Looking Forward to 2011!

Today is the last day of 2010 and what a year it has been!

The theme of the year was completing my MBA coursework.  And, for the most part, it is done.  (There is this irritating, niggly thing we have to do for our Global Strategy prof, but he has completely disappointed me as a professor - cannot meet his self-imposed commitments nor does he provide clear direction, he's too busy making comments on Twitter and trying to be "Queen Street cool" - and I have no energy left to spend on him.)  The highlights included the Creativity and Innovation session in January, writing my last exam (was that Finance? it's all a blur), Strategic Electives in Kingston and meeting a whole new bunch of people, our global business trip to Germany, and working with the fine folks at Laurier House National Historic Site.  My family members have been exceptionally supportive of me during this time, which I have appreciated and probably not said enough over the year.

This coming year, I plan to acquire the Barrhaven-Nepean territory for Concierge Home Services.  We're just going through our due diligence right now.  I have my bank loan lined up, I have a lawyer (who has reviewed the franchise agreement) and a potential accountant, and I have a few people who want to be my employees. We just need to get a seal of approval (they have to say they like me) and I'll go spend the money to create my corporation (see? I learned something in my MBA studies).  We should be good to go about two weeks later.  I am looking forward to it!

In the meantime, I am going to spend the day relaxing while the snow melts on this unseasonably warm day.

Happy New Year!

On Being an Entrepreneur

Some snippets:

In my last day of classes, our program director came around and had a few words for each of us.  For me, he said that he thought that people would love working for me and that I would be a great entrepreneur.

My horoscope for today:  "If you haven't been feeling it already, today you should really start to sense that there's a new beginning right around the corner. New ideas, new situations and -- most importantly -- new people are going to start influencing your life in some challenging, but wonderful ways. You'll be asked to reach deep down and gather up the best of what you have to offer. It's time to grow in a new direction, so be open to suggestions and recommendations."

What's been going on:

What I have been working on over the past few weeks is the purchase of a home cleaning franchise.  Seems odd that I might do this, but the work is pretty much what I have been doing for most of my career:  human resources.  There is going to be a lot of hiring going on.  Partly for the startup of the business, partly because it can be a transitional role that people take to make ends meet.  The pay will be reasonable at about $15/hour. If you are only paying minimum wage, you don't get quality people doing quality work, so pay should reflect it.

I have been looking into grants and loans.  There are a bunch of companies out there ready to take your cash just to tell you what the grants and loans programs are.  Sheesh.  I did find one, however, that is the actual "granting" institution.  And I made sure that they would consider granting funds to support the purchase of a brand new franchise.  (The criteria for some programs deliberately excludes franchises.)  So this works for the home cleaning franchise, but would not work for a Canadian Tire Dealership.

I have lined up a lawyer to look over the franchise agreement and to do the articles of incorporation.  Yep.  I decided the company should be incorporated.  Now I need to think of a name.

I Am Thinking About Writing A Book

I feel this need to write.  Part of it comes from the little tickle I got inside when I got my grade and comments back from my IT Reflections Journal.  The comment that warmed my heart was: "A joy to read!"

The prof was a stickler for format and style.  For example, many times, my team got dinged a point for offering 5 recommendations instead of the required 4.  Or we enhanced a submission in another way.  And the commentary on our submissions was very direct, almost harsh.  (Word of advice to future classes:  just follow his plan, make it a template, do not go over in word count or elements delivered.  You MIGHT get more than 6 out of 7.5.  I make no promises though.)

Having already figured out the "stickler-ness" of this particular course by the time the reflections journal was due, I took a risk by not precisely following the format that was prescribed.  I also took a risk by not sending a sample of my work to him in advance for him to critique.  When I wrote my reflections journal, I wrote from the heart.  I held his structure in the back of my mind (e.g.: describe the theory, come up with a current example, critique it), but when the writing started, I deleted my template.  Oh yes, I had created a template with headings and everything.  This template was going to save me from getting burned like I had experienced with the team memos.

Aside:  6/7.5 is 80%...  This is not a bad grade, it just wasn't a grade that we aspired to... Despite having a team norm that said "Grades are not everything, it's the learning that is important", we strove for excellence which was measured in the form of grades.  Eventually we realized he rarely gives grades higher than 80%, reduced our level of effort, continued to get 80%, and made jokes about it every time we got an assignment back.

At the end of the day, I threw caution to the wind and just wrote about what I knew about IT in five journal entries.  Again, it was very difficult to get much higher than 80%.  (I got 25/30... That's 5/6 for each component of his scoring rubric.)  My true and only reward was the last comment:  "A joy to read!"

Pondering My Creativity

When we embarked on this EMBA experience, there were things that had to be let go for a while.  Many people gave up watching television.  Others gave up their hobbies.  As someone who rarely watched television, I fell into the latter category.


I gave up a variety of hobbies that would take on lives of their own with me at the centre.  I used to get started on a project and lose track of time.  It was only the blurring of my tired eyes that would remind me that it was 2am and I had to get up for work at 6am...  These projects included sewing quilts and bags (and dresses when my munchkins were babies), knitting afghans and sweaters, and paper arts (water colouring, rubber stamping, greeting card design).  I have several incomplete projects just waiting for me.  Patiently sitting in a corner.  Or in a box.  Or on my desk.  Or on the floor beside my desk.  Not minding the dust that has settled on them over the past 16 months.


As I ponder what I am going to do when this EMBA program is over, I know that my old hobbies are still there.  Waiting.


I started one project already.  On Hallowe'en night, I had to fix a handle on one of my girls' loot bags before they could set off to scour the neighbourhood for treats.  I decided that I might as well ensure that all four handles were secure and pulled out my trusty, dusty sewing machine.  Using the machine made light work of sewing the eight contact points of 3 layers of black canvas.  And I remembered how to do everything.  I didn't need to pull out the manual.  That small effort sparked a need to be creative again...  So, I pulled out my patterns and looked at my stash of fabric.  (Every sewer has a stash of fabric, every knitter has a stash of yarn, every paper artist has a stash of pretty papers...  And I am guilty on all three counts.)  My first project after my self-imposed hiatus is to sew robes for my sweet daughters.  I have already cut the first one out. The pattern assures me that the sewing will be simple.  Now I chose to do them in fleece, which is a knit, and has its own personality.  I think I will have this first one done by the end of the week and the second one will be completed a week or so later.  Just in time for wrapping and to be put under the tree.  I hope they like them!


The real question after finishing these two projects is:  What will I do next?

How have you been?

Greetings to those of you who still follow my blog.  It's been over two months since I last posted, probably because life has been rather busy.

My kids returned to school.  One is in French Immersion, which has been a challenge in itself.  I spend more time helping her with her homework than I do working on my own.

Then my team got ready for our trip to Germany.  It felt like our project host dropped us like a hot potato.  I don't know if it was due to indiscretions by our project advisor (those golf course conversations get around, you know) or if things were rather crazy in the project host's world (we were supporting a real-life, live project that had highly sensitive content) and they were too busy reacting to internal demands and couldn't make time for us.  All the same, we felt a bit abandoned.

So, off we went to Germany.  Can I just say what a lovely country it is?  It is astoundingly beautiful there.  I am guessing that while rebuilding a country that was reduced to ruins, they made the strategic decision to plant a significant amount of trees in public places and along the autobahns.  Verdant was the word I used to describe it at one point, to which a team member said "You mean 'green'?".  Sigh.  The old walled town of Nuremberg (now a big city that has built up outside the walls), was rebuilt using the original stones.  It was just amazing.  As an anglophone with intermediate French skills, I found it incredibly easy to get around.  The CAGE distances aren't that great.  Sure, the language was different, but if you break things down phonetically, you can get the intent of most signs.  Body language was helpful in choosing pastries from the oh-so-many bakeries we strolled into.  (And everything was oh-so-good.)  Listening carefully was also a key learning.  Sitting on the subway in Frankfurt, I noticed that they had a digital display that followed the audio announcing the next station.  Well, "next station" is "nachte stationne" and sounds like "next station" with an accent.  I think an English-speaking person could very quickly adapt in the larger centres of Germany.  I didn't get the opportunity to get off the beaten path (although, at first, we thought our little diversion into Hameln was off the beaten path), so I didn't have to adapt to needing to know German in a more fluent manner, but managed quite nicely in the six cities we did visit.

