Optimizing By Not Optimizing

on 23 September 0 Comment

I like to scroll and read, and come across a lot of nuggets that I think aha, and then forget about. Some things float to the top, and when they do, it’s really important to write them down in a good place because inevitably I’ll forget where to find them.

So today, I went back and retrieved some of these –

https://hbr.org/2023/06/to-build-a-top-performing-team-ask-for-85-effort
Came across this by scrolling through LinkedIn, thanks to the network for highlighting this. You never know how much impact the ripple effect, especially among the lurkers.

By accepting that we don’t have to be “ON” all the time, not 110%, not 200%, which aren’t even mathematically realistic, and knowing that you have some room for errors, downtime, doesn’t change anything and yet changes everything.

I took a business class flight (which sparked a new youtube channel) with my daughter for the first time (a 16-hr flight to put in context), and of course the first thing that came to mind was if the extra cost was worth it.  Which brought back to mind another quote I’ve read in James Clear’s Atomic Habits newsletter email –

Sasha Aickin, former CTO at Redfin, shares some financial advice from his grandmother:

“When you buy something cheap and bad, the best you’re going to feel about it is when you buy it. When you buy something expensive and good, the worst you’re going to feel about it is when you buy it.”

Source: Groupon’s Success Disaster

It comes back to optimizing at 85% or 100%. There will be times when we ‘lose’ money because we didn’t buy something on sale, bought something that didn’t fit, paid for a service not rendered. We can stress about it or accept it, focus on doing better, and spend on items that we actually would enjoy which is a form of optimization.

Power BI (yeah I will tie it back to Power BI :D), is usually enlisted for reports that show optimization. And to optimize this, go beyond the typical metrics and focus on the factors that will make an impact.

I am here to Optimize.
I am here to Optimize.

Keep it Simple with KISMET

on 04 July 0 Comment

Again and again, Keep it Simple makes a comeback. It’s back at work, and this morning I read this paragraph while scrolling –

“The one thing that everyone that hikes the Camino de Santiago does is to start out carrying too much stuff with us in our packs. There is nothing like walking miles and miles with a loaded backpack to help you figure out what is really important enough to carry on your back day after day, mile after mile.”
~Dennis Welton~

I did this when designing my first Power BI reports. I threw in all sorts of ways users could filter and manipulate the data and charts. And then through time and feedback, began to whittle down the options, remove pages and charts that weren’t being utilized. It was a learning process for both me as the designer and for the audience. The report viewers also needed to understand what was indeed useful for them, and not just what they thought they would want. In the end, the reports became simpler to update, use, understand and maintain.

So Keep it Simple. It’s good to drop the Stupid that was once there. Keeping it simple is actually the opposite. It shows mastery, empathy, and talent. And since I love acronyms, I’m going with this new one – KISMET.

  • Keep
  • It
  • Simple (with)
  • Mastery – knowledge of the subject matter is key
  • Empathy – understand your audience
  • Talent – leverage tools to their potential

 

Hello Spring! (Write it down #wid)

on 08 April 0 Comment

Well, it’s been a hot minute since the last post. Or a hazy winter. Whatever ideas I had in mind and meant to post have all just become dust in the wind.  Which brings me to the importance of writing it down #wid!

No matter how much you know something, write it down, if not for yourself, but for the people who around you, and those who come after you. What seems crystal clear at this very moment, will draw blanks at another time.  In fact, I just walked into the dining room to write a post (the computer is set up in the dining room of course), and promptly forgot why as I got distracted by a wet table that needed to be wiped down. Perks of getting older.

3 Reasons to write it down – #wid

  1. You’ll forget
  2. You won’t be always around to tell people who need to know
  3. Sharing is caring
Illustration of frustrated developer
Write it down! #wid

 

 

 

 

Holidaze

on 26 December 0 Comment

Holiday week for kids and some parents, hopefully a relaxing(?!) time???  Maybe, maybe not.  If not, perhaps a time of reflection of how to lessen the (self-imposed?) stresses of the holidays.  Starting with gift giving!  It reminds me of this recent post from Bas (highly recommend to follow his accounts linked below if you are into Power BI) about whether certain Power BI reports should exist.

