Bloging and Writing--A Success Story (and a fun movie)

Bloging can certainly lead to writing and publishing, and for Julie Powell, it led to both a book and a movie.  I saw Julie and Julia for the first time today courtesy of Netflix.  Wikipedia.org has an entry about the movie and there is a blog that looks like the one in the movie.  The book is available from Amazon.com.  (I certainly enjoyed the movie, by the way.  Thanks, Julie.)

I started this blog on August 10, 2009.  One of my original goals was to have the discipline to do a daily blog that will allow me to begin publishing.  I have several partially completed books and, like Julie Powell in the Julie and Julia movie, I wanted a more reduced time-line.  Julie Powell focused on "365 days and 524 recipes".  I was more open-ended and, as a consequence, do not have as focused a product as Julie's blog.

I've had some feedback from friends which have helped me clean-up my blog entries and conversations with these friends and more have given me lots of ideas to post in this blog.  Every day I ask myself what I'm going to write about and the day always brings something forward.

I never know how many people are reading the blog and I post entries which can help anyone who reads it.  It is helping me to maintain my focus.

My plan is to look at my blog when I have 180 or so posts (or more) and to see if there are related blogs which could be chapters.  I'm not sure how much editing I'll need to do and we'll see.  I am an electronic publisher and can publish my book whenever I think it's ready.  So far, that "being ready" has been a challenge.

I looked at the summary of my blog--seen at the top of each page--and believe that my posts are delivering on the intention presented in that summary.  I'm glad to see that Julie Powell has a success story from her bloging efforts.  That holds more hope for me.

Creating Roadblocks to Sucess with Processes and Technology

Research has indicated that people becoming adults in the 21st century will change careers at least 12 times and jobs even more frequently.  In today's job markets, many organizations, Internet job boards, and headhunters rely on Internet-based search engines to scan resumes, sort through information, and prescreen job candidates from thousands of applicants.  Many of these organizations are creating roadblocks to success by the way they require job seekers to enter data into the systems they use for prescreening candidates. 

The University of Chicago's job profile process is looking for the last four jobs held--regardless of whether or not those jobs relate to the job posting they are trying to fill.  Many of the larger firms require a chronological resume and, potentially, a list of all previous employers to fill job openings using the technology adopted by the organization.

These same electronic screening software programs are not designed to make sense of functional resumes.  The University of Chicago and other organizations will have a hard time filling open positions when they trust the information generated by their own data collection systems.  These organizations place an over-reliance on outdated data collection and sorting systems that do not provide relevant information to decision-makers trying to fill these open positions.  Frequently positions remain open for months.

Success Comes from Small Choices for Positive Action

We make small choices every day that lead to the harvest we experience in our lives on a daily basis.  We often make these choices without thinking.  Should I stay in bed just five minutes more in the morning?  Should I show my family I love and value them as I run out the door to work or to school?  Should I use my time wisely in traffic?  Should I exercise in ways that promote the health of my body?  Should I eat in ways that promote the health of my body?  What is my purpose?  Is the work I do aligned with my purpose?  If not, what should I do about that?

I enjoy water aerobics and, more recently, aqua pilates.  I try to get to the indoor pool every day for some healthy exercise.  I'm also watching what I eat, making more healthy choices--though not yet at 100%.  Recently I had an opportunity to look at some work opportunities that were not fully aligned with my purpose in life and was able to redirect my action away from opportunities that go against my values.

Organization DNA?

Organizations have a DNA. It's sometimes hard to see and it can be identified when you know what you are looking for. One of the clearest examples from my memory was in a global manufacturer who was a consulting client several years ago. My team was conducting a change management survey for the client and we quickly saw that the DNA of the organization included a true valuing of the entrepreneural ("cowboy") spirit. The organization grew by finding successful entrepreneural smaller companies and adding them to their corporate structure. Each of the parts of the now large organization still had a recognizable culture and values and ways to manage power and information. The company's executive team had decided to implement a new computer system that would centralize all of the information and would keep many of the entrepreneural employees away from the information that had been their power base. What that could mean is that the computer system intended to help the organization make more timely and effective decisions and to communicate with all of its components would actually be destroying the trust of its leaders and be undermining the effectiveness of the subordinate units.

What is the DNA of your organization? How can you find it?
You can begin by tracking what you see in electronic folders. If you see a problem, put it in an electronic folder and keep on with your day. After a while, look at the problems you have captured and look for any common elements. Those common elements may point you toward your Organizational DNA.

Why is it important to recognize Organizational DNA?
If you want to keep your organization healthy, dynamic, and growing, you need to understand its DNA and to work with it. If you decide to do a "transplant" of something opposed to your DNA, the organization will "reject it" (the way tissue transplants are sometimes rejected by the human body). You need to work with your Organizationial DNA and your proposed changes to make sure that there is a good fit and blend if you intend to remain healthy and dynamic.

Let me know when you begin to look for your Organization's DNA.