The people we met were all wonderful.  Let's temper that with the fact that they were all essentially "bring business to Germany" sales people.  They were still lovely people.  (And I can't compare them to the people who never responded to our queries.)

Did I mention that I drove a fancy car on the autobahn?  The fancy car was too fancy for me.  I drive a minivan.  If you want to turn or brake... you do so very deliberately - almost with force.  Well, the fancy, German-engineered car I drove was some high-performance thing (I think I said it was a BMW on Facebook, but it turns out it was a high end Mercedes) that would veer off if you made only the slightest steering adjustment or would send passengers flying if you tapped the brakes.  I needed some time with it in an open parking lot before taking it out on the highway in the dark... but didn't really have the opportunity to do that.  I got up to 150km/h.  In my minivan, I gradually creep up to 140km/h+ before I wonder why I am passing everyone, so it wasn't really the idea of speed that unnerved me.  It was the fact that the car was too fancy.  It was an experience.  I don't need to do it again.

Well... we only have a month of classes left.  Sigh.  I am looking forward to the end because I am having trouble keeping my energy up.  On the other hand, I wonder what I am going to fill the void with.

"Isn't that the 'stuck up' school?"

That was said to me the other day at Starbucks.  I was there, scoring a great deal on my caramel macchiato, dressed in my Queen's attire, carrying my Queen's blue canvas bag, on my way to meeting my team to do some work towards successfully completing my Queen's MBA.

"Isn't that the 'stuck up' school?"

That's what I thought of Queen's when I was in high school.  I wonder why I thought that.  Why was this core knowledge among my peers?

Now that I am at Queen's, nearly finished actually, I can honestly say that it is one of the friendliest places on Earth.  Except for maybe Disney.  Everyone is nice and accommodating.  Even the scary lady at the DGCC who was on the edge when I arrived, with them having no record of me in the database, turned out to be nice and have a bit of a sense of humour once things were less tense.  (Maybe not the burly guy who gave a couple of my classmates grief for carrying alcohol outside of a licensed area.  He was scary.  Although he was right and the guys were certainly not being subtle about it.)  But that's the staff.  I think the "stuck up" comment related more to students.

From an MBA grad student perspective, everyone I have met is wonderful.  Sure, it seems like a few from the national program have disengaged.  Who hasn't, though, from time to time?  But that doesn't mean that they have snotty, "I am better than you" attitudes.  It doesn't come from there.

I have met a dozen undergrad students, not enough to be a reliable sample mind you (you need 30 for that), and they were all fantastic. Sure, they were selected to be there, but you can hope that they are indicative of the type of people who attend Queen's at an undergrad level.  And here's something interesting:  In chatting with the Fit to Lead crew (I was the Queen of Fit to Lead while in Kingston), the consistent message was that we were all great people and that there had only been two people over the whole summer that were unkind to the students.

Lastly, the knowledge from the crowd (i.e.: Facebook) says that it was only a "privileged few" who tainted Queen's reputation.  Apparently it is an influential "privileged few" who have permeated entire generations with the sense that Queen's is a "stuck up" school.

What a shame.

Nap to Lead

Nap to Lead was a parody presentation that one of the teams made a couple of days ago.  I think we'd all be more productive if we had a little nap time in the afternoon.  Long live Nap to Lead.

Some things I learned today

The two most important questions to ask someone who has an idea:

• Could you tell me how your idea will increase our customers' willingness to pay?
• Will this idea reduce our costs?

You get good innovation by getting rid of the fear of what could happen if one fails.

First Day of Classes at the Donald Gordon Conference Centre

I arrived here yesterday afternoon.  It was a glorious day and I imagined I was driving along the scenic route in a convertible with my sunglasses on and the wind going through my hair.

Two of my classmates arrived at the same time, and after refreshing ourselves, we went for what was supposed to be a "10 minute walk" to a pub... but it really took us close to an hour.  Part of the extra time was because I brought the camera and took a few pictures along the way.  I enjoyed a glass of Pinot Noir from a Prince Edward County winery.  Light and tasty.  Perfect for a patio.

Our walk back was considerably shorter, largely due to using a GPS app on my friend's iPhone.  About 30 minutes later, we were back at school... in time for dinner!  A little time was spent at the pub, and then I headed back to my room to do some reading.

Today, I was up at 6am.  I went on a walk with a girl from a Toronto team and one of the Fit to Lead coordinators.  A quick shower, quick breakfast, and the next thing you knew, class started.

We did the beer game in Operations.  That was fun.  My team got the next to worst results.  It was a good ice breaker, though.

Lunch went by in a flash.

Then we started Global Business Strategy.  I think the best thing I learned from that class today was:

 ‎"Have strong opinions, but be weakly connected to them." ~ Douglas Reid

Then there was group work, readings, the network being down until Tuesday so we have to go to the business office to print stuff... Somewhere in there, I squeezed in hitting a bucket of balls at the driving range and eating dinner.

Well...  off to do a bit more reading.  I have boot camp in the morning.

This is post 100

A little food for thought from Jill Kean Hutchison:

Attitude = our thoughts, feelings and actions.... perhaps you can produce the results you want with a negative attitude in the very short term - but long term, sustainable results, no way!

Attitude is also the alignment of our actions with our inner beliefs. True motivation comes when we are aligned within ourselves and to the business or organisation we spend most time working in. When we see the fruits of our labour coming through the actions that align with where we really want to be - that is when we get really fired up to do even more!  

Also - great alignment within companies happens most when each leader is aligned within themselves. They can then carry the mission and objectives of the company down throughout the organisation - because they believe in it!

Need to Aim Higher

"The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting 
our aim too high and falling short, but in setting 
our aim too low and achieving our mark."
— Michelangelo

Stuck

"You are not stuck where you are unless you decide to be."

 -Dr. Wayne Dyer

I feel stuck today.  I need a boost.  I need to get my momentum going.  Because I know I can conquer the world.  I just need to figure out where I am going and get moving in that direction.  

Where am I going?  Am I going to be a start-up queen with a classmate?  Am I going to be a lecturer extraordinare, helping build the minds of today's youth?  Am I going to be a self-employed consultant?  Will I be a perpetual student, like my mother used to call me?  I don't know.

Which one makes me feel passionate?  They all do, in their own ways.  The lecturer is the one that I want the most... right now.  I love the idea of continuing my education.  (I have a number of programs bookmarked for future pondering.)  I could do both of them.  To get my DBA, I'll need an organization to work in as my "lab" for my research.  That's where the start-up comes in handy.  AHHHHH!

Why do I feel stuck today?  I feel a little overwhelmed with the task ahead of me.  I've been working on this MBA, but I don't really feel that I know how to set up a comprehensive business strategy... at least not yet.  And that's my task for today.

I feel like an impostor.  That's it.  I don't feel like I have the credentials.  And that is why I feel stuck today.

Pursuing an Educational Career? Part Two

I am one step closer to my known yet previously unacknowledged goal of pursuing an educational career.  Every time I think about it, I get all tingly inside.

The University of Guelph has a campus in Kemptville - not far from where one of my former high school friends now lives.  The key areas of study are agriculture, equestrian, and nutrition (which goes with agriculture).  They took out a large ad in our free local paper.  The free local paper that I usually take and toss into the recycling bin the minute it comes into the house.  Instead of tossing it 9 or 10 days ago, I flipped through it.  I can't remember the motivation.  Possibly, I was looking for something to do with the kids for Canada Day, even though I knew we were doing the local Barrhaven activities at Clark Field.  Anyway, there it was.  U of Guelph was looking for a lecturer who could cover business management and marketing.  The successful candidate needs to have an MBA.

I had school two days later and mentioned the opportunity to the one person I knew would be excited for me.  And she was.  And I was grateful.

