1. Listen. A great lesson for many of life’s situations, but listening is a key in leadership. Hearing the expectations of upper management, the concerns and ideas of the team and getting feedback from the company or organization in general is invaluable. Building surveys and interviews into the process will give some beefy information.
2. Communicate. It is up to the team leader to take initiative to communicate often, thoroughly, timely and succinctly. To keep the team engaged and encouraged, consistent communication from you breathes life into the process and helps to keep the team objectives front burner.
3. Plan. Planning is huge and encompassing for team leadership. Developing and continually revising issues, tasks, milestones, team meetings and reporting mechanisms is critical.
4. Report. Invest time into report creation. Monthly reports are a summary of the process and are a good accountability structure. I leverage the time to tie-up loose ends and advance objectives in the process of report creation. Keeping the next report in mind with every task helps in staying the course when issues arise that would become a side eddy for the teams efforts.
5. Illustrate. Nothing like pretty pictures to tell a story. Illustrations, graphs, charts, wireframes all help to paint the picture that both the team and leadership need to see.
6. Work hard. Team leadership requires a level of committment and industry that is not for the faint at heart. More responsibility than authority, more service than honor, but it can be a fascinating process to see something concrete develop through the course of the project.
7. Be diplomatic. Issues such as the development timeline, objectives, structure and features are often negotiable with a bit of diplomacy. The reporting structure provides a means to address key issues along with ad hoc meetings with key stakeholders.
8. Make no assumptions. Everyone has the best intentions in a team meeting. Follow-up and building-in accountability structures will help folks stay on task.
9. Research. Know your subject well as you will now be seen as an expert. The more you know the better communicator you will be.
10. Share the load. It’s called a team for a reason. Engaging all the team members in the process is critical for it’s success.

There are undoubtably many more takeaways I’ll gain from this experience. Hopefully, I can keep these points in mind as the project moves forward. There are so many good lessons to learn from leadership. Any thoughts come to your mind? I’m always in the market for good pointers.

My youngest and I built castles in the sand. How marvelous it is to spend the day with a five year-old rediscovering what ornate configurations can be shaped and molded in the terrain with ones hands.

This act of building sand castles brought to mind the day-to-day activities of my life. In many respects, much of what I do can be equated to little more than constructing castles of sand. Sure, the castles in my life may stand a bit longer than a few hours waiting for the tide to sets in, but those structures are temporary nonetheless. Yes, the hours of laboring away to build for the future matters little at the end of the day. Accomplishments, goals achieved, deadlines met all amount to something akin to a sand castle.

The magic, the wonder of life is found in the company of those I join in to construct the edifice. The time with my daughter reminded me that laughter and smiles, the joy of building something together is the real prize with the sand castle as little more than an illusion. Whether it be laboring at work or engaging with my family in daily activities, the real prize is partnering in friendship. The gift is in the giving of ones life for others, for something greater than oneself.

I will never tire of hearing the invitation of one of my daughters saying, "Daddy let’s play…" How important a task it must be. The prize is the doing, the goal is just a great excuse.

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So I’ve been pondering this issue of creative proliferation that drives much of what makes-up a decent blog post. Nothing too overly profound, I think the creative flow is like a sponge. The more time there is to soak-up thoughts and ideas through reading, contemplation and experimentation gives birth to new thoughts, new ideas. These new ideas serve towards some valuable information that is worth sharing. It’s a fascinating process, one I richly enjoy.

I’ve noticed in times of high demand for creative juices at work the sponge can get dry if it’s coupled by a harried schedule, other outside stresses and a change in routine of some sort. Life rhythms get out of balance and more energy is required to bring things back into a normal stride.

The shift of seasons has had an effect on my creative process. Family rhythms have changed with school back in session. The weather is changing and the hectic pace of the Fall is now in full swing.

What have you noticed about your posting rhythms? Is there one key aspect that affects your creativity? Or do you find a specific combination of positive or negative elements to peak or valley your flow?

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While it would be difficult to write a complete list, some of the things I’ve learned from blogging include:

1. It is hard, if not impossible, to predict how people will respond to posts. I’ve written some posts that I thought were real zingers that just lay there. Others, that I thought had much less expectation garnered much greater response.
2. Blogging is fun. I’ve blogged in the past but something struck me through this process that has made it really enjoyable. Maybe it’s being a part of blogging communities like MyBlogLog, maybe it’s that I put more attention to it and stuck with it long enough to gain readership.
3. Publishing a blog is work. Yes, the tools developed now make it easier than ever, but getting a blog up-and-running and keeping it alive with fresh information takes time, thought and hard work.
4. I’ve met some really wonderful friends through blogging from all over the globe. This has been a delightful side effect that I was not expecting from the beginning, but there are a good number of people that I’ve met that I’ve developed a measure of ongoing correspondence.
5. One of the best ways to improve ones writing is to blog consistently. I average about 20 posts a month, which is around 5 posts a week. In addition to comments and correspondence, that is a good amount of writing. The process for writing a blog requires a higher level of thought in structure, content and presentation than most typical writing for work.
6. People appreciate fresh, original content creation. Authenticity cannot be faked and blogs that are poorly written with rehashed information or media are obvious to everyone.
7. Ideas are everywhere. When you get in the mode of looking for something to write about, things pop-out from many sources. Sometimes it’s a conversation at work, others something read online or experiences with friends. What makes blogging so fascinating is the ability to take the most unusual aspects of ones life and relay that information to others.
8. Being an online communicator is a two-way street. Being quick to respond to comments, visiting and commenting on others blogs is a highly interactive experience. Blogging can make one reachable, which is part of the appeal for readers.
9. Blogging is a smart career move. Developing an online voice promotes oneself as a competent professional.
10. Blogging becomes part of your daily life. Not just a past-time, it’s a passion and a pursuit. My life is richer for it.

To all my dear friends that write blogs with passion and excellence, thank you for making my life richer. Welcome aboard new readers. Let’s grow and learn together.

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The day, long in coming has arrived, departing to a land that is a drive but will be a flight from the drone of life. With mirth, marvel, mystery and myth, we venture off to a place much missed. What we will do is yet to be, what we will miss is small misery of the day-in and day-out of life. You see, it is for life here we take our respit there, to recharge, renew and find comfort in the verdant lands. Perhaps some creatures we may meet, a unicorn, giant, prince or one of wizardry. Or it may be ourselves we greet, talk a while, laugh and sing. We will chat with one another and bring the most marvellous gifts we possess, ourselves to each other, to this very thing, this practice too distant known as vacationing. Yes, this trifle post is but a glimpse of the passage there and hence with little desire to continue conversation and normal contemplation. You, yes you I will miss, for richer man than I, I have yet to sense, would find more delightful folk than those of you who wander through these ruminations. All that be known, I may not be answering comments ever so quickly. However, and this be known, yes this be true, I will respond to each of you. Do not think though I’m away, my intentions for you would stray. I may peak-in and even say hello, or maybe no. Take heart my friends, in a week or so, I will emerge with new gifts to bring, my mind renewed, my soul revived and spirit very much alive.

Yesterday, I sat down and updated my resume and posted it to Portfolio. It’s something I try to do every year or so as I figure it’s just a good idea. It took me less time to revise even though I had more to pack-in on two pages. It should be that way. As we move through life and pick-up experience we grow our skills and experience.

I’ve picked-up or improved on other skills as of late. My guitar picking has improved, I’m learning how to garden and am finding more enjoyment in written communication.

Age also brings perspective. I move a little slower than I used to, am a little more thoughtful and less impulsive and I think a little more compassionate and patient with people.

I do find that my strengths and weaknesses seem to be more pronounced. I am more engaged in creative work but loath redundancy and routine. I’m fighting against the mid-life muck that some call a crisis. I see life as too short to stand by and ride through like a cog caught in a system. I want to live until I die, to the very end.

Einstein’s Special Theory of Relativity says essentially that time is elastic. I believe it. It’s true in the cosmos, but I believe it’s real in our lives as well. I spent a decade of my life one year living in the middle east. I spent a day of my life this past month working at my job. The Bible says that a thousand years is like a day to God.

The most amazing thing for me in living is spending my life getting to know the One who created me. This God who created the universe 14 billion years ago, that set in motion a continual expansion of the galaxies, is beyond comprehension.

When it’s all said and done and my time here on earth is through, I’m going to look back on my life and what is written in my resume will turn to dust. What’s written in the hearts of my children and the people I touch will live on well beyond my years. That’s what living is to me.

That place I go to when life throws a curve ball that I don’t catch. Sometimes it just smacks. That place is a song I play on the guitar, strumming "Jamaica Farewell". It’s a cold mountain morning, it’s the summer sun on an island beach. That place is a shade covered road in the hills beyond cities reach. It’s a stroll through the streets of old Istanbul. That place is the memories of dusty Managua streets, it’s dining on a Greek island, it’s wine tasting in Monterrey, it’s a lightening storm in the Black Hills, it’s beer in a pub in Portland, it’s a Chicago pizza. That place is locations yet visited, friends yet made and adventures yet lived. That place is larger than life and greater than pain, toil or disappointment. That place is the heart and soul of lovers and romantics that know myth and legend is more real than the front page news. Come and go with me friends to that place. Your place will be different, known by some, understood by few. Go there anyway, you’ll be glad you did. Let’s go.

Note: Photo by my dear friend Billy Ray from www.sxc.hu. Thanks Billy!