People And Projects Podcast: Project Management Podcast

Pulling Back the Curtain on Management Consultants Our guest in this episode is Karen Phelan, author of an entertaining book entitled I'm Sorry I Broke Your Company: When Management Consultants Are the Problem, Not the Solution. Karen pulls back the curtain on an industry from the perspective of an insider. This book is a fun read that, in truth, goes beyond just management consultants. It looks at the ridiculousness of what we call best practices in organizational leadership and management. I look forward to your feedback after you listen to this discussion with Karen. Learn more about Karen and her book by visiting http://imsorryibrokeyourcompany.com/. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! I'M SORRY by Ian Sutherland is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. I'M SORRY by Los Llamarada is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.

Total Duration 34:23 Download episode 110 Why Do We Share What We Share? We are constantly sharing. It could be social media status update. An uploaded picture. A recommendation about a restaurant. A praise or criticism about an organization. This applies in the workplace as well. We relate how a meeting went. How a leader handled a situation (or not). We spread some buzz about a new project release (or fall victim to the growing resistance). We are sharing all the time. But why do we share? More to the point for this episode for us as leaders of projects and people, how can we understand how ideas spread across groups of people? Get Contagious Our guest in this episode is Jonah Berger, author of an intriguing book entitled Contagious: Why Things Catch On. Though this would appear to be a book for your friends in Marketing, you'll find in this episode there ideas for those of us who lead projects and teams. Learn more about Jonah and his book by visiting http://jonahberger.com/books/contagious/. Thank you f

Laugh While Learning I love to laugh. Whether it's a podcast episode, a keynote presentation, or an e-learning workshop, I like to keep it light-hearted. I've just found that it's easier to learn when we're enjoying the experience. Yet though I share the name of the famous, albeit dead, comedian Andy Kaufman, I'm not really that funny! I have to work at it. And because of that, there are times when a joke not only isn't particularly funny--it's counter-productive. Perhaps someone is the butt of the joke, so to speak, and they don't like it. Or it was making light at a time or subject that wasn't appropriate.   The Humor Code Our guests in this episode are Pete McGraw and Joel Warner. They are the authors of a clever new book entitled The Humor Code: A Global Search for What Makes Things Funny. Why is it that some things are funnier than others? When can humor help us and when can it get in the way? Pete and Joel traveled the world to dissect humor across cultures to learn what makes us laugh. Learning about

"Feedback is a Gift?" Our guest for this episode is Doug Stone. Doug and his co-author Sheila Heen teach negotiation and conflict negotiation at Harvard Law School and they've written a terrific new book entitled Thanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well. They were also co-authors of a previous best-seller entitled Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most Learn more about Doug and Sheila and their company by visiting http://triadconsultinggroup.com.   I Want to Hear From You! Speaking of feedback, I'd love to hear from you! I'm inviting you to call our podcast listener feedback line and leave a message! Why do you listen to this podcast? What have you found helpful? And how about this question, straight from the Thanks for the Feedback book: "What do you hear me doing, or failing to do, that is getting in my own way of producing a podcast that best helps you?" There are two ways to leave me a message: First, you can call our Podcast Listener Feedback Line at (8

Introducing Steven P. Cohen In this episode, you'll hear from Steven P. Cohen. Steve’s latest book is entitled The Practical Negotiator: How to Argue Your Point, Plead Your Case, and Prevail in Any Situation. It’s not your typical business book, actually. It’s more of a Q&A format, covering a wide range of topics, related to work and to home, from a guy who knows his stuff about negotiation. You’ll hear Steve talk about some important negotiation principles and then get his coaching on some situations that are quite close to home for many project managers. Learn more about Steve and The Practical Negotiator: How to Argue Your Point, Plead Your Case, and Prevail in Any Situation by visiting the book's website at http://www.practicalnegotiator.com/. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! NERVES by Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com) is licensed under creative Commons by Attribution 3.0. A THOUGHT by Podington Bear is licensed under a Attribution-NonComme

Total Duration 37:35 Download episode 106 Happy New Year! I love new things! I love the start of a new project. Working with a new team or new client. Trying out a new tool or a new gadget. I love new.... It's a chance to start over, to learn from the past and apply it to the future. As we fire up another year, it's a great time to look for a fresh start. To consider what we'll do differently. And my advice for you this year? Well, you'll have to listen to the episode to get the answer! Our New Year's Guest: Tom Rath You've likely heard of Tom and his books. He's a senior scientist and advisor to Gallup, where he led their research and consulting on employee engagement, strengths, and well being. If you read How Full Is Your Bucket?, Wellbeing: The Five Essential Elements, StrengthsFinder 2.0 or took the StrengthFinders assessment, you're among the millions of people who have been impacted by his work. Tom's most recent book is Eat Move Sleep: How Small Choices Lead to Big Changes. As we head into a new yea

I Hear You! In this cast I talk with Donny Ebenstein, who just published I Hear You: Repair Communication Breakdowns, Negotiate Successfully, and Build Consensus . . . in Three Simple Steps. This is a must-read book for anyone leading projects and teams. We inevitably get stuck with the impossible team member, boss, or stakeholder. Progress on the project requires us to get past stuck. Learn more about Donny at http://www.ebensteinconsulting.com.   Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! LA by Podington Bear is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License. HEARTS AFLUTTER by Podington Bear is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License.