Then...  The director of the Ottawa EMBA program came in.  He is also my respected accounting professor.  I asked him if he would be a reference for me.  His response was an overwhelming "yes"!  When I mentioned that you needed to have an MBA, he said that I had "an almost completed MBA" which really changes the focus, doesn't it?  (It's also like how my focus has changed from "10 months into it" to "6 months left"...)

I then asked two other professors (my HR prof and my Marketing prof) to be references and they both agreed.  Much like my experience while in the HR class, my HR prof was quick to respond with encouragement and excitement for me.  The Marketing prof wasn't quite as enthusiastic, but he'll be a reference, too.

Then, I contacted my Queen's career coach.  I need to understand what the difference was between a "letter of interest" and a cover letter.  It turns out that they are the same.  She kindly offered to review my application before I sent it in.  Well, she said I "nailed it" and to let her know when my interview will be taking place.  That added to my confidence and I emailed my application to UofG.

The level of support I was getting from Queen's was incredible.

Now I wait.

And I wait.

I guess the HR person doesn't work weekends.

They want the successful candidate to start August 16th for a 9-month contract.  I think they'll be moving quickly since that is only 5 weeks away.

If You're Looking for Me, I'm at the Library

I am in a state of overwhelm.  I don't know how it got to this, but I have 4 assignments and one exam due over the next week.  Urgh.  I'll be chiseling away at the two versions of a case study that I have to do this morning.  Yes, two versions.  One is the team email brief, one is the individual email brief.  I am not a fan of doing both as it makes me question the fuzzy line of academic dishonesty.  I mean...  How can you put your heart and soul into the team document and then do it all over again as an individual paper?  I struggled with this two papers ago and could not get past it.  Now, when I have no choice, I am stuck in the same situation.  I wasn't supposed to be the lead on this one though.  In a high performing team, you adapt.  Like when a team member who was supposed to be lead has a baby, you step up from your role as second and become the lead.  That doesn't mean I have to like it.

On Being Successful

Successful Women’s Secret

by JANE POWELL on JULY 9, 2010

‘I will be successful, no matter what.’

This is the mantra that successful women live by.

They know the secret of success is to believe in themselves and believe in the possibilities. They succeed because they have created a vision for themselves and have taken responsibility for their own future. They refuse to feel like victims or waste time blaming others.

When faced with a challenge, they don’t give up. They persevere. They believe they can do whatever it takes to get the job done. They have made peace with the fact that it won’t be an easy road and failure may come their way. Instead of giving up, they learn from their failures and keep forging ahead.

This can be your mantra. You are a capable woman and there is no reason you can’t use your power of belief to succeed.

Believe in yourself!

©Jane Powell

One of my Many Goals

My last yoga class at Queen's is coming up.  This is the last one.  Really.  Not like last time.  This time, we're out of the classroom so much that there is no reasonable excuse to offer it.  Unless there is a yoga class while we're in Kingston.

Anyway, I digress.

Since starting yoga, I have found that my flexibility has increased.  For example, I can do the arm-part of eagle pose.  http://yoga.about.com/od/yogaposes/a/eagle.htm  When I mentioned it to the guys, they thought it was funny until they realized all but one could not wrap their arms around each other to have the palms facing.    That prompted some spastic behaviour and then they started talking about our original measurements for Fit to Lead.

One of the FtL tests was to do the stretch where you clasp your hands behind your back with one arm coming over it's shoulder, the other one coming up from below.  I don't remember how far away I was from doing it, but I know I have a report in a sealed envelope hiding away just waiting to tell me the answer.  For today's update, it looks like I am a few inches away from being successful.  So that's my goal.  I want to be able to touch my hands behind my back.  Easier said than done.  Wish me flexibility!

Last Day in the Classroom

The wrecking ball, so to speak, comes this week, to take down our classroom to make room for video conference rooms.  This is a strategic decision that Queen's made a number of months ago and they need to be ready for the class of 2012 who will start this September.  We'll be accommodated in a temporary space down the hall.

Over the past number of months, several of our professors, who all understand the business reasons for the change in service delivery, have expressed their sadness over this change.  Some have tried to sell us on the benefits of video conference rooms, and I wonder why.  Perhaps it is because we are the best marketing tool the school has.  As we go out and convey the benefits of the Queen's Executive MBA, it might be good for Queen's if we have an arsenal of words that support the video conference format.

The reality is that we chose the classroom format.  We could have selected a video conference format - whether through the Cornell-Queen's program or a competitor's program - and we did not.  While I understand there are benefits to the video conference format, and I was considering availing myself to the format, I don't think you can replace having a quick chat about future studies or your paper or workload while standing in line at Starbucks.  The ability to have impromptu conversations with a large group of classmates and professors cannot be replicated.

So, yes, it is sad that the format is changing.  But new students will not know the difference.

HR Class Is Over :(

Today was our last HR class.  It could have gone twice as long and I would have loved every minute of it.  Seriously.  I think Julian Barling is wonderful.

I loved how he would accept a challenge.
I loved how he could weave in a case study to support his point and it felt like he was just telling stories.
I loved how he would be irreverent - at least according to his personal values.
I loved that he had personal values.
I loved how he would make fun of us and we could make fun of him.  And he made fun of himself, too.
I loved how he recognized that we would be a little brain dead having just had either 4 hours of Analysis Based Decision Making (aka Stats) or Financial Management.
I loved how he would respond to an email late at night.

Mostly, I loved that he is extremely passionate about his work and it is conveyed in his teaching.

Remember:  it's the little things that make a difference.

The Innovator's DNA

Over the weekend, I came up with this idea of changing my HR paper topic less than 2 weeks before the deadline.  I know.  I'm NUTS!  Even worse is that you need to get approval to make such changes.

My original paper was on how to make the now-defunct HR Projects division better.  It would cover stuff like role ambiguity, incompatible demands, and role over/underload.  Yippee!

My brainwavy idea was to write about building a creative and innovative culture.  I sent my idea off to my professor and got a response in a very short time period - under an hour.  [Isn't that INCREDIBLE??]  It is a workable idea, with a caution that it is supposed to be an HR paper.  "Don't fret", I said, "I have my Pfeffer articles in hand."  Pfeffer is the centre of the universe on current HR research.  I didn't know that before starting this latest class, so you would not likely know that either.  Fortunately, his writing is very accessible.

Well, look what showed up in my Facebook feed today (which I then added to my FB status, of course):

http://www.slideshare.net/bmw53/innovators-dna

It's a presentation based on an article that we had to read for our Creativity and Innovation course back in January.  Now the five ideas or steps to innovation in there are quite simple:

Associating
Questioning
Observing
Experimenting
Networking

It's the practice of them that makes them magical.  Doing vs. deciding to do.  How do you incorporate that into a culture?  You can hire people who have those skills.  You can create rituals around them.  Not sure if the rituals are part of the HR readings, though.

This helps me in addressing innovation.  Now onto creativity!  If you have any ideas for me, send them along!

Oh!  On a side note...  I've been thinking about my research topic for my DBA (because I am crazy, I know) and I am mulling over the area of creativity and innovation in the workplace.  This seven-page assignment is only the top of the iceberg!

Wouldn't it be cool to go to this?!!

I spent a few moments checking out a couple of my favourite blogs and one of them mentioned this:

http://www.sweetsandsnacksexpo.com/index.cfm

I would seriously go to this thing.  And then buy every candy that I thought would work well in vanilla ice cream. Or chocolate.  Even gummies.  Except I don't think I'd need the Mona Lisa shaped ones.  Can you imagine having vanilla ice cream with chopped up truffle mars bars?  Or strawberry ice cream with gummy worms?  Or...

The Heart of Rock n Roll Is In Cleveland

I woke up with that song in my head yesterday.  I think it is because I had had brief conversations with a classmate and a professor about doing a higher level degree and the DBA program at Case Western Reserve University was recommended.  Case Western is located IN Cleveland.

