahead. What questions do you have after listening to Todd? Contact me at show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com.  Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! THINGS ARE GETTING BETTER by Cannonball Adderley and Milt Jackson available on Amazon at http://amzn.to/2GijKsS A BETTER TOMORROW by Lee Rosevere Licensed under a Creative Commons: Attribution-Noncommercial License.

What Susanne Learned This Week We continue our series of short videos talking about an idea or observation that was learned this week. This week I invite my friend and highly esteemed colleague Susanne Madsen to share lessons from her recent business trip to Italy. Learn more about Susanne at https://www.susannemadsen.co.uk/ Let Me Hear From You! What have you been learning lately? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). I look forward to hearing from you! Please give us feedback about The People and Projects Podcast! Take our Listener Survey at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/ListenerSurvey. Thank you! Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! {vimeo}https://vimeo.com/247921667{/vimeo} Total Duration 4:03 Download episode 192 FUNKORAMA by Kevin McLeod Licensed under an Attribution 3.0 License.

What I Learned This Week We continue our series of short videos talking about an idea or observation that was learned this week. This week I share some thoughts during a bike ride about the tradeoffs between playing it safe by blending in and taking the risk of standing out. Let Me Hear From You! What's your take? Let me know how you've wrestled with the issue of blending in and standing out. What have you been learning lately? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). I look forward to hearing from you! Please give us feedback about The People and Projects Podcast! Take our Listener Survey at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/ListenerSurvey. Thank you! Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! {vimeo}https://vimeo.com/242814528{/vimeo} Total Duration 5:54 Download episode 191 FUNKORAMA by Kevin McLeod Licensed under an Attribution 3.0 License.

What I Learned This Week We continue our series of short videos talking about an idea or observation that was learned this week. This week I share some thoughts from two quotes that I came across this week. Where we focus makes all the difference, and there's a danger if we focus too much on ourselves instead of the customer. The second quote is related to getting support and buy-in. Let Me Hear From You! What have you been learning lately? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). I look forward to hearing from you! Please give us feedback about The People and Projects Podcast! Take our Listener Survey at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/ListenerSurvey. Thank you! Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! {vimeo}https://vimeo.com/242333640{/vimeo} Total Duration 4:03 Download episode 190 FUNKORAMA by Kevin McLeod Licensed under an Attribution 3.0 License.

"Calm Down" Doesn't Work What is something in your near future that's causing you to feel nervous? For example: A certification exam that you'll be taking soon A presentation you need to make to your senior management A tough conversation with a team member of stakeholder An interview for a job you really want When you're faced with having to perform and the stakes are high, it's normal to start feeling nervous. But there's little evidence that just telling someone to "calm down" will provide any benefit. In fact, it might make it worse. So, what does work? HBR Senior Editor Dan McGinn has a new book that takes on this very topic. In Psyched Up: How the Science of Mental Preparation Can Help You Succeed, Dan shares evidence-based insights on how you can overcome your pre-performance anxiety. What allows you to walk onto the stage or into the testing center or into that meeting room with the eye of the tiger? Dan shares his insights in this episode. During the recap of the interview, I mention the following episodes, which I recommend for further learning: Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges, by Amy Cuddy. Amy builds off her ever-popular TED Talk about using the "super hero" pose and shares ideas on how to be more confident and assertive. My interview with Amy is at http://www.PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/142 Performance Breakthrough: A Radical Approach to Success at Work, by Cathy Salit. Shakespeare wasn't kidding when he said "All the world's a stage!" Cathy suggests that every interaction is a performance, and when we can see life through that lens, much growth and learning is possible. Our video discussion is at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/149. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! DARKENING DEVELOPMENTS by Kevin Macleod Licensed under a Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 License. EYE OF THE TIGER by Survivor available on Amazon at http://amzn.to/2yhMZaR

Hacking Your Brain Since the first Brain Rules book came out in 2009, I've been a big fan of Dr. John Medina. John is one of the clearest voices on how we can leverage our brain to achieve peak performance at work and beyond. John recently released the newest book in the Brain Rules franchise: Brain Rules for Aging Well: 10 Principles for Staying Vital, Happy, and Sharp John's 10 principles that apply to all of us, regardless of age, include: Social Brain Your friendships Your happiness Thinking Brain Your stress Your memory Your mind Your mind: Alzheimer's Body and Brain Your food and exercise Your sleep Future Brain Your longevity Your retirement You'll find out what brain science says is the best age to retire. And regardless of your age, you'll find practical insights to help you thrive. Learn more about the Brain Rules books at http://brainrules.net/. Here are the other books in the Brain Rules family: Brain Rules (Updated and Expanded): 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School. It's one of the best evidence-based, completely accessible books on how to live a brain-friendly life. Brain Rules for Baby (Updated and Expanded): How to Raise a Smart and Happy Child from Zero to Five. This is a fantastic book filled with insights on how to raise a child in a brain-friendly way. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! 100 YEARS by Five for Fighting available on Amazon at http://amzn.to/2l1GmY8 BRAINWAVES by Strong Suit is Licensed under a Attribution-ShareALike License.

The State of the PMO In this video episode, I invite Peter Taylor, Bill Dow, and Hussain Bandukwala to a roundtable discussion about project management offices (PMOs). We have a great interaction about the state of today's PMOs, how to start one and keep it relevant, how to market the PMO and get executive support, how agile is impacting the PMO, and predictions about the future. Here's where you can learn more about my guests: Peter Taylor: http://www.thelazyprojectmanager.com/peter-taylor. You can find Peter's books on Amazon here. Bill Dow: https://www.billdowpmp.com/. You can find Bill's book on Amazon here. Hussain Bandukwala: http://www.parwaazcc.com/. Let Me Hear From You! What's working with the PMO's you see these days? What's not working? What questions do you have from this episode? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). I look forward to hearing from you! Please give us feedback about The People and Projects Podcast! Take our Listener Survey at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/ListenerSurvey. Thank you! Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! {youtube}https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtgpqYFgDoA{/youtube} Total Duration 41:05 Download episode 187 FUNKORAMA by Kevin McLeod Licensed under an Attribution 3.0 License.

What I Learned This Week We continue our series of short videos talking about an idea or observation that was learned this week. This week I share a lesson from a conversation with Howard Silver at a recent keynote at the PMI Chicagoland Symposium. Let Me Hear From You! What have you been learning lately? Please e-mail me (show [AT] PeopleAndProjectsPodcast [DOT] com) or leave a message on our Listener Feedback Line (847-550-3747). I look forward to hearing from you! Please give us feedback about The People and Projects Podcast! Take our Listener Survey at https://PeopleAndProjectsPodcast.com/ListenerSurvey. Thank you! Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! {vimeo}https://vimeo.com/235813120{/vimeo} Total Duration 4:52 Download episode 186 FUNKORAMA by Kevin McLeod Licensed under an Attribution 3.0 License.