Total Duration 20:25 Download episode 104 A Disposition of Gratitude One of my favorite holidays in the United States is Thanksgiving. Many other countries have a similar sort of day, but whether or not your country celebrates the holiday is not the main point here today. The bigger deal is the idea. Being thankful. Having a disposition of gratitude. That's what we're talking about in today's cast. Are You a Thankful Project Manager? In some of our leadership workshops we'll ask a team to answer this question: "Who is the best among the team at giving out honest and sincere appreciation?" Team members usually find it rather easy to answer this question. Would your name be the one that gets the most hits? In this episode we talk about some research behind expressing appreciation. You'll find it's not just your team that benefits. Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and the join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Project

The Year Without Pants Scott Berkun has written one of my favorite books in recent months. Despite the provocative title, The Year Without Pants: WordPress.com and The Future of Work offers some refreshing insights into the world of work that all of us can benefit from. In this episode, you'll hear Scott's insights about the workplace of today and the future of work. Learn more about Scott at http://www.scottberkun.com/blog. You can find all his books and his blog there.   Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and then join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week! EUPHORIC by Podington Bear is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License. NO PANTS FRIDAY by Lee Rosevere is licensed under a Attribution-NonCommercial License.

How to Succeed In Business Without Even Trying That makes for the name of a funny movie but success in business is not quite that simple. If you're familiar with the play or movie, the main character reads a book and jets from the window washer to the top of his organization through manipulative techniques that make for fun business satire. But success in business is not a matter of tricks. In this episode, I talk with Dan Schawbel who recently released his newest book Promote Yourself: The New Rules for Career Success. Especially if you are relatively new in your career or manage a team with millennials, you'll find Dan's insights helpful.   Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and then join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!

Introducing Mike Durbin, PMP We continue our In the Trenches series with this discussion with Mike Durbin, PMP. Mike shares insights and lessons he's learned in his years of leading teams and delivering projects.   Get PDUs or Contact Hours For Less! Want to get 35 PDUs or contact hours for a great price? Check out our PMP®Exam Prep e-learning at http://courses.i-leadonline.com/bundles/pm-certification-exam-prep. This is a great option, whether you're preparing for the exam or want to refresh your knowledge for PDU's.   Add Your Voice to Our Podcast! Are you a regular listener to The People and Projects Podcast? I'd love to have your voice added to the beginning or end of the cast. Just send me an e-mail saying "I'd love to help!" I would love to have the opportunity to talk with you directly so contact me today and we'll set up a time to record your piece. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!   Drive by Management {youtube}08QDUPnT4eU{/youtube}   S

The Project Named You A key project management lesson is that we need to define success. What does success look like for a project? That's a question we need to ask far more often than we do. Getting clarity on objectives can make an enormous difference when it comes to delivering our projects successfully. Well, how about applying that lesson to our lives? Our guest for this episode is G. Richard Shell, who recently published Springboard: Launching Your Personal Search for Success. Do you think success for you is about being happy? In this episode, you'll be challenged to think again, or at least differently about what happy even means. We'll talk about meaningful work and why having a detailed career plan may just not be what you need right now.   Our 100th Episode! As it turns out, this is our 100th episode! Thank you for being a part of this learning journey with me. Feedback from listeners over the years has always been very encouraging to me. So here's a request: would you take a couple minutes and send

Total Duration 30:38 Download episode 99 Don't Take Yes for an Answer! Yes men. Yes women. People who say Yes. Leaders who only want people to say Yes. There are countless decisions required to deliver projects and lead teams. We make the job significantly more difficult if we fall into the trap of surrounding ourselves with Yes people. Or shooting the messenger who brings bad news. Or any of the dozens of cognitive biases that can cloud our decision-making judgment. My guest today is author and professor Michael Roberto. Mike just released a second edition of his book on decision-making entitled Why Great Leaders Don't Take Yes for an Answer: Managing for Conflict and Consensus. When someone doesn't agree with you, is it just a disagreement that leads to a vigorous and healthy debate? Or, as far as you're concerned, they're just wrong? In this episode you'll hear how we can make better decisions through conflict and consensus. Follow Michael on his blog or check out his offerings at The Great Courses. Tha