The program sounds good, but it is rather expensive compared to some PhD programs and other DBAs.  I can see that if I am going to go onto a higher degree, I'll have to do the same analysis I did when I chose to go to Queen's.

From my horoscope today

Unleash your wildest ideas and explore what it is you really want to do with your time on Earth, no matter how insane it might seem at first. Once you figure it out, you should be quite surprised at how quickly someone new steps into your life to help you get there!

Some things to remember

I found these on a web page and they seem to fit my focus today as I try to finish three assignments:

"A clear idea is one that fits on the back of a business card."

"Read your work out loud to locate problems. If you run out of breath, the sentence is too long."

"Done is better than perfect."

A Question of Integrity?

Over the past little while, I have been receiving feedback.  Most of it comes from a positive angle.  The unfortunate nugget of truth is that I must look like an unprofessional slob on weekends. Lately, my "weekend people" have been seeing me during the week and are expressing their thoughts on how well I clean up.  The reality is that I am "cleaned up" 5 days of 7, sometimes more.

This has made me wonder:  Who am I?  Am I the professional person who is nicely cleaned up or is it an act while I pretend to be professionally presentable?  Am I lacking integrity between the professional costume I put on during the week and its related behaviour vs. the casual attire I don and its related behaviour?  I know professional people who wear jeans and a dab of lipstick (women) on the weekend and no one would doubt that they are professional folks.  Yet the apparent transformation that I undergo during the week is significant.  Who am I pretending to be and who am I?  Am I a professional impostor?

I have always striven to have integrity between who I am at work and who I am at home.  Maybe I have lost my way.

I'm Going to Learn to BBQ

It's true.  Somehow I have managed to get to this stage in my life and, other than this party I had for my classmates when we graduated college and I used one of those round BBQs with charcoal briquettes to cook hot dogs and burgers, I have not single-handedly barbecued.  Even my kids have noticed that "mommy doesn't BBQ".  It's a Daddy job.

Well, this summer, I will master the grill.

Not a Straight "A" Student Anymore

I earned a devastating "79" in Stats.  What more can I say?

Does this mean that my overall standards will change?  Does it matter anymore now that I got a "B"?  Considering that only yesterday I was looking at doing my Ph.D. at McGill, I guess I better keep on working hard.

Looking into franchise opportunities

Being a Canadian Tire Dealer is certainly my goal.  However, other franchise opportunities are coming to my attention.  I think it would be great to run a bakery; or a kids lunch program; or a tutoring company; or a natural supplements store; or even a Tim Horton's....  AAHHHHH!  There is too much out there!  I'm going to have to pull out my New Venture book and build a spreadsheet with all the relevant analysis points.

Pursuing an Educational Career?

I got my "Birkman First Look"TM results today.  It didn't tell me stuff that I didn't already know somewhere deep inside.  So that made me curious...  Was it like a horoscope where you got generic statements that you would accept as truth?  Naturally, I peeked at everyone else's reports.  One guy has been in almost all the workshops with me, so we compared notes and we had different reports!  Phew!

Here's my "Life Style" results:

My style:  optimistic and creative
My needs:  friendly competition and flexibility in environment
When stressed:  tend take things personally (no surprise here)

My career management report was even more interesting because I had preferences / interests in nearly everything.  However, the biggest elements were under artistic, musical, literary, and social service.  If you limit the examination to the first page of that section of the report, you will find the following (edited to eliminate stuff I don't want to do, but in the order ranking from the report):

• College / University Professor (shows up several times under different categories)
• Therapist / Counselor / Coach / Career Counselor
• Sociologist
• Psychologist (shows up several times under different categories)
• Employee Relations Professional / Industrial Relations / Personnel Professional (really not sure if I still want to do HR, though)
• Visual Arts
• Travel Agent
• Trainer
• Marketing and Advertising (why is this under "Employee Relations / Training"?)

It also had stuff like being an engineer, but I am not going back to school to get an engineering degree.  I don't really like Calculus all that much, anyway.  And, I think I remember the question where I indicated that I would prefer an engineering type role and it was against being a plumber (messy, yuck) and something else even less palatable.

There you have it.  My areas of interest.  As I look for my next role, I need to focus on creativity first, and then social service.

Another Reason to LOVE Queen's

Like many of the other students in the Ottawa Class of 2011, I investigated a significant number of programs, attended seminars, and interviewed alumni before finally selecting the Queen's Executive MBA.  I knew that I was getting a solid program.  I knew that it was going to be hard work.  I knew that I would be surrounded by a diverse set of students that would only add to the richness of the program.  I knew that the faculty was phenomenal.  I knew that I was going to be exposed to a variety of experiences that other programs only dream about providing to their students.

What I did not know was how flexible Queen's is.  Sure, the marketing materials imply that there is flexibility, but you don't really know what it means until you are faced with needing some.

Today, I contacted a friend to let her know about my new employment status.  She came back and asked if I was staying in Ottawa or returning to Toronto.  If I am returning to the "centre of the universe", she has an opening at her company that is in line with my abilities and experience and she'd put in a good word with the hiring manager.  That was unexpected.  I hadn't thought about moving back.  It's only been 13 days and I have only applied for one job so far.  My husband and I have decided that I need to consider all options, so I am going to include Toronto in my job search, and if the right opportunity comes along...

What does that have to do with Queen's?  Well, I am only 50% through the program.  (Technically, I think we've done more than 50% of the coursework, but there is still 50% of the time left.)  If I end up in Toronto, what does that mean for school here?  Well, I have options.  I can stay here (which means commute to Ottawa on class weekends) or I can transfer to the National program.  Or I can do a blend where I stay in the Ottawa program and mostly come here, but drop in on some of the National program video conferences.  I had heard of people transferring between the programs, but never considered it for me.  Now I know the gut-wrenching decision-making that goes on and I feel incredibly supported by the director of my program and the Queen's administration.

I have told my team that should it come to be that I move 400-500 kilometres away, I will keep the team intact and commute to town on class weekends.

Does anyone have a spare bedroom I can use every other weekend?  Just askin'!

My Last Yoga Class...

This Saturday will mark my last yoga class.  Kind of like losing my job, I knew it was coming.  You can only justify offering yoga with one attendee for so long.  What makes the cancellation extra disappointing is that it wasn't Queen's that told me.  The yoga instructor told me when I ran into her in the hallway.

Bye, Zina.  I really enjoyed my personal yoga classes with you.

Welcome to Day 3 of the Rest of My Life

I thought I was OK.  And I will be OK, but for the past two days... not so much.

I didn't sleep much for two days.  Last night, I slept for about 5 hours.

It was hard to clear out my desk on Friday morning.  Then I had to find a lawyer and get my severance letter reviewed.  That means Friday was used up with leaving administration and I didn't get to study for stats like I had hoped.  To be honest, my mind wasn't in it anyway.

Saturday, I got up early and had a leisurely breakfast at the Marriott.  It's much nicer than the Crown Plaza across the street from school.  I told Albert, my server, that I had an exam to write and he just let me sit there quietly flipping through my binder, eating an amazing omelet (asparagus, spinach, ham), and drinking coffee long after the food plates were taken away. Then I wrote my exam.  I figure I passed.  Isn't that all that matters at this point?  Ideally, I get a B on it.  It'll be a blemish on my straight A average.  I'll just have to live with it.

After the exam, a bunch of us went to Baton Rouge for a drink and some food.  During lunch, we talked about our goals of the program.  One of the guys said he was employed at the beginning and expects to be unemployed at the end.  It was a joke.  It hit a little close to home for me.  So I went home and slept for 3 hours.

This morning, it is a beautiful and sunny.  According to my computer, it only looks nice out...  It is still 0C out there.  It also says it is partially cloudy out.  Must be another Ottawa.

Off to make pancakes for the lovely Jennifer.  The fabulous Nicole is on a sleepover.

It's the end of the world as I know it and I feel fine

My department is being restructured with the majority of my work going to my Director (who spent a considerable amount of time socializing, so I guess he needed something to do), which means that as of today, I do not have a job.  Many people are shocked and dismayed.  Other than the fact that my current income will end after a period of time, which sucks, I see this as a positive development.  I already have plans!

