Original Posting: March 4, 2008
Hi,
As many of you know, next week is a HUGE conference in Orlando, Florida. The comic strip above was created a few years ago when I was speaking at a different conference, but I wanted to re-post it for both the people who ARE and ARE NOT going to the conference.
The original posting addressed seven things I try to do to get the most value out of any conference setting. I encourage you to review those tips — or see them for the first time — here.
So… first… for those of you NOT going… I will be posting a lot of real time information of my happenings there via twitter (this is really micro-level blogging these days!) and on FaceBook for larger thoughts than just 140 characters. For those of you who know about hash tags and groups on Twitter and FaceBook… look into those.
Why is this important if you are NOT going?
You’ll get some great tidbits of information from me and a bunch of other people who will be on the ground there. Meeting. Face-to-Face. Hearing about stuff both inside and outside the Scrum World. Because this really is important to what we do on a daily basis.
And.
Last week I announced to my e-mail followers that I have listened and will not post much more than new (or re-purposed — like this one) comic strips about Implementing Scrum on this blog. For those of you interested in following my fun travel exploits (well, I think they are fun… but yeah… outside the scope of this!) and other stuff that I’ll blog about outside of Scrum — head over to www.michaelvizdos.com and subscribe via email (you’ll see how to do it there!). I will be adding an RSS Feed there soon, but it is not up yet.
For those of you who WILL be going — or know people who will be going — please review the seven tips here. Help pass on the word about these tips!
If you have more tips or suggestions — please add them to the comments section of this entry.
I am making the personal investment to head down to the conference to meet people — both new and those who I have not seen in a while.
I am not speaking at this conference.
For me, it is ALL about the networking. Meeting PEOPLE. Real People. Outside of the side of the screen you are reading now!
This is also one of the first postings in a long time on this site, and I know the important thing about this site is the comic strips and how they can help people start tough conversations.
Some of the toughest conversations always need to take place face-to-face.
It does not matter if you are heading to the conference or not… the important thing to reflect on with this comic strip is to make sure you get out into the world once in a while — especially in this industry.
A lot of changes are happening on a constant basis.
The updated focus of this blog going forward is to start reminding myself and you that it is VERY important to have tough conversations.
Get out there and start.
Maybe it is just with the person sitting next to you….
Or… Maybe we can meet face to face — contact me if you are interested!
Hi,
I sincerely apologize for not posting a lot of new information each week (like I used to do — with new comic strips and very useful write-ups).
Here are the top five impediments for me, and as I break through them the consistency of this site will pick up once again…..
1) Family. My father passed away in April. While I know it has been a long time, it is still an issue with me and I am working through it. I’ve also got some other pressing family matters that are being taken care of as I write this. You’ll learn more about that stuff in some upcoming posts.
2) FaceBook. I have found that using facebook is a very powerful medium to “meet” old and new friends for connections. I can be found there at http://www.facebook.com/ImplementingScrum.
3) Twitter. Wow. Talk about instant feedback. This is the place I can get it — and share with others immediately. If you are not connected to me there please take the time and do it here: http://twitter.com/mvizdos.
4) I have been traveling the world and one of the new things I am working on is another book. I should be under contract soon, so that takes some priorities away from available time for me.
5) Clients. And I want to say a sincere THANK YOU SO MUCH for connecting with me as either a potential client, current client, or new client. And. Thank you for paying me. I have seen such tremendous change in the world (and I have been around the world a LOT lately!) and really do see that — when applied correctly — Scrum can truly transform the way we work.
So.
That’s my list and I am sticking to it. As I slowly remove barriers in order to get out new comics — or use some of the almost 100 on the site with new write-ups and lessons learned — they will start coming again.
Thank you for being either an email subscriber or RSS reader.
Keep the comments coming.
Remember.
This site is for you — the Scrum Community!
Thank you.
- mike vizdos
www.michaelvizdos.com
www.implementingscrum.com
Hey all.
First, let me apologize for not getting the latest comic strip to you.
As I write this, I am reflecting on the past week (plus) where I traveled to London, did a free talk as soon as I landed, facilitated my first [awesome] CSM class in London, hopped back on a plane to the USA, spent the morning with my youngest kid, drove three hours south to Raleigh, NC, and have spent the past two days teaching one of the most advanced public class I have done in a while — and thank all the participants here for helping me up my own game.
And now.
I am cooked.
I am actually holding back driving to Richmond tonight so I do not wind up on the side of the road. Or rather, in a ditch somewhere.
So.
Cartoon.
Coming soon.
I’ll probably be “off the grid” for the next few days (see my facebook and twitter status – link to me via the sidebar on the right of the site) for blogging.
On Sunday I am headed to Boise, Idaho for an incredible group on Monday and Tuesday, then am heading over to Phoenix on Wednesday, where I teach Thursday and Friday. (www.michaelvizdos.com/enroll). It sounds like user group meetings will happen in each place I am.
