Comments on: How can I improve what I can’t control?

By: Ben

Ben — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:17:57 +0000

Thanks for that Allan, however I believe there is a lot more to it than doing something about it.

Adoption is a huge problem when half the battle is communicating the idea, let alone taking the time to justify it. I think this issue relates to the email / blog culture – “just say it” – with very little thought as to how that information will be accessed / organised in the future.

A good example is that a new starter won’t receive any of the emails that have been sent before they join a company, so we can’t rely on that as the only way to communicate stuff.

For me the biggest challenge is not the change itself, it’s finding how to communicate with others without bombarding them with emails or requiring them to sit in meetings.

I’ve yet to conquer this, but I’m working on it.

By: Allan OzzyAce Riley

Allan *OzzyAce* Riley — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 14:01:47 +0000

I learnt after years of frustration that we only have 3 choices in life
1) if we don’t like something then do something about it
2) if we are not going do anything about it then forget it exists
and the one we don’t want to choose but unfortunately 95% of people do
3) we don’t like something but we don’t/won’t anything about it – guess who wears the burden? we do! stupid really isn’t it?
so just keep helping people and the rest will sort itself out and the frustration dissipates
allan

By: Two good Mondays in a row? Surely some mistake… : Ben Barden

Two good Mondays in a row? Surely some mistake… : Ben Barden — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 23:28:37 +0000

[...] might be because of the bloody brilliant comment on my post, How can I improve what I can’t control? Here it is again: The key isn’t forcing people to adopt a new way of working – it’s to show [...]

By: sixmats

sixmats — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 03:54:34 +0000

I too feel that I am fairly uptight about things at work that no one else seems to care about. However, the reason I feel strongly about these things is that I believe if changed, these small things will make a huge difference.

But no one listens so I am looking for a new job.

By: Wogan

Wogan — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 20:16:07 +0000

Hah, funnily enough, this is exactly what I’ve been working on for the better part of the last 2 years.

I’ve always been sort of the digital equivalent of a janitor, picking up tasks in my team to free up time for the rest. Thanks to that I was able to identify a lot of inefficiencies, and work to improve them.

Fast forward to today, and I find myself involved with management, working to implement the very same systems that solved problems for my team.

From what I’ve seen, if you encounter an inefficiency, just solve it for yourself. Inevitably, the people around you will notice, and if your solution really is the better one, will migrate to it.

The key isn’t forcing people to adopt a new way of working – it’s to show them how its done, and let them decide for themselves.