First, after I pick up my stuff later on this morning, I have a whole day to study for Stats!  And I feel good about it because I had an excellent session with my tutor last night and have a work plan.  One of my teammates put together an amazing set of cheat sheets for the exam.  I feel incredibly supported.

Second, I have given my girls' babysitter notice.  She has been wonderful about it and has offered to watch the girls if something comes up.  Again, I feel incredibly supported!  This means I am saving a few bucks AND I get to spend more time with my lovely daughters, at least in the short term.

School is my next priority.  After I nail the Stats exam, I am going to motor on my individual project, my paper on revenue forecasting, my HR paper, the Walmart case...

Then I plan to maximize the value of my outplacement package.  It includes things like videotaping me while going through a mock-interview.  The outplacement counselor said they have tons of jobs in their job bank, too.  It's all good!

At home, I will be working on the exterior landscaping.  Buy some dirt and try to find "bunny-proof" plants.  I bought an early-blooming heather the other day and the local bunnies have been dining on it.

I am also going to ramp up my training for Ottawa Race Weekend.

So, as you hear that I lost my job, fret not.  I know I will look back on this time and reflect that it was the best thing that could happen!

I Had a Nap

These days, I feel exhausted.

Last week, or was it the week before, I fell asleep on the homeward-bound bus and woke up long past my house.  (My husband came to my rescue.)

Today, I had a "nap" that started sometime after loading the dinner dishes into the dishwasher, briefly ended when I was awoken to kiss my girls goodnight, and continued until about 10:30.  I am too groggy to focus on studying for stats, too alert to go back to sleep.  Because I seem to have stopped blinking and my eyes do not water, my eyes are too sore to read.  Although isn't it interesting that just after writing that, my eyes decided to water and I can see a bit more clearly?

I chatted with a co-worker who is an elite athlete earlier today (or yesterday, now that I notice it is past midnight).  She had conducted a lunch and learn for the HR team on sleep habits a while ago.  I had retained that the first four hours of sleep contributed to physical repair and the next four contributed to psychological repair.  I asked her what happens when you wake up in the middle of the night terrified that you are going to fail your stats exam and get kicked out of your beloved MBA program.  She said the following:

The ideal sleep period is from 10pm to 6am.  (That's what I used to do before starting the MBA.)
Between 10pm and 2am, it is physical repair time.
Between 2am and 6am, it is psychological repair time.
If you go to bed at 10pm and wake up at midnight and go back to sleep at 2am (after lots of tossing and turning and driving your mate crazy), you lost out on 2 hours of physical repair.

So...  It looks like I have had 30 mins of physical repair.  If I can fall asleep by 1am, I can get one more hour of physical repair.  If I stay asleep and only wake up when the alarm goes off, I'll get 4 hours of taking care of my head.

That begs the question of the benefit of my extended nap, though.

I am meeting with a tutor tomorrow to establish some strategies for Saturday morning's exam.  I am looking forward to sleeping through the night again.

I Think the Deadlines Are Too Tight

Warning:  a little whining ahead.

Most of these said deadlines are team imposed.  I have several deliverables due on Tuesday because that seems to be the only day that we can get together as a team.  This is frustrating because I would really rather be focusing on Stats.  The exam is in less than six days and I have been spending my free time on Balanced Scorecard (which is should be working on - it is due in 11 days), HR, and now, the mini-case for Finance.  When am I supposed to study for Stats?  It doesn't matter if I have people offering to help me if I can't take the time to come up with questions for them.  Or carve out the time to actually see them.  This will be a week where I don't see my family.  That sucks.

Sorry, Sweeties. It's Not Nice Enough To Eat Outside

Last weekend - or maybe it was the weekend before - while making the traditional Sunday morning chocolate chip pancakes, I looked out and saw a cool yet beautifully sunny morning.  I decided to let my sweeties eat breakfast outside.  And they loved it!  They wiped off the table's dusty debris.  They set the table.  And they carried out the heaping plates of pancakes and nearly demolished them all.  For a brief moment in time, I was the best mommy ever.

Today, we have intermittent clouds and it is very cool outside.  Not an ideal day for impromptu alfresco dining.  I'll put an extra chocolate chip in the smiley faces to make it up to you.

Grande Quad Americano Needed

We started Financial Management today.  Right after a morning of Management Accounting.  We're all in class with our eyes glazed over.  It's pretty sad.  Sean seems like a good guy; we're just tired.  During a break, I headed down to Starbucks and asked them which drink had the highest caffeine content.  They recommended the Grande Quad Americano.  It worked for about 20 minutes.

This is another course with dry material... which means videos!

Here's the video that Sean showed us after we got back from first break:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUhb0XII93I

And here is the second:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UC31Oudc5Bg

Then we got to hear from a guy who used to work for CitiBank in the UK.  We got the play-by-play of the credit crisis and the meltdown of the financial institutions.  There is so much jargon in the presentation that it was hard to stop the guy for clarification.  He was pretty enthusiastic about the subject, that's for sure.

I Gotta Feeling

A friend was looking for boppy music for running or her boot camp class or something and I gave her the Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling".  That made me think of this video that JP showed us during Creativity and Innovation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zcOFN_VBVo 

It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood

It is an incredible day weather-wise.  It is at least 27C out there; warmer here than it is in Florida.  I was inside feeling sorry for myself and all the schoolwork I have to do...  And then I realized my kids were doing the same thing I was:  sitting in front of a computer.  And my husband told them to get off their bottoms and get outside.  Well, they made their playdates and I went along.  Four grade 3 girlies and I went off to the park.  They were riding their bikes and playing on the monkey bars while I read about balanced scorecards.  In two hours, I had a nice sunburn (who'd have thought it was possible to get a sunburn in Ontario in April?) and four pooped girls on my hands.  What a beautiful day in the neighbourhood!

Memory from Managerial Economics

When Peter Sephton found that we were withering away, he would play a video to perk us back up.

This one was one of my favourites:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kb0kiiB3O-o

Enjoy!

Sayings by Professor Jeff McGill

There’s no free lunches here.

The real world is a messy place.

It’s dreadful, but there it is.

This ain’t something you do for 10 cents.

It’s just a model.

Is everybody OK with that?

Stuff never happens until it does... and then “Yikes!”

Amongst the Numerati, there is a certain snobbery.

Thank you, Ron, as always.

Hmm?  Mumble, mumble.

You’re gonna want to beat this up a bit.

And...

Eeeeeeeeeee!  (When some crazy incomprehensible formula shows up on the screen.)

There is a morass

Life can be messy.  Decisions made amidst chaos.  Do you need help?  Use MAUT:  multi-attribute utility theory.

Of course, you need to know the cost utility function and the stakeholder return utility.  This could require the use of a consultant over a period of months if you are trying to get a rational way of getting all the complex issues and the value of importance into the function.  Like: the economic impact, management impact, environmental impact, socioeconomic impact, health & safety, feasibility...

It’s a hard sell, though.  MAUT is finicky.  Mucky.  Engineers and people who make really large policy decisions might need it.

There is an easier way:  Weighted Scores.  You probably have all used this at some time in  your life.  For example, looking for temporary accommodations and your key criteria are cost and distance to the work site.  You weight the criteria based on your values (like cheap rent is more important than how long it will take you to drive to the work site or vice versa).  This is a simple way of looking at things.  Also, human nature kicks in and we will reverse engineer things to get the answer we want (like the apartment that is more expensive had a better view).

Because there are often more than two variables, you may need a more comprehensive model.  Say hello to The Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP).  You might use this to buy a car, when you are considering price, fuel economy, interior upgrades (leather, heated seats, personal environmental controls), body type, entertainment system...  You figure out the relative importance between the individual criteria.  Do it for each pairwise comparison across the cars...  Then find the geometric average.  Then normalize the criteria...  And you have only established the criteria – you haven’t factored in the cars yet.  Call me.  I have a spreadsheet.  This is a lot of work when you already know that you are going to go into the dealership and buy the Honda.  Or Volvo.  Or whatever.  (Honda Odyssey for me.)