Insights from Nancy Duarte If you don't particularly enjoy giving presentations, I understand. Though 1994 was a near-death experience for me, 19 years later I make a living doing it. There's hope for us all and Nancy Duarte is a great leader for us all to learn from. In this episode, Nancy shares ideas from her recent book HBR Guide to Persuasive Presentations. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!   Nancy on Presentations {youtube}1nYFpuc2Umk{/youtube} BLAH BLAH BLAH NEXT SUBJECT by Seven5Seven is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Does Your Work Suck? So how would you describe your excitement level about your job? Would you say, "It's awesome Andy! I love my job!" Or would you be more on the side of... "Work Sucks."   Insights from Jody Thompson In this episode you'll hear from Jody Thompson, co-author of Why Work Sucks and How to Fix It: The Results-Only Revolution and Why Managing Sucks and How to Fix It: A Results-Only Guide to Taking Control of Work, Not People. Looking for fresh insights on how to look and work and leading teams? You'll get it in this episode!   Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!   PIECE FOR DISAFFECTED PIANO TWO by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. BATTY MCFADDIN by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Finger Tapping and Cookie Crumbs In this premium episode, I follow-up on some points from my interview with Paul Weber. You'll learn about: Elizabeth Newton's finger tapping experiment How cookies flushed out some bossy characteristics Click here to watch an interview with Bob Sutton that goes into the bossy issue more. Also, here's the HBR article with Bob. Thank you for joining me for this premium episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!   NO GOOD LAYABOUT by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Introducing Paul Weber, PMP We continue our In the Trenches series with this discussion with Paul Weber, PMP. Paul shares insights and lessons he's learned in his years of leading teams and delivering projects. To learn more about Paul and to contact him about the free EVM and PERT calculators mentioned in this episode, go to http://www.pmpguy44.com.   Join our Facebook Page I invite you to stop by our podcast Facebook page! "Like" it and join the discussion. Thank you for joining me for this episode of The People and Projects Podcast! Have a great week!   Bob Sutton on Power Poisoning Paul warned us to make sure we don't think of leadership as being the boss or being bossy. Here's one of my favorite authors talking about power poisoning, the effect that happens when someone gets power. {youtube}Mozejv4sE5o{/youtube} NO GOOD LAYABOUT by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License.

Adapt. Deliver. Fast. If you are in the business of delivering projects, especially in the area of software development, you have certainly heard about agile project management. A good sign that the influence of agile continues to grow is when the Project Management Institute created the PMI Agile Certified Practitioner credential (PMI-ACP®) in 2012. If you are actively involved with agile in any of its many forms, it's worth learning more about the PMI-ACP certification. And if you're not currently utilizing agile practices, it's worth investing time to understand what it is and isn't.   Welcoming Back Cornelius Fichtner, PMP In this episode, I welcome back my friend and podcast colleague Cornelius Fichtner, whom you probably know as the voice of The Project Management Podcast. In this episode, I talk with Cornelius about agile, the PMI-ACP certification, and a new way to study for the PMI-ACP that might just fit your style of learning.   Try the Agile PrepCast™ If you want to study to pass the PMI-ACP exam,

What Does It Take To Motivate Your Team? One of the common concerns I hear from those who lead projects and teams has to do with motivation. What does it take? An inspirational speech (see the video below!)? Money? Time? All the above, depending on the person?   Motivating Project Teams In this episode I talk with Heidi Grant Halvorson and E. Tory Higgins.. They are the authors of a book just released this week entitled Focus: Use Different Ways of Seeing the World for Success and Influence. The underlying research behind the book finds we each tend to have a primary motivational focus or mindset: either promotion or prevention. You'll learn more about what these mean in this episode. I invite you to visit Heidi's website at at http://www.heidigranthalvorson.com/. You can take an assessment to learn your motivational style by visiting http://www.yourfocusdiagnostic.com.   Need Some Motivation Hey, you promotion-minded listener! Need a little pick-me-up that will speak right to your promotion-minded heart? Ch

Can I Ask You a Favor? So let's say someone asks you for help. For a favor, let's say. What's your first reaction? Is it, "Sure! No problem! I'd love to help!" Perhaps most of us would like to think that's how we respond. Could your response vary, based on the situation? Let's modify the scenario. Let's say this person who is asking for help seems, in your mind, to have very little potential to help you in any meaningful way--now or in the future. Regardless of how you made that assessment, in economic terms, this favor would appear to have very little perceived return on investment. So, would you still help? Or would you scramble for an excuse to step away?   Welcoming back Dr. Adam Grant My guest in this episode is Dr. Adam Grant. We talk about his new book released just this week entitled Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success. In this episode you'll hear Adam talk about givers, takers, and matchers, three reciprocity styles that form the basis of the book. I invite you to visit the book's web