Similar points can be made about gifts –

  • Does it make the receiver’s life better?
  • Is it better than what the receiver already has?
  • Does the value to the receiver outweigh the maintenance?

Sometimes less is more…

 

  https://www.youtube.com/@HowtoPowerBI

  https://twitter.com/HowToPowerBI

  https://www.linkedin.com/in/basdohmen/

Thanks for Giving

on 26 November 0 Comment

A post to be thankful for all the resources available with just some keystrokes!  Sometimes you are at 99% of your project being complete but you just need that extra bit of functionality to make it work.  And thanks to the internet, and the info sharing community, finding solutions is just that much easier.

So my turn to share a simple solution of how to Automatically Refresh Calculated Fields in SharePoint Lists. Surprisingly, calculated fields do not refresh unless there is a change to the list item.
examples:

  • Calculating a ‘Status’ based on some date conditions
  • Calculating the number of days it took a list item from start to completion

Using Power Automate, it’s possible to have a recurring task that will update respective list items in order to recalculate those fields with just a few steps –

  1. Create a hidden column – format as ‘Date’.  In this example, the field is named ‘Refresh’
  2. Determine which existing columns will serve as the criteria in your situation – the example will use the item Status (‘field_7’)
  3. Create a new flow in Power Automate
    • Use a recurring schedule.
    • Get Items and filter the query to the items to be recalculated
    • Update Items (adding ID from Dynamic Content will ‘Apply to each’) with today’s date (Expression ‘utcNow()’) in the hidden ‘Refresh’ field.  This also serves as a way to confirm that the flow works.

Be mindful that these list items will then show a modification date by the flow owner.

Hope this helps!

So Tell Me About Yourself

on 22 October 0 Comment

Well, this blog is about Tips for the Everyday, so let’s look at what it takes to interview. Colleges should definitely make this a required course prior to graduating, as well as companies for their own employee development.  I am realizing that I have lot of work to do in this area, so I am learning to –

Be SPY

  • Be Specific
  • Be Prepared
  • Be Yourself

S

Be Specific – keep track of all your work and what your impact was.  Take the time to document and write them down – whether it’s for your annual review or for an interview, this will serve you well.  We all get busy, and move on quickly to the next project, but it’s good to take those few minutes and do a post-launch capture. Your interviewer or sometimes even your manager won’t know what you’ve accomplished and where you made an impact, so it’s up to you to let them know. They unfortunately won’t/can’t buy what you don’t sell.  Feeling impostor syndrome?  Think of it as sharing information versus marketing or sales. Keeping your work fresh in your mind should help address majority of the questions that will inevitably come your way.

Template suggestion:

  • Project Name:
  • Description:
  • Role:
  • Technical Skills applied:
  • Soft Skills applied:
  • Difficulties & Solutions:
  • Learnings:
  • Impact to Organization: man hours saved, $ saved/brought in, what did it enable, what risks did it lower, downtime averted, etc.

P

Be Prepared – That elevator pitch of who you are and why they need you specifically.  Add three more Ps for Practice Practice Practice.  Introverted like me?  300 Ps!!!  This is not the time to downplay your work.  Remember, your accomplishments only appear easy to yourself, and that’s because you’ve had years of experience and learning behind it.  Something that takes you 10 minutes, will take someone else days if at all.

From this youtube video, tips on what should be in your elevator pitch – don’t forget to think about it from the interviewer’s perspective as well –

  • Who you are
  • Why you’re qualified
  • Why you’re here

Y

Be Yourself – You want to make sure that you are bringing your authentic self.  You too are looking to find a match from an organization who will value you as you are as well as provide development.  So no matter how well your skills fit the role, if your personal being doesn’t mesh with the company and its people, the situation most likely won’t last very long, and discord will ensue.

Not looking for a job or a change, be prepared anyway!  Use this for your performance reviews and be proud of sharing your accomplishments.  Now that I’ve written this all down, time to take my own advice and work on myself.

 

Be SPY (specific, prepared, yourself), so you don’t bomb the interview!

 

 

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