And while we were learning this, one of my team members made a funny noise.  And I had to suppress my giggles.  My eyes were watering and my body shaking.  I still can’t look at him.

"It's dreadful, but there it is." *

*Prof. Jeff McGill

Today Was A Good Day

I attended the Queen's EMBA info session as a current student representative.  I think it went well.  The people didn't really have questions.  The last time I was there, there were tons of questions.  I wonder if people just came for the free lunch.

Today was probably the best stats tutorial of them all.  Why?  Because people had questions.  I only had to ask one of mine.  I was going to skip it because I had had a long day.  However, we had a team question about the assignment and it was understood that I would be attending when no one else would...  So I took one for the team.  We ended up having a nice overview of Multiple Regression, Utility (which is just like the Economics version of utility, complete with decreasing marginal returns), Decision Trees (only a wee bit), and Linear Programming.  I'm glad I went.

The best part of today was that I got home just before 9pm.  The kids were asleep in their beds, but I guess my goodnight kisses woke them up.  That means I got some nice hugs.  And isn't that what life is all about?

Tickling my irony bone

I received some junk mail from a wine service today. I like the idea of someone selecting wines I might enjoy and put them in a bundle for me to buy. There is a service in Ottawa that already does this: Savvy Company.


This place was not from around here, though. Nor was it from Niagara-on-the-Lake, another of my favourite places. It is called Wines For Home and hails from Guildford, Surrey, England. I am curious as to how I got on their list. Maybe my email address got sold to them by one of the many companies I contacted when planning our trip to England in 2008.

I had a brief thought that maybe they would be a lead for the Global Business Project. Alas, not everyone on my team enjoys a good glass of wine so I scrapped the idea. (Although wouldn’t it be great to go to some country like Australia or Chile or Argentina and do wine tastings to help them select product to distribute? Or maybe there is a winery in Niagara-on-the-Lake or Prince Edward County that wants to get into the English market.)

With all these ideas dancing in my head, I wanted to have a reference for the town’s approximation to London. It’s not that far. In zooming out, though, the name of another town on the other side of London caught my eye: Milton Keynes. I guess it stood out because it was two words and not hyphenated.  It was the town name of "Milton Keynes" that tickled my irony bone. It was the perfect blend of John Maynard Keynes and Milton Friedman – one of the biggest critics of Keynesian economics.

A Quick Update on My Training for Ottawa Race Weekend

I have bad knees.  They lock and ache.  Sometimes I hobble around at home when they decide to "give out".  I have been riding a stationary bike for five minutes a day to help build them up.  At least I hope that it is helping to build them up.  I figure I am doing enough to get them warmed up and used to the motion - which is similar to running - yet not so much that I am causing any undo damage.

On sunny days, I go for a 15 minute walk at lunch to get some fresh air into my lungs and to move my body.

And today...  I finally made it to the gym at school and figured out how to program the treadmill for speed intervals (I did incline intervals once by accident) and did 15 minutes worth.  At the end of 15 minutes, I felt like I could go on a bit longer.  Only one other person was in the gym, so I didn't have to abide by the "20 minute rule", so I went for another 30 minutes.  Yes, you read that right.  I ran intervals for 45 minutes.  And I feel OK. Next time, I'll try for a more difficult level.  I was on level 2 today.  My total distance was about 2.5 kms.  Go me!

OMG

Just when I thought the month of April could not possibly get any worse, they posted the assignment due dates for Financial Management.  We have a mini case due on April 21 and another on May 5 (and there are others in May and June).

Now it is time to reflect on what I have done and need to get done.

First, I could send in my two-page proposal for my Individual Paper.  It is written.  I could maybe word smith it a bit more.  But if I really needed to get something off my plate, it could be the first thing gone.  It is due April 6th.  It's OK to hand it in early.

Next, I need to get a handle on Optimization (part of the stats course).  I forgot my folder at home so I was kind of working on it blindly and the Solver function kept saying something like "cell set values do not converge".  That is not a good sign.  And the fact that it wouldn't let me select the reports that come out of the Solver function kind of sealed it for me.  That will be the focus of my work tonight, when I am at home with my notes.  I am the second on the assignment, so I better know what I am doing.  I sure hope my notes were good.  My draft is due March 31st; the assignment is due April 8th.

My negotiations paper is chugging along.  I am working through the various templates in the text book (from Essentials of Negotiation).  Some of the work is drawing out repetitive answers.  I am finding it a bit challenging because the templates are forward thinking, not retrospective.  I am thrilled that I found someone to edit my assignment, though.  I think it will be the best $10/page I have ever spent.  Due date:  to the editor: March 31st; to school: April 5th.

I am on my way to becoming an expert on Strategy Maps and Scorecarding.  My sub-team member and I are meeting at school tomorrow at 1pm to work on it.  I was grateful to be on this sub-team because I wanted to learn more about it - outside of the HR perspective that I originally used for scorecard.  It is a lot of work, though.  I will work on that this afternoon.  The assignment is only due on April 22nd, but the lead on it wants it done by March 31st.  (I guess he thought April looked rather ominous, too.)

Then I have my individual assignment for Managerial Accounting.  It is due April 29th.  Part of my work tomorrow night is to read the relevant information on revenue forecasting in the text book and formulate questions for the guy at work that I'll be meeting with next week.  I will be happy if I have 5 questions for him.  Hopefully I can come up with a couple more.

Lastly, there is this little Stats exam coming up on April 17th.  It's worth 40% of my mark and passing the exam is a requirement for passing the course.  I will be spending most of my evenings this coming week preparing questions for the tutorial which is taking place on Thursday.  I think the reason many people are disappointed with the tutorials is that they haven't shown up with comprehensive questions for Jeff to answer.  I am just as guilty.  On the other hand, Jeff didn't have anything planned, either.  It isn't like when we would go to our 810 or 811 tutorials and John would essentially coach us on how to approach studying for the exam.

Well, it is nearly 1pm and I am hungry.  Off to get some lunch!

Sprucing Up My Space

I have an “enhanced” cubicle in that it has a desk and a space with a meeting table and two chairs. I also have a window – that overlooks the dark brick wall of the hotel next door. You can imagine that the space is not the bright and airy space of my dreams.

The cleaners rarely “clean” the space. Really, I think they just empty the trash. Over the past week or so, I have felt the need to clean my desk, table, and chairs. Soap, water, paper towels, scrubbing. I didn’t really think it would require the scrubbing. I thought a “lick and a promise” would be enough. It’s amazing how the eye adapts and one gets accustomed to the “dirt”. I just did a few minutes of wiping/scrubbing every day. This morning, I wiped down my whole work station again, and the white paper towel wasn’t visibly dirty. I think I have finally cut through the grime that has built up over the years.

Later on this morning, I went on a hunt for a copy of the Report on Business to see if an article I was interested in was in it. No luck, but that is OK as I have the electronic version. On my way back, I peeked into the local flower shop. They carry potted plants too, but usually plants that require bright conditions. I was thrilled to see one plant that had “Low Light” clearly marked on it. It is very rare to find a plant that can handle low light. I bought the Rhipsalis “Trailing” and gave it a home.

It is a celebration of my progress, albeit a small progress. Welcome, plant.

Some Inspiring Words from Jack Canfield

This showed up in my inbox this morning and I thought I would share a snippet with you.

No matter what is going on in the economy...

• hold fast to your dreams,
• visualize them with feeling twice a day,
• keep your self-talk positive,
• surround yourself with positive people,
• read uplifting books,
• trust your intuition,
• take continuous action,
• expect the best,
• respond to feedback by making the necessary corrections,
• and persevere until you get the result you want.

It’s a formula that always works.

I am working on it!  It's really hard to control the self-talk, though!

