Shipulski On Design

Archive for March, 2025

It doesn’t take much to make a difference, but if you don’t recognize the need to make one, you won’t make one.

When you’re in a meeting, watch and listen. If someone is quiet, ask them a question. My favorite is “What do you think?” Your question says you value them and their thinking, and that makes a difference. Others will recognize the difference you made, and that may inspire them to make a similar difference at their next meeting.

When you see a friend in the hallway, look them in the eyes, smile, and ask them what they’re up to.  Listen to their words but more importantly watch their body language.  If you recognize they are energetic, acknowledge their energy, ask what’s fueling them, and listen.  Ask more questions to let them know you care.  That will make a difference.  If you recognize they have low energy, tell them, and then ask what that’s all about.  Try to understand what’s going on for them.  You don’t have to fix anything to make a difference, you have to invest in the conversation.  They’ll recognize your genuine interest and that will make a difference.

If you remember someone is going through something, send them a simple text –  “I’m thinking of you.”  That’s it.  Just say that.  They’ll know you remembered their situation and that you care.  And that will make a difference.  Again, you don’t have to fix anything.  You just have to send the text.

Check in with a friend.  That will make a difference.

When you learn someone got a promotion, send them a quick note.  Sooner is better, but either way, you’ll make a difference.

Ask someone if they need help.  Even if they say no, you’ve made a difference.  And if they say yes, help them.  That will make a big difference.

And here’s a little different spin.  If you need help, ask for it.  Tell them why you need it and explain why you asked them.  You’ll demonstrate vulnerability and they’ll recognize you trust them.  Difference made.  And your request for help will signal that you think they’re capable and caring.  Another difference made.

It doesn’t take much to make a difference.  Pay attention and take action and you’ll make a difference.  But really, you’ll make two differences. You’ll make a difference for them and you’ll make a difference for yourself.

Image credit — Geoff Henson

When planning a project, we usually start with a traditional left-to-right schedule. On the left is the project’s start date, where tasks are added sequentially rightward toward completion. When all the tasks are added and the precedence relationships shift tasks rightward, the completion date becomes known. No one likes the completion date, but it is what it is until we’re asked to pull it in.

I propose a different approach – a reverse schedule.  Instead of left to right, the reverse schedule moves right to left.  It starts with the completion date on the right and stacks tasks backward in time toward today. The start date emerges when all the tasks are added and precedence relationships work their magic.  Where the traditional schedule tells us when the project will finish, the reverse schedule tells us when we should start.  And, usually, the reverse schedule says we should have started several months ago and the project is already late.

There are some subtle benefits of the reverse schedule.  It’s difficult to game the schedule and reduce task duration to achieve a desired start date because the tasks are stacked backward in time. (Don’t believe me?  Give it a try and you’ll see.)  And because the task duration is respectful of the actual work content, the reverse schedule is more realistic.  And when there’s too much work in a reverse schedule, the tasks push their way into the past and no one can suggest we should go back in time and start the project three months ago.  And since the end date is fixed, we are forced to acknowledge there’s not enough time to do all the work.  The beauty of the reverse schedule is it can tell us the project is late BEFORE we start the project.

Here’s a rule: You want to know you’re late before it’s too late.

The real power of the reverse schedule is that it creates a sense of urgency around starting the project.  In the project planning phase, a delay of a week here and there is no big deal. But, when the start date slips a day, the completion date slips a day.  The reverse schedule clarifies the day-for-day slip and helps the resources move the project sooner so the project can start sooner.  And those of us who run projects for a living know this is a big deal.  What would you pay for an extra two weeks at the end of a project that’s two weeks behind schedule?  Well, if you started two weeks sooner, you wouldn’t need the extra time.

The project doesn’t start when the project schedule says it starts.  The project starts when the resources start working on the project in a full-time way.  The reverse schedule can create the sense of urgency needed to get the critical resources moved to the project so they can start the work on time.

Image credit — Steve Higgins

Tariffs.  Economic uncertainty.  Geopolitical turmoil.  There’s no time for elegance.  It’s time for the art of the possible.

Give your sales team a reason to talk to customers.  Create something that your salespeople can talk about with customers.  A mildly modified product offering, a new bundling of existing products, a brochure for an upcoming new product, a price reduction, a program to keep prices as they are even though tariffs are hitting you.  Give them a chance to talk about something new so the customers can buy something (old or new).

Think Least Launchable Unit (LLU). Instead of a platform launch that can take years to develop and commercialize, go the other way.  What’s the minimum novelty you can launch? What will take the least work to launch the smallest chunk of new value?  Whatever that is, launch it now.

Take a Frankensteinian approach. Frankenstein’s monster was a mix and match of what the good doctor had scattered about his lab.  The head was too big, but it was the head he had.  And he stitched onto the neck most crudely with the tools he had at his disposal.  The head was too big, but no one could argue that the monster didn’t have a head.  And, yes, the stitching was ugly, but the head remained firmly attached to the neck.  Not many were fans of the monster, but everyone knew he was novel.  And he was certainly something a sales team could talk about with customers.  How can you combine the head from product A with the body of product B?  How can you quickly stitch them together and sell your new monster?

Less-With-Far-Less. You’ve already exhausted the more-with-more design space.  And there’s no time for the technical work to add more.  It’s time for less.  Pull out some functionality and lots of cost.  Make your machines do less and reduce the price.  Simplify your offering and make things easier for your customers.  Removing, eliminating, and simplifying usually comes with little technical risk.  Turning things down is far easier than turning them up.  You’ll be pleasantly surprised how excited your customers will be when you offer them slightly less functionality for far less money.

These are trying times, but they’re not to be wasted. The pressure we’re all under can open us up to do new work in new ways.  Push the envelope. Propose new offerings that are inelegant but take advantage of the new sense of urgency forced.

Be bold and be fast.

Image credit — Geoff Henson

Building trust takes time.  Tearing it apart does not.

Seeing what is there is easy.  Seeing what is missing is not.

Concentrating is easy for some.  For others, daydreaming is not.

Bringing your whole self to work takes courage.  Pretending does not.

Hearing is easy.  Listening is not.

Trying is subjective.  Doing is not.

Telling the truth is appreciated.  Done unskillfully, it is not.

Singing is easy for some.  For others, not singing is not.

Going fast can be good.  Going too fast cannot.

Hearing what is said is easy.  Hearing what is withheld is not.

Finishing takes a long time.  Quitting should not.

Image credit — Mike Keeling