So.
I am trying to keep the “balance” on in life (whatever that is), and accept responsibility for not “being there” for all you, constant readers.
I hope there is a lesson in it for all of us 
.
Keep pluggin’ along where you are.
You are making a difference!
- mike
www.michaelvizdos.com
www.implementingscrum.com
Hi,
Last week I spent a lot of time on improving my own skills… so we’ll see how that plays out in the future!
I have been talking about connecting people looking for Scrum Jobs with REAL people who have Scrum Job Openings in their Organization.
Over the past few weeks I have been silently getting names of people who are looking for Scrum Jobs. I expect now that anyone who visits www.implementingscrum.com/scrum-jobs and is looking for a job WILL go out and do this. NOW.
Also… and here is the challenge… if you are in an organization who is looking for a person with Scrum Jobs skills, please go to www.implementingscrum.com/scrum-jobs and see if I can help you make a connection.
What is the fee for this?
FREE. Zero. Zilch. Nada.
Why am I doing this?
Mainly good Karma.
Pass it on! Twitter this link. Retwitter it if you see it. Put it up on FaceBook. E-mail it to your friends. Start to create some buzzzzzz for this. Please.
So… can you help me meet the challenge of actually making the ultimate hook-up of at least one person looking for a Scrum Job with a person in an organization who needs a qualified person here.
Transparency.
Trust.
Walking what I teach…
Let’s see how it works!
Good luck.
- mike vizdos
www.michaelvizdos.com
www.implementingscrum.com
Hi all,
[warning -- a little bit long -- over 802.13453223 words -- sorry]
This week has been instrumental in helping me get some great clarity of where I am taking the site in the future. Some people I know missed my original posting earlier this week — so if you did not read them go back a few posting to see what has lead to this posting tonight!
I am headed out this weekend (a camping trip with my two boys) and will return on Monday afternoon.
And.
I have no travel plans for next week.
So here is the Product Backlog for the site (prioritized, not estimated yet) — we’ll see what makes it to the Sprint Backlog for next week.
1) Cartoons – Publish one translated (of the original chicken and pig) along with a new one (this is actually on Sprints!). We have three more comic strips in the pipeline for release on the blog in the future.
2) Job Board – The infrastructure is setup. Now we need about 3-5 people to help bring it to fruition. I need to schedule a call or start an email thread with those who are interested in helping me on this project. If you are, please contact me and you’ll hear from me early next week.
3) Training Material – The infrastructure is setup. I need to publish the rollout plan for making this happen and start implementing it next week by people signing up for a new list. The goal will be to get people enough information on an on-going basis that they can then take it back to their locations and deliver it with ease. Options will include FREE, a subscription to talk to the trainers who are developing this (and recorded web-casts), and of course on-site paid consultation with me and other trainers to help you jump-start the tailoring process and we will work with you hand-in-hand to develop and even co-teach the class with you. The free information will be just as good as the other available options… I promise that! I’ll need you to keep me honest on that!
4) Remember that “Scrum on a Page” that I asked for comments on a few months ago. Wow. I had so much information to synthesize that I am now ready to meet with Tony and have him do a “Implementing Scrum” overhaul on it to match the site. This will become the cornerstone of the site and will be used in multiple ways. I am super-excited about this! And. It will not be perfect; however, just like the theme of our site, we need to have something to start those tough conversations. I think this will hit that mark!
5) Build a small affiliate program. As many of you know, I travel a LOT around the world. One of the ways this is possible is by making sure I can sell seats into the workshops (or create billable consulting hours). If you are interested in becoming an affiliate for selling seats into my classes — or even consulting engagements — this is the time for you to contact me and let me know your interest. The model rocks, and will be rolled out soon too.
6) I am in need of a developer to help me take an XML file and run it through some sort of converter so that I do not have to manually create the page www.michaelvizdos.com/enroll. I have access to the XML file and I’d like the output to look similar to what is out there today. This is something that just irks me because the data is available and without automation we have dual work to do (bad thing!).
7) I need to port the site www.michaelvizdos.com to a wordpress site. The infrastructure is setup. Just time is needed to actually do it. Fun stuff. But… I need to keep driving revenue from that site and keeping the implementingscrum.com site as free from advertisers as possible (I hope you enjoy that it REALLY does not have any advertising except for some things about me.
I need a few people who can commit to checking the forum a few days per week and making sure that spam does not get interjected. I have been really bad at checking this on a regular basis and know the forum is an important place for REAL people using Scrum to exchange information. Interested? Please let me know. I’d appreciate it.
So, this is the PRODUCT backlog of what I have going on just for the site. This is in addition to all the traveling I am currently doing and plan on doing in the future.
Have a great weekend!
If you have any input on the priority of things listed above, please comment about it here and I will listen to all my stakeholders (you) [smile].
Thank you, again, for everything you do.
- mike vizdos
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