Author Topic: What makes me crazy and annoyed..  (Read 456574 times)

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #580 on: October 14, 2014, 04:02:40 PM »
I do remember the F series...they were housed in IBM beige racks.
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Offline Rhino

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #581 on: October 15, 2014, 06:53:54 AM »
More on the subject of meetings...

An excellent article on meetings on Linkedin by Jeff Denneen

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20141013220246-169567318-let-s-fix-it-kill-the-weekly-meeting?trk=eml-mktg-inf-m-fixit-1015-p1

Let's Fix It: Kill the Weekly Meeting

Dilbert’s pointy-haired boss goes ballistic when challenged about the value of the day’s big meeting: “I called this meeting, and it’s not a meeting until someone’s time gets wasted!”

That’s not far from the truth, though the motivation for meetings at most large companies is usually more benign. A few years ago, a leading technology company saw its profitability and productivity declining. It surveyed 30,000 employees worldwide to determine how to improve organizational effectiveness. Employees responded that only 54 percent of the time spent in meetings was time well spent. They cited unclear meeting purpose, unnecessary standing meetings, overly long meetings and unnecessary attendees as reasons for unproductive meetings.

Too many people get together without really knowing why, simply because it was on their weekly schedules. Admit it, you’ve been there. You’ve probably called some of those meetings. I know I have.

What’s less obvious to people, however, is the ripple effect those unproductive meetings have on an organization, especially when top executives meet. My Bain colleague Michael Mankins and his team analyzed time use at one large company and found that people there spent 300,000 hours a year just supporting the weekly executive committee meeting. Using data-mining tools to analyze the Outlook schedules of everyone in the company, they found that the executive committee meeting required preparation and ancillary meetings by unit heads, senior advisers, teams ... and more teams. You get the point. The meeting prep radiates outward like a forest fire consuming widening circles of employees.

But meetings don’t have to get the best of you. You can manage them as closely as you manage every investment. Here are three things you can do:

Have a purpose. If you don’t know why you’re meeting, don’t meet! Most valuable meetings have one of three purposes: inform, discuss or decide. Before calling a meeting, think about whether you could inform people through a different medium, or use a tool to reach a decision. And take most standing meetings off your calendar, because they breed poor habits. If a meeting is truly the best alternative, be clear on its purpose and desired outcome.

Manage the invite list. In many companies, it’s bad form not to invite lots of people to a meeting. What people don’t realize is that every additional attendee adds cost and gets in the way. Remember the Rule of 7, which states that every attendee over a total of 7 reduces the likelihood of making a good, quick, executable decision by 10 percent. Once you hit 16 or 17 people, your potential for decision effectiveness is close to zero.

Don’t send delegates to meetings unless the purpose is solely to inform. Delegates are rarely empowered to actually do something, which means a “decision” meeting gets turned into a “discuss” meeting, which requires another decision meeting. If you can’t get the right people in the room, don’t have the meeting.

Change the default time. Not too long ago, most companies called 30-minute meetings. Now the typical default time has grown to 60 minutes, even though every additional minute generates a higher cost. How about a rule that says if a meeting lasts more than 90 minutes, it requires approval by an executive who is two levels above the convener?

A Bain colleague recounted recently how a U.S. undersecretary of defense in charge of procurement came to her first meeting with contractors and saw about 60 people in the room. She asked everyone to say who they were and why they were there. Participants rolled their eyes but did as she asked.

After the first two had identified themselves, the undersecretary said, “Thanks for your interest, but we won’t need you here. You can excuse yourself.” Others met a similar fate. By the time she got to the 10th person, others were getting up to leave, knowing they had no real reason to be there. Eventually the group comprised about 12 members — and the productivity of that meeting rose about fivefold.

Take a cue from this government leader. Once you do, your teams can focus on the most important issues, consider alternatives and make the best choices in the shortest amount of time.


Offline Cold Streak

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #582 on: October 15, 2014, 07:50:34 AM »
Ahem... back on topic.  What makes me crazy is listening to the so called experts telling us how safe we are from Ebola.  Meanwhile, more and more cases get reported and they seem to spread in ways which we were just told aren't possible. 

Don't want to start an ebola thread or a government is mostly useless thread, but it does make me crazy.

Offline gPink

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #583 on: October 15, 2014, 08:57:16 AM »
Ahem... back on topic.  What makes me crazy is listening to the so called experts telling us how safe we are from Ebola.  Meanwhile, more and more cases get reported and they seem to spread in ways which we were just told aren't possible. 

Don't want to start an ebola thread or a government is mostly useless thread, but it does make me crazy.
We've already got an ebola thread and the government is mostly useless thread is a recurring theme in the Arena.  :)

Offline twowheeladdict

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #584 on: October 15, 2014, 11:20:21 AM »
Women in general.   :o

Sometimes I can't wait until the sex drive goes away.   ???

Then I can just enjoy riding without complications.   ;)
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Offline Classvino

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #585 on: October 15, 2014, 11:28:09 AM »
>:(   Yes..you mean those IBM servers that don't get viruses, don't get hacked, reliability off the charts, easy to use and administrate, and in most Fortune 500 companies chugging away silently running back end applications? ;D

Wow. Neat to hear of other connie-riding iSeries (400) users...

I tell my Windows server loving friends much the same thing (as your quote above) whenever I can...    :stirpot:

I've been on IBM iSeries since they were called A/S 400's.  36's and 38's before that.   I started on a model A30, and worked on just about every model and size since...   Got a baby 400 (c10) in a closet somewhere here... 

Storage?  It's much better now than it used to be - we've come a long ways...

We're in the middle of an HA (high availability) project right now.  Again.  We discovered that if you pour 4000 gallons of water ran over - and through - iSeries racks, it messes things up a little bit. Who knew?  Thank God for H(igh) A(vailability) systems...

Jamie
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1983 CB1100F, 1977 GS850, 1974 KH750 H2, 1974 KH500 H1, 1975 KH400 S3, 1979 RD 400 Daytona......

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #586 on: October 15, 2014, 01:16:00 PM »
Not really a user..  I help technically sell, configure, and do post sales support.  Worked for IBM for 23 years as a fix it guy, then Systems Engineer...  Well, I take some of that back.  I worked for a company out of Gaithersburg, MD for a little over a year as an administrator but I went back to IBM (big mistake)...
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Offline Conrad

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #587 on: October 16, 2014, 06:55:25 AM »
Women in general.   :o

Sometimes I can't wait until the sex drive goes away.   ???

Then I can just enjoy riding without complications.   ;)

yours or hers?   :o
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Offline Cold Streak

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #588 on: October 16, 2014, 07:45:11 AM »
Quote
yours or hers?

Now isn't that a silly question?   ;D

Offline Conrad

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #589 on: October 17, 2014, 07:51:52 AM »
Women in general.   :o

Sometimes I can't wait until the sex drive goes away.   ???

Then I can just enjoy riding without complications.   ;)

yours or hers?   :o

Now isn't that a silly question?   ;D

Why yes it is!
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #590 on: October 28, 2014, 05:22:30 AM »
I work out of my home office for the most part.  I decided to put in one of those switches that senses motion so that it would turn off when I wasn't in the room.  What really drives me crazy is that it turns off while I'm in the office.  Have to wave my hands to make it come back on, yet if I walk out of it and don't go back in (no motion) it stays on and won't go off.  This, of course, drives me crazy.
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Offline Conrad

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #591 on: October 28, 2014, 05:24:41 AM »
I work out of my home office for the most part.  I decided to put in one of those switches that senses motion so that it would turn off when I wasn't in the room.  What really drives me crazy is that it turns off while I'm in the office.  Have to wave my hands to make it come back on, yet if I walk out of it and don't go back in (no motion) it stays on and won't go off.  This, of course, drives me crazy.

So that what turns off, your office or the work being done?    ;)

I know, I know...
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Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #592 on: October 28, 2014, 05:54:59 AM »
Both.
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voileauciel

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #593 on: October 30, 2014, 06:55:27 AM »
What makes me crazy and annoyed is paying egregious sums of money to be part of a "special club" where I am then told on numerous occasions how unwelcome I am in said "special club."

Needless to say, they ain't getting any more money from me.

Offline gPink

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #594 on: October 30, 2014, 07:00:39 AM »
You can be special here for free.  :chugbeer:

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #595 on: October 30, 2014, 07:15:21 AM »
No he can't.  We need either a shrubbery or a Guinness.....and I must say I'm leaning towards a Guinness at the moment.
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Offline gPink

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #596 on: October 30, 2014, 07:32:45 AM »
What? That last shrubbery request didn't pan out?

Offline Rhino

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #597 on: October 30, 2014, 07:43:04 AM »
Before you can have a Guinness you must cut down the largest tree in the forest with a herring.

Offline VirginiaJim

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #598 on: October 30, 2014, 08:53:12 AM »
Got trees, no herring.

What? That last shrubbery request didn't pan out?

Nope, very disappointed over that.  I keep looking when the UPS/Fedex trucks come by...but nothing.  :'(
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voileauciel

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Re: What makes me crazy and annoyed..
« Reply #599 on: October 30, 2014, 10:06:12 AM »
No he can't.  We need either a shrubbery or a Guinness.....and I must say I'm leaning towards a Guinness at the moment.

How's about a rose bush? My roomie's ex girlfriend planted this thing next to our garage, and now it's so big the blasted thing is growing everywhere.

I'm sure one o' yon married fellows' wives'd love that.  8)