 

 

Jack Canfield, America's #1 Success Coach, is founder of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul© and a leading authority on Peak Performance and Life Success. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com

A Splash of Reality

I thought I was doing well in Stats.  Really.  My team members were ever so graciously spending extra time with me to make sure I got it.  We got our papers back on assignment #4 and apparently I didn't "get it".  I am pretty sad about it.  And I don't even have time to reflect on it because I have to get a ton of things done for Managerial Accounting.  I have a lunch meeting with a team member that I am sub-teamed with for the assignment and then we have our big team meeting on Friday night.  No time to reflect on stats.  :(

Using What I Am Learning

My friend Deb is in Brampton and she has just launched a website to promote her business.  (See the sidebar to the right for the link.  Click on it often.  Google her site.  Help her get her numbers up!)  I didn't know she was doing this and I could easily say that I probably don't know half of what my friends are doing because I have had my head in a book or my fingers on a computer since late August and foresee this to the be case until December 2010.  I am not beating myself up about it, though.  Instead, I am taking it as an opportunity to apply what I am learning.  The next time I am in the GTA, Deb and I will have a coffee date where we will talk about her business and what she can do to have it  blossom into the company of her dreams.  And she is all for it.

All that to say that I sometimes feel like I can apply what I am learning and I can put it to good use.  That makes me happy.

Expanding Your Network

Tomorrow, I am meeting with my Career Coach (part of the all-expense paid trip to Club Queen's*).  We are going to be talking about how I am going to realize my career goals.  As many of you know, one of my goals is to be a Canadian Tire Dealer.  I know the Dealer "deal" so to speak and appreciate that it will be hard work.  I am not afraid of hard work.

There are a few gaps between who I am/what I have today and who I need to be/what I need to have to be a Dealer.  Some of it will be simple:

• re-write the resume to get the appropriate language in there
• go volunteer at a store and get some operational experience
• make some connections in the Dealer world

Then there is the money side of things.  I learned quickly in the Managing the New Venture class that while angel investors are out there, it is not necessarily a venue for me to pursue.  They expect returns.  I can't guarantee returns because I'll be spending the first few years (or more, but really...  I am going to be the best female dealer ever and then the best dealer ever, so "few" is just fine) establishing my store equity.

I need to find a way to make money and fast.  (And I decided to audit an elective, so my tuition bill is going up.)

My Career Coach, at the end of our brief phone call, said that my homework was to expand my network.  That is how I will find the opportunity that will bridge me until I have the funds I need to complete my Dealer application.  How do you go about expanding your network?  Well...  there wasn't clear direction on that.  I forgot to say that she wanted me to double it in two weeks.  Yikes!  Clearly she doesn't know how shy I am!

I have been working on LinkedIn, establishing contacts with people that I haven't chatted with in ages.  In some cases, it was over 10 years.  I didn't want to indiscriminately add people to my network, though.  I wanted them to be people that I liked or respected.  I had to keep reminding myself of Malcolm Gladwell's reference of a study from 1974 in his book "The Tipping Point" that indicated you needed to expand your network to your acquaintances because they would circulate in different circles than you and your friends...  It's the value of the weak link.  You can understand that, but it is still hard work expanding your network.  I'll be working at it on and off for, what looks like, ever. 

I also volunteered to help out at a local women's lunch event, thinking that it would give me the opportunity to meet some people and start working on those weak links.  I met the two representatives from the organization that hosts the event and a videographer.  I got the videographer's card.  You never know.


*Credit to Barry Cross for this saying

This Will Change Your Life

We finished our Negotiations class today and our professor's favourite saying is "This will change your life!"  Here are some tips for you:

Read "Getting to Yes"
Practice and experiment in everyday interactions as well as more formal negotiations
Follow the news and analyze international disputes in terms of the negotiation process
Work on your weaknesses
Always prepare thoroughly
Be sensitive to other people's framing
See things from the other side's perspective

I Won a Free Tall Drink at Starbucks

Yesterday, when I was getting my Venti Bold, they gave me a receipt.  As it turns out, it is one of those "do the survey, get a free tall drink" deals.  So I did the survey.  What to get, what to get...

We have Negotiations Management today.  I am selling some property in Gotham City and have a bunch rules that I must abide by.  I guess I should get back to taking my notes on it so that I am reasonably prepared for the negotiations simulation.

Managerial Accounting

I have a Venti Bold to keep me company (and awake) for the last two thirds of today's Managerial Accounting class.  We played blackjack and I ended up "making" $2,500 in fake money...  It's all in the name of learning about the corporate controls.  I still think that I need the caffeine.

All Information Is Available to Everyone All The Time - Part Deux

Queen's University has a seeker service that has found this humble blog, reminding us all that Andrew Waisman was right. (see:  http://michellessuccess.blogspot.com/2010/01/all-information-is-available-to.html)  


I don't know if their awareness of the blog was brought to my attention because they want to preserve the brand of Queen's (so it was a warning and I better not say anything bad) or if they thought is was interesting that I was doing a blog.  I suppose I should have asked.  Or maybe I should push the limits and see what their reaction is.  Hmmmm.....


Well, John (or other Queen's people) if you are reading this, you too can join me at the top of the Eiffel Tower for my birthday party on January 1, 2017.  There are 2487 days left!

Aspiring to a High Level of OCD?

This morning I was "complimented":  that I was the only person in the class that approximated the same level of someone else's obsessive compulsive disorder.  Is that a compliment?  In this case, I guess it was.  It was an indirect compliment about being focussed on my goals and having a solid, detailed plan to get there.  I just took offense to the "OCD" label.

You Are Amazing

There was an event in Toronto for International Woman's Day this past weekend.  Marsh Engle spoke and shared the 6 essentials that make a woman amazing:


Envision: Be Willing To Grow Beyond The Defined.
Empower: Find The Yes In All Things.
Ignite: Ignite The Power of Possibilities.
Explore: Play With Fresh Curiosity.
Trust: Collaborate With Sheer Trust.
Embrace: Bring Your Brilliance To Life.

A little food for thought for you on this lovely Thursday.  I think every one can be amazing.

Decision Trees and The QLC Assignment Calculator

In Stats, which is really called "Analysis Based Decision Making", we are working on the stuff that the title of the course is about:  making decisions when you don't have full information.  In the course, they give you the probabilities of certain outcomes based on the decisions you make (in real life, you either guess about the probability based on your hunches or you use some historical data) and then you apply it to the various models available.  There are a few that we went through, but our assignment is mainly focussed on decision trees. 

You can get an add-in for Excel that helps you create a decision tree.  I don't think I can post one here.  It looks cool.  (My husband walked by and asked how it worked, so you know that there is a bit of a cool factor to how it looks.)  It can be frustrating, though.  For example, the "undo" feature in Excel does not apply to the decision tree.  Once you do something, and it is wrong, you either figure out how to remove the traces of it or you start all over.  I have learned that it is faster to start all over.

I must finish the assignment tonight because I want to work on another assignment tomorrow night and I have a musical to go see on Thursday night.  Priorities...

Speaking of priorities...  I was wandering around the Queen's Library website looking for journal articles on Identity and Access Management Policies (let me know if you have one you can share) and found this neat little tool called The QLC Assignment Calculator.  You put in the date you will be starting your assignment, the due date, and it tells you what you need to have done by when.  For example, I have a Managerial Accounting paper due at the end of April.  By Friday of this week, I have to have my topic selected and some preliminary research done.  By next Friday, I need to find, review and evaluate books.  By March 31st, find, review, and evaluate journal/magazine/newpaper articles.  Then web sites by April 3rd...  Have a structure written by April 4th.  First draft by April 9th...  You get the idea.  They didn't say anything about conducting interviews, though, which is how I will be doing my preliminary research on this applied accounting paper.  I will find a way to blend it in there somewhere.

2494 days and Counting!

It is 2494 days until my fancy dinner at the top of the Eiffel Tower.  I am amazed at the positive response received so far!

Dime Sighting

On my way to work this morning, I spotted a dime on the floor and picked it up.

Then I read an article in this newsletter I get where they discussed "dime sightings".

The author explained that each time you find a dime means good luck and a great financial future. She went on to say that it signified a loved one that had passed on was looking out for you.


Sure, it's kind of superstitious.  I am of the mindset that there are no coincidences.  Thank you to the loved one who is looking out for me.

They say there aren't any coincidences or purposeless encounters

If that is the case, then I need to tell you about Siri.

We were standing in line at Shoppers Drug Mart together and she was reaching for the Kashi bars that were on sale - and of course were on the top shelf so that only the most tenacious people could get them, if they could see them.  She talked me into getting some for myself.  Then, she let me pass her in line while she got the guy behind her to help her get another box.  We continued chatting and she handed me a $0.50 coupon for the bars.  Very nice.

She then told me that she ran a Bed and Breakfast and that one of her clients had gone into her cupboards and eaten a whole box of the Kashi bars.  Now I have her card for the B&B.  She also is a registered massage therapist, and it is always good to know a massage therapist.

Here is Siri's info in case you need to stay at a B&B in Ottawa:

Siri Bandhu Khalsa
Downtown B&B
263 McLeod Street
613.563.4399

Tell her Michelle from the Shoppers Drug Mart line sent you.

You Are Invited!

I went to Paris, France in November 1989 and have always wanted to return.

On January 1, 2017, I will be celebrating my 50th birthday in style:  with dinner at the top of the Eiffel Tower.  I would be thrilled if my family and friends could join me. 

Here is a link to "Jules Verne", the restaurant I want to go to, for you to check out and and start your planning.

http://www.lejulesverne-paris.com/

I am giving you all substantial notice because I know that such a trip can be expensive, but with the right inspiration, you will be able to join me.  It's a little less than seven years away.  I figure I will need to put away about $1,000 per year for this trip, which is about $20 a week.

I hope you can join me!!

It's going to be a busy class weekend!

We're in the midst of some interesting winter weather.  Lots of snow.  Lots of "wet snow".  Some of it melts overnight, some of it doesn't.  It's very windy.  Driving conditions are yucky.  I will be hitting the road at 6am and will be likely skipping the gym today.  Not because I won't want to go, but because it will likely take me 90 minutes to drive what normally takes 20 minutes.

After a fun-filled day of statistics and negotiations, my team and our families are going out for pizza and bowling! A social outing.  I know!  Who'd have thought it was possible?  (Then we will all run home and finish our work on managerial accounting that is due for tomorrow.)

Saturday night the EMBA Chicks are going to see a play.  A second social outing!

It's going to be an excellent weekend!

63.4% of all statistics are made up

... or so I have heard. (http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/2010/01/new-years-diet-aid.html)  That is kind of disheartening when you realize how much time and effort I am putting into the stats class.  Fortunately, the work is paying off in that I am getting the grades I need to succeed.  I don't know if I am actually learning, though, or if I am getting better at following a prescribed set of steps to get to an answer.  The reality is that I just need to pass this class and that is my focus.

Well, I have an assignment in stats due tomorrow night.  We're having a quick Skype call to review the content of the team exercise in a couple of hours...  Better get cracking!

Getting Ready for Ottawa Race Weekend

I signed the whole family up for Ottawa Race Weekend activities the other day.  Alan is running a 10K with Tim.  I will be running 5K with my lovely daughters.  So, now I have to get into shape for it! 

What I am doing to prepare:

• On Wednesday, I went to the gym and did 2.5K in 30 mins.  I was mainly walking.  I will be going back to the gym today at lunchtime and will try the "intervals" feature on the treadmill.  My plan is to do treadmill work at least once, preferably twice, per week.
• I mapped out 5K in my neighbourhood.  Once the weather clears up, the kids and I can practice walking/running the route.  Alan can do it twice, if he wants.
• I printed off the map for the actual 5K route for the race.  It goes near my office and is actually only a little bit longer than the walk I used to do along the canal on warm days.  The difference is that my canal walk was much more picturesque.  I posted the map in my workstation so that I see it every day.  When the weather improves, I will start a walk/run of the route from work.

So, I have a few things going on towards being successful for the race.

Have a great weekend!

The EMBA Chicks

There are five women in the program.  We come from varying backgrounds and all different stages of life. 

I am trying to schedule an EMBA Chicks-only outing and have proposed going to see a play at the National Arts Centre:  Mrs. Dexter and her Daily.  One person has yet to confirm.  I picked two dates for shows that follow our class time so we would be together already and it would not be too disruptive for our families.

I've got my fingers crossed that it'll work out!

What are you doing to create memories?

Part of the reason for creating this blog was to collect my experiences so that I could remember everything later.  I must admit that I must have known that the time would fly past so quickly and that the things I wanted to remember would slip away.

There are tons of things from our Creativity and Innovation session that I which I had made a note of.

There was the day that some of us looked up Douglas Adams quotes and posted them in the "comments" section of a classmate's Facebook status.  I took that silly activity a degree further and placed Douglas Adams quotes in a paper.  (It was for the Creativity and Design class, so I figured I could get away with a more fun, casual approach.)

I still have the UQAM LipDub of "I Gotta Feeling" by the Black Eyed Peas running through my head.  I actually go to YouTube and watch it when I need a boost!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-zcOFN_VBVo

Or the Fun Theory project.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw

So, here I am, bogged down with Statistics homework and I need to remember that it is part of the process and that there are some fabulous memories still to be made and tracked.

Ode to a Mechanical Pencil

Oh pencil, how thou thwart me
You tantalize me with your fancy name
Your sleek design
The fact that you came with a friend

And six months later
You have left me alone and bereft
Both of you
And your friend from long ago, too

I have purchased two more replacements
I hope they last
I really hope they last
I rely on you and want you to be part of my life

Make Your Life Extraordinary

Those were the last words to our Design and Creativity class today:  "Make your life extraordinary".  They were from the movie The Dead Poets Society.  I still get a little tight inside and a little misty when I think about it.  That seemed to be the most profound thing anyone has said to us so far.

Today was lots of fun.  I laughed a lot, which was great because it was like shaking the poor muscles that were complaining about going to pilates this morning.  It's also a great stress reliever.

We did all kinds of things: learned models on how to generate ideas and be more creative, how to review things using De Bono's six thinking hats, and we drafted a note to ourselves with out top 3 personal, career and fun goals.

Well, I have some reading to do.  (Big surprise!)

Creativity and Innovation Videos

Interested in creativity and innovation?

Here are the videos I have to watch for tomorrow.  I didn't expect them to be about an hour each.  Yikes!  You have been warned!

http://mitworld.mit.edu/video/357/
http://www.mindjet.com/us/download/
http://www.visualthesaurus.com

I am part way through the IDEO one (that's the first video).

All Information Is Available to Everyone All the Time

Today we are meeting with a former venture capitalist.  He says VCs are looking for:

·         Market opportunity

·         Leadership

·         Unfair advantage – like patents, etc.

·         Big brothers – like IBM launching the success of Microsoft and Intel

·         Right economy

Now, if you are an entrepreneurially minded person, the top three areas that VCs are interested in right now are:

·         Technology

·         Biotechnology

·         Green & clean technology

More narrowly, if you want to pursue a technology venture, the top three areas of focus are:

·         Mobility and smartphones – especially application development

·         Social networking

·         Cloud computing

The main reason they are looking at cloud computing (defined as using an application without having it loaded on your server) as one of the next big things is because “things obsolete themselves quickly”.

Simplicity is the underlying reason for success in the digital world.

Remember:  all information is available to everyone all the time.

It's Creativity and Innovation Week!

I am so excited about this week.  Apprehensive, too, since there is so much work that has to be done in a short period of time.

Surprisingly, we were given time in class to work on our case study for Managing the New Venture.  Lucky for us, really.  We ended up with a 170-page case.  And now all we know is beer.  Beer, brew pubs, and nice food.  I'll go to this place if I ever have to go to Ithaca (and the place actually opened).

Yoga yesterday morning was great!  Other people found it to be torture.  I think it goes to show that attending as regularly as I have has helped considerably over the past 5 months.  Gotta keep it up!!  I am kind of busy finalizing my contribution to the case study, so will miss going to the gym this morning.  If we finish at a reasonable time today, I might go before heading home.