#BLAUGUST2023 DIFFUSION FRENZY

We are starting a project at work and, despite a lack of influence, my colleague and I are concerned about the rate in which the end result will be adopted by our audience. We worry that our current target will fail to inspire or serve the needs of its users. I believe the concept is referred to as production diffusion or adoption, and I am rapidly growing my knowledge on the subject in preparation for arguments to be had.

#BLAUGUST2023 ASYNCHRONOUS ENGAGEMENT GAMES

I don’t currently supervise, but I am encouraged to do things to support the team’s morale and build up our shared engagement. Recently, I saw a game called MonsDRAWsity for sale on Amazon and decided to grab it. The game includes a deck of cards, each depicting a unique monster, and some drawing tools. However, I bought it specifically as an “asynchronous engagement game”. In plain English: a game we play together but not simultaneously that is supposed to make work more fun.

#BLAUGUST2023 WRESTLING WITH OUR BETTER SELVES

We all have our passions. I started this Micro.blog to talk about the my intersection between games and project management. However, in the interest of Blaugust, I thought I’d expand subject matter just a bit further to briefly talk about another thing I enjoy: wrestling. In particular, I love AEW (All Elite Wrestling) and have for several years. This includes posters, shirts, action figures, attending shows, and watching every pay-per-view!

#BLAUGUST2023 CONFERENCE CALLING

I have never been to a conference. I used to think that was a good thing - avoiding the people, the travel, the socializing - but lately not so much. I am debating attending a big project manager conference in the Fall. Work may cover it, but I qualify for a good rate regardless and I can afford it. It is difficult for me wanting to intentionally put myself in these sorts of situations.

#BLAUGUST2023 THE "YOU ALLOWED WHAT" EDITOR BLUES

I recently reviewed the manual for a training program at work that has been in place for several years. It has me asking one big question, “Do others notice a lack of quality or do they just avoid saying anything?” In my review, I found screenshots of Excel tables (you can tell because the Excel controls were captured in the screenshot or, more egregiously, one had a red line under a word that needed attention).

#BLAUGUST2023 TO TRACK A MOVIE

I track every movie my wife and I watch. We could use a service like Letterboxd, but my spreadsheet is plenty. We rate each movie we watch on a scale of -3 to 3 (the closer to zero, the more forgettable, bland, or unappealing). In 2023, we’ve watched 73 movies, with an average score of 1.73 (me) and 1.66 (her). The average release date currently rests at 1998, largely because we also watch older movies too.

STARS, WISHES, AND PROJECT TEAMS

Stars & Wishes is a popular tool for Tabletop Roleplaying Games (like Dungeons & Dragons). At the conclusion of a game session, the facilitator calls for stars and wishes. Each participant is expected to name at least one star and one wish. A star is someone who did something interesting, performed exceptionally, or stood out in some other way. A wish is something the participant hopes to see in future game sessions.

Playing games takes time. Longer games take more time. Games, by design, want to be played and don’t care how long you spend doing it. How do make sure we put in enough time to make progress but not so much time that it is 4am and you have work in a few hours? Timeboxing Timeboxing is a basic time management technique often used in Agile project management. Essentially, you assign a maximum amount of time for a task, assign when you will do it, and you don’t break from that.