How a Simple Coaching Technique helped Transform this Introvert’s Pandemic, Depression, and Relationships

First, we felt energized and productive through the state of emergency. Then, we experienced depression, infighting, and fatigue that appear in a regression state. Now, we are moving into a recovery phase (and in some regions, back into regression.) Merete Wedell-Wedellsborg’s article in Harvard Business Review, “If You Feel Like You’re Regressing, You’re Not Alone,” eloquently chronicles my experience living through the COVID-19 pandemic. I imagine it may describe yours, too. This is the story of how applying a simple coaching technique changed my pandemic, my depression, and my relationships.

Emergency

For the first three months of the Great Pause, I celebrated working from home. Like many, I reveled in gaining back the lost hours of commuting. My professional life revolved around traveling and face-to-face interactions. My Great Pause wasn’t a new life of leisure — my energy was re-directed to becoming more technically fluent and establishing a professional remote-working environment. Like others, my household shifted and adapted while we adjusted to new patterns. I felt the shared identity and the unity from the massive global impact of the shutdown. …

Are you a problem solver? Here’s how to prove it.

Every organization has problems they want to solve. And most knowledge workers claim to be critical thinkers. (So much so, the phrase “problem-solving skills” has become such a cliché that Monster.com says is one of the top 10 terms that “ruin a resume.”) Zety.com states, “employers are literally fighting for candidates with highly developed problem-solving skills.” So if you have it, it’s time to prove it.

How do you prove you have problem-solving skills?

Whether you are one of those who claims to be a problem-solver or not, this skill may be less obvious than you think. Perhaps this is because people report feeling they have to make quick judgments that keep them from applying the inter-related skills that make-up problem-solving. (Like analysis, evaluation, and creativity.) …

Can they co-exist?

Two organizations in two diverse domains, material sciences, and life sciences, are investing in maturing their business agility using Scrum. Recently, both asked about introducing Six Sigma practices into their organizations. They pose the question — can Scrum and Six Sigma co-exist?

My short answer: Of course, they can, and they should — if the problem requires it. Please read on and share your opinion at the end of this blog.

What is Six Sigma? Motorola developed Six Sigma in 1986. Six Sigma is a structured methodology for process improvement and problem-solving. The tools, techniques, and roadmaps aim to reduce variation, increase quality by decreasing the number of defects, and improve the processes, services, and products. …

4 steps to make it visible and the easy math to build the business case

As a Product Owner, there is nothing more frustrating than using valuable development time to deal with technical debt. We use the debt analogy to remind us of the imperative need to mitigate it, to keep our products scalable and sustainable. …

moments from the mat, in front of the sea

A collection of thoughts triggered from time in that in-between space between ground and waves.

…………………………………

Tell me your despair

and I will halve it.

Again.

Again.

And on and on.

Suddenly, the possible.

………………………………

Do better

Do more

Make more

Be more

Extra credit

Stop. Enough.

Right here right now.

It’s always been enough.

…………………………………

A circle of 10

5 women 5 men 2 dogs.

2 writers 5 readers 3 artists 2 sailors 1 intellectual 1 wise 2 fit 3 shy 2 driven,

all seeking.

Heal thyself heal yourself heal selves.

Ripples of acceptance all selves no selves.

Grounded here, masks…

Your meeting participants are not speaking up. When you ask a question to a virtual group as a way to engage them, but you’re not getting any responses, what do you do?

It’s happened to every facilitator, teacher, or trainer. You ask a question, and you hear crickets.

Let’s say this happens consistently throughout your event or class. One possible reason might be the participants are multitasking doing their office or classwork and want to hear you talk. If you are giving a lecture, that might be fine. But if you need participation from others to make it a valuable learning experience or reach a decision, getting others talking can be critical.

Read on for some simple facilitation techniques gathered from my own experience and a talented group of professional trainers and facilitators. …

Leaning in

My husband, J, is a long-distance cyclist. He cycles year-round, challenging himself constantly with various aspects, from more base miles and faster sprints, to bigger hills.

When we moved to the Gulf Coast, his only hills became the occasional bridge. But what we lost in altitude challenges, we made up for with wind along the coast. You would think that you could take advantage, riding out against the headwind so it would push you home. But somehow, it never works that way. The wind always seems to reverse as soon as you shift direction.

This doesn’t phase J — to him, headwinds are training winds. His perspective is that the wind gives him the opportunity to become a stronger bicyclist. It does not diminish his experience at all, it enhances it. …

Using Value Stream mapping for process improvements

Interested in increasing team empowerment and decreasing or eliminating handoffs?

Need a way to ‘see’ the work and improve flow and organizational design?

Want to align a leadership team by improving the flow of value across divisions or organizations?

Value Stream Mapping can be a powerful tool to improve planning, performance, and organizational design. It’s not just for manufacturing; it can bring clarity and insight to any workflow, service, or process. Unlike process flows, value stream mapping visualizes where the wait, waste, and redundancies are.

A value stream can show:

a) All the systems used in planning and transitioning the work to a dev…