Using email to make decisions asynchronously and deliver projects with distributed teams

Over the last couple of years I've seen a rise in remote and distributed teams. Sometimes they span pretty big timezone gaps (my own team is a prime example, covering US Eastern, Central European, India Standard, and Australia Eastern). With smart people working on things together but separately and asynchronously, reliable coordination becomes extra important. … Continue reading Using email to make decisions asynchronously and deliver projects with distributed teams →

The one productivity tip that broke my heart and left me weeping for days

I looked at my phone, and she looked back at me, in black and white. So delicate and beautiful. Like a ghost. It was the beginning of summer, and we’d been trying to take a little time away. At the last minute we’d found a reasonable AirBnB on one of the lesser visited islands off … Continue reading The one productivity tip that broke my heart and left me weeping for days →

4 takeaways from 2 years of running virtual events and experiences

In the last 2 years I’ve run all kinds of events and experiences using a virtual, distributed delivery method. Many of them were originally designed to be delivered in meatspace. I’ve run a virtual conference for over 1200 people; twice. The strategy summit that was to bring together 300+ of my company’s most senior leaders … Continue reading 4 takeaways from 2 years of running virtual events and experiences →

What I learned from creating a global distributed team building exercise for thousands of people with no budget

Think back to the last team building exercise you were involved in. It probably involved bringing your team together for a challenge of some kind, maybe with food and drinks during or afterwards. Even the best team building exercises can both expensive and at least a little bit awkward. That’s because a lot of team … Continue reading What I learned from creating a global distributed team building exercise for thousands of people with no budget →

How to identify and nurture impactful communities in the workplace

A big part of what drew me to open source was the idea that the movement was built around a community. Having grown up in church, summer camp, and hostels, I knew that participating in communities made me feel like I was at home (I also come from a big family). In the 2020s the … Continue reading How to identify and nurture impactful communities in the workplace →

Two key attributes of a good call to action (and one bonus attribute)

I was in one of the office hours that are part of the online influence development bootcamp I run. As part of that participants work on at least one blog post. One of the participants asked about how to write a good call to action (CTA). Not an afterthought He wanted something that didn't feel … Continue reading Two key attributes of a good call to action (and one bonus attribute) →

Use the 3 act structure to write quality blog posts consistently and easily

I write a lot of blog posts. I work as a communications strategist, and find that a blog post often hits a sweet spot as a way to convey important information. Just good enough blogging Blog posts are usually long enough to provide context, durable enough to come back too, editable for when things change, … Continue reading Use the 3 act structure to write quality blog posts